Page 68 of Dark Dragon’s Wolf

If she could hear the wolves, then she should be able to hear Tristan.

But just then, her cell door opened. She whirled around to see Johnson with a long-handled stun weapon, advancing on her.

Mayah almost laughed. This fucker knew nothing about the Al-Maddeiri dragons. She might not have her dragon, but it didn’t matter.

Lightning was her element. It would never hurt her.

She backed up, making her eyes wide with fear. Then she let Johnson hit her with the stunner.

Electricity enveloped her body. She soaked it in, letting it stoke her power. And then, when Johnson’s face showed his confusion that she wasn’t falling to the ground, she threw it back at him.

His body seized as the electrical charge surged through him, and he crumpled to the ground.

Tristan raced back outside. Flynn should have blown the wolves’ cells by now, but when he reached the courtyard he realized why he hadn’t. The dragons were writhing on the ground, caught in a blinding colored spell net.

If they freed the prisoners now, they’d all get cut down in the crossfire. He could hear them inside, their howls louder and wilder.

They were losing faith, their hope turning to fear and despair. Their emotions drove into his brain like spikes, and blood poured from his nose.

He wasn’t going to last much longer.

Mayah!

Flynn and Tank raced up to him. “We have to blow the central section,” Flynn shouted, over the rattle of gunfire and the roars of the dragons. “There’s got to be artifacts powering the defenses—including that spell net. If we take them out, we can still salvage this.”

Tristan tried to nod, but he could barely see. The shouts in his head were deafening, and he felt like his head would explode.

“Go… without me…” he managed. “Find… Mayah.”

“Fuck that,” Tank said. “We’re not leaving you to get slaughtered.”

Tank laid down cover fire, and Flynn supported Tristan as they crossed the courtyard. The central section, Tristan thought. The enemy dragon had said something about the central section. And Mayah.

He had to tell Flynn. But he couldn’t speak.

Bullets seemed to be raining down all around them. There was another explosion to his left. A grenade? Theirs or the enemy’s? He didn’t know anymore.

The sound of the wolves filled his head. And then, underneath all the cacophony, he heard Mayah’s dragon.

What?

But he knew what she meant. The vault. The ghosts. The failures.

Now? In the middle of a fucking battle?

His knees buckled, and he felt Flynn’s strong arm supporting him.

Free the memories.

In front of him, Tristan saw the vault, clear as anything. Right there. His hand reached out, but he couldn’t make himself do it.

He stopped, inches from the handle.

And then he heard Mayah’s voice, calling him.