I toed the ground. “Yeah, I’ll be okay. I just wanted to warn you that if you hang out with me, things can get kinda weird.”
“Okay.” Bryce rubbed his hands together. “Consider us warned.”
When we got done brushing the snow off my truck, Cody said, “Why don’t I drive?”
“Your car doesn’t get around in this, Cody.”
He held his hand out. “Your truck.”
“Oh.” I reached into my pocket and gave him my keys. “Why?”
He unlocked the doors and held the passenger one open for me. “Mavros pulled you away twice. What if Argentum can?”
“Okay.” I nodded. “Good point.”
He shut the door and walked to the driver’s side. Dan followed us out of the parking lot and into Althea.
Snowflakes drifted lazily from the sky, making Cody take the curves slower than normal. He kept both hands on the wheel the entire drive. Normally, our fingers would’ve been entwined, the music would’ve been louder, and the tension wouldn’t have been so thick.
There was more to his apprehension than the weather. He’d driven faster on worse roads. I opened my mouth to ask him about it but decided not to. Instead, I rubbed his shoulder. Then I traced my finger along his ear. His grip on the steering wheel loosened slightly.
He turned off the main road in Althea, driving through the less touristy areas. The bowling alley was on the far edge of town. Trees lined one side of the parking lot and continued behind the building. Snow clung to their branches and mounded at their bases.
Cody pulled into the lot, and the dragons made it look like they got out of a car a few down from us. They stopped by my truck. “Is bowling as easy as basketball?”
“Something tells me it will be for you.” I laughed.
When we got our lanes, Dan said, “So what are teams? I was thinking The Mere Mortals and The Fire Breathers. Dacia can be one of The Fire Breathers.”
Samantha laughed, and the teams were set. Cody, Dan, and Bryce explained the rules to the dragons while Cassandra, Samantha, and I searched for the perfect ball.
The first few frames were interesting. My teammates had to check their strength. The bowling balls were being launched about halfway down the lane. After they figured out the subtlety of the release, they did much better. I’d never witnessed so many turkeys in my life.
We talked and laughed, and I got my mind off everything. After three games, we left to go to The Avalanche. The snow hadn’t let up, and at least eight inches covered the ground.
“Maybe we should just go back to campus before we end up stranded here.” Cassandra pulled her gloves on.
Cash threw his arms over Bryce and Cassandra’s shoulders. “You won’t get stranded.” He grinned at them. “We can even get your vehicles back.”
“Really?” I tilted my head and looked at him.
Russ put his hand on my back and led me to my truck. “We can teleport them back to campus if we need to, but right now, you should get off the street.”
“Problem?” I asked.
Russ shook his head. “No sense in making one.” He melted the snow off my truck while Cash melted the snow off Dan’s. “We’ll follow you.”
It took a while to get a table for ten ready. We stood in the waiting area and shivered every time the door opened. When we were all seated, Abigail came over and took our drink orders. “You’ve got extras today.” She smiled at the newcomers. “Do you need more time?”
“Yeah.” I nodded at the dragons. “They’ve never been here before.”
“Okay. I’ll be back in a few minutes.”
When she walked away, I looked at Cash. “I bet you never thought you’d be eating out with six humans. Did you?”
“No.” He shook his head. “Fifteen hundred years and I’ve never done anything like this before.”
Bryce set his menu down and stared at Cash. “You’re fifteen hundred years old?”
“Give or take.” Cash shrugged. “Time is irrelevant, and it’s hard to keep track.”
“What about the rest of you?” Cassandra asked.
Val counted on his fingers, then looked at Arianna. She answered for him. “You’re three hundred seventy-six.”
“Wait.” I looked up in surprise and noticed Abigail bringing our drinks. “In a minute.” I nodded toward our waitress so they’d know not to say anything else.
She handed us our drinks, then stood across from Dan to take our orders. She nearly melted when he smiled at her, but I couldn’t blame her. It was a great smile.
When everyone had placed their orders and she walked off, I said, “How long were you under Draconian’s control?”
“Three hundred seventy-one years.” Arianna picked up her glass and stared at the contents.
“Oh, wow.” Samantha held her hand up in front of her mouth. “I had no idea it had been so long.”
I unwrapped my silverware and smoothed out my napkin. “I didn’t either.”
“I spent nearly half of my life in captivity.” Russ stared at the table. “I’m seven hundred forty-four.”
Arianna looked around. “Like Cash, I’m not quite sure, but I believe I’m somewhere between fifteen hundred and seventeen hundred. Aurelia and Malcolm are the oldest of us.”
“That is so cool.” Bryce took a roll out of the basket and buttered it. “We’ve got maybe seventy to a hundred years to make our mark. Wouldn’t it be awesome to have a thousand or more?”
I tugged my hand through my hair and looked down. This wasn’t something I wanted to start thinking about again. Death said I would meet him again, but Draconian had lived for centuries. I didn’t want to watch my friends and family die. I couldn’t imagine the anguish.
Cody reached over and squeezed my hand.
“Dacia may have that chance.” Cash looked directly in my eyes before bowing his head. “I would be honored to serve you for eternity.”
“Thank you, Cash.” I tried to smile at him, but I wasn’t sure if it worked. “Hopefully, that won’t be the case.”
Everyone but Samantha, Dan, and Cody looked at me in confusion.
