He opened his mouth and hot, smelly air washed over me. I closed my eyes. The thought of getting his breath on my eyes made me sick.
His deep, rasping voice filled the forest. “Give me the treasure, fae, and I will let you live.” His voice grated like nails on ice, but I’d never heard of the vermin speaking, so I opened my eyes.
“What treasure?” I was not above bargaining for my life, but I’d seen what Maeva packed for us. Unless food counted as treasure, this discussion would be very short.
The dragon hissed and steam rose from his nose. “Do not think to toy with me, fae. I know how you delight in twisting words.”
Not good. I needed him to believe me. “I’m not trying to trick you. I do not know what treasure you want. I’m happy to—”
A plume of blue fire erupted from his mouth and burned right next to me. The flames passed so close to my skin that a hot burn reddened my arm. I clenched my teeth to keep from screaming in pain at the searing heat.
“The treasure you stole,” the dragon ground out while his fire caught the tree just behind me.
My chest seized as crackles and sparks heated the air behind me. How could I convince a monster-sized thief I hadn’t stolen from him? Unwillingly, my eyesdarted down the path Andar had disappeared on. If only I’d gone with him—
No. He had tricked me.
I glared at the dragon. Even if I knew what he wanted, I couldn’t get it while I was tied up like this. And he looked like he’d rather roast me than explain anyway.
If only I could reach my magic! I felt it—like the crystals that flutter off the edges of ice butterflies as they beat their wings—but I could not grab hold of it and use it. I scowled at the dragon and cursed Andar. That wretched fae had left me here like a picnic for the scourge of the hills.
And I couldn’t do a thing about it.
The dragon snorted two clouds of smoke. “This is your last chance. Surrender the treasure.”
I looked into his yellow cat-like eyes. So this was how I died. At the flames of a dragon while tied to a tree. He opened his mouth—
And then snapped it shut.
Without blowing any flames.
He swung his head around, and I followed the movement with my eyes. Had Andar come back?
No, that double-crossing, traitorous piece of leech-meal wouldn’t come back. This had to be something else. I couldn’t see anything, but—
I heard it.
A sickly sweet melody with power dripping around it wove between me and the dragons. Another lute joined the first and snapped a wall of power at thedragons. The blast was so strong, it bent the air like a great wave.
“Ooh, hoo!” cried out Bummel. “That got ‘em!” He and Amador came into my view, playing their lutes and cracking magic at the dragons. I never thought I’d be happy to see the obnoxious musicians, but as they distracted and led the dragons away from me, I was so grateful I would have thanked them out loud—if there had been any chance of them hearing me over the flames and music.
I startled when Aakil popped out from behind a tree and ran up to me. “You seem to be a little tied up, Your Majesty.”
Annoyance suddenly tempered my gratitude. “Such an astute observation.”
A grin cracked his face in half, full of humor and triumph. Probably an unfortunate effect of spending too much time with Bummel. He touched a hand to my right arm, freeing it from Andar’s invisible bonds. “Who managed to separate you from your friend?”
I rolled my eyes. “Andar was the one who left me here.”
Aakil’s hand froze half-way to my other arm, and uncertainty replaced his good humor. “Why?”
I clenched my jaw. “Because he’s a double-crossing, back-stabbing traitor.”
Worry crowded Aakil’s brows. “Your Majesty, I…” His voice quivered. “I am not comfortable freeing you if he thought you needed restraining.”
I reached for my magic, furious when I still couldn’t grab it. “He is the one you should be worried about, not me.” I waved my free hand. “These are temporary bonds. He only tied me up so he could sneak away from his promise to me.”
Aakil inched away from me.
