Chapter Sixteen

Safina

I did my best to slipquietly into the front parlor, for I didn't want to be discovered by Mother, who was sure to chastise me for staying away so long.

"Where have you been?"

I cringed at the sound of Mother's shrill rebuke coming from the stairwell. I looked up to see her clutching the railing with whitened knuckles and a fierce frown.

I tried to quell my trembling hands as I slipped off my bonnet and hung it on the rack. "I went for a walk."

Mother crooked her finger and motioned toward the top of the stairs. No doubt she wished for privacy, so she could chastise me properly.

My shoulders fell as I walked up the stairs. I couldn't shake off the feeling I was marching to my own funeral.

Mother stood in the doorway to our room, her amber eyes narrowed to slits. As angry as she looked, I imagined smoke pouring from her nose and mouth.

I slunk past her, crossing the room in a hurry and sitting on the opposite side of the bed, watching with envy as seagulls flew past my window. I flinched as the door slammed shut and the lock clicked.

Oh, I was in for a good scolding.

"You should have waited for me."

Mother's tone was surprisingly soft as she sank onto the bed beside me. Her mouth was drawn, and lines framed the dark circles beneath her eyes. My mother had looked this way once before, after she'd midwifed for a farmer's daughter the night she'd delivered twins. The poor girl would never have survived the night if it hadn't been for my mother's healing fires. I knew then without a doubt Mother had worked great magic today. I cringed, fearing Dr. Straw would certainly seek revenge against her.

"I was hungry." I swallowed a lump of unease. "And I didn't wish to disturb your work."

Mother heaved a sigh before coursing fingers through her hair. "Listen to me, child. I do not know for how long these mortals will tolerate our presence. If they bring out the pitchforks, I must know where you are."

I solemnly nodded and then braced myself for my mother's reaction. "Mother, I came across a man while I was out."

Mother shot to her feet. "A man? What man?" Her question was an urgent demand.

I clenched my hands as memories from my encounter coursed a shiver up my spine. "His name was Dr. Straw, and he isn't pleased you are healing the sick."

I thought I saw dragon fires simmering behind my mother's eyes. "I feared this would happen."

"He says he's going to call on you soon."

Mother abruptly stood, the floorboards creaking as she paced across the floor. "Then we should leave before he comes."

"Leave?" I gasped. "But I love Galveston."

"There are plenty more villages like Galveston, I am sure," Mother said with disinterest as if all my future happiness wasn't at stake.

I slowly rose on shaky legs. I couldn't imagine leaving now, not after finding my first true friend. "You're going to let one man drive us away?"

Though I knew I'd needed to warn my mother, I regretted telling her about Dr. Straw.

Mother's face hardened. "You don't know what one man can do." Mother's voice cracked like the deafening sound of ice splintering in the dead of night.

And I knew why.

I matched my mother's hard stare with a steely gaze of my own, wanting so badly to know the truth, yet fearing my mother's answer. "Is this about my father, the dragonslayer?"

Mother held up a silencing hand. "Please don't speak of him." She rested her palms on the edge of the vanity and gazed at her reflection in the oval mirror.

I knew not where my sudden surge of temerity had come from, but I refused to back down. I'd waited five centuries to learn the truth, and I wasn't waiting any longer. "I have a right to know about my sire. Why did you mate with a dragonslayer?" I didn't mean to sound so venomous, but I felt the barb of my words as they left my tongue. Still, I had no regrets. My mother had a lot to answer for.

Mother turned her gaze down, her pale face flushing a bright crimson. "I didn't know what he was."

Didn't know? So she had coupled with a stranger?

"Did he know what you were?"

Her head snapped up and her nostrils flared. "Of course not. He would have killed me had he known."

"How did you find out?"

Mother shrugged. "I recognized his name."

"You didn't know his name before you mated?"

She picked up a brush with a wooden handle, running the pad of her thumb across the bristles. "Not his surname, no."

