She looked up the scaled slope of his body, the sails of his wings that blocked out the sky, his graceful neck and the monstrous head, his shining dark eyes.
“Ready?” he said, his voice rumbling.
“Yes.” Her own voice was fearful.
He reached one hind foot forward, and she grabbed hold of it. His clawed toes wrapped around her, and she hugged his leg.
He launched. She looked down once to see her mother clinging to Jon. She was crying. Jon was just staring at her. Kay dared to let go and wave at them.
Mom waved back. Pulling away from Jon, she waved with both arms.
Then Artegal flew fast, straight up, ahead, and away.
She was throwing off his balance, she could tell. His wing beats felt harder than usual, and he dipped to the left, where he was holding her. She tried to curl up as small and streamlined as she could. She found she was more sheltered here than on his back. She was in a pocket of still air while the wind swept around her. His toes were rigid, holding her as tightly as he could without crushing her. They were both afraid of her falling.
Turning her head, she could look between his toes, past his scaled belly to see what was happening, to see if the two of them were going to be knocked out of the sky for this, either by the dragons or the fighters.
The trio of dragons followed, but only briefly. They circled without turning their gazes from the sight of the girl and dragon racing away. Then, after about a mile, they arced their backs, spread their wings, and went away. Back toward Dragon.
The two jets followed a little longer. Artegal struggled to keep up his speed, despite the awkwardness of holding her. His lack of speed meant the jets could come close, though they stayed behind and to the side. Kay couldn’t see much detail on them, just their silver wings and bright sunlight glaring off the canopies. But after a few minutes the lead jet wagged, rocking back and forth a couple of times, before both planes tipped to their sides and peeled away, roaring back south. She imagined that was Captain Conner flying the lead plane.
They had seen. They’d all seen. They’d understood.
She and Artegal flew north.
24
As soon as Artegal flew across the border, the requirements of the sacrifice were fulfilled and the dragons would call a truce. Or so she and Artegal hoped. Artegal was confident—he said the dragons had the greatest respect for this ritual. Kay hoped that the human side of the conflict would also respect what she had done and abide by a truce. As her mother had said, what they needed was a chance—a reason—to talk.
Neither could be sure what their people would do.
After entering Dragon, they turned east and landed an hour later so Kay could get warm again. She broke open a pack of hand warmers and put on her winter clothes, then secured their climbing ropes and harness, which Artegal had hidden yesterday. Flying with her clipped into his harness would be more comfortable for both of them. They didn’t stop for long; they didn’t want to be found.
Artegal wanted to avoid dragons entirely. He couldn’t be sure that either of them was safe. So he flew, straight and fast as he could, stopping only for a few minutes at a time, just a few times a day. The rest of the time, he went on, tireless, determined. She stayed strapped in, nibbling on beef jerky and granola bars from her pack, sipping water, watching the sky swirl past above her. She slept on his back, heat radiating from him, helping keep her warm. His heartbeat pounded in her dreams.
Many times, she heard aircraft, but could never be sure where they were. Sometimes she saw specks in the distance or running lights at night. Other times, Artegal would see something that caused him to veer and increase his speed. Dragons, in distant pursuit. But they weren’t caught. Their pursuers almost seemed like escorts.
On the third day, they reached the Atlantic Ocean. They stopped briefly, touching down on the coast, flying a few miles along the shore. Then they touched down again, closer to a town on the horizon, where Kay’s cell phone found reception. Kay sent a text message to her mother: I’M ALL RIGHT. I LOVE YOU. She texted the same message to Jon and Tam.
After that, they left land behind. Then they couldn’t stop at all.
He startled her once by diving. She choked back a scream as she felt him hit the water and saw waves splashing on either side of his body, but a heartbeat later he was beating his wings hard and pulling up. She saw the tail of a huge fish dangling from his mouth before he sucked it in.
Artegal was already tired, flying lower and lower, closer to the waves, and the beats of his wings slowed. But his neck was still straight, his head still pointed forward toward their destination. They were both coated in salt from ocean mist.
On the fourth day, they saw land again: Greenland, if they’d set their course correctly. The shore was rocky, and the landscape beyond it was white, endlessly white, inhospitable with ice.
Relieved, she sighed. Her muscles were stiff from staying crouched in the same position, and her body was sore from jerking against the harness. If nothing else, even if they didn’t find what they were looking for, here was land, and they could rest awhile before deciding what to do next.
Artegal dipped his left wing, and they turned in an arc until they were heading up the coast. They were able to rest for a few hours on the shore. The wind blew harshly here. Artegal tucked his neck in, pulled his tail close, and napped. Kay sat in the shelter of his body and watched the slate gray waves tumble and break on the rocky beach. She didn’t think she’d ever be warm again. But she also had a feeling, deep in her gut, that they were heading toward something, that they would find something, and the thought warmed her. She consulted the treasure map and its coordinates, comparing them to the numbers on her GPS tracker, and planned the next part of their journey.
It felt as if she and the dragon hadn’t spoken in days. They would look at each other, ask a question with their gazes, and answer with nods. It was peaceful.
On the fifth day, they saw a thin column of steam rising from a far northern, ice-locked shore. Artegal steered toward it.
A moment later, they spotted another dragon, with scarlet scales that flamed yellow and orange in the morning sun, flying to meet them. Kay squinted and saw a leather harness around its chest and a person riding on its back.
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
As recently as a couple of years ago, I didn’t think I’d be writing a book like this. I had the idea of Kay riding a dragon and dodging cops, but back then the story was different and she had a different name. And it didn’t work. Then I changed her name to Kay and made her a teenager, and the pieces of the story all came together.
Around that same time, Anne Hoppe emailed me to ask if I’d ever thought of writing a young-adult novel. “Why, funny you should ask,” I replied. So, first off, I’d like to thank Anne for that email, which was sort of like the universe telling me I was on the right track.
I’d also like to thank all the usual suspects: Mike Bateman, for reading an earlier draft; Rob and Deb for doing the same; Ashley and Carolyn Grayson; Mom and Dad; and the local gang for getting me out of the house.
About the Author
CARRIE VAUGHN survived her air force brat childhood and managed to put down roots in Colorado. Her first book, KITTY AND THE MIDNIGHT HOUR, launched a popular series of novels about a werewolf named Kitty who hosts a talk-radio advice show. Ms. Vaughn has also written many short stories. This is her first work for young readers.
Ms. Vaughn lives in Colorado.
You can visit her online at www.carrievaughn.com.
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