Of Flames & Fallacies (The Arterian #1)

by Courtney Whims

Removing Daeja from my shoulders, I place her on my piled cloak and scratch her under the chin for a job well done. She kneads the material a few times, her claws ripping out strands of my cloak before curling her body into the fabric and settling into sleep.

Damnit Daeja is so cute

The sight of him chases away my fear and hesitations. The feeling of his pulse beneath my hand is a sanctuary. The sound of his steady, even breath, a lullaby. The smell of him is home. This is where I belong.

“I—I thought you were dead? I was told your house caught fire.”

I grab his hand and rest it on my chest. My heartbeat dances underneath his touch. “Not dead,” I whisper.

“I can’t believe it…I thought last night was a dream or a hallucination. I’ve missed you so much.” He looks around the room. “Where’...

“She’s…dead. She was trapped in the fire. I tried to get her out but it ...

I nod, chewing my lip and trying to divert my attention to something else before the wave of despair takes over. Daeja pops her head up from the chair, and Cole freezes. He snatches a sword by the bed.

I throw an arm out in front of him. “Stop. She won’t hurt you.”

“...

“Yes, Daeja. She’s been with me since our hou...

“You’ve named it? Kat!” His voice drops to a whisper, “It’s a dragon. If we were even rumored to be in the same area as her and not report it, we would both get the noose. Not to mention she could turn on us at any mo...

“She’s not like that, she’s j...

Daeja jumps down from the chair, her nails scraping against the ground as she stretches her front legs. A stretch rolls through her spine and shakes the tip of her tail. She leaps...

“And how do you know that? How in the world did you end ...

“I found her egg by t...

“So she hatched with you? As she gets older she will become more ...

Daeja h...

“She’s not like the others. The last thing my mother said was to find you and take her ...

“Your mother said that? Kat…y...

“I know, I know. But Cole, you should have seen her. She spoke to me with such clarity and conviction. It was like she was herself again. If it weren’t for...

“I know you loved her.” He tries to grab my hand, but his gaze flicks down to a glaring Daeja and drops his hand. “You ...

“Not everything. I need to do this one last thing. Please…I need your help. I have no idea how to get there from here. You could come with me? We could set her free at the border, and then we could run away together. We c...

“I can’t leave this squad. I’m their captain. At this rank, leaving it would hav...

“Even if we left for just a...

“I’m not sure it would only take ...

“I can’t do this witho...

“I’ll need time to think of something. But she can’t stay here. There’s too many people that could see her. We need to keep her out of camp.”

“Well then, where can we stay where we won’t be seen by your squad?”

“Not we, Kat. Her. I need you to stay. I’ve lost you once…I can’t bea...

“She’s a baby, and she can’t protect herself,” I argue and look down at her curled in my lap. A purr rumbles in Daeja’s chest as I caress her under her chin. “If we kept her here ...

“No, we store a lot of our correspondence in there. If we were to be audited or invaded, my room would be the first they checked. Keeping her here would be e...

“Well, I can’t leave her. Where she...

“Then we need to go now. Before too many people are up and asking where I am. You can stay near the lake, and I’ll reassign patrols to focus on the forest north of the outpost.”

“Trust me. I can keep her…” I hook a finger under Daeja’s chin and lead her out from the cover of my hair, then double tap two fingers against the side of her neck, “Hidden.” Daeja evaporates from view.

Daeja growls in my ear, and Archie flicks a questioning look at me as he sits across from me.

I lean my head to the side to nudge her quiet. “Sorry.” I laugh sheepishly. “I haven’t eaten in awhile.”

As Archie directs his attention to Cole, I stealthily nab a piece of the pancake and bring it up to my neck. Daeja’s hot breath warms my fingers as she sucks the ...

My thoughts drift to Daeja. I hadn’t realized how attached I am. Until now. The weight of her hangs on my shoulders. Somewhere along the line, it became as familiar to me as the breath in my lungs. Her presence is something intimate. Something that feels like home.

The trunk where we placed Daeja is tipped over. The lid is wide open, and a disarray of contents spill out onto the floor. But no Daeja. This was a mistake.

Cole clears his throat. He holds the sheets on his bed up, revealing Daeja curled into a ball, her nose tucked under her tail. Sleeping.

“I can’t imagine living in the same clothes for months on end has been very comfortable.”

“What? Did you say months?”

“Yes. The fire happened almost three...

My mouth goes dry, and my mind fumbles for proof of it. I attempt to recount my days and memories and…nothing. I can remember events but not...

“Cole…” I whisper. “I’m so sorry for that day in the forest.”

“You have nothing to be sorry for. You were trying to save your mother. I’m sorry I didn’t go with you. I should have—”

“You were doing what was best for your family....

“But you were my family, too. I wanted a ...

Were. Wanted. All the things of the past. My face falls, and he slips his hand out from mine. Digging between the layers of his shirt, he fishes out something metal. It gleams as the light fr...

“I wore it every day after...