I stared upon his ugly face. Smug. So sure he’d won. By all accounts he had. He was right. I lacked the size to properly fight. I could fart poison all I wanted, but so long as he remained outside, it wouldn’t affect him. All I had was a mouth full of bitter disappointment, which I spat.
The gob of brilliant orange and yellow goo hit the bars of my cage, but some of it made it through, spattering Malone’s cheek.
A cheek that began steaming, which probably explained the sudden screaming. Malone let go of my cage, and it hit the ground, jolting me hard. I recovered in time to see Malone, a hand pressed to his face, huffing and wailing. He drew his hand away from the hole in his cheek, where I could see the white gleam of his teeth. “What did you do?” he screamed.
“Proved that I’m a force to be reckoned with,” I retorted. It appeared my poison didn’t just come out of my ass, for one. I had toxic spit that burned.
As if uncertain of his next move, Malone stared at me then glanced past me before muttering, “Fuck.” Without another word, he fled.
Victory! I’d saved myself, but that didn’t help me get out of my cage and return to my poor Iolana. It also left me a sitting dragon when a shadow fell over me.
A glance upward showed a very large man towering over me. “Hello there, little guy.”
I eyed him suspiciously. Why did this stranger address me? Had he been the real reason Malone fled?
The stranger crouched, and I readied myself to spit. “Before you attack, my name is Maddox. I’m a friend of Abaddon’s. I don’t suppose you’ve heard of him?”
Upon hearing the name mentioned by Malone, my eyes widened. “He sent you to kill me?”
“What? No.” Maddox chuckled. “I actually came to Hawaii to find out what Malone was up to and drag his ass back to our ranch.”
“If that’s the case, shouldn’t you be chasing him?”
“Malone can run as far and fast as he likes; I’ll still find him. He has yet to realize we planted a tracker inside one of his teeth. I’ll grab him after we get you out of this cage and somewhere safe.” Maddox pulled out a knife, the kind that flipped open from a handle, and wedged it into the lock before twisting. Snap.
Freedom!
“Thank you,” I stated. “You have my gratitude, but if you’ll excuse me, Iolana, she’s hurt. I must find her help.”
“Lead the way, little guy, and I’ll see what I can do.”
I might have taken offence at his name for me but for the fact that, compared to him, I was more than little; I was teeny tiny. Abaddon had enlisted quite the large servant.
I scampered as fast as my legs could go, seeing ahead of me Apollo kneeling on the pavement, Keanu pacing, and Iolana…
She lay on the ground, and even paces away, I could hear her labored breathing.
No. Oh no.
Panic had me putting on a burst of speed. I made it to her side to see Apollo had his hands pressed to her bleeding wound, looking grim.
“Is she going to be all right?” I cried.
“I don’t know,” Apollo’s soft reply. “The bullet hole itself isn’t that bad. I don’t think it hit anything vital, but she’s having a tough time breathing. There was some kind of gas in the jet.”
Poison. My poison. I’d killed her.
No. Oh no. I crawled up onto her chest, avoiding the side with the injury, bringing myself close enough to see her pale and trembling features. My brave Iolana. My outspoken servant who didn’t immediately agree with everything I said. Who cared for me enough to brave danger.
“Don’t die,” I whispered as I rubbed my snout on her cheek.
Her lashes fluttered, and she rasped, “So glad. You’re. Safe.”
Even now, she thought only of my wellbeing, even as her breathing became even more labored. Keanu began to wail.
Tears pricked my eyes, even though dragons never cried. Drops fell from mine, though, scalding hot. They hit Iolana’s skin, sinking into her flesh, and despite not farting or feeling any explosive pressure, something oozed from me. A mist she breathed in, causing me to recoil.
Don’t tell me I’d poisoned her even further.
