Chapter Eighteen

“We can’t stay here,” Esha said.

Dain pushed away from the boulder. “There’s nowhere you can go that the nightwraith won’t find you.”

“Dragon land,” Kendrick said.

Esha jerked her head to him. “You want us to cross into Idrias? We’re not supposed to cross the boundary. You know that.”

“These are extenuating circumstances.”

“We don’t know if it’s after me or you. We’re taking his word,” she said, jabbing a finger at Dain.

The Dark glared at her. “I didn’t have to help, and I’m beginning to think I shouldn’t have.”

“No one asked you to,” she snapped.

Kendrick held up a hand. “There’s no need to turn on each other. We’re all in a predicament, and we need to trust each other when there’s verra little to none between us.”

Esha couldn’t stop thinking about her sister. She was upset and afraid that something had happened to Savita. That caused her to lash out at Dain, which wasn’t fair to the Dark. He had been helping.

She rubbed her forehead. Savita wouldn’t just disappear. But where had she gone? Esha didn’t want to believe that her sister had anything to do with bringing the entity here or waking the nightwraith. Then again, how well did anyone know another?

They had been raised in the same house, but they had spent decades apart, each taking a different path. It was only over the past three years that she and Savita had been brought back together. And in that time, both had changed a great deal.

“What if it’s Savita?” Esha looked at Kendrick. “What if I’m wrong, and my sister turned on us?”

Kendrick drew in a breath and slowly released it. “I think it’s one thing to want to keep you from spending time with me. It’s quite another to send something like the nightwraith. I could see it if she sent it after me.” Kendrick turned his head to Dain. “Are you sure Esha is the target?”

“That’s what I heard. And my sources are reliable,” the Dark replied.

That confused Esha. “Why me? I’ve done nothing other than be a Ranger.”

“Until I arrived.” Kendrick’s lips flattened. “Perhaps they think they can no’ harm me, so the next best thing is to go after you in case an alliance develops.”

An alliance of a kind had happened. Esha couldn’t understand why they wouldn’t want an ally. “I’m not the only elf who met you,” she pointed out.

“You’re the only one who wanted to track with him,” Dain stated.

Esha cut her gaze to him. “You’re with us. Why didn’t the nightwraith get sent after you?”

“I don’t share my business with others,” Dain replied flatly.

She threw up her hands in frustration and let them slap against her thighs. “I want to find what’s killing elves and stop it. What’s so wrong with that?”

“It’s no’ the why , lass. It’s the who .” Kendrick sighed. “It comes back to me. If I hadna crossed onto Shecrish, I doubt this would be happening.”

Dain shrugged indifferently. “We can’t change what’s happened. Things have been set in motion. I’m not going to stop looking for the being, but I think it’s going to be more difficult since we’ll have to look over our shoulders for the nightwraith now, too.”

“ Our ?” Esha asked. “You’re including yourself now?”

He swung his yellow gaze to her. “It will smell me here.”

“But Esha has a point. It isna after you,” Kendrick said.

Dain paused before he nodded. “True. What are you thinking?”

Kendrick studied him for a moment before his gaze landed on her. “We have two choices. We trust each other or we doona. If we work together, there’s a chance we can sort this out. Otherwise, we go our separate ways right now.”

Dain was the first to speak. “I’ve been trying to track the entity thing on my own. I’ve gotten nowhere, and I want retribution. I need it.”

“All right,” Kendrick said .

Esha swallowed as she struggled to decide.

“Have I ever wronged you?” Dain asked her in a flat voice.

She shook her head.

“Has any Dark Elf?”

Reluctantly, Esha shook her head again.

“Then you’re going off what others have told you.” Dain sneered. “If I did the same, I would never trust any elf other than a Dark. You think you’ve heard horrible things about my people? I’ve heard far worse about every other class of elf. Not everything we’re told is true. It’s why I make my own decisions.”

Well, when he put it that way, Esha felt like a fool for putting up such a fuss about him. “You’re right. I’m sorry. I’ve had little dealings with Dark Elves. Based on what I’ve heard, I tend to keep my distance.”

“I’ve stated my intentions,” Kendrick said. “I’m willing to trust both of you.”

Dain rolled his eyes. “You’re a Dragon King. If you get tired of us, you can return to your land.”

