Page 9 of Waking Her Dragon

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“The bond,” she gasped, shaking her head as Ginnie pressed a cold cloth into her hand. “It’s been getting stronger. Before the Ancients invited me into the Hall of Knowledge, I could feel Garrett. I was ready to go to him, Carrick. I was ready to pull him out of whatever hellhole he was in.”

Carrick’s eyes narrowed. She could feel him tracking every nuance of her expression, the tone of her voice, and her body language. He was making sure she was telling him everything, while also keeping a close watch on the young woman he thought of as family.

“But you didn’t go to him.”

“No. I trusted Shavon and the Ancients,” Sydney said, a bitter edge of regret cutting through her exhaustion. “She told me Garrett would be okay. She told me to wait. And in reality, I believed the Ancients knew what they were doing. So, I went to the Hall of Knowledge. I spent hours researching Dragonkin and my place in it.”

Finally able to take a deep breath, she filled her lungs, held perfectly still for a single beat of her heart, then exhaled. Looking Carrick right in the eye, she continued, “But the second I returned, I reached out for Garrett. There was nothing.” Shaking her head and tightly clenching her hands together, she added, “Absolutely nothing but a vast chasm of zip, zilch, nada.”

Ginnie exhaled a soft, sharp breath, but Carrick remained utterly still. Syd saw the wheels turning in his head. He was taking in all the information, indexing what she had told him so far, and waiting for more.

“Listen to his thoughts,” Kara snapped. “We need to know what he’s thinking… what he’s planning… what…”

“No way,” Syd shot back. “You know I don’t do that shit in the best of times, and I’m damned sure not doing it now.” Pausing for the briefest second, she added, “And you better not try it, either. Carrick is no young, inexperienced Shifter. He’s a Dragon, a renowned Guardsman, and more powerful than pretty much everyone. He’ll spank your ass and send you packin’, my friend.”

“Whatever,” Kara huffed.

Leaving the Dragon Queen to stew, she returned her focus to Carrick. “I tried everything,” Sydney pressed on, her voice rising as the frustration and fear bled back in. “Every method Kara and I know. We threw everything we had at it. I couldn't see his spirit. I couldn't trace his Magic. I couldn't locate Aodhan, but then again, I hadn’t been able to feel the Dragon King any other time either. It was a total blackout.”

“Until two minutes ago.”

Looking directly into Carrick's eyes, her gaze locked onto his. “He broke through. But he didn't call for help, Carrick.” She exhaled sharply and shook her head. “Nope. Not even a little bit. He told me to run.”

The room went deadly silent.

Sydney watched Carrick closely, bracing for the inevitable pushback. She expected him to rationalize it. She expected him to ask if she was sure, or if it could have been a distorted echo from the trauma.

After all, he was the most renowned and revered Dragon Guardsman in the world. His experience surpassed all who still walked the earth. Out of all Dragonkin, he knew the psychological tricks a broken bond could play.

But Carrick didn’t question her. Not for a single second.

Instead, a chilling transformation swept over him. The panicked, protective friend vanished, replaced instantly by the cold, calculating precision of a Dragon Guard Warrior.

His shoulders squared. The frantic energy radiating off him suddenly collapsed inward, locking down into a terrifyingly controlled stillness.

Sydney saw the recognition in his glowing blue eyes. He knew exactly what it meant when a Dragon Guardsman used his final, dying breath to command his Mate to run.

It meant the battle was already lost.

It meant the threat wasn't just coming for Garrett anymore… It was coming for her.

The terrifying stillness of Carrick’s warrior mode hung heavy in the air. Sydney could practically hear the tactical gears turning in his head as he calculated their next move.

She’d seen him like this before, but she’d been a child… And had only been a bystander. Now, she was the epicenter of conflict.

From the corner of her eye, Syd saw Ginnie step closer, the movement breaking the eerie silence of the moment. She wasn't a warrior, but the sharp, analytical focus in her eyes showed she was processing the information through a completely different lens.

"Sydney," Ginnie said softly, her voice steady but laced with a sudden, haunting intensity. "Go back to what you said before. You couldn’t see his spirit at all? Even when you threw everything you and Kara had at the bond? Is that right?"

Sydney nodded, swallowing the lump of dry fear in her throat. "Nothing. It was like reaching into a void. But he’s alive. I know he’s alive because I felt the fire, and Kara felt Aodhan. If he were dead, the King would be gone, right?"

"Exactly," Ginnie said. Looking from Sydney to Carrick, her expression hardened, a sure sign that she had come to a grim realization. "That doesn't make sense. If a Dragon Guardsman is breathing, his life essence leaves a signature. It vibrates through the universe, especially to his Mate. You should have at least felt a faint, distant hum. But you felt nothing at all, right?"

As Sydney nodded, Carrick’s gaze snapped to his Mate. “I know that look,” he deadpanned. Then, the corner of his mouth lifted just a bit as he added, “It’s the look you get when you’re untangling a dark, unnatural knot. What are you seeing, A ghràidh?"

Ginnie paused. Syd could already feel that the weight of her next words would anchor the room.