Page 32 of The Infirmary for Dragon Burns and Midair Mishaps

Then again, he was duty-bound to obey the will of the Dragon King. I shook that thought off. Regardless of what was happening, I’d hear about it later. Right now, I wanted to understand what Eden was up to. “You might think twice about your current actions considering the fact there are so many kingsguard hanging about. You’re out here, openly defying one of the high laws. You do know that taking dragon scales for personal use, even discarded ones, is illegal?”

“Are you here to turn me in?” Eden rounded on me so quickly I almost ran into her. Her chest heaved in response to the irritation in her voice. I couldn’t help the draw of my eye, my gaze sinking along that splendidly long neck, running over collar bones. I briefly wondered what the hollow at the base of her throat tasted like. Would it be salty? Or would it taste of blackberries, the same way she smelled? Blackberries and honey and something that reminded me of the infirmary.

Wait, what?

I frowned at her. I needed to stop being consumed by the way she smelled and start wondering why she was risking the wrath of the kingsguard by collecting scales. “Why would I turn you in when I don’t even know what you’re doing?”

Her eyes flashed with something. Relief, maybe. “It’s better that you don’t,” she said, turning away from me before picking up another discarded scale. She stared at it, her nose wrinkling. “Do you know how old this shed is?”

“Is this what all the smoke was about the other day?” I thought it had looked odd—almost purplish. Even Min had suspected something. Was she burning the scales? Did she not have any firewood? Was that it? Did she need help warming her cottage? “You should know dragon scales don’t burn normally.”

“I’m not burning them,” she muttered at me. Then her lips pursed. “Well, not exactly.”

Huh?

Voices sounded from the path, and she moved deeper into the trees. I darted after her, disappearing from sight.

“You need to tread lightly right now,” I said. “There’s a captain of the guard here. He can pass judgment in the name of the commander.”

“You mean if you decide to turn me in for treason?” she said. Her eyebrows arched as she looked over her shoulder at me. “You seem to know an awful lot about the kingsguard.”

I paused. “My brother is here. He… He’s one of them.”

She seemed to mull over that information. “I see. I suppose I’ve put you in an awkward position then.”

“They seem to have their hands full,” I said, hoping to assuage any concern she might have that I would turn her in. As far as I was concerned, the kingsguard had more important things to worry about than what some burn nurse was getting up to with a few discarded scales. That didn’t mean I wasn’t curious. “What are you doing with the scales?” I asked again.

“What does it matter?” she said. “Why don’t you pretend you never saw me, and I’ll pretend I never saw you, and we can both go about our days.”

A twig snapped. I whirled around, arms thrown wide like that might block Eden from view.

Min stood there, claw curled, her lips pulled back over her teeth. It wasn’t a growl, but her way of saying oops. I rolled my eyes. She was fast, yes, but never very good at stealth.

Behind me, Eden sighed in relief.

“I’ve told you you’re no good at sneaking,” I said to Min.

She slithered through the woods after us, young saplings bending around her body, green leaves rustling. As she drew near, she bent her long neck around a tree, blocking Eden’s path. Eden froze at the sight of her, coiling back slightly.

“She won’t hurt you,” I said.

Eden glanced at me from the corner of her eye, and I could tell she didn’t believe me.

Min lowered her head, sniffing at the bag at Eden’s waist. She made a noise of surprise and confusion. She could likely smell herself on the bag. She looked at me, a low, rumbling whine echoing from her lungs.

I held my hand up. “It’s okay.”

“Does she want them back?” Eden asked.

“Her scales?”

“Yes.”

“You’d give them to her?”

“Well, they’re hers, aren’t they? I only want them if she has no need for them.”

I shook my head, utterly baffled by this woman. “No, she doesn’t want them. She only wants to know why you have them.”