“But I willna.”

No, Esha knew Kendrick wouldn’t. If she had learned anything about him, it was his true and loyal heart. She met his gaze and smiled. There was so much she wanted to say about their night together, but she didn’t know where to begin. And what was there to say? It was the best night of her life, and she hated that it would be the only one like it. But she had known that going in.

What she hadn’t counted on was the pain she felt knowing she wouldn’t share another night with Kendrick. It was crushing, like the weight of a mountain resting on her chest. What would she do if he wanted another night with her? Would she be strong enough to refuse him? Esha honestly didn’t know.

She could tell herself that no one would know if she were with him again, but she would. She would carry that with her, letting it corrupt her each time she stood with her fellow Rangers, all of them having taken the same vow. The Rangers were all Esha had ever wanted.

Weren’t they?

She looked at Kendrick, and for a moment, she allowed herself to imagine what it might be like if they could have as many nights as they wanted. The problem was, there were too many variables and things she didn’t know. He was from Idrias, and he would return to the dragons soon. She didn’t belong there any more than he belonged on Shecrish. So where did that leave them?

The same place they had begun—apart.

“Where do we go now? What do we do?” Dain asked. “Keep hunting the entity? Do we look for Savita? Maybe find who roused the nightwraith? Or, I suppose, we could face the beast.”

Kendrick shrugged as he looked at her. “I didna place a time limit on this mission. Savita did. If I caused any of this, then I want to be the one to help right it. I’ll go wherever you want.”

So, the decision rested with her. Wonderful. She was used to turning to Savita and having her consult the runes. Now, Esha was unsure what to do. What seemed the logical move? No one had been able to track the invisible entity. As for her sister, Esha wanted to get more information before she rushed around looking for Savita. The biggest concern right now was the nightwraith. That seemed the best course of action. Then again, Dain had said it couldn’t be stopped. She smiled as she looked at Kendrick. But they had a Dragon King.

Kendrick’s lips curved. “The nightwraith?”

“Yes.”

“Well, the blending of our eccentric group is going to be short-lived,” Dain mumbled. “You know we’re all going to die, right?”

Esha chuckled. “Not all of us.”

“I can no’ know that for certain. I’ve never faced this creature before,” Kendrick added.

Dain rolled his eyes. “Which means I’ll be the only one to die.”

Kendrick clapped him on the shoulder. “Oh, I wouldna worry, my friend.”

“I feel so comforted,” Dain muttered sarcastically.

Esha laughed despite the circumstances. They were a strange trio, but if they had any chance of survival, it was because a Dragon King had joined them.

“Are you up for taking us back underground?” Kendrick asked Dain.

Esha’s stomach twisted painfully, but she kept her thoughts to herself. She had forgotten they would have to return the way they’d come.

“I should be,” Dain said. “I’ll need a bit to recover before we face the nightwraith, though.”

Kendrick shrugged. “There is another way.”

“What’s that?” Esha asked a little too hastily. She inwardly winced, hoping neither of them noticed that she was ready to do anything but go underground again.

His green eyes met hers. “I can fly us.”

“Count me in,” Dain said, his eyes as bright as his smile.

Esha hesitated. If Kendrick did that, she wouldn’t have to face her greatest fear. However, it would also mean that elves would see him. Word of his arrival might have spread, but no one had seen a dragon in generations. How would her people react when they saw him in the sky?

“Everyone knows he’s here,” Dain said as if reading her mind. “What does it matter?”

She gave him a flat look. “You know why.”

Kendrick turned her to face him. “I know it might frighten some elves, but think of it this way. I’ll be able to find the nightwraith easily, and it’ll keep Dain from draining his magic. We all need to be ready to battle the beast. I’d like to think I can take it down easily, but we can no’ know that.”

“What if we can’t kill it?” she asked.

Kendrick looked away for a moment. “We’ll think of something.”

“Like what?” She wasn’t going to face a nightwraith without a plan and alternative options, even with a Dragon King by her side.

Kendrick turned to Dain. “Is there any way we can turn it off our trail?”

“It can’t be reasoned with, if that’s what you’re asking,” Dain replied.

“Have you tried?”

Dain barked a laugh. “No.”

Esha watched the exchange with interest.