I was shocked at my mother's past, hearing she'd lain with a mortal before discovering his name. This didn't seem like the cautious and stern dragon queen I'd known. "Did he ever find out you were a dragon?"

Mother slammed the brush down. "Aye."

I swallowed a lump of nervous energy. He knew? Was that why Mother and I had fled so many villages? Because the dragonslayer was after our blood? "And does he know about me?"

"I haven't spoken to him since before you were born."

I found my mother's answer far from reassuring. "Do you think you'll see him again?"

Her mouth was set in a grim line. "I know I will."

I couldn't help but wonder what that reunion would be like and if we could somehow reconcile or if my sire was still determined to kill us. "What will you do?"

The dragon queen crossed the short distance between us and grasped me by the shoulders. I winced when her nails dug into my skin.

"Whatever it takes. All these years we've spent running and then hiding was to protect you. I'd do anything, Safina, to keep you safe."

Her eyes filled with moisture as the pain and fear in her heart ricocheted, slamming into my chest and nearly causing me to buckle. I felt like a flower crushed beneath a stone when she pulled me into an embrace, clutching me tightly and sobbing into my hair. How had my mother survived all these years, carrying such a burden of sorrow?

I numbly patted my mother's back, feeling strangely awkward and not knowing how else to soothe her. Though compelled to comfort her, I wanted nothing more than to distance myself from Mother's grief and regrets as I was assailed by flashbacks of Mother crying in our prison cocoon. I could not live out an eternity, loathing and mistrusting everyone around me.

And something else bothered me, something deeper and more profound. Mother hadn't locked us away under the ocean for centuries to keep me safe. Mother had imprisoned us so she could nurse her broken heart, and now that we had surfaced, her heartache seemed even worse. I feared my mother would pull us both into another pit of despair if she continued down this path. Though I felt horrible over what my father had done, that didn't mean I had to pay for my mother's regrets. That didn't mean I should never seek the warm embrace and tender touch of a man, or I could never find a true love of my own.

I struggled out of my mother's suffocating grip. Grasping her by the shoulders, I looked into her bloodshot eyes. "Mother, stop this!"

Mother's mouth fell open. "What is the matter?"

I scowled. "You are! Do you expect me to live my eternity with no one to love?"

Another wave of my mother's depression hit me like a blast of hot air. "You have me."

An image of Teddy Carter lovingly embracing his pregnant wife flashed in my mind, and it was then I knew without a doubt what I wanted. "I want a mate. I want children!"

Mother vehemently shook her head. "Don't say that. Look at what longing for a mate has brought me."

I shut my eyes, trying to block out my mother's pain. The image of Gabriel's tender smile flashed in my mind. You do not have to hide yourself around me, Safi. I think you're magnificent. I couldn't help but smile at the memory of his words. My eyes shot open. "Gabriel is not a dragonslayer."

Mother jerked back and snarled. "Gabriel?" His name rolled off her tongue as if it left an unpleasant taste in her mouth.

I braced my hands on my hips. "Aye. Josef's grandson."

Mother clutched her throat. "A cripple is not a good match for a dragon royal."

The barb of her venomous words pierced me deep in my heart. "Mother, how can you be so cruel?"

Mother shook her head, frowning. "I am not cruel. I am honest. Even if he were to accept you for what you are, he will never be able to protect you."

I issued my mother a challenging glare. "He will walk soon, even if I have to be the one to heal him."

Mother jerked back as if she'd been slapped. "You?"

I nodded. "I'm coming into my powers. I healed a baby chick's broken wing."

Mother's eyes hardened as she jabbed me in the chest. "Listen to me, daughter. You are not to put your hands on Gabriel Cortez. Do you understand?"

A fury like I had never known expanded my chest with red-hot fire. I pushed my mother's hand away. "I will tell you what I'm not going to do, Mother. I'm not going to let you treat me like a child any longer, I'm not going to live my life in fear of mortals, and I'm not going back in that shell." I waved at the window, at my cursed ocean prison. "I'm five hundred years old. It's time you let me grow up."

