Wizards of Fyre (Island of Fyre Book 3) Read Online Free PDF Page A

riders of his line. He sought her and touched frissons of fear. The woman struggled to reach him. Around her he sensed the closed minds of the wizards.
    Before he could help her, he must regain his strength. He lumbered from the pool and shook the water from his body. Time to hunt. Time to eat. He slowly made his way through the corridors past as series of caves to the outer one. He sniffed the air. Autumn and the animals were fat in preparation for the coming winter. He braced himself, stepped forward and pumped long unused wings. After a shaky start he soared. He fled until he found a herd of roe deer.
    After pumping his wings to gain height, he wheeled and plummeted like an arrow. His claws snatched his prey. He spread his wings and skimmed over the trees. At the cave he settled and feasted. He recalled the days when the men and women riders butchered the meat and added thorns and berries to the food. A blend of the two made flying easier and increased the distance he could cover.
    Once his appetite was sated he crawled into his lair and dozed. His dreams weren’t his own. He dreamed with the woman. Fear and anger colored the moments. He saw her fears and her desire to escape a place where she felt like a prisoner. He saw the faces of three men. Two had the coloring of those who had destroyed the dragons. The third had hair with the colors of fire in the strands.
    ‘Come to Me.’ He sent the message. ‘Come to the hills. There is a place where you can live.’
    He couldn’t go to her yet. Being seen by the wizards could mean his death. He wanted to live and see them destroyed.
     
    * * *
     
    ‘Come to me. Come to the hills. There is a place where you can live.’
    The voice Lorana had heard before filled her dreams. She sat up. Was there a dragon here? Had one struggled over the mountains seeking her? In the years since she’d arrived at the citadel, she’d heard stories of the wizard’s cruelty and destruction of the dragons. She’d also seen how her father had killed dragons and sold their hides until few dragons lived.
    ‘Escape.’
    If the dragon existed, with his help she could win her freedom. All she needed was the right time. How far would she need to travel from the citadel to the hills where the she believed the dragon waited? She wondered if they could cross the mountains.
    With her eyes closed she sought this dragon. Questions filled her thoughts. ‘Dragon, how far away are you? I’ll need to plan how much food I’ll need to carry.’
    ‘I do not know the distance in time or length. I spent eons in a hibernating sleep. I will lead you by thought until you reach a place where it is safe for me to land. Sleep now.’
    Lorana obeyed.
    The next night when the women of the hareem slept, she crept to the storeroom and explored the shelves seeking items to help in her escape. She gathered them in her basket. She found a pair of cloth trousers and tunic, but she really wished for clothes made from dragon skin. They lasted forever. She tucked her gleaning in the deep recess of a shelf near the escape tunnel.
    The next evening she sat at the table in the common room and listened to the gossip. Tales and stories flowed like water cascading over a rocky hillside. Lorana hoped to learn something of value.
    “The wizard candidates leave with some council members and guards to travel to the clan gathering.”
    Lorana bowed her head. She dare not let her glee show. Hag Mother would set a watch on her. She finished her meal and ran to the courtyard to fill the last jug of poison needed for trading.
    That night she made another visit to the store room. She added dried food, cheese and a water flask she had filled. She slid around the last row of shelves and pressed a stone with a dragon carved in high relief. The wall slid open. She grabbed her basket and entered a dark tunnel. The opening closed leaving her in darkness.
    Since she had been here before, a single deep breath calmed her galloping thoughts. With one