Dragon Wish (8 page)

the dock. “Just ahead. There’s my ship.”

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Seren’s knees started to buckle. She locked them,

struggling to remain standing. Paladin stood with his feet

apart, pride evident on his face. How did he stand there so

calm while her entire world threatened to splinter into a

thousand pieces?

Sails clapped in the wind, catching her attention. She

swung her gaze from the tall man next to her to where he

looked.

His ship rose four stories from the bottom to the top of

the center mast. Six sleek propellers extended on poles,

rising above the sails and out from the sides of the ship, two

upright from the deck along with two horizontal on either

side. The beautiful natural tones and textures of the wood

flowed beneath a coating of glossy sealant. Crisp white sails

flapped in the brisk breeze coming from the seas beyond the

cliffs. On the front of the ship, a carved figure of a white

dragon perched, its wings open, its nose pointed to guide the

way. The beauty amazed her, but her admiration

disappeared when she noticed the vessel floated not on the

water, but in the air next to the dock.

He turned to her, but she ignored him. Still in a state of

shock from all the strange people and creatures moving

around her, she stood frozen, staring with her mouth open. A

lean finger pressed up on her chin.

Light glinted in his eyes. His excitement became evident

with his wide smile and the eager sound in his voice when he

asked, “Do you like it?”

A few quick nods turned into a few adamant shakes of her

head. “It looks like a clipper ship from my world. Only there,

they float on water and there aren’t any propellers.”

He chuckled. “This one can ride on both air and water,

the same as the white dragon.”

The strange heaviness she experienced the night before

had never disappeared. With everything happening so fast,

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she’d managed to ignore how weighed down and slow she

seemed to have become. No longer physically able to move,

she looked at him and said, “I think I’m going to be sick.”

At her whispered comment, he leaned closer, his head

cocked while he listened. One hand slipped around her waist,

bringing her body against his. He moved nearer to the

gangplank. “Easy now. I’ll take you aboard so you may rest.”

She tried to pull away, the soles of her clogs skidding over

the stones. One step and she would physically collapse.

Everything she knew to be true was gone and her perception

of the world around her threatened to overwhelm her. Seren

feared that momentarily she would crumple into a sobbing

heap on the cobblestones. Yes, she would, without a doubt.

The sudden weakness in her legs verified it. The muscles in

her thighs trembled. She shook her head, “No.”

Paladin stopped to study her for a second, and then

asked. “What do you fear?”

“I don’t know where I am or even who I am anymore. Am

I insane and this is the result?” Her eyes sought his, anxious

to know the truth.

He shook his head. “I fear I have no answers to give you

peace in this matter.”

There, in his blue eyes, lay the truth to his words. Still,

could she trust him? He was the dragon, the one who had

haunted her every minute before he’d arrived and rescued

her. Her knees, no longer able to hold her up, gave out. His

strong arm, encircling her waist, tightened. He turned her

toward the long, wide gangplank. Her feet missed the boards

several times, but his strength helped hold her up. Once on

deck, he released her.

The world spun. Lightheaded, she tried to remain

focused, but doing so became more difficult. The sailors’

shouts along with ropes pulled through pulleys, even

Paladin’s deep voice speaking to the man she’d met at the inn

came to her like it was through a tube, distant and hollow.

Everything that had happened was too much for her to

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handle in such a small amount of time. She sagged and he

grabbed her arm. With his touch, a stream of vibrating

electricity raced up her arm to the nerve endings in her body.

More aware, she looked up at him in surprise. The

moment of weakness passed. What had he done? She found

no answer in his worried stare.

“Come, you’re pale. You should rest a while,” he

murmured, and then swung her up into his arms. She should

have struggled, but the effort didn’t seem worth it. She

buried her face in his neck, taking a deep breath. Spicy rich

flavor saturated her senses.

“How are you?” he spoke low against her temple.

She couldn’t answer. Her mind swirled with awareness of

him. He remained silent until he turned sideways to enter a

door to go below. “A short rest will help.”

Heat from where his body pressed against hers, his

vibrant life force spoke, reminding her of their night. She

decided to stay quiet, afraid she might say something she

would later regret.

This man had rescued her. She had given her body to him

the night before without a thought. Now, she found that she

wanted him once more. Why? What quality did he possess

which attracted her so much?

Down a set of narrow stairs, he moved across a dimly lit

hallway to a door on the right. He twisted the knob and

entered a large cabin. The bed, built into a wall on one side of

the room, captured her attention. A white quilt embroidered

with a blood red emblem in the center was spread over the

bed. The crimson in the pattern brought forth a tide of

revulsion in her.

Similar to a coat of arms, the shield of the decoration

carried an unfamiliar design in the middle. The red in the

pattern washed over her. Blood scent whirled through her

head, sending sharp crisp memories of Mandy’s death

rushing to the front of her mind. Thick, sickening blood had

slipped through her fingers. And she was useless, unable to

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capture it and draw back into her tiny daughter. Her

stomach turned, temples pounding a steady tempo.

