“If she is almost there,” he said solemnly, “then it is already too late. They will kill her.”
“No!” Heath shouted, fury rising up in him. He asked Reka no questions about the dragons’ dislike of Merletta. There was no time for that. “No, I refuse to accept that! Take me there now! We have to stop her!”
Reka hesitated, and Heath pulled free from his cousin and grandmother, stumbling toward the dragon. He caught a glimpse of Bianca and Brody through the crowd, running toward the commotion. But he had no time for any consideration but Merletta.
“Reka, if my friendship means anything to you at all, then please, I’m begging you. Nothing matters more to me than this. Than her.”
The uncertainty in the dragon’s eyes suddenly gave way to determination.
“Heath,” Lachlan protested. “You’re in no condition to—”
If he finished the sentence, Heath didn’t hear it. Reka’s talons had closed around his shoulders, and he was already high in the air. His back was agony, and his eyes were streaming against the wind as they streaked eastward, hoping desperately that it wasn’t too late.
Chapter Thirty
Merletta broke the surface, both glad and nervous to see the rocky islands up ahead. It seemed she’d been right about how simple it would be to find Wyvern Islands. It had looked on the map in Heath’s father’s study like they couldn’t be missed. She knew the Valorians avoided these waters, because the magical barrier around the dragons’ home made the area impassable for regular humans. But she also knew from her experience at Vazula that mermaids could pass through those barriers, so she had expected no trouble.
She’d swum right through the night, and was now exhausted. The timing wasn’t ideal, but they’d all decided that it would be least suspicious if the group left under cover of darkness, so as to have the first leg of their journey less scrutinized by the humans. And Merletta had thought the most logical course was for her to swim a little way with them, then branch off and continue on when they thought she was heading back. She didn’t want to tell August and the others her plan, given how much—and how unjustly—they all disapproved of dragons.
Merletta ducked mostly below the water, so that only her eyes were above, fixed on the islands ahead. As soon as she felt her throat close over, she drew in a calming mouthful of water.
She could do this.
Heath’s half-hearted warnings flashed through her mind, about the need for caution with other dragons. But she’d thought it over carefully, and she couldn’t see any way in which her mission could inflame the dragons’ resentment over King Matlock’s restrictions. Even if they didn’t welcome her arrival, it surely wouldn’t lead to the attack on Bryford that some of the humans seemed to fear. The matter had nothing to do with the Valorian crown, after all, or even the Valorian power-wielders. Besides, she wasn’t going to ask anything of any dragon except Reka.
And while Reka might be aloof, he wasn’t unreasonable. She’d once considered him a friend. Surely he would want to correct the outrageously slanderous image the Center had created regarding dragons.
Merletta felt the ripple when she passed through the barrier. It was just like the one around Vazula—and in fact the one around the triple kingdoms. She had no idea how many dragons there were, or how hard it would be to find Reka.
She was still swimming toward the nearest outcrop when she saw the first dragon wheel overhead. It was a deep green color, so clearly not Reka. But she still paused to watch in fascination as it dove down, disappearing into the rocky center of one of the larger islands.
Perhaps that was where they all gathered. Merletta redirected her strokes, but she was only partway to the island when another dragon swooped overhead, this one seeming to spot her. It let out a shrieking cry, so piercing that Merletta covered her ears with her hands.
The creature wheeled away, but fear flashed through Merletta in an instinctive response. She hesitated, wondering if her whole idea was foolish beyond forgiveness. Should she just have asked Heath to call Reka? But he wouldn’t have done it, not once he understood her intentions. Surely Reka would speak for her among the dragons if they were inclined to be suspicious of her.
Merletta was still deciding whether to retreat or proceed when the dragon returned, this time with two others. They sped toward her with purpose and, acting on impulse, Merletta dove beneath the waves. She swam downward as rapidly as she could, ready to abandon the whole venture.
The splash of the dragons’ bodies entering the water above sent adrenaline racing through her. Her fatigue was forgotten as she sped down, down toward the distant ocean floor. Her tail propelled her powerfully, but it wasn’t enough. A glance behind showed the dragons gaining on her, streaking through the water as if it was their natural environment.
Merletta was deep enough now that the pressure was painful on her ears, but the dragons showed no sign of discomfort. Just as the water before her grew too dark for her eyes to see, Merletta felt talons close around her middle. She let out a scream, but the sound was lost in the thrashing water as she was dragged backward. Within minutes, she emerged into air, the dragons taking off from the water as effortlessly as they would from land.
Panic clouded Merletta’s mind as her tail transformed into legs, which dangled below her. All she could think was that the dragons’ reaction to her—so different from any behavior she’d seen from Reka—was completely in line with the story the Center told about dragons. A story she’d always dismissed as another lie.
Not completely in line, she tried to tell herself, as the one carrying her swung toward the largest island. The dragons hadn’t eaten her yet. And if that was their sole intention, they surely would have done it without delay. Although the creature’s grip was strong, its talons hadn’t even pierced her, which must have required care to achieve.
They were moving so quickly, Merletta could hardly make sense of her surroundings until she was dropped painfully onto a circle of grass right near a cliff’s edge. Her landing dislodged a few small rocks, which fell noisily into the water far below. A nearby dragon reared up in apparent horror, looking to her abductor, who landed silently beside her.
“Gather the elders,” the dragon who’d carried her said grimly. “We found the creature in our waters. Inside the barrier.”
Without a sound, the other dragon took off, disappearing out of Merletta’s range of vision.
“Please,” Merletta said shakily. “I don’t mean any harm. I came looking for Rekavidur.”
The dragon’s eyes narrowed, and smoke curled from his nostrils. Merletta fell silent, clutching her knees against her chest. A horrible fear overtook her, that this had been her greatest—and last—mistake. Perhaps the Center had been right about dragons all along. Heath had always seemed so confident of Reka, so comfortable in his company. But maybe Reka was the anomaly.
The other dragon had barely left when the green one Merletta had seen before landed nearby.
“What is this?” it demanded, its voice a reverberating growl. “What magic do I sense? It is not the power of the human line of Dragonfriend.”