Why Dragons Hide (The Arclight Saga, Book 0) by C. M. Hayden

Author:C. M. Hayden [Hayden, C. M.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Arclight Media Co.
Published: 2017-10-12T23:00:00+00:00

- 10 -

The Treetops

We followed our footsteps in reverse, running fast over the moist soil. I kicked up so much mud and murky water that my pantlegs were drenched by the time we got to Kadia’s last footprints.

Kurian knelt and examined them. He mouthed some inaudible words to himself, then looked back at me. “They just…stop.” He stared into my eyes and made a slight motion with his eyebrows, upward. He cleared his throat, and stood, not breaking his glare. “We should move along without her.”

“What?” Fenn said, sharply. “We can’t just—”

I took Fenn by the arm. “Kurian’s right, let’s keep moving.” I tugged his arm up slightly, and gave him a look. I could see the wheels in his head turning, and for a split second, his eyes tilted upward toward the treetops. Slowly, almost casually, his hand went for his sword.

I hesitated, but eventually glanced up too, trying not to draw attention to myself. Amidst the tangle of branches and fog, I spotted something half-obscured by the leaves. I must’ve been a bit too obvious, because before I could even think, Kurian shoved me to the ground and an arrow flew past me, skimming the fabric on my upper arm and tearing out the stitching. I turned onto my back, looking up at where the arrow had come from. Even from this distance, I recognized him as Rokan, one of Team Dia’s artificers. He had Kadia nearby, bound with rope on her arms and ankles, and was re-stringing his bow.

Kurian jumped a full ten feet into the air, almost flying, and his weight made the branch wobble. He charged forward, sword in hand, and Rokan dropped his bow. Instead, he took a knife and pressed it to Kadia’s throat.

Kurian slowed, stopping mid-charge. Rokan was noticeably unsettled and panting, but upon seeing Kurian’s reaction, he calmed.

“That’s better,” Rokan said. He motioned toward Kurian’s sword. “Drop it.”

Kurian hesitated, but a quick motion of the knife against Kadia’s neck made him comply.

I got to my feet, wiping some of the muck out of my eyes and fumbling to slip out of my heavy pack.

“It’s a bluff,” Fenn said. “He’s not going to hurt her.”

“This isn’t going to work, Rokan,” Kurian said, holding up his hands in a calming motion. “There are four of us and only one of you.”

Rokan grimaced. “I don’t want any trouble. Just show me what kind of key you got.”

Fenn looked at me with hard eyes. “We can’t.”

I matched his stare. “We don’t have a choice.”

A loud creaking sound interrupted our budding argument. The branch that Kurian, Rokan, and Kadia were on fell, like a lead weight. Kurian jumped to safety with his usual grace, but Rokan fell hard, striking his body on the severed tree limb and tumbling into the bog water below. Kadia was still up there, just past the unbroken bit of the branch, and still very much tied up.

Fenn and I hurried to secure Rokan, while Kurian went to untie Kadia. We pulled him up from the foot-deep water.

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