Summer of Frost (12 page)

When our lips touched, it was like nothing
I’d ever felt before. I’d kissed her in our dreams, but nothing
could compare to what her body felt like against mine. I could feel
the beginnings of our bond take place as we kissed, and I knew in
that moment that things were about to change. It happened to my
sisters and I knew it was happening right that second.

Sorcha must had felt it too because she
abruptly pulled away from the kiss and gasped. Lifting up her
hands, she turned them back and forth in awe. “It’s happening,” she
whispered.

I was amazed at how one minute she was the
cold, pale Winter princess, and then the next her skin started
changing before my eyes, turning into the sun-kissed golden of
Summer. My skin, however, stayed the same. Confused, Sorcha picked
up my hands and examined my unchanged flesh.

“Why isn’t anything happening to you?”

I was pretty sure I knew the answer to that.
“It’s because I’m Summer, Sorcha. I will always be a Summer Fae.
It’s where I belonged the moment I was born, but I can feel the
change starting
inside
me and it feels amazing.”

“Drake!” someone yelled from behind me.

When I turned, I found my second in command,
Finn, running toward us. Finn had been Meliantha’s lover for a few
years while the dark sorcerer made fools of us all. Even though
Finn still loved my sister back then, he chose to stay in the
Summer Court and be my second in command instead of following
her.

“The warriors are ready. We’re waiting for
your command,” he claimed.

Nodding, I acknowledged him. “Excellent! Go
ahead and ride toward Crystal Lake. Once I get changed, I’ll fly
overhead.”

Finn bowed and sprinted back to the front of
the palace while Sorcha and I followed soon after him. “Which group
will I be riding with?” she asked as we made our way to the
front.

“Neither,” I replied.

Immediately, her eyes grew fierce and she
stopped, placing her hands on her hips. “You’re not going to stop
me from going. Don’t you dare turn into an overprotective jackass
to go along with your arrogant side. I can only handle one of those
traits.”

Laughing, I took her hand and pulled her
along with me. “Trust me, I know better than to tell you what to
do. I think I learned my mistake once already in one of our
dreams.”

“Just as long as you remember it,” she
teased. Stopping mid-step, she grabbed my arm, halting me. “So, if
I’m not riding with the warriors, where will I be?”

“With me.” I grinned. “Up in the air, and on
my back.” Her eyes went wide and her mouth flew open in surprise.
Nudging her with my elbow, I winked. “Don’t look so shocked. You
knew you were going to ride me at some point.”

She lifted her brow at the remark, making me
laugh, but then she turned serious. “I’m sure you would like for me
to ride you, but that’s not what we’re talking about. Seriously, I
didn’t realize it would be so soon. It’s not every day a girl gets
to ride on the back of a dragon. What if I fall off?”

Taking her face in my hands, I kissed her
long and deep, relishing in the way she already tasted like a
Summer Fae. “You will never fall as long as you’re with me. I will
spend every day, every hour, and every waking minute of my life
keeping you safe. Just trust me.”

“I do,” she confessed wholeheartedly.

“Okay, first things first, when I change
into the dragon don’t be afraid. I would never hurt you. When the
change is complete just climb on my back and hold on.”

“Sounds good,” she agreed, bouncing on her
heels.

I backed away from her slowly and began
taking off my clothes. She kept watch the whole time, running her
green gaze over my body with a smile on her face. “Enjoy it being
one-sided right now, because when we get back you’re going to be in
this same position. Our dreams will soon be coming true,” I added,
winking.

She shook her head and waved her hands
impatiently. “I look forward to it, but you need to hurry up! We’ve
wasted too much time. My friends need us. I feel guilty enough as
it is ogling you while they’re in danger.”

Once the change started, Sorcha’s eyes grew
wide in concern, and she cringed. Watching the transformation was
hard the first time, or at least that’s what I’d noticed. It took
Ariella a few times to get used to it. After the transformation was
complete, I stood at my full height while Sorcha gazed up at me,
mesmerized. I lowered myself to her, waiting for her to climb on my
back. She hesitated for a few seconds, but then climbed up and
settled her body at the base of my neck.

“You are so beautiful,” she murmured in awe,
running her hands over my scaly dragon skin. I huffed in response,
and looked back at her. When she was fully secured and hanging on
tight, she gave me the final nod. “I’m ready,” she assured me.

The moment I took off into the sky I could
feel her tense up and hold tighter. No matter what happened, we
were going to rescue her friend and guardian, and I was going to
keep her safe. She was
mine
… mine to protect.

The Crystal Lake was quickly coming upon us,
and thankfully, the early morning darkness concealed me in the sky,
giving me full advantage. My enhanced vision helped me see through
the trees to the army below. Everyone was mostly still, but there
were a few people up and about, completely unaware of what was
approaching. I knew one thing … they were going to run like
spineless cowards by the time I got through with them.

