“Yes, please stand back, and you will understand what I mean.”Ernesto paused before glancing over his shoulder and gesturing for Tawera to follow him.
“Jesus Christ,” a voice said.
“No, I am Tawera.I am pleased to meet you.”
A thump greeted his words, the man sliding to the floor in a heap.
“Is he all right?”Tawera asked.
“I will see to him,” Ernesto promised.“It is best for you to leave now.The passengers must be aboard by three.Then we leave to visit our next stop.”
Tawera nodded since Nyree had explained this to him.
They walked outside.
“I will need you to hold the bag while I shift,” Tawera instructed.“Please stand right where I am now.Once I take to the air, I will pluck the bag from your hand.Thank you once again for the meal.I enjoyed it immensely.”
Ernesto nodded.“You are welcome.”He accepted the bag from Tawera.
“Please stand back.I do not wish to injure you after you have been so kind to me.”
Ernesto’s eyes widened, and he squeezed his bulk closer to the wall.
Tawera walked to the center of the open space, closed his eyes, and focused on his dragon.His shift was much smoother this time, and the pain was minimal.Elated, he opened his eyes and flapped his wings to lift into the air.Once airborne, he glanced down to check on Ernesto’s position.He wanted to grab the bag containing his cheese and biscuits.
Ernesto remained frozen against the wall, his expression shocked, or perhaps it was admiration because his taniwha seemed way more solid than earlier.Tawera hoped Nyree wouldn’t be too angry with him if he promised not to show his dragon form again.
Tawera darted closer and aimed his talons at the bag.Ernesto’s eyes grew even rounder.Thankfully, Ernesto lifted the bag at the last moment.Tawera scooped up the bag handles and lifted into the air.He arrowed from the ship, speeding as fast as possible because he hated to cause trouble for Nyree.His black form wasn’t as showy as the red and green dragons his mother had told him she’d flown with before he was born, but in this case, he’d blend better with the mountains.
Shouts and screams came from one inflatable ferrying passengers from the shore to the ship.
Oh, no!This was bad.This was extremely bad, and he suspected Nyree might be very upset with him.
8
Keep Your Hands to Yourself
Nyreeheardthekerfuffleand immediately sensed this was dragon-related.The last of the passengers had wandered out of the store ten minutes ago.She balanced the till before placing the day’s takings in a canvas bag.Hurriedly, she gave the shelves a quick scan and locked up.She stepped outside in time to see a black dragon fly over the hill and out of sight.Her mouth dropped open before she snapped her teeth together.
“Did you see that?”Carolyn asked.
Nyree had a split second to decide on which way to take the conversation.“See what?”she asked a beat later.
“It looked like a dragon, but I… No, that wasn’t a blue shopping bag dangling from its talons.”She rubbed her eyes and peered over Nyree’s shoulder.She blinked again.“It’s ridiculous.I didn’t sleep well last night.Yes, that must be it.”
“A dragon?”Nyree’s brows rose as she pretended surprise and played dumb for Carolyn.Oh, yes.She’d seen a dragon all right.Tawera.But the weird thing was that he was almost opaque.His black hide had stood out, as had the fact he was a dragon.Confusion filled Nyree along with burning questions.A trace of panic.
“Would you like me to lock the day’s takings in the safe?”
Carolyn blinked again.“What?”
“The day’s sales?”
“Oh, yes.Of course.You take the money and put it away.It looked as if you were busy today.”
“Yes, I haven’t restocked the store yet.I’ll do it tomorrow morning if that’s all right.”
“That’s fine,” Carolyn said absently, her gaze on the white-capped mountain tops.“I obviously need more sleep.”
