Page 20 of Dark Dragon’s Wolf

For the first time since the day she and Emon had been rescued from Ragnor, Mayah heard her dragon’s voice.

She was so stunned her knees gave out, and she slid her back down the stone wall until her butt hit the ground.

her dragon said.

Seriously? Gone for two years, and all she could manage was to be Princess Obvious?

I knew that, Mayah said. Where were you?

The dragon hesitated.

He didn’t know any better. He was just trying to help us.

Well, that didn’t sound like any fun. Saving all her horrible memories sounded like a sucky idea.

her dragon insisted.

Wait, what?

Startled, Mayah felt her dragon rise up inside her.

Magic flooded through her. Her hands lengthened and became huge deadly claws. Her body rippled and grew, great bony ridges rising from her spine. Her tail snaked out behind her, barbed and deadly. Finally, wings sprouted from her shoulders and rib cage, unfurling in the night breeze.

She was the Darkwing Princess, her iridescent black scales gleaming in the night, reflecting the stars.

She was strong, powerful, magical, invincible.

And she had a wolf to save.

Mayah jumped off the top of the tower and spread her wings, gliding toward the forest.

Chapter 9

Tristan’s wolf was deep in the forest.

No longer just running. Hunting.

Mayah could still feel him. She knew exactly where he was, how he felt. His emotions were overwhelming.

I am Wolf.

Because his wolf could fight the memories. His wolf could kill. His wolf gave Tristan a place to retreat to, when it all got to be too much.

Except sometimes, he didn’t want to come back.

her dragon said again. Mayah didn’t remember her being so boringly singleminded before.

Who said we weren’t going to? But we have to get to him first.

Because forests and dragons didn’t really go together. Not that she couldn’t knock down trees if she wanted, but branches stabbing through her wings was not fun. And knocking down great swathes of forest wasn’t fair to the birds and animals who lived there.

She glided overhead, tracking him until he got to a clearing. He’d brought down a deer and was tearing into it, trying to assuage his wolf’s hunger for blood.

Mayah did a steep dive towards the clearing, the dark trees rushing up towards her. At the last second, just before she hit the treetops, she Changed—and then did a little levitation spell to slow her descent enough that she didn’t break both legs when she hit the ground.