Yes. He is.
We were halfway through our run before the Dragons took off from the roof with Tyrez’s distinctive turquoise form in the midst of them. Five Dragons. Taran might have invited Tyrez, but he’d sent enough escorts to keep him under wraps.
Riggs had matched his much longer stride to my own, but his hitched as they took off, his eyes chasing them across the sky.
I only wished to distract him from his worry.Do you remember flying?I asked.
The faintest impression of wind on wing, there, and then gone.Not really,he said.
I’d experienced flight often enough now that I would miss it. What if I’d been born a Dragon, and then lost it?
I’m sure I’d miss it,he said,if I could remember. I recall that I flew with Mykal, but I don’t remember actually flying.
My heart twisted as we watched them soar to the gate and land. All the Dragons shifted to human before they stepped through.
And then they were gone.
A pulse of pure angst swept through me from Riggs, along with the fierce desire to follow. To have his brother’s back.
But Taran thought that Razir was dead. And for now, he had to stay that way.
We will find a way to get proof that they are colluding with the underworld,I said.
Striding along beside me, he turned his head to meet my eyes. They glimmered at me.
Yes,he said.We will.
Only this time, neither of us will get shot in the head,I continued.
Once was definitely enough,he agreed.
Cody’s other mate, Ryan, led our fascinating weapons class.
The first half of it featured crossbows.
We practiced with straw targets in the back field, and I tried out several different models. I’d fired them before, and was reasonably proficient with them. Enough to hit the middle rings of the targets.
Riggs picked up the crossbow and examined it as if he’d never seen one before. It was a compact version, with a magazine capable of rapid-firing multiple bolts.
Don’t overthink it,I suggested.Razir undoubtedly knew how to use one. Just point and shoot.
He glanced at me, lined it up, and shot.
The first bolt flew wide of the target. I moved closer to him.Imagine that is an Underworld Dragon coming for us.
What?
He’s coming for me. Stop him!
Distracted by my proposed scenario, he barely looked at the target. But the next three bolts hit dead center.
He stared at them in amazement.
Your doubt got in the way,I stated.
We traded our crossbows for wooden swords. Ryan came up to Riggs.
“Cody says you’d make a good assistant,” he said.