With that, I stormed out the door, not bothering to check my mother's reaction. I put a mental barrier between myself and the queen. No longer would I get caught up in Mother's tempest of loathing and sorrow, tossed about in a sea of regret like a lone ship struggling to stay afloat. If my mother wished to live her eternity mourning her poor choice of a mate, so be it. Her destiny was not mine, for I would choose more wisely. I would pick a mate who thought me magnificent, one who loved me and the monster I was capable of becoming. I needed a man with a strong mind, a wise soul, and a tender heart—a man like Gabriel.

* * *

Safina

I WAS GRATEFUL FORthe breeze that blew the hair off my nape, for the blistering sun had practically melted my undergarments, and thick beads of sweat dripped down my back. This twentieth-century clothing, with its tight corsets and heavy skirts, simply would not do. How I wished for the clothing of my century, for though the fabric had been rough, at least it let me breathe. Not to mention the air where I'd come from was less stifling. I waved a fan in front of my face as I dug my bare toes into the cool, wet sand. I'd thought about burying my entire body, but the ground was so hard, and the sand so dense, I feared I'd never get back out.

The sun had just begun to dip beyond the horizon, casting long sideways shadows across the beach. Now that the evening was finally cooling, various young ladies began arriving dressed in their fancy swimwear, twirling umbrellas over their shoulders. They moved with grace and ease, skipping across the waves in their little breeches with lace trim. They whispered into each other's ears, tossing their heads and giggling behind their hands as they flashed coy smiles at boys who passed their way.

What I wouldn't have given to be among their numbers, to share fond childhood memories and form long-lasting friendships. To have had nannies and nursemaids and a family waiting for me at home. To have gone to school and learned how to read and write, and to never have to worry my dragon-slaying father was trying to kill me.

Though I envied their normal lives, I'd never have one of my own. The most I could hope for was to find someone to love me as much as Theodore Carter loved Charlotte. Aye, if I could find true love, that would be enough to make me happy.

I thought about what my mother had said about Gabriel not being a good match for me, and I resented her all the more for it. Why would the dragon queen have said such a thing, especially when she had it in her to heal him? I sent a silent prayer to the Almighty Mother I'd be able to help him walk, for it would take great strength, more so than the simple act of healing a broken wing.

After I'd waited for hours, Gabriel and his brothers finally made their appearance. The brothers took turns pushing him across the hard sand, occasionally stopping to unstick a wheel. They all wore jubilant expressions, the kind of smug satisfaction you'd see in men who'd just come from a tedious day's labor and were looking forward to hard-earned relaxation.

Their smiles dimmed when they saw me, though. I did my best to ignore their wary stares, for Gabriel's warm smile captured my attention and made my heart flutter.

"Good evening, Safi," he said as a brother positioned his chair beside me. "You look tired, and your skin is flushed. Have you been waiting long?"

"Aye." I watched with curiosity as another brother placed blocks in front of his chair, no doubt so that he wouldn't roll into the ocean. "I prefer to be out here, rather than stuck in that house."

He frowned. "I see."

Without saying a word, Gabriel's brothers stripped off their heavy work trousers and rushed into the water, wearing knee-length breeches.

Gabriel's frown deepened as he watched them go, and I knew he was envious. How he must have suffered each day watching from the shoreline as they swam. My chest hurt, like a deep bruising, as self-pity and self-loathing washed over me. 'Twere Gabriel's emotions. What must it have been like to live with such feelings every day?

I sat up on my knees, nudging his arm, hoping to distract him from his sorrows. "Have you come to read to me?"

He looked down at me with a smile. "Yes, if you've got a willing ear."

I eagerly nodded. "I would love to hear those letters."

He pulled the tattered book from behind his back. "All right, but I must warn you, there are some parts that are...ahhh...." His face flushed a bright crimson as he struggled for the words. "Full of tender emotion. I do not wish to put you at unease."

