The Arena novel Chapter 22

As we fly away from the arena, I have time to think. Ish and Palila are quiet on my back. Cedric is a Lycan. He’s not an Alpha werewolf, as I thought. He’s werewolf royalty. And while I feel a bit excited that he identified me as his mate, I’m also angry. He judged me for not telling him that I was a dragon, for letting him believe that I was an Alpha werewolf when he did the exact same thing to me.

“Tana, whatever you’re thinking about, you need to stop. Your body is becoming hotter and neither of us up here are dragons,” Ish says from my back.

I chuff at him, apologizing for losing myself in my thoughts.

“And I told you it’s uncomfortable when you do that,” he says.

As the day breaks, we stop to make camp. I can’t exactly fly into my penthouse in the light of day. When we stop, Ish goes to get food and wood to make a fire. I take a good look at Palila.

“How are you feeling?” I ask her, looking her over. Her arm doesn’t look right.

“My wing was broken. I shouldn’t have been able to shift, but I forced it, and now…” she sniffs. “Now, I’m not sure it can be fixed.”

“May I?” I ask her gently. I can heal her. All dragons have healing powers. We pull from our element. Most people consider fire to be destructive, and it is. But it is also healing. After the forest fire, new life blooms and grows again. Fires can burn out the old or the suffocating and allow for new, young growth, a fresh rebirth. My fire is the same. I just have to pull from the side that is meant to cause rebirth rather than destruction.

Palila nods hesitantly. I reach my hand out and place it over the part of her body that is injured. I have done this with Cedric so many times, that it comes naturally, even though it’s been months since I’ve had to use this side of my dragon.

I close my eyes, focusing on her arm, letting my hand heat in a way that is comforting and relaxing. I hear her gasp as my healing magic begins to work. When I feel that my healing is no longer needed, I pull my heat back and open my eyes, looking at Palila. “Better?”

Her eyes are wide, and she looks from me to her arm. She stretches it out and moves it around. “It’s perfect! Thank you,” she says to me.

“I’ve heard you dragons can heal, and I know you healed Cedric in the arena, but I’ve never seen it done. That was impressive, Tana,” Ish says, coming back to our area with an armload of firewood.

I shrug, standing to help him, “It’s natural for me; it’s nothing special.”

“Oh, but it is!” Palila says. “Most supernaturals don’t have the ability to heal. Dragons are magical.”

“That is true, we have abilities that other supes don’t have. But it’s also why we’ve been hunted nearly to extinction.”

“I would never betray you,” she says, looking very earnest. I have to admit, I’ve never spent time with kestrels before, but I really like them.

Ish comes back with food, and we spend the day eating and resting. Once the sun sets, I shift back and wait for them to climb on my back before leaping into the air and beginning our final flight back home.

When we arrive, Jena rushes out to pull her sister into a hug. They block Ish, and I can tell he’s antsy to get off my back. While the girls are used to being high up in the sky, Ish hates it. I can’t help but chuckle, making Ish bounce on my wing.

He growls at me, and the girls jump at the sound, moving out of the way for him to jump down. I fly a bit higher, then shift, pulling my arms up over my head as my wings tuck into my back and stepping onto the outdoor patio as my back legs shift into my human legs.

“Whoa!” both girls say, watching me. “That’s the most beautiful shift I’ve ever seen,” Jena says.

“Thanks,” I say, walking past them. I’m anxious to see my daughter. “How’s Kenna?”

“She’s perfect! She’ll be happy to see you. I swear she knew you weren’t here. But no child her age should be so aware,” Jena says.

I turn and look at her as I continue moving down the hall. “She’s part dragon. We develop much faster than humans.”

“Who’s Kenna?” I hear Palila ask as I walk into my daughter’s room. The tightness in my chest at seeing Cedric eases as I look at our child. She is so beautiful. I gently tuck her hair away from her face and feel her lean into my hand. Even in her sleep, she recognizes me as her mother.

I watch my daughter sleep for a while longer before returning to the living room. “We have space for you here, Palila. I don’t know what your plans are now that you’re back together, but Jena has been watching my daughter while I’m at work, and Ishir has been out looking for you.”