“Put me down,” she cried, struggling in his arms. She

flipped over, landing on her hands and knees. The rough

wood grain on the floor dug into her skin. Bile filled her

throat and spilled from her. Retching, she continued to gag

until her stomach ached worse than her knees. Her head, but

most of all, her heart turned numb. A cool cloth passed over

the back of her neck to her face.

He cleaned her up, calmly reassuring her with gentle

words. Embarrassed, Seren heard the soothing tones, but

they came from a distance, making it difficult for her to

concentrate enough to understand the phrases. Her knees

and palms ached from the fall. Exhaustion overrode all her

senses. She slumped to one side, allowing darkness to take

her away.

* * * *

For several seconds, he stared at the sleep cover his deceased

wife had made just before her death. He changed directions.

He went instead to the window seat at the rear of the room.

With gentle care, he lowered Seren onto the thick white

cushions.

Several minutes later, he had managed to remove her

clothes. He used heated water to bathe her, and then tucked

a thick, soft blanket around her. Sure she would rest easy, he

cleaned the floor. Once finished, he stripped and folded the

bed cover. One long glance at her reassured him that she

rested well. He left the cabin, carrying the cover with him.

Thoughts churned in his mind as he went to the lower

reaches of the ship. Seren’s illness worried him. Because she

was from Earth, she carried none of the innate magic most

on Avaris possessed. Could this be what caused her sudden

illness or had his child’s blood already started poisoning her?

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After walking through the maze of cargo, he’d gone half

the length of the ship when he reached the depths of the

ship. He approached the coffin which was sealed with magic.

The lid was encrusted with the runes of both the Black and

the White Dragon clans. He clenched his teeth and flung the

spread over the casket containing his wife and child’s bodies.

A tug here and there straightened the cloth so the emblem

centered on the elongated box. He rested his hand on the top

for a second, seeking comfort, but then he shook his head

and turned away. He would never find answers with the

dead.

He’d sensed his new dragonseed’s spark of anxiety over

the spread. Had his tiny son recognized and then rejected his

clan’s emblem designed in the offensive crimson? If so, this

would explain Seren’s reaction.

For a moment, a streak of unease riffled through Paladin.

He stumbled on the stairs leading to the upper level of the

ship. His hands slapped the wall on either side of the stairs.

He stopped to regain his balance. If the unborn infant was

able to sense the insult to their clan, then his strength

outmatched Paladin’s. The babe would be considered a

threat to his uncle, Rylen, the new king of the White Dragon

clan. With no heir of his own, Rylen would fear a child of

Paladin’s, especially one with such strong magical ability.

Paladin took the stairs leading to the upper level two at a

time. He pushed all the worrisome thoughts from his mind.

Seren needed him. If their child had not caused her to be

sickened by the crimson emblem then her body might be

trying to end the pregnancy. Should that be the case, he

needed to stay with her. He would not have another life lost

because of his carelessness.

* * * *

the warmth. For a second, she imagined she heard Mandy’s

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soft voice calling her.

She cracked her eyelids open and glanced out a clear

window pane. Blue skies dotted with cotton clouds filled her

vision. Something fluttered in her abdomen. She covered the

spot with her palm. There, she felt it again. Comfort touched

her mind. She concentrated on the spot, soaking up the

emotions coming to her.

Birds appeared on the outer edges of her vision. She

shifted her gaze. She watched the wings moving, brilliant

white down and bluish gray up. Their feathers along with

their shapes reminded her of the herons she often saw in the

bayous and marshes around New Orleans. She smiled. The

reminder brought wonderful memories of growing up in the

Crescent City.

Every summer her parents would take her to beach on

Pontchartrain Lake. Water, sand, and sun had covered her

from head to toe. She’d loved the summer months with

picnics in the park. They’d feed the pigeons in Jackson

Square. Then when she’d grown and had her child, she’d

done the same for her. She smiled at the memories.

Soft footsteps approached her from behind. The touch of

a warm palm on her neck soothed her. A second later, the

cushion dipped from the person sitting.

Paladin’s deep voice warmed her more than the sunlight.

“You’re awake. You must be much better if you can smile.”

“What kind of birds are those? They look similar to ones

on Earth,” she asked, not ready to face him.

Silence answered her for several moments.

When he leaned above her, he cast a shadow over her

shoulder and chest. “They are not birds. Those are dracs,

fledgling dragons. They are from my clan’s namesake.”

Surprised, she shifted closer to the window, studying the

flying beasts. Small, with slender bodies, the creatures

showed little to no resemblance to the beast from her vision.

“Those are the dragons?”

She glanced at him. What she saw melted away her

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surprise. Golden strands lay against the high cast of his

cheeks. Seren reached up and glided a finger tip across his

bottom lip. His smooth, almost silky lips parted. She lowered

her hand, returning her gaze to the window.

She struggled to keep her desire under control. Need

pounded between her legs. When she spoke, she kept her

tone even. “I don’t like the way you make me feel.”