I wasn’t sure safe was the right word, but as long as the stone wasn’t found, we were probably okay.
“Let’s sit,” Ryder said. When I didn’t move, when I took a step to go back to Myra and Rossi and make sure everything was okay with them and Bathin, he added, “I need to sit. I’m exhausted.”
“Are you okay?” I asked, even though the words sounded dumb as soon as they were out of my mouth. “Are you injured?” I corrected.
“I’m good for now,” he said. “Nothing more serious than those cuts you have. We’re okay. I’m okay.”
I nodded. “But the cuts, are they poison?” I asked Rossi.
“No,” he said, burning a leach the size of his arm. “I would know if they were. I think this stone has an antiseptic quality, or perhaps slight healing properties. It’s very clever.”
Ryder kissed the side of my temple and whispered: “Are you okay?”
“I think so,” I said. “Yes. I think so.”
“Good.” He said. “Let’s rest.” Then he guided us over to sit next to Jean and Hogan.
Chapter Nineteen
The dragon-pig poppedinto the stone about half an hour later. It spun in circles,oinking and grunting and making happy little squeals.
“Someone’s in a good mood,” Jean noted.
The dragon-pig ran over to her on its stubby little legs,oinked at her and growled, its eyes flashing before itoinked again, tail wagging.
Jean laughed. “Yes, you were very fierce. I saw that. You ate the demon king.”
The dragon-pig hopped, all four feet off the ground, and hopped and hopped, speeding around the edges of the stone.
Ryder, sitting with his arm over my shoulder chuckled. “Maybe we should have been adding demon to its diet.”
I shook my head. “If it wants demon, it’s gonna have to hunt its own. I’m never going back there again.”
The dragon-pig was hopping our way,oinking each time it touched down. It stopped next to us, long enough to put both front legs on my thigh, look me in the eye, and give a happy littleoink.
It was so pleased with itself, I chuckled and rubbed behind its ears. “Good dragon. You saved us.”
It made a satisfied growl, smoke rising from its nostrils, before nudging its head on Ryder’s knee.
Ryder reached down and petted its head. “Very good dragon. So brave to save Delaney and all of us.”
It kept its head down and made happy little mumbly sounds as Ryder scrubbed at the back of its neck.
“How’s he doing?” I asked Myra.
She sat next to Bathin, her hand on his shoulder. “Still unconscious, but breathing easier. The wound is healing.”
“Do you think he’ll wake up soon?”
She frowned, looked down at him, then shook her head. “No. He’s in a healing state, I think. There’s more wrong with him than what shows on the outside.”
“So,” Jean said, “we’re not getting out of this stone for a while.”
Myra shook her head.
“Days? Weeks? Months?” I asked.
“I don’t know,” Myra said. “I don’t know.”