I bit my lip, trying my best to hold back a smile. He had such a boyish way about him that filled my heart with love and laughter. "I'm not uneasy unless you are."

If it were at all possible, his blush deepened. He averted his gaze, staring down at the tattered pages. "I'm only slightly uneasy."

I grabbed his wrist. His strong pulse quickened. I ran a hand up his arm, which was thick and corded with muscle. It must have been from spinning those wooden wheels. I wondered if his chest was equally muscular, but it was hidden beneath a starched white shirt.

"Why?" I dipped my head to search his eyes.

So powerful and heartfelt was our connection, he nearly took my breath away.

"Why would I be uneasy reading love letters to a pretty girl, you ask?"

Now was my turn to blush, as a heat strong enough to rival my dragon's fire fanned my chest and face. "You think I'm pretty?"

His tender smile vanished, his jaw set with hard determination. "Yes. Very much."

My heart thudded, and though it was improper, I rested my hand on top of his. "In that case, I most certainly wish for you to read me love letters."

His hand trembled as he turned it up and laced his fingers through mine. A zing shot through me, as I responded by squeezing him tight and flashing a coy smile.

"All right." His voice shook as he flipped open the book. "Let's see. Where shall I begin?"

I wondered if all the shaking was part of falling in love, for I felt it, too, from my hand to my heart and all the way to my toes. I inhaled his scent; ink and earth, such a perfect smell for someone wise and kind.

Gabriel's skin warmed as he tried to turn the pages with one hand. Then a page came loose and fell to his feet. "Damn." He stared at the wayward page as if he was determined to scold it.

I reached for the paper, but much to my amazement, it floated back to Gabriel and settled in his book.

My jaw dropped. "How did you do that?" For I sensed it was he who'd made the page float.

"Shhh." He set the book on his lap and tapped his full lips with a finger. "No one saw."

My gaze swept the beach. Nobody was in earshot. I leaned forward. "How did you?"

"I don't know." He shrugged. "I suppose I have some of my papí's magic."

I looked up at him in wonder. "Why didn't you tell me?"

"I don't know." He casually flipped through the pages, avoiding my hard stare. "I've only just started to get good at it."

"Do it again," I breathed, settling my other hand on his knee, which twitched beneath my touch.

I jerked my hand away as if I'd burned him. "I felt you move."

"I know." He cupped his knee, staring down at his leg as if it were foreign. "That's never happened."

I looked from my hand to his knee as excitement surged through me. "I think I could heal you, Gabriel."

His eyes widened. "Not here, Safi."

"No, no." I vehemently shook my head. "Not here. Maybe tonight."

Many emotions crossed his features as storm clouds swirled in his eyes. When his mood washed over me, I didn't know if I wanted to laugh or cry.

"Y-You would do that for me?" he stammered.

"Gabriel," I said on a breathy whisper. "For you, I'd do anything."

As I looked deeply into his eyes, I realized how very much I enjoyed spending time with Gabriel Cortez. I hoped my mother wouldn't try to break us apart.

"Shark! Shark!" A shrill cry came from somewhere beyond the shoreline.

I instinctively jumped to my feet, scanning the beach as people rushed from the water.

Gabriel straightened, squinting at the horizon. "What's happening?"

A woman ran past us, clutching a small sobbing child to her chest. "There's a shark in the water," she cried in a shrill voice that felt like hot pokers thrust into my ears.

Gabriel tugged on my dress. "Where are my brothers?"

I recognized two of his brothers emerging from the water, then breathed a sigh of relief when they were joined by another.

"I see three of them." I frowned, shielding my eyes against the sun's glare. "I don't see a fourth." Could the shark have gotten him, or had he gotten caught up in the rush to exit the water? I spun a slow circle, unable to locate him.

"Pedro!" Gabriel called, waving both hands frantically. "Where's Pedro?"

When the three brothers pointed to the water, wild looks in their eyes, my heart sank. He burst to the surface, screaming and waving before he was sucked back down, a pool of crimson widening at the spot where he'd disappeared.

