Chapter Sixteen
Sarah
G iant wings snapped wide, catching my attention as the brilliant red reflected the sunlight.
" Levi? " I mouthed in astonishment a moment before someone's shoulder spun me around to the ground with violent force.
If I weren't trained to take blows, I would have been done for. Instead, I rolled with the impact as best I could, but I still saw stars for a moment.
Shaking my head, I got to my feet, dodging more bodies as violence erupted throughout the plaza.
This is bad. Very bad. You are not on the same power level as these people. Not even close.
I kept that in mind as I struggled to go after Jakub. My son was out there somewhere. If I was in danger, his was even worse. Dragon child or not, the plaza was becoming a warzone.
The first fireball erupted off to one side as if to punctuate my point. I cringed—the heat palpable from even that far away—but I didn't slow down.
From above, Levi abruptly plunged downward into the crowd. I shifted direction, now heading toward the center of the plaza, hoping he was going after Jakub and not just joining in the fight.
A statue loomed up ahead of me, providing a modicum of shelter for a moment.
"Eep!"
I dove to the side and rolled to my feet as a body sailed through the space I'd just occupied, smashing into the stone base of the statue. Sparing a glance at the man trying to extricate himself from the indent, blood pouring down from his skull, I shook my head.
A second later and I'd have been squashed flat. I had to get out.
"Jakub!" I cried again, trying to locate him in the commotion.
"Mommy!"
I whipped around at the answering cry just as Levi shouldered his way through the crowd, shoving our son into my arms.
"Let's go," he said, reaching out to gather us up in his arms.
He never made it.
Two shifters tackled him to the ground.
"Levi!" I shrieked as fists rose and fell. Retreating into the lee of the statue, I held Jakub fiercely to my side, forcing myself to ignore his terrified sobs as everything descended into a wild, uncontrollable melee.
Men and women exploded outward as ruby-red dragon wings snapped out to their widest point, flinging people free.
"Sarah, now!" Levi shouted as he emerged from the fracas. "We're going!"
I flung myself at him, using two arms to hold onto Jakub, forcing myself to trust that Levi would hold me tight.
Biceps like corded steel closed around me, and we lifted into the air with a violent downsweep of his wings.
"Eyes up here, baby," I said to Jakub as he stopped crying long enough to look around. "Look, the sky!"
Craning his head, he took in the vast, open expanse of the sky as we rose high above the orgy of violence.
"Wow, we're flying, Mommy! Wheeeee!"
Glad for the distraction, I forced myself to laugh and join in his excitement with a "Whee" of my own.
Levi, for his part, was silent as we made it back to the roof of his condo without further interruption. As soon as we landed, however, he took me by the shoulders.
"Are you okay? Are you hurt? What about Jakub?" He crouched down. "Are you okay? Does anything hurt?"
"I'm good! That was so cool! You had wings, and we flew! Can we do it again?" Jakub turned his eyes to me, pleading. "Can I?"
"Not today, little buddy," I said. "But maybe tomorrow?"
I looked questioningly at Levi. The last thing I wanted to do was even think about letting Jakub out of my sight after what we'd just been through. I wanted to hold on tight and never let go, never put him in danger again.
Only I knew that was impossible. I had to let him spread his wings.
I snorted.
"What?" Levi asked.
"Nothing," I said, waving it off, not wanting to explain my internal thought monologue to him and my choice of mental metaphors. "Is that okay with you, though?"
Levi shrugged. "Sure, we can do that, Jake. Tomorrow, though, okay? For now, let's go inside."
After we went inside, Jake went off to the bathroom. While I waited for the call for help, I beckoned Levi closer with a finger. I didn't want to risk yelling.
But he was already on his way.
"What the hell were you doing out there?" he hissed before I could get a word out.
I reared back. "Me? Why were you there?" I fired back. "What were you doing?"
"Rescuing you, apparently," he snapped.
"We wouldn't have needed rescuing if you had been here . But you weren't. You left us."
Neither of us needed me to say "again" for it to be heard.
"It was a parade," I went on. "Everyone looked happy. Was celebrating. There were kids everywhere. Why should we stay stuck inside just because you couldn't be here?"
"It's not safe for you out there," Levi countered. "You're human."
"Jakub isn't," I pointed out softly. "This is his heritage, too. His people. He should get to experience it, don't you think?"
"Not like this," Levi growled.
"You're right," I said coldly. "It would be better if someone who knew what it was about had been here to show it to him."
Levi swayed backward on his heels. "I needed some time to think," he said lamely. "To process."
"So, you went to some sort of violent protest?"
"I didn't know it was going to get violent."
"Really? Because I could sense it almost instantly once the mood changed. Either you're an idiot or purposefully na?ve. I don't know which it is, Levi. But until you grow up and learn how to be a better person, you're in no shape to be a father."
Levi opened his mouth to reply, but before he could, Jakub called for me from the bathroom.
"Don't bother," I told him, glad for the interruption. " My son needs help."
I walked away without another word.