Trusted: Dragons' Trust Book 1 (2 page)

"Ah." Lainey bit her lower lip and swung her feet a few times. "Well, I think talking is better. He may be cute, but I really think it was rude of him not to talk to me. At least a hello or something. A small exchange of pleasantries. Really, I should've expected as much. You know, from his sort." She rolled her eyes and flicked her hand as if she was annoyed. "Do you think I talk too much?"

This time Renick did not have time to form a proper response. All he managed to get out was, "Well …"

"Of course you don't. I can tell. You are the sort of boy who would've told me by now if you did. But really, I don't think you are capable of thinking so." She smiled warmly at Renick and stole a glance at the other boy. "How old are you?"

"Uh, fourteen."

"Really? You look older than that. Like you could be that boy's age." She leaned on her hands and tossed her head in the highborn's direction. Renick thought he did not look that much older. He was probably only fifteen or sixteen.

"I am only twelve," Lainey continued. "But my aunt says I can start an apprenticeship early on account of me being an orphan …" She trailed off, dipping her head as if ashamed.

A strange whistling noise tickled Renick's ears. His eyes scanned the sky and the forest below in search of its source. He saw Lainey's aunt frantically waving a hand in her direction, trying to get her attention. The stern–faced man looked around with narrowed eyes. The other boy sat with his arms crossed, his brown eyes trained on Lainey, who had turned back to Renick, her mouth open to speak.

And then the world seemed to slow down.

Something—a long, dark something—cut through the bright–blue sky heading straight for them from the depths of the forest below. Renick watched, stunned, as the dark spot tore its way through the tight fabric of the sails. The sound of separating fibers sent a chill down his spine.

The passenger basket bounced. The kiter leapt into action, attempting to control the darting sails as best he could. He may have shouted something to the handler below, but Renick could not hear it over the agonized wails of the dragon.

Renick turned and looked over the edge of the basket to see the beautiful red thrashing in pain, her wings becoming helplessly tangled in her harness and tow lines. Renick felt a twinge of sadness. In midair, there was no way to free her from the leather straps, and with her wings bound, she could not fly. He knew what was coming. If they stayed connected to the dragon, she would pull them to the ground with her. A flash of light reflected off the handler's blade as he cut at the harness ropes. The last thread holding the flyer to the dragon fell away and the passenger basket swayed slightly. The dragon spiraled downward and crashed into the forest. Free of the twisting, heavy burden, the erratic descent of the basket slowed. The handler pressed his fingers to his lips briefly, biding the dragon farewell. He turned and started to climb up the now–loose ropes toward the basket.

Renick heard a tearing sound and looked up in time to see the main sail divide itself in half.

The breath rushed out of his lungs and his stomach leapt into his throat.

They were falling.

Falling.

Renick's shoulder hurt. He tried to move his arm, but it did not respond. He urged his eyes to open and begged his voice to call for help. Nothing. The smell of soil filled his nose as he took a deep breath. After a second breath, Renick was finally able to force his eyes open.

Green. All he could see was green. A breeze jostled the leaves and a few drops of sunlight filtered through the branches. Renick shot up to a sitting position. Pain pierced his right arm and he cried out. When his vision cleared, Renick realized he was on the wrong side of the forest canopy. He should not be on the ground.

The sensation of falling came rushing back to him, but nothing else. He must have been knocked out during the crash.

Renick moved to stand, which caused a burning pain to radiate through his shoulder. He turned to look at it and saw that something bulged unnaturally. He tried to stand again, this time supporting his injured arm with his left hand. It took some inventive footwork, but Renick managed to climb to his feet. He leaned against a tree for a moment, waiting for the pain to subside so he could move again.

The passenger basket lay on the ground. It had tipped over onto its side and stood wedged between two large tree trunks. The sails, or what remained of them, were tangled in the trees above. There was no sign of the kiter, the handler, or any of the other passengers.

"Hello?" Renick called. "Hello!"

A faint moan emanated from the shadowy depths of the passenger basket. Renick picked his way over to it and poked his head in. Blond hair spilled over the woven sides of the craft.

