Aspen (The Dragon Kings #2)(24)

“That would involve bombing all the national parks. That doesn’t seem logical at all.”

“No, just this one. The other seven dragon races aren’t killing anyone. Plus, they don’t know how else to kill us. Humans feed on fear. If they don’t understand how it works, they’ll want to squash it. Bombs now are more sophisticated too. They could target just this park and not affect the surrounding towns.”

“But aren’t people afraid of the backlash?”

“We don’t know. We haven’t been in touch yet. We have ambassadors on the way, though, to talk to both the government officials in DC and those who manage the park here. We’ll see what they say. This isn’t good.”

“You’ve said that already,” said Sid.

“If they just shut down the park, then they they’ll take away his food source,” Aspen said.

“But what if he leaves?” Pearl asked.

“He’ll be easier to track. You guys surely have a way you can find him,” Aspen replied.

“We had every tracker out there looking for him before and no one found him,” Pearl said.

Sid sat up suddenly. “The eagles. They will know who it is.”





Sid ran outside and whistled. He had no idea how to fix this. He whistled again, and Bavol floated down from the trees. He had replaced Talbot, and Sid wasn’t as fond of him.

Yes, Your Majesty. He bowed and waited. Sid heard the door open and saw Aspen coming outside.

Sid turned again and addressed the eagle.

A human was eaten. One of you saw him. Find that eagle and bring him to me.

Are you certain, Your Majesty?

Yes. There was a video. In the background there was an eagle. Find him.

Right away, sir, I’ll come back as soon as I have him.

Sid watched Bavol fly away, and Aspen approached.

“That was pretty amazing. Were you talking to him?”

“He’s my messenger bird. He’ll find the one on the video. It’s our best hope for averting a massacre.” Sid was nervous. He’d been anxious before, but this was different. This death made things worse. Even if they did find and kill the dragon, the humans weren’t likely to believe they’d gotten him, because of Marc.

“Sid, is there any way I can go with your ambassadors when they meet with the human officials? I have experience with both humans and dragons, and I might be able to provide insight no one else can.” Aspen stared at him with a hopeful expression.

“Maybe. These meetings take place in Washington, DC. They meet with the president. I might have to go to this one.”

“I’m sure we can find a reason to have me go with you.”

“Let’s see what the government decides first and what our ambassadors are saying. Also, we need to see what Bavol comes back with. I expect him to return before daylight tomorrow.”





When Aspen arrived home, she found Rowan arguing with her parents. That was a sight she never thought she’d see.

“What’s the matter?” Aspen asked, approaching the scene carefully.

Dad glared at her. “What have you done to him?”

She took a couple of steps back. Her dad wasn’t usually angry with her. “Excuse me? I have no idea what you are talking about.”

“This latest death is enough. Your mom and I have put in for a transfer. We don’t want either of you around here.”

“You can’t do that. We’re halfway through our senior year. We need to stay here. What does that have to do with Rowan?” Aspen looked over at her brother. He clenched his fists, his face red.

“He said the reason we can’t leave is because you need to help save the dragons. I don’t want you anywhere near those beasts.”

Aspen and Rowan shouted at once, which was a good thing because then they couldn’t tell exactly what choice names Aspen was calling them.

Both her parents stopped talking and waited while Aspen and Rowan finished their tirade. Aspen was glad she had Rowan to back her up.

“Are you done?” Dad asked.

“That depends on what you say next.” Aspen crossed her arms.

“We’ve already booked flights to Hawaii. Sissy will get you enrolled in a school there. You leave tomorrow night. I don’t want to risk you going off and doing something stupid.”

Aspen smirked. “I hope you didn’t pay too much for those flights.”

Dad clenched his fists. “We’re your parents. You’ll go whether you want to or not.”

“Did you forget that our birthday was today? We’re eighteen. We don’t have to go anywhere we don’t want to.”

“You will if you want our support. You’re both getting on that plane tomorrow.”

“Well then, I guess I’ll go pack. Rowan you want to join me?”

Rowan looked at her with a frown.

Dad looked relieved. “Thank you, Aspen. We’ll join you in a few weeks.”

Aspen laughed to deflect the panic that was rising in her chest. Her father was being completely unreasonable. “No, I don’t think you understand. I’m not going to Hawaii. I’ll move in with Sid until you decide it’s safe for me to move home. I’m sure he’ll be happy to put up Rowan as well.”