Circling quietly around the camp, I waited
for my army to get closer, and when they came into sight I
descended down on the enemy, letting out a guttural roar with fire
from the depths inside me.

Drake’s growl was ear-piercingly loud, and
if I didn’t know it was him I would’ve cowered in fear. I wasn’t
afraid of him in his dragon form, but just the knowledge of what he
could do was a bit terrifying. It had to be wonderful yet lonely to
be the only dragon in the Land of the Fae.

“
Oren? Can you hear me?”

Silence was all I heard as a reply, and it
scared me. I would know if he was dead, but the silence wasn’t
normal. Even though the wind whipping by us was loud, I knew Drake
could hear me when I called out to him, “Sarette told me they were
in the middle of the camp tied to a post. The dwarf we need to
capture is the one with my spear. We just need to find him and take
him down.”

Drake landed with a hard thud onto the land
below, almost making me lose my grip. The sound roused the dark
sorcerer’s army, and almost instantly they were alert and ready to
fight. Pulling out Sarette’s sword, I headed into the fray, ready
for battle. The screams and grunts of the fighting were all I heard
as I killed one faerie after the other. The sword felt odd in my
hands, but I was well trained in how to use it. I was in a zone
where nothing and no one mattered except my friend and guardian.
Death was a consequence the traitors knew would happen if they
turned against their people.

Anger and betrayal overwhelmed me as more
and more of my fellow fae came for the attack, and as much as I
hated to kill them I knew I had to. As more faeries and fae
creatures fell, I could see through the crowd to the center of the
camp. Sarette was struggling against her bonds while Oren stayed
limp at her side. Drake slashed his way through the enemy, severing
limbs and bodies in the process while making me a clear path to my
friends.

“Sarette!” I screamed, running toward her.
“Are you okay?”

In the next instant, I heard before I felt
the arrow slicing through the air and landing its target. The next
step I took had me reeling in agony. White, hot fire surged through
my veins as pain engulfed every cell of my being. I collapsed to my
knees as Drake bellowed out a roar behind me. Jutting out from my
shoulder blade was a deeply embedded arrow, and it hurt.

“What the hell!” I yelled, angry and pissed
for getting hit. Staggering along the way, I eventually reached
Sarette and Oren, and using my good arm I cut their bonds,
releasing them.

Sarette was frantic. “Holy shit! Sorcha, are
you okay? Turn around!” she demanded. As soon as I turned around
she ripped the arrow out of my shoulder with one sharp pull.
Screaming loudly, I fell to my knees on the ground and clutched my
bad shoulder. Drake nudged me in the side, concerned.

“I’m okay, Drake. It just hurt that’s
all.”

Fire shot through his nostrils as he scanned
the woods for the attacker, emanating danger and death. Sarette
spotted the culprit first and pointed to the trees. “It’s him!”
Sarette shouted. “Sorcha, it’s Brokk, the one we need!”

Once Drake understood, he bounded through
the trees, knocking them down in the process, as he chased after
the dwarf. Needless to say, the dwarf didn’t get far. In one
massive swipe, Drake brought his claws back and hit Brokk so hard
he went flying in the air. It just so happened that he landed
knocked out at my feet with my spear attached to his back and a bow
in hand.

I kicked the bow out of his grasp, grabbed
my spear, and dropped to my knees beside Oren. Running my hands
over his body, I couldn’t see or feel any massive injuries.
What
could be keeping him under?
I wondered.

Finn, who happened to be nearby, rushed over
to help. “Princess, are you all right? You’re bleeding.”

Breathless, I nodded weakly. “I’ll be fine.
I don’t know what’s wrong with my guardian, but he needs help.”
Glaring at the unconscious dwarf, I continued while pointing at
him, “That piece of shit there needs to be questioned, and taken
back to the Summer Court. We need to contact Durin and have him
there as well. This is the dwarf he’s been looking for.”

“Will do, Your Highness,” Finn agreed.
“We’ll secure him and head straight for the Summer Court. The enemy
is mostly dead, except for the few that retreated during the
attack.”

Despair washed through me at the thought of
so many killed. I wondered how many of those fae were actual
traitors, and ones that were forced to be there. Either way, the
damage was done, and I had to live with not knowing. Finn picked
Brokk up and strapped him to a horse, making the bonds tighter than
usual across the dwarf’s limbs.
Good,
I thought.
He
deserved it.
He was going to have a lot more pain after I was
done with him.

Sarette helped me haul Oren across Drake’s
back, and once he was settled I climbed behind him so I could hold
him in place. Sarette clambered up behind me and held on tight.
“We’re ready, Drake! Let’s go!” I called out to him.

In one quick jump we were up and in the sky.
My shoulder ached, and I winced when I tried to move my arm. Now
that the adrenaline had ebbed off I was feeling more of the burn.
Blood oozed warm and hot down my back, and I could feel my body
swaying.