Zach paused, the only sign that he'd heard her. Slipping through the exit, he shut it behind him.
There was something between Zach and Mira. That was clear. Aaron knew there was little chance for a future together. Not when Mira was a dragon shifter.
23
Aaron
Aaron pulled Mira along to the balcony.
Hope had already vaulted over the railing and onto the beach below.
Following her lead, they climbed over and dropped to the sand.
Hope turned to him with the rising sun at her back.
A smile on her lips, her eyes lit up with that inner fire that brought out flecks of gold in those green eyes. "Ready to fly, immortal?"
Mira winced. "I can't shift."
"What do you mean?" He canted his head.
"That other Elysian man messed with my psyche. I can't shift into my dragon form." Her lips turned downward.
"It's fine." Hope's voice was already rough with the force of the upcoming transformation. "I am strong enough to take both of you."
Behind him, Aaron heard a shout. The rest of the Elysians had arrived.
Zach had given them just enough time to get a head start.
A flare of gold and violet lit up the space. A breeze pushed back his hair. The scent of vanilla shot through with burning embers swept over him.
Hope raised her head to the skies, a scream pouring out as she shifted.
Her voice changed to a proud screech of delight, of freedom and flight and all things that were so alive.
The dragon raised her head. She blinked long heavy lashes over green and golden eyes.
Those eyes could belong to only one woman.
The hair on Aaron's forearms stood on end. He'd never fail to be thrilled by the force of her transformation.
Her animal was every bit as feminine, as beautiful, as seductive as the woman.
Hope tossed her neck and beckoned them over. Reaching the dragon, Mira clambered up the scales before slipping onto her back.
Aaron was right behind her. Yet when he reached Hope, he couldn't help but hesitate for a second, not wanting to hurt her in any way.
The dragon brushed her head against his side, a gentle touch.
He understood.
She trusted him enough to let him fly on her. In return, she wanted him to trust her, too.
Using the nearest scale for leverage, he hauled himself up and kept climbing, until he slid his leg over her back behind Mira.
He was just in time, because Hope snapped her wings out. With another harsh cry that was torn apart by the sea breeze, she ran up the beach, and then, just like that, was airborne. Then there was only the wind tearing back his hair.
The beach fell away as his dragon flew toward the sun. Banking a steep right, she headed toward Mauritania.
Something crashed into them. The dragon screeched, her body shuddered.
Panic twisted his gut. The Elysians had found them.
Was Hope hit?
Aaron swiveled around just in time to see a fight break out on the beach.
Another shot rang through the air, missing them by inches.
Zach must have stopped the other man from shooting further.
Fear swept through Aaron. The rational part of him wondered how a bullet could have penetrated the thick scales of his dragon.
The dragon's body shook again.
All thought dribbled out of his head. His gut twisted with fear.
There was a low cry of pain from Hope. She lost altitude, heading head first for the waves.
In front of him, Mira screamed. She clung to the dragon's back.
The sea rushed up to meet them. The dragon's shadow grew larger over the green surface as they plummeted.
Fear skittered down his spine.
Hope was hurt, and he was helpless. Aaron swore as they approached the water.
If she hit the waves, she would drown.
He had to do something, but what?
How could he help this magnificent female who had begun to mean so much to him?
Placing his palm on the scales, he shut his eyes. Aaron dropped into his inner mind, onto the psychic plane where the essence of his star burned cobalt blue.
Drawing on his psychic power, he drew it down into his heart, into his hand, channeling it through his skin into the body of the dragon.
Heat rushed through him, pulsing into his arm, and bled through his fingers. He fed it to the dragon.
A shudder ran through her, then he felt the energy pour through him and bleed into Hope.
His blue energy sank into her, rushing to the spot where she was injured. It numbed the pain and then began to heal, knitting the muscles back together. Aaron felt her straighten.
Flapping her wings, Hope gained altitude again until she was flying parallel to the sea.
All along, he didn't stop focusing, didn't stop channeling that energy. His mind, his soul, his very heart, pushing her on. There were no words needed, just the sheer will to heal her, to infuse her with his spirit, to pour his energy into her so she could keep flying.
"Whatever you’re doing, it's helping. Don't stop." Mira gripped his shoulder.
Aaron concentrated on keeping Hope in the sky. He just let her feed from him. He would do anything to keep her alive. Even give up his own life.
They flew for what seemed like hours, when Mira exclaimed, "Almost there. I see Mauritania."
The darkness closed in on him.
Even then, he didn't stop routing his energy, continuing to fuse his spirit with hers.
24
Hope
The shot had pierced her scales and plowed into her side. It was as if someone had plunged a spear of ice into her, the cold so intense it sucked up the fire inside her, freezing the water in her veins into ice crystals right then.
There was an instant when she'd been suspended in midair, and then her body had hurtled down toward the water. The wind which had been her friend until then had torn at her wings, her eyes. The pain had burned through her in an intense wave of white noise, and she was sure she was going to crash.
If she hit the water and went below, Hope knew her body mass would pull her under before she had any hope of righting herself.
Not just her, but Aaron and Mira, too. No, she had to do something. She couldn't let Mira die when her life was just beginning. And Aaron…pain had speared through her at the thought of separating from him before she'd been able to know him well.
Aaron!
They were so close to the water. Her breath hissed out and churned the water, steam rising off the surface where her dragon fire touched it.
She was bleeding, the liquid gushing out, weakening her with every passing second.
Then she'd felt his touch on her scales… Heat from his fingers sank right through the scales and bones, into her very cells.
A whoosh of blue, and pure-unadulterated psychic energy had pulsed through her blood. It had zoomed through the furrow that the bullet had left in its wake.
The energy had numbed the pain, gathering at the wound to net together the cells there. So powerful was it that she felt her cells fill with enough strength to keep going. Channeling it, she’d steadied herself.
It was as if his spirit aligned itself with hers, supporting her as she pulled up. Her underbelly nicked the surface of the waves. His strength of intent helped her focus.
With a cry, she'd drawn up and out of the dive.