Page 73 of Dragon’s Ending

Because I was frightened for him. And somehow that fear had seemed easier to handle if I concentrated on the smaller fear of being cut off from this records hoard.

Slowly, I lowered the phone in my hand, and I realised that, for the first time since arriving at Dragon’s Ending, the records room didn’t feel like a refuge. Instead, it felt crowded with missing context and dead voices pretending at objectivity. History, I thought, was far less trustworthy than people liked to believe.

Dominic finally noticed me looking at him and frowned slightly. “What?”

I stood up abruptly enough to make him blink. “Come flying with me tonight.”

He stared. Then his gaze flicked towards the stacks of records surrounding us. “But—”

“Fuck history,” I said.

To my immense satisfaction, Dominic looked genuinely shocked for perhaps the first time since I’d met him.

Then, very slowly, his expression softened into a smile.

Chapter Twenty-nine

DOMINIC

Ben’s uncharacteristic attitude continued when he insisted we leave the room and go downstairs for a cuppa. Or a coffee, in my case. Tea was disgusting.

I’d thought earlier that Ben wouldn’t stop until he’d digitised the floorboards of the records room. Instead of which, he was standing at the door, urging me to “Get a move on, Dominic.”

“Have the body snatchers been while I wasn’t looking?” I asked him as we descended the stairs. Rhodri’s study door was still firmly closed, thank God.

“Haven’t you heard of taking a break?”

“Dominic!” At the sound of running feet, I looked across the hall to see Teddy heading in our direction at a rate of knots. Stepping down off the last stair, I bent to meet him and swung him in the air.

He was still giggling as I drew him in and tucked him against my hip.

“Where did you come from?” I asked.

“The village,” Teddy informed me, as if this explained everything.

Rae appeared carrying a stack of exercise books and looking faintly exhausted. She had the unenviable task of teaching the youngest dragonets. We weren’t permitted to mix with humans until we were eighteen, which meant we were all home-schooled. Which meant someone had to do the schooling.

“Lessons,” she confirmed. “And before you ask, no, you’re not keeping him.”

Teddy promptly wrapped himself around my neck like an octopus.

“But that doesn’t mean we can’t have an adventure, does it?” I said to Teddy, who gasped.

“Conkers!” he shouted.

“Inside voice, Teddy,” Rae said with an uneasy glance towards Rhodri’s door.

“Conkers, Dominic, please.” Teddy’s whisper was almost as loud as his shout.

I looked over at Ben, and he was watching us with what I could only describe as heart eyes.

“You up for Teddy’s Great Conker Hunt?” I asked him.

“Of course,” he said. “Do we get points for pine cones too?”

Rae choked. “You,” she said, pointing at Ben, “are a very bad influence.”

Ben looked remarkably unfazed by this criticism, so she turned her ire on me.