The cool night breeze whipped against me, sending goosebumps running along my skin. The roars were becoming louder and louder and I could hear shouts and screams in the distance. One thing was for certain: the dragons had reached the island.

I drew in a deep breath, willing the fire to return to me once again. It didn’t take long. Once I felt ready to explode, I pointed my fingertips upward. As the fire rose high in the sky, I just had to hope the dragons would notice the flares.

I considered shouting out my name to hasten their attention toward me, but decided against it. The black witches were still on this island, and I couldn’t afford to get entangled with one of them now.

I resorted to shooting flare upon flare up into the dark night air as I watched the sky above the treetops surrounding the square with bated breath.

Another chorus of roars rang out, terrifyingly close this time. A powerful wave of dry heat rushed through the forest toward me as billows of fire closed in around the trees. Finally, I caught sight of the fiercely beautiful creatures, soaring above the blazing treetops.

“Hey!” I managed to shout, my voice hoarse from the smoke. “Down here!”

The dragon flying at the head of the horde with silver-orange scales fixed his narrow, gleaming eyes on me.

“Rose! No!”

Caleb?

As the beasts swooped down toward me, I could make out the vampire clasped in the hand of the leading dragon.

Oh no.

He attempted to leap from the dragon toward me, but the monster’s hand closed tighter around him. When Caleb pulled out a gun and aimed it at his captive, I yelled, “No, Caleb! Don’t! Leave this to me.”

The dragon grunted before hurling him toward the ground. “No!” I screamed, rushing to the edge of the roof and staring down at the vampire lying on the cobblestones. A chill ran from my neck down to the base of my spine when he still didn’t move. I wanted to race down the tower and fling myself at him, but I couldn’t. Not yet.

I raised my gaze slowly up toward the dragon who was watching me intensely. Fighting to steady my feet, I stood up straight and glared back at him.

“What’s your name?” I asked in as calm a voice as I could manage.

“Jeriad,” he growled.

“Jeriad,” I repeated. “I don’t believe we’ve met before.”

“I’m commander-in-chief to Erisard, king of The Hearthlands. I was away during your visit.”

The Hearthlands. So that’s what they call their realm.

Without warning, Jeriad’s hand shot toward me. I stepped back quickly, raising my hands to shoot fire toward him, and to my surprise, flames shot out on cue. That was the first time I’d been able to release flames with such precision. Perhaps I’m getting better at this.

Jeriad drew his hand away, his eyes widening as he watched my fire die down.

“Maiden of Fire,” one of the dragons whispered in awe behind him.

“I’m sorry about what we did to Charis,” I said, my eyes traveling from one dragon to another. “I’m not proud of it. But he threatened me and my people… Whatever you believe me to be, I am not yours. I am princess of this island, and I belong here.”

Jeriad growled and motioned to pick me up again. I released another blaze of fire to keep him back, once again surprised that it came on command.

“My father, king of The Shade, is also a fire-wielder,” I said. “Perhaps together, we could form some kind of understanding.”

Jeriad exchanged glances with the other dragons. I wasn’t sure what that piece of information meant to them, if anything. At least their demeanor calmed a little, their breathing coming a little less heavy.

I looked anxiously down at Caleb, relieved to see that he’d managed to pull himself up off the ground and was staring up at us. I wanted nothing more than to hold him in my arms at that moment.

Jeriad gripped the edge of the roof with his front legs and his scales began to smooth out, his brilliant color fading, his body shrinking. The next thing I knew, I was standing before a magnificent specimen of a man. He was naked from the waist up, and his muscled physique shone with a sheen of sweat as he took a step closer toward me. Wavy jet-black hair licked the sides of his tan face, making his bright eyes look all the more severe. Were it not for the orange-silver scales capping his shoulder blades and pointed earlobes, I might have mistaken him for an ordinary human… on steroids.

“We have no interest in meeting your father,” he said, his voice deep and husky. “My king’s orders are that you return with us.”

He held out a hand to me.

I kept my hands firmly at my sides.

“I’m neither object nor possession,” I said heatedly. “You can tell your king that I have politely refused due to obligations here on Earth… Why exactly do you want me so much anyway?” I couldn’t help but ask.

He furrowed his brows. I flinched as he reached up and touched my cheek with the back of his warm hand before pulling away.

He looked conflicted, as though he wasn’t sure whether or not he ought to answer my question. “Our realm is in dire need of females,” he said. “Each day, we pay homage to the Fire and our ancestors in hope of a solution. You were a clear gift to us.”

“Why do you need females?” I asked, not sure I actually wanted to hear the answer. I looked down nervously at Caleb, who was now climbing up the bell tower toward me.

“We have lost too many of our own after a series of unfortunate events,” Jeriad replied. “Most urgently, we’re in search of a worthy maiden to continue our royal line.”