Before I can tell him to take things slow, Kael shoots into the air like a cannon. I let out a shriek of surprise as my butt lifts from the saddle, despite all the strapping-in I’ve done, and then thumps back into place a moment later. I cling to the handlebars, but they don’t feel like enough.

But then, Kael extends his wings out to glide, and we get caught on an updraft. Suddenly, we’re soaring high through the skies, and I’m on dragon-back instead of dangling from dragon-claw and…it’s breathtaking. I stare out in wonder at the spread of the city below, the ruins covered in creeping greenery. Birds flick past us, unafraid, as we fly. The sight of them makes me laugh in delight, and my ponytail streams wildly around my face and into my eyes. I shake my head to try to get it out of my eyes, but that doesn’t work so well. I need a braid, I think. Or a hat.

And then a bug flies into my eye, and I shriek again, clawing at my face. Adding goggles to that list, too.

I can feel Kael’s amusement as we soar, sailing leisurely through the skies. Are you all right?

I am, I tell him, once I’ve wiped my eyes a million times. The wind makes them wet with tears, but it doesn’t stop me from staring around in wonder. I feel so…powerful like this.

You like this much better, I can tell.

“I do,” I call out, but my words get eaten away by the wind. No wonder his people are telepaths. I try again. I do. I feel less like a victim and more like a participant. This is fun.

And you are strapped in solidly? Your seat is good?

I keep one hand on the handlebars and give the straps on my legs a few experimental tugs. I think I’m anchored well enough—

The breath chokes out of me when he does a flip in the air, and we go upside down for a brief, horrifying moment. OHMYGODKAEL!

We right a second later, and I can feel the rumble of amusement in him. I shake a fist helplessly at the air. You jerk. You jerk! You scared the crap out of me!

Why? I told you I would not let you fall. But now that you are as close to my skin as one of my scales, I no longer have to worry about your safety nearly as much.

Just about me losing bladder control, I tell him sourly, but I can’t stay mad. This is too much fun.

Shall we keep going?

For once, I’m not desperate to get out of the air and to land. Yes, let’s. I’d love to see more of the city.

Then on we go.

And we bank heavily to one side, turning, and head off into the horizon.

27

CLAUDIA

We fly for at least an hour or two, leisurely gliding over parts of the city I haven’t seen since the Rift opened and humanity went bust. There are suburbs (overgrown), length upon length of highway (overgrown), and lots and lots of charred areas where it’s clear that dragons have come through. I see one fairly intact tall building on the outskirts that I’d love to explore. It even has an old helipad for Kael to easily land on, and it might make a better ‘lair’ for us than the old office building we’ve currently claimed. Out farther in the city, there are a lot more promising scavenge buildings, too. I’ve seen herds of horses and cattle, wild dogs roaming the streets far below. They all scatter at the sight of a dragon hovering overhead.

We even saw a red dragon off in the distance. I’d panicked a little at the sight of it, because I feel vulnerable perched on the ridge of Kael’s shoulders. But the red flew away, completely uninterested in us.

She smells me with my mate, he tells me, so she is not interested.

Funny how simply being with Kael has turned into the ultimate safety net in this strange place our world has become. Once, I would have been terrified at everything I’m seeing, but now it’s just mildly interesting. Nothing can hurt me. Not now, not while I’m with Kael.

I reach out and caress his scales with one wind-chapped, cold hand. Gloves, I think idly. I need gloves next time. As much as I worked, I’m still not prepared for riding dragon-back. Clearly there’s more gear needed than I’d thought.

Still…I’m on freaking dragon-back! How awesome is that? We can fly so far. I’d never be stuck behind the walls at Fort Dallas again, forced to co-exist with a bunch of criminals and obey the militia simply because it’s not safe to be alone. With Kael at my side, I don’t have to worry about that. We can go anywhere. We could go to the western seaboard and see if old California is as destroyed as Texas. Who knows, maybe we could even fly to Hawaii. I used to love the beach. I wonder how long flying across the ocean would take and if there are any dragons on the islands.

Of course, I’d have to find a way to get Amy on dragon-back without scaring the shit out of her. And Sasha, too. I wouldn’t leave them behind—

Be calm, my mate, Kael tells me, interrupting my stream of thoughts. His head lifts, and he stares off into the distance.

Calm? I immediately peer around in the direction he’s looking, alert. Why? What’s wrong?

Nothing is wrong. But we will soon have a visitor. And he flashes a mental image to me that matches the skyline to my left.

I turn, scanning, and see a speck on the horizon. The speck grows steadily larger, and I suck in a breath as I watch it veer around one tall building lazily and then swoop back around again, heading in our direction once more. Sunlight glints off of golden scales.

Oh shit.

I stiffen in my seat, clutching my handlebars as if they’ll somehow protect me. That’s another dragon! Another male! I tell him, panicking.

Calm, Claudia. No one will hurt you. You are with me, and you are my mate. You are safe.

Is he coming after me?

He is…but once he smells that you are mine, he will lose that idea.

You sound so certain.

I am. You smell of my scent. My fire is in your blood. He will know you are claimed. His thoughts carry an unmistakable, languid caress. Hearing it makes me feel a little heated and achy, thinking about what’ll happen when we land and we’re alone again. Now’s not the time to think about that, though. There’s a dragon heading right for us.

There was not an ounce of nervousness in Kael’s thoughts, though, and that makes me relax a little. If my dragon isn’t worried, then I’m not.

My dragon. Strange how natural that seems now.

Kael’s wings tilt, the left one dipping low, and we make lazy circles in the sky, heading slowly downward to the ground. I crane my neck, hands tight on the harness as I peer over Kael’s great scaly shoulders to search the air for the other dragon. It circles nearby, and Kael trumpets a call that is quickly answered.