"Lainey?" The pain in Renick's shoulder prevented him from climbing over the debris to get closer. "Lainey."

She moaned again. The hair shifted and her nose appeared.

"Lainey!"

She turned her head to look at him. "What're you doing up there, Renick?" She asked in a sleepy voice.

"The flyer crashed. We're on the forest floor. You need to wake up."

With slow, unsteady movements, Lainey managed to get herself into a sitting position. She stared at him with glassy eyes. "Crashed?" She blinked a few times and looked around her. As she took in her surroundings, the fog cleared from her eyes and was replaced by something else. Renick thought it might be fear. "Where's everyone?" The words came out even and slow, but Lainey's hands were shaking.

"I don't know. Let's go look for them."

Lainey started to climb down from the overturned basket. Renick offered her his hand. She took it, gripping more firmly than necessary. When both her feet rested firmly on the ground, she turned to look at him.

"It's dislocated," she said.

"What?"

"Your shoulder." She pointed to his injured arm. "It's dislocated. Lie down over here." Lainey pointed to a place near one of the larger trees. She helped Renick lower himself to the ground and sat next to him. She placed one foot against the tree and one in the pit of his injured arm. Renick winced. "Sorry, this is going to hurt pretty badly. But I promise it will be better in the long run." Grasping his wrist with both of her hands, Lainey leaned back and pulled gently on the injured arm. Renick clenched his jaw, squeezed his eyes shut, and concentrated on not screaming.

Something popped in his shoulder. The brief flash of pain caught Renick off guard and a small shriek escaped. The pressure of Lainey's fingers evaporated from his wrist.

"Renick, I need you to open your eyes and look at me," she said, her voice heavy with concern. He opened his eyes and found her face. Lainey studied him. "Good, I can see the blue in your eyes, which means you aren't in shock. Your shoulder will be sore for a while and may never be the same again," she explained as she helped Renick back to his feet. "I would fashion you a sling, but …" her eyes circled the wreckage, "it may be more of a hindrance right now."

He rolled his shoulder and experimented with its movement. The muscles were stiff and sore, but he could manage well enough. "Thanks."

Lainey's lips turned upward, but that something still haunted her eyes. "Healer's niece." She pointed to herself. "Handy to have in a situation like this."

Renick managed a small laugh and Lainey gave him another half smile in return.

The bushes to Renick's left rustled and a growl lifted from their depths. Lainey gasped and ducked behind Renick, burying her face between his shoulder blades. Renick froze. Neither his arms nor his legs would respond to any commands.

A head covered in dark hair emerged from the bushes. Renick's breath came out in a rush. The highborn boy turned to glare at them. His face was covered in bruises and small scratches.

"Oh!" Lainey exclaimed. The boy's eyes narrowed and he continued to struggle against the branches and leaves. Lainey started to giggle. The boy set his mouth in a grim line and focused on Renick.

Renick moved to help, pulling at the branches. The other boy finally tumbled free of the vengeful plant and onto the ground. Renick picked at a fresh tear in his muslin shirt. It was the new one his mother had made for him to celebrate his apprenticeship. She would be horrified to see it in the state it was. At least his brown leather pants were faring better.

The boy pushed himself off the ground and back to his feet. Fishing in the bushes, he pulled out his sword and fastened the belt into its proper place.

"I'm Lainey." She stepped up to them and extended her hand to the newcomer. Her hand hung in the air, waiting. The boy did not look at her. Instead, he busied himself with brushing off his clothes. Renick shifted his feet—it was not appropriate for Lainey to address a nobleman that way.

Renick cleared his throat. "I am Renick Banguebar, apprentice dragonhand." He bent himself in half in a respectful bow. "This is Lainey …"

The smile that had been frozen on Lainey's face fell away. She turned and stormed off into the wreckage of the basket. The boy watched after her for a moment.

Renick cleared his throat again.

"Sir Thane Shaytorrin, son of Lord Shay of the Westfields," the boy introduced himself.

Renick bowed again. "Milord."

Thane's shoulders dropped. "Look," he said, "given the situation, I think we can dispense with the pleasantries." Thane blew a puff of air at the hair hanging in his face and held out his hand. "I'm Thane."