Kendrick said, “Can Wood Elves no’ talk to animals?”

“You want to ask one of them to talk to a nightwraith?” Dain asked in a choked voice.

Kendrick shrugged. “What’s the harm in it? Maybe they can persuade it to return to wherever it came from.”

“He has a point,” Esha said.

Dain blinked a couple of times before saying, “I suppose. Do you know any Wood Elves?”

“We’re in a forest,” Esha pointed out.

Dain closed his eyes, his face tight as if fighting for patience. When he opened them, he asked, “Do you know one we can trust ?”

“All we can do is ask. Maybe one of the Wood Elves close by will help,” Kendrick said.

Esha raised her voice as she turned in a slow circle and said, “Would one of you be willing to join us in trying to stop a nightwraith from continuing its rampage?”

The silence that greeted her was depressing.

“It was worth a shot,” Kendrick told her.

Esha turned back to the guys. “I’d still like an alternative.”

“We have to slay an unkillable animal.” Dain’s lips twisted.

Kendrick blew out a breath. “Then we fight until it’s dead. Or we are.”

Esha grimaced. She contemplated getting her Rangers, but she knew it wouldn’t be fair to ask them to fight the beast on her behalf. “If those are our options, those are our options.”

“What are we waiting for then?” Dain asked.

“I can no’ shift here,” Kendrick said. “I’d take out too many trees, and I’d rather no’.”

Esha motioned for them to follow her. “There’s a clearing ahead.”

As they walked, she kept hoping that one of the Wood Elves would answer her request, but none did. She knew they were there. They hid well in the trees, but they always kept watch over their forests. No doubt they knew why the nightwraith was coming, and they blamed her.

When they reached the clearing, Kendrick nodded. “This will do.”

“You sure you want to do this?” she asked.

“It’s either I fly us, or we go back underground.”

Esha shivered at the thought.

“Exactly,” Kendrick said with a smile. “It’ll be fine. I promise.”

She looked at Dain, who couldn’t hide his excitement at the anticipation of flying. Neither of them knew if Kendrick soaring over their land would go over well with their people. Only time would give them that answer.

“You might want to step back,” she told Dain as she moved away.

Dain followed her suggestion. When they were far enough away, Kendrick shifted. Even having seen it before, he still awed her.

“By the night,” Dain exclaimed in wonder.

She grinned and looked into Kendrick’s sapphire dragon eyes. “I know exactly what you mean.”

What they hadn’t asked was how they would get on Kendrick. Would he carry them in his hands? Paws? What were they? She eyed his talons. They looked like they could easily tear something apart. Perhaps they shouldn’t get too close to those claws.

Kendrick lowered to his belly, which gave her the answer she needed. Esha was the first to approach. She reached his front leg. His head swung toward her, and he nodded. She jerked her hand back in surprise when she touched his scales and found them warm and hard beneath her palm. They seemed incredibly thick, as well. She took all of that in as she gingerly climbed up his leg and shoulder before settling at the base of his neck. When she looked around for Dain, she found the elf slowly walking around Kendrick.

“Are you coming?” she called.

Dain appeared not to hear her as he continued the loop and stopped in front of Kendrick. The Dark said nothing as he stared into Kendrick’s eyes. She leaned to the side to see Dain. She wondered what he was thinking. After a few minutes, the elf climbed up the same way she had, though he paused to inspect Kendrick’s scales in much more detail than she had.

Finally, Dain settled behind her. That’s when they both realized they had nothing to hold on to. Her heart dropped to her stomach when Kendrick climbed to his feet. Even that small movement made her realize how precarious their positions were. She tried to clutch Kendrick’s scales, but she couldn’t get a good grip.

“He won’t drop us,” Dain said.

Esha tried to reply, but she couldn’t find her voice. Kendrick spread his wings, and she grabbed his scales, hoping she could hold on. A shriek fell from her lips when Kendrick leapt into the air. His wings flapped, the whoosh loud as he climbed higher and higher.

“This is amazing,” Dain said with a laugh.

Esha’s heart thumped wildly in her chest until Kendrick’s body leveled out. When she no longer felt as if she would fall to her death at any second, she looked down to see the land below them, nothing but a blur. She smiled and let the rush of air whipping over her ground her in the moment. This definitely beat going into the dark, dank underground.