“I don’t think we do, though I can’t tell for sure. My life in the Forgotten Kingdom was spent mostly in hiding. The hedge dragons try to avoid notice, for obvious reasons.”
“Why were you in Pohjola?” I asked.
She shrugged. “I got lost on my way out of the Forgotten Kingdom. I’m looking for my sister. She was kidnapped and sold into slavery. I’m trying to find her so I can rescue her.”
All talk at the table suddenly stopped, and I blushed, feeling intrusive. I wanted to ask what happened, but Raven beat me to it.
“Storm’s sister is only one of many hedge dragons who have been sold into slavery since the Forgotten Kingdom opened up. As much as we like the Mountain Dreamers and Celestial Wanderers, the truth is that they’re as willing to sell the hedge dragons into slavery as the Luminous Warriors are. The children of Typhon and Echidna consider themselves the only true Dragonkin. They aren’t so fond of their cousins.”
“Pardon me if I’m being too forward,” Angel said, “but what are hedge dragons?”
“Our mothers are true dragons, but our fathers are the elemental storm lords. My father was a lord of lightning. There are other types of hedge dragons connecting with other elements, but none of us are 100 percent dragon blood, and we aren’t immortal like our mothers.”
“But I thought the elementals were immortal as well,” I said.
“There’s something about the crossbreeding that strips away our chance at immortality. We live far longer than most mortals, but we can be killed. Because of that, the Dragonkin consider us weak. They take pleasure in exploiting our weakness, although the Luminous Warriors are by far the worst. They hunt us for sport, and sell us into slavery. Some keep us as slaves in their own homes. We do what we can to evade them. My sister accidentally crossed paths with one of the white dragons and he sold her to someone who lives in Wildemoone. A rakshasa.”
I had a bad taste in my mouth. While I liked a couple of the dragons I met, and they were trying to help us, the fact was that I had grown up a pariah and I understood exactly what Storm was talking about. I glanced over at Herne and he had the same look on his face.
“Do you know where he took her?” Herne asked.
Storm nodded. “I believe so. I think he took her to Owlanvine, a trading city in the desert where slavers often take their captives to auction. What frightens me most is that he may sell her to someone who is looking for dragon skin. Since dragons are impossible to kill, if someone wants armor made from dragon skin, they now turn to the hedge dragons. When we’re in our natural form, our skin makes wonderful leather—strong and diamond hard. We’re prized for our skins, and for our teeth. And unlike our cousins, we can be killed.” She stared at her plate as the footman brought a tray of food around to her. Silently, she served herself some meat and vegetables.
Raven cleared her throat. “Do you see why we decided to bring her with us? We can help her get to Wildemoone from here easier than we could from Pohjola.”
I wanted to help her. “We’ll get you on your way as soon as possible. We may be able to help in other ways. Rakshasas are deadlier than most people think they are.”
Storm stared at her food, her expression impossible to read. “Thank you. I appreciate your hospitality. A gracious welcome is seldom extended to any of my kind.”
“Well, you’re safe here.” I motioned to everyone. “Eat hearty, there’s plenty of food, and dessert as well. We’ll discuss your journey later, but for now, everyone relax. It’s our first night in our new home.”
As the conversation drifted, Storm began to engage more, and soon she was chatting away with Talia. I wasn’t sure what they were saying, but I was grateful to see her open up. Something about the woman made her seem both incredibly intimidating and yet, she had an odd vulnerability about her that made me want to wrap her up in bubble wrap and hide her in the closet where she wouldn’t ever be in danger again.
Chapter Five
While Kipa and Herne led everyone into the living room, Angel, Raven, and I headed toward my bedroom. I wanted to ask Raven more about Storm in private, and so we slipped away before anybody noticed us.
“It’s so good to see you,” I said, hugging Raven the moment we shut the bedroom door.
She hugged me back, then Angel. “I can’t believe how many months it’s been. Too many, to be honest. As much as I love where we’re living, I wish we could pop over to each other’s houses the way we used to. I suppose this is what life is—growing and changing, and watching things and people move through your life.”
“How’s Raj?” Angel asked.
“As goofy as ever, still pining over his TV shows. But he’s made friends with some of the forest sprites and gives them rides on his back.” Raven shook her head. “Goofy gargoyle. He’s really opened up since we’ve moved, though.”
“I want to hear all about what’s going on with you and Väinämöinen. But first, tell us more about Storm. Do you know if she’s telling you the truth?” I had to ask, even though I was pretty sure that Kipa and Raven could weed out an imposter.
“Oh, she’s telling the truth. Kipa checked, and he has ways of finding out. I’d never heard of hedge dragons before, but Kipa says that as a child, he heard legends trickle down from before the dragons were locked into the Forgotten Kingdom. Hedge dragons have been around far longer than most people think. They originated before the Forgotten Kingdom was cordoned off, but there weren’t many then. I gather their numbers have grown, although they constantly have to keep on the move because of the other dragons. It’s hard to imagine Ashera selling off someone like Storm, and I kind of want to know if she’s ever done that.”
“Don’t forget, I went through that with the Dark and Light Fae courts. Come to think of it, Névé and Saílle have moved their courts to Wildemoone because of the dragons.” I wondered if I could reach out to Saílle and ask her to help Storm, though I wasn’t at all sure the Queen of the Dark Court would do so.
“There’s a lot about the dragons that unsettles me,” Angel said. “Ashera is very nice, I’m sure, and while she did save your life, I still feel cautious around her. The dragons are more arrogant than the gods.”
“True,” Raven said. “They consider themselves above most gods, because their parents were Titans. Storm has a long road ahead of her if she expects to save her sister, but when I asked her if she was sure she wanted to do this, she said nothing, just nodded. I have the feeling that she and her family don’t get along, but there is a loyalty to her that exudes like sweat. She’s willing to put her life on the line even if she isn’t as enamored of her kin. Her own family seems like a dysfunctional mess, but she seems to have come out of it with her head on her shoulders.”
“What do you mean? It seems like the hedge dragons would pull together against the dragons,” I said.
“You would think so, but there’s more infighting among the hedge dragons than anywhere else. I think it’s because they feel so squashed as a group. They take it out on one another. That Storm is even considering rescuing her sister is a miracle. Kipa knew a few of the hedge dragons who managed to get out of the Forgotten Kingdom before it was shut down. To the last one of them, they snipped and squabbled among themselves.