Renick felt a little uncomfortable shaking Thane's hand, but he did not want to offend.

"So, any signs of the others?" Thane asked as he looked around the small clearing.

"No, but then again, we haven't really searched."

Thane looked up at the sky. "It will be dark soon. We will make the best camp we can here. At first light, we will begin the search."

"Aunt Melatheen," Lainey called into the forest around them.

Thane shushed her. "Didn't you hear what I just said? We'll search in the morning!"

"Who said you were in charge?" Lainey said, poking her head around the back of the passenger basket. Lainey and Thane exchanged glares. Lainey won by sticking out her tongue, which made Thane's mouth twitch.

Lainey took a deep breath. "Aunt Melatheen!" This time she was even louder.

A low grumble echoed through the trees. Lainey jumped a little and back–stepped closer to where Renick and Thane were standing.

Folding his arms, Thane looked at her. "Do you want to attract every meat–eating monster in the forest?"

"We have to look for them." Lainey's voice was almost pleading. "Renick, what do you think?"

He cast a nervous glance over at Thane before responding. "Uh, it's not my place …"

"What do you think?" Lainey said, marching to stand next to him. She put her small, pointed nose right up to his rounder one; she had to stand on her tiptoes to reach.

"Well, since we're lost and separated from the others, the best thing would be to stay put. So," he looked up at Thane again, who stood with his arms crossed and his lips pursed, "we should make camp."

Lainey's stern expression broke out into a smile. "What an excellent idea." She spun on her heels and started hunting around, humming to herself as she went. "I'll get some firewood."

Renick watched her for a moment before turning to face Thane. Thane's brow was furrowed, his fists on his hips as he watched Lainey's movements.

"All right then," Renick said to himself.

"We should scavenge in the wreckage—there could be any number of useful things," Thane said. He waved his hand about. Renick nodded his head and started walking around the area where the trees were a little thinner than the rest of the forest. Thane searched too, but Renick noticed he stayed clear of Lainey. Renick wondered why—Lainey was not that bad.

By the time the sunlight was fading, Thane and Renick had recovered two emergency rucksacks that contained waterskins and dried food as well as a large piece of sail they could use for shelter. Lainey had found her traveling pack, her healer's pouch, and three travelling cloaks. Renick filled the waterskins in a stream he found nearby.

Using flint and steel Thane found in one of the packs, he soon had a modest fire going. The three of them sat around the flames, chewing on bits of dried meat and fruit.

Lainey sighed. "What happened?"

Renick shrugged.

"I think we were shot down," Thane speculated. "I didn't get a good look at … whatever it was, but it had to be a weapon of some kind. What else could injure a dragon and split the sails?"

Renick cocked his head to one side. "Who would want to shoot us down?"

"Could it have been bandits?" Lainey asked. Her eyes grew big and she turned her head to look at the trees behind her.

Thane shook his head. "I don't know. But for now I think it best we keep an eye out. We'll need to set a watch. I'll go first."

Renick woke to the sound of Lainey's scream piercing the night. In the dying light of the fire, he saw Thane's silhouette standing with sword drawn, facing the darkness. Six pairs of glowing eyes stared back at them.

A series of low rumbles rolled out from the space beyond the circle of firelight. Jaws filled with gleaming fangs snapped together.

"Wolves," Renick whispered.

Lainey whimpered and pulled her knees up to her chest. She started rocking back and forth, mumbling something under her breath.

"Renick," Thane said in an even tone, "do you have a weapon?"

"No."

"Find one."

Renick moved slowly around inside the wrecked basket, his hands feeling in the dark for anything. His fingers found a beam of wood that had been broken off from a bench. He took hold of it and stood. "Got it."

A wolf lunged at Thane. Lainey screamed. Thane swung his blade, reflections of yellow light dancing along the metal. A yelp rang through the clearing. The wolf withdrew. When Thane brought his sword back to the ready position, Renick noticed a dark stain running down it. Somewhere out in the darkness, the sounds of the wolf's death throes reverberated through the night.