“I’m expecting you to live up to your name and whop their butts. You hear me? Fight with your friends, then we’ll find each other again. What is the name of the village where I will find your friends?”
“Travel to Maidstone village. Ask to speak to anyone at the House of Ghan. Tell them Leo sent you and you are my mate. They will help you. Are you certain about this?”
Leo’s tension communicated itself in his voice. He hated her suggestion.
“Drop me to give us both a chance to survive.”Liza hoped like hell she was speaking the truth. Leo had become vital to her in the scant time they’d known each other. He and Joanna plus Cherry and Rena and her dad were the ones who mattered.“Now, Leo.”
As she spoke, he changed his flight path. He still flew toward Perfume Isle, but on a downward trajectory. As he flew closer to the sea, she tensed, certain this was a crazy idea, but unable to think of another way to ensure they survived. Those soldier dragons flying behind them looked mean, and they crept closer with every beat of their wings. They hadn’t fought a battle to the death like Leo had and were fresher.
Panic seized her, every muscle tensed. The sea became closer and closer, the waves much bigger than they’d appeared from above. She had to do this.
“Are you sure about me dropping you? What if some of the soldiers follow you?”
“You won’t let them.”Of that, she was supremely confident. Leo would defend her with his last breath, and she could do nothing less.
“I love you, Leo. Now, go as low as you can and release me.”
Still, Leo hesitated. For a moment, Liza thought they might both strike the sea, but Leo opened his talons. The wind whipped at her hair, and Leo’s oversize tunic as she discarded the cloak she’d used to keep herself warm. Liza jumped from Leo’s protective hold and was falling, falling, falling.
“I love you, my lodestone. Keep safe. I will come for you. That is my solemn promise.”
Leo’s heartfelt words flowed through her mind, and she had a flashback of her first glimpse of Leo, her shock and wonderment at seeing a dragon, then the freefall of her car. The remembered terror caught in her throat, a scream escaped, and she struck the water feetfirst.
The icy chill was a wakeup and jerked her brain out of her panic. Disorientation threw her, and for a dread-filled moment, she wasn’t positive which way was up.
“Liza!”Leo’s panic equaled her own.
Bubbles. She remembered her mother telling her once after they swam together at one of New Zealand’s surf beaches and a wave had struck them both. It had been like a washing machine, sending her younger self every which way. She hadn’t focused on anything except her next breath of air. And while her mother had explained bubbles wouldn’t help in that case because of the churning water, if the waves weren’t as rough, the bubbles always led to the surface. Liza kicked strongly, struggling a little with the surplus fabric of Leo’s tunic. Her lungs protested, and all she could think of was her next breath. She kept kicking, following the bubble trail.
Finally, she burst above the surface of the waves and sucked in a huge breath.
“Liza!”
Liza floated on her back and gazed up at the sky. Although the sun hadn’t risen yet, flames from several dragons made it seem daylight. From way down here, she couldn’t tell which dragon was Leo.
“I’m okay,”she told Leo.“I’m heading to shore now. You need to concentrate on getting rid of the soldiers. Are you certain they are your friends? The ones coming from the direction of Perfume Isle.”
“Yes, my lodestone. I love your courageous spirit.”
“Focus,”she told him.“See you soon.”
Liza took one last look at the dragons roaring and fighting overhead. Apprehension prickled in her, concern for Leo’s safety. She turned toward the shore and gulped. This wasn’t going to be a picnic for her either. Her arms already hung like heavy weights from her shoulders.
A pained screech cut through her thoughts of discomfort, and she trod water while her gaze shot upward. One dragon was falling, flames surrounding its massive body as it dropped like a rock. The dragon struck the water and created an immense wave.
Popsicles!
Liza gulped a huge breath and dove beneath the surface. The pull of the water tugged at her tunic top as she went deeper. Liza stayed down a little longer before surfacing again.
She counted the dragons. Well, at least Leo’s friends had evened the odds.
Liza wasn’t sure how long she swam, but by the time her feet could touch the seafloor, her breaths came in ragged gasps, and her limbs ached from overuse. She staggered from the water and up the sandy beach on legs that wanted to bend like pieces of rubber. Liza couldn’t remember ever suffering such lethargy. She recalled the direction Leo had told her to walk, but to get started, she needed to climb a hill and forge a path through the forest that grew on this side of the island.
She fell and stayed seated to catch her breath. From her position on the beach, she could see and hear the dragons fighting. Three dragons flew over the trees beyond the sand, coming from an inland location. Their bugled challenges rang through the air, and with their arrival, some of the fighting dragons broke away and retreated toward Hissing Isle.
“Liza!”
“I’m resting on the beach, Leo. Getting my breath back after my swim. You okay?”
