Dragonsbane (Book 3) Read Online Free Page B

cover of the trees.
    He felt strange as he ran beneath the shadows … lighter and heavier all at once. He knew he was doing the right thing. In fact, he was certain of it. So why did his legs fall so heavily? Why did his boots scrape against the ground? It was strange how something right could still leave a bitter taste in his mouth.
    “What in blazes are you doing?”
    Kael was so startled that he leapt sideways into a tree. “Kyleigh!”
    Her blackened armor hid her well in the shadows. But he could tell by the tone of her voice that she was glaring. “So I’m not allowed to leave you without telling, but you’re allowed to leave me. Is that how it works?”
    There was no point in asking her how she’d known. No matter how careful he was, she always seemed to be at least two paces ahead of him. “I have to do this.”
    She raised a brow. “Really? You have to sneak off in the dead of night and leave all your friends wondering what’s become of you?”
    “Yes. They can’t know where I’ve gone.”
    “I think they’ll be able to guess.”
    “I killed one of the Countess’s agents,” Kael said through his teeth. “I think she knows what I am and even if she doesn’t, Gilderick certainly knows — he knows everything.” Anger bubbled up at the memory: Gilderick sitting inside his head, thumbing through the whole story of his life as if he’d had every right to it. Kael took a deep breath. “I don’t know what all he learned, but he could very well know what I plan to do next. And if that’s the case, he could easily follow —”
    “Or he could be dead.”
    He wasn’t. Kael knew in his heart that a snake like Gilderick wouldn’t die so easily. But he couldn’t explain this to Kyleigh. “Even if he’s dead, what about the Countess? How long before she sends her army after me? If she tells the King …” Kael ran a hand through his hair, fighting against all the many little worries that crawled up his stomach, trying to stuff them back into the depths. “We had a slim chance against Titus, but we can’t face Midlan. I won’t be the one who brings the rulers down upon us. The pirates will be safe in the Bay. The giants can take care of themselves. As for me,” he met her eyes, “I’m going home.”
    “Kael —”
    “I won’t change my mind. Scold me all you want, but you know this has to happen.”
    After a moment, she looked away. She turned to stare up at the gaps of sky between the branches, her face unreadable. “I know,” she said heavily. She reached beside her and pulled a rucksack out of the brush. “That’s why I went ahead and packed.”
    That was the absolute last thing he wanted. “You aren’t coming with me.”
    “You can’t stop me.”
    He glared at her. “If you come along, Shamus will follow. You know he will.”
    “I’ve already taken care of it.”
    Kael eyed her warily. “What did you tell him?”
    “That you and I are running away together, of course,” she said with a smirk.
    He hoped the shadows would mask the sudden burn in his face. “You shouldn’t have done that.”
    “Well, it was the truth.”
    “ Well , now he thinks we’re —”
    “It doesn’t matter what he thinks. That man would’ve followed me to the far corner of the Kingdom without a second thought. Now he won’t. I told him it was an absolute secret,” she added with a grin. “Which should give us a few months to gallivant around the Kingdom in private —”
    “ Kyleigh !”
    “What?”
    “This isn’t a game.” He dragged a hand down the side of his face, concentrating on the pressure of his fingertips to keep his voice even. “I left the mountains to find an army. That was my only task, and I’ve failed — I’ve failed Tinnark, and I’ve failed Amos and Roland. Now half the realm knows what I am and I’ve got no choice but to run, empty-handed, to the one place in the Kingdom where I won’t be followed. You came looking for me because you thought I could help you