"Pedro!" Gabriel's gut-wrenching sob tore through me as if my heart had been ripped from my chest.

"Oh, Almighty Mother!" Without thinking, I rushed across the sand and into the water, toward the ever-widening pool of blood. I fought against my heavy skirts as I pushed my way through the current. As soon as the water reached my chin, I dove and swam deeper, making the change, my dragon scales ripping my clothes to shreds. I dared not come up for breath, for I knew I'd be spotted, and the gentle slope was already dangerously shallow.

Though the water was gray and murky from the silt that lined the bottom, my keen dragon senses spotted Pedro and the shark near the ocean floor. The shark had hold of Pedro's hip. The boy's blood rose like a smoke signal as he punched and kicked at the aggressive predator.

I swam down to them, biting the shark in two and swallowing its tail whole. I grimaced as pungent, bitter blood filled my mouth. The shark turned belly up, blood pouring from its open cavity. The beast's lifeless beady eyes stared into the dark void as its body sunk to the bottom.

Pedro made no effort to swim away. His eyes rolled up, his arms falling open. I sensed the wild rhythm of his heartbeat slowing to a dull thud. He was dying. No, I couldn't let that happen. It would break Gabriel's heart. I lifted him with my snout, pushing him toward shore, then I swam to the surface and changed back into a mortal girl. Gasping for air, I hauled the boy with me. He was heavy, and keeping his head above water was hard work. I called to his brothers, who rushed back into the water and carried him out.

Though I wanted to follow them, I couldn't, for my clothes had been shredded during the change, and I didn't wish to expose my nude body to the mortals. I floated in the murky water, though the mortals on shore waved frantically for me to come out. That's when I saw Abby standing apart from the crowd, staring at me as if she'd seen a ghost. A sickening sensation settled in my gut. Abby knew something, of that I was sure.

My heart slammed against my chest when I spied Gabriel sitting not far from Abby. His knees were pressed together, and he clutched his chair. Chest heaving, tears streamed down his face as he looked at me with red-rimmed eyes. The thick air between us and the distressed cries of people running from the beach vanished. There was no one in my world but Gabriel. In that moment, an invisible tether bound us together, and his emotions stretched across the void, nearly buckling my knees with heart-wrenching intensity. He'd been terrified of a loss so great, words could not comprehend, but more than terror, Gabriel felt an overwhelming surge of self-loathing. Oh, how he hated his infirmity, his inability to dive into the water and save his brother from harm. But mostly, he hated himself for the man he couldn't be for me. As onlookers gawked at my bare shoulders, he could do nothing to shield me.

People gasped and clucked their tongues.

"Get out of the water!" a man hollered.

"She's naked!" a girl squealed.

I pulled wet strands of hair over my shoulders and tried to sink deeper, but it did little to diminish my embarrassment.

"Oh, how indecent!" a woman screeched.

"The shark tore off her clothes," was Gabriel's booming answer, followed by several murmurs and hissing whispers.

A matronly woman rushed into the water, holding a blanket out to me. But the woman would not go in farther than ankle deep, her eyes alight with fear.

With a resigned sigh, I swam to the shore. I covered my mound with my hands, but that did little to ease my mortification, for the people on the beach still gawked at me.

The woman offered a kind smile as she wrapped the blanket around me. "Are you hurt, dear?"

Relief swept over me as I answered with a numb shake of my head. "No, and I thank you for your kindness." I could hardly believe what I'd done. I'd risked exposing my secret and shifted into my dragon form so close to all these mortals. Still, I'd take the risk again to save Gabriel's brother.

As I followed the woman out of the water, my dragon-touched ears heard phrases like "brave girl" conflicting with others calling it an "unbelievable tale." But one man's claim stood out among the rest. "I saw it," he said. "It was a huge sea creature. I saw the fin and a tail."

What would Mother do if she found out I'd exposed my naked mortal body on the beach? Or that a witness had seen my dragon form? Would she try to force me back into my shell? I shivered at the thought. No, I couldn't go back. I wouldn't.

