The Bond That Burns

BOOK 1

PROLOGUE - MEDRA

Bloodwing Academy

Last Days of Summerfell

I'd spent my summer break in jail.

No, that wasn't fair to those who were truly imprisoned. My room in Drakharrow Tower wasn't a cell, technically. But I was a prisoner.

Still, my confinement had its comforts. I had small luxuries. Books. Food. Hot baths.

And I hadn't—yet—been beaten. Though I knew Viktor Drakharrow would have liked nothing more than to lay a hand on me.

But I was getting ahead of myself. Days spent alone could do that to a person. Sure, I had visitors sometimes. But not the ones I wanted.

The dragon. Nyxaris.

The moment he burst from the stone was etched into my memory forever.

And the sight of him soaring over Bloodwing?

Everything changed in that instant.

I'd been playing a game of deception ever since. And I didn't see that changing anytime soon.

Yet the sorrow gnawing at me for the past two months had little to do with dragons. It had everything to do with Blake Drakharrow.

CHAPTER 1 - MEDRA

Two Months Earlier

The silence following Nyxaris's departure felt like the calm before a storm.

His roar still echoed in my ears.

My heart pounded. My body trembled.

And yet, Nyxaris was secondary.

Blake was what mattered.

He stood a few feet away, frozen just as I was. Speechless.

But the look on his face...

Shock, yes. But nothing else. He stared, unapologetic. Remorseless. No apology on his lips.

He should have fallen to his knees. Begged for forgiveness. Instead, he just stood there.

Seeing him like that snapped something inside me. It pushed every thought of the dragon from my mind. I opened my mouth, ready to erupt with fury for the second time that evening. Nyxaris's roar would be nothing compared to mine once I was through with Blake-fucking-Drakharrow.

The stillness of the courtyard shattered.

People flooded the Dragon Court from every entrance. Students crowded in, filling the cloistered passages, peering at Blake and me where we stood amidst the rubble. I saw the excitement on their faces. In some cases, fear.

Was Florence there somewhere in the crowd? What was she thinking? Had she been afraid when she saw Nyxaris take flight? I wanted to reassure her. To go to her.

But before I could move, Headmaster Kim's voice rang out.