We bundled up to go to Sedum Hall for supper. The dragons met us in the hall and escorted us. As soon as we stepped outside, the wind seemed to tear through my clothes and bite into my skin. Cash moved in front of me, taking the brunt of it.
“Thank you,” I said as we trudged through the drifts.
His voice was muffled by the wind. “It doesn’t bother me.”
I don’t think Tye will be a problem anymore, but he threatened to kidnap my friends to get me to come out of hiding, I thought to the dragons. They all perked up, seeming more alert. I don’t want them to have to worry about it, but I’m afraid Argentum might try something.
We will be extra vigilant, Arianna responded.
When we were all seated, Samantha asked, “So, should Dan and I stick closer to you so all five dragons can keep an eye on you?”
Malcolm leaned back in his chair. “Three of us will do. Either Cash or I will stay in her room. She’ll be safe.”
I pushed my pasta around, occasionally taking a bite. Nefarious was the only monster I’d faced that wanted me dead, but at least he hadn’t wanted to eat me.
Looking around the room, I saw Diana and Olivia sitting at a table with a couple other students. I wondered if they’d follow me forever to make sure I didn’t fall to darkness. According to Aurelia, I would spend the majority of my life fighting monsters. Maybe their sanctuary would appeal to me sometime in the future. I nodded at them and ran my breadstick through my sauce, taking a bite. Now that they weren’t actively trying to capture me, I should try to make them my allies.
D
Thursday and Friday passed by uneventfully. Cody and I spent most of our free time working on homework. Cash and Val sat in my room with us while Malcolm searched for the cave Tye had taken me to. Either I’d been too deep underground or the cave was far from here. It seemed more and more likely that I would have to return there and face the silver beast. Even though the dragons would be there with me, I had the feeling that it would be up to me to bring Argentum down. I didn’t think I’d be able to win him over with my good looks and charm either.
When Malcolm returned to my room Friday night, his posture was rigid, and his hands were clenched. He stared out the window, slowing rolling his head from one shoulder to the other, over and over again. Time seemed to slow while I waited for him to tell us what had happened. Finally, he turned toward me. “I’m sorry, Dacia, but I can’t smell even a trace of your blood out there.”
My shoulders slumped, but I really wasn’t surprised. What were the odds that an elder dragon’s lair would be within fifty miles of Phlox University? “So … I’ve been thinking. Is Argentum his true name?”
“No.” Cash huffed a laugh. “That would be too easy. Wouldn’t it?”
Malcolm narrowed his eyes at me. “You can’t do that. If you control one of us using our true name, you’ll show all the other dragons you’re no better than Draconian.”
“That’s not what I wanted to do.” I set my pen down on top of my notebook. Even though most of my assignments had to be turned in electronically, writing things down helped me remember them. “I wanted to show him that even though I know it, I wouldn’t use it. Kind of like I did with Cash.”
“I should’ve known better.” Malcolm sat on the couch between Cash and Val.
Cody set his book on the floor. “Aurelia having any luck?”
“No.” Malcolm shook his head. His hair bounced from shoulder to shoulder. “I’m beginning to wonder if all this secrecy is worth it?”
Cash snorted. “And who would we trust? The elders? I think not.”
“I’ll take you there.” Knowing Cody wouldn’t be happy with that decision, I looked anywhere but at him.
“You crazy?” Anger and desperation filled his voice. “He wants to eat you.”
I yanked my hand through my hair. “I know, but I can’t just wait for him to come after me. He needs found.”
“Give me a couple more days,” Malcolm said. “If I can’t find him by Sunday night, we’ll get everybody together, including Aurelia, and figure out what to do. Until then, let’s train.”
L
Argentum emerges from the underground lake. The water falls off of him, and his sterling scales shimmer in the firelight. Six dragons stand with me, but compared to him, they’re tiny.
“You brought her to me.” His voice rumbles through the cave.
I step over a pile of bones. “These dragons are my friends. They know I won’t hurt them.”
“If they believe that, you must be controlling them.” He lifts his front leg. Water pours off his talons into the lake. “No dragon in its right mind would befriend a human.”
Malcolm steps forward. “She freed us, and we vowed to protect her.”
Argentum swings his neck around and clamps his jaws down on Malcolm’s neck. Black blood puddles on the ground. Bones snap, and Malcolm’s aura blinks out.
“Stop!” I press my hands out in front of me. “Why’d you kill him?” I fall to my knees. “He was my friend.”
“He was a miscreant before Draconian took control of him—” he looks down at Malcolm’s body “—and it doesn’t appear that he changed.”
Aurelia steps toward him. Her gilded scales twinkle. “Argentum, the elder council wishes for you to stand before them and be judged for your crimes.”
“Crimes?” He scoffs. “I’ve committed no crime. If I rid the world of Dacia Wolf, she will only be missed by a few insignificant humans, and the world will be better off.”
“No.” She shakes her crested head. “She is a friend to dragons. Fairies have vouched for her to the Nephilim. They have accepted her. She has even made