I wrapped the blanket tightly around my shoulders, stepping away from the crowd as people swarmed Pedro and tried to help stop his wound from bleeding. He looked like a gutted fish, his raw and bloody insides exposed through the big gash in his side. He moaned between shallow breaths, and his youthful skin had an unnatural gray pallor as he bled out all over the sand.

Se?or Cortez rushed the crowd, frantically waving them away. One of the brothers yelled for them to clear the way, and they hoisted Pedro up on a makeshift litter, carrying him toward Mrs. Jenkens's house. A strange man pushed Gabriel behind them. I snatched my shoes off the sand and followed as if in a trance, the grinding of Gabriel's wheels like a warning bell in my ears. I was about to enter the den of a dragon, one who would seethe with anger when she realized what I had done.

I prayed Mother would save the boy using her healing fires, or he would die for sure.

* * *

Fiona

I REPRESSED A CURSEwhen they brought the dying boy to the kitchen. Josef's grandsons swept everything off the table and placed Pedro in the center. He had spilled too much blood, and his heartbeat was slowing dangerously. If I didn't heal him soon, I would not be able to save him at all.

"Mi Reina, my grandson is dying." Josef clasped his hands together in a prayer pose, his accent thicker than usual as he spoke between sobs. "He is only fifteen. Please save him."

My gaze swept the room. My daughter was there, clad only in a blanket, with Josef's other grandsons huddled beside her. Safina clutched the crippled boy's shoulder while he rested a hand on hers. The boy was foolish to dare touch Safina without asking my permission. For that he'd pay, but first I had to attend to the victim.

"You all need to go."

I scowled at my daughter. Where are your clothes, and did you shift in front of mortals?

I had to save Pedro.She averted her gaze, her cheeks coloring. Nobody saw me. I was under water.

My scowl deepened. Go put some clothes on. Wishing for a private word with Josef, I waved Josef's grandsons and Safina out of the room.

I turned to Josef, trying my best to push aside my compassion for the bleeding boy on the table.

"I will heal him. But you will owe me."

The old man had the nerve to look shocked. "What?"

"'Tis simple. I ask only that you keep your word and break my bond."

He jerked back. "I already said I would."

So he had, but I sensed my daughter's magic was strengthening. If Safina healed Gabriel before I could, Josef would have no reason to keep his word. "Aye. I remember what you said. I need to hear it again."

He shook his head, clucking his tongue. "But you should know it is dark, dangerous magic."

"I know it is," I growled, angry with him for his indecision. "But I have no other choice."

"Graechen told me how the first dragon mate's soul became tethered to hers, preserving his immortality."

Josef had spoken so softly, I doubted he'd said anything at all. I blinked hard, wondering why Graechen would've told this mortal so much of my family's history.

"What did she tell you?" I asked through clenched teeth, resenting that this earth speaker knew more of my ancestry than I did. Tension coiled like a snake around my shoulders.

"Long ago, when Feira, Mother of Dragons fell in love with her king, she mourned each day that brought him closer to his mortality. She summoned her earth speaker to create a spell that would preserve his life for eternity. The speaker tethered his life to hers, bonding them until her death. The magic was so powerful, it has passed down to all of Feira's offspring and their mates."

I released a shaky breath. "I see. Thank you for explaining." I already knew I had my ancient grandmother to blame for my current misfortune. The tension in my shoulders became an aching throb.

"And you are asking me to break such a spell." There was no mistaking the judgment in his tone.

I eyed him through narrowed slits. It was just as I'd thought. The speaker hadn't intended to sever my bond with Duncan. "I'm not asking, Josef. I'm telling you." I nodded at the boy's prone body. His life-force was so faint, I barely sensed his pulse. "I need your word, Josef, or the boy dies."

Josef made the sign of the cross and slapped his hands together in a prayer pose. "I give you my word, Mi Reina, though I fear we will both regret it."