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Mom sniffs and puts some biscuits on a plate. She picks it up with the pitcher to serve Dad, but I step forward and take them from her.
“You should have said something,” I snap.
Mom reaches for my arm. “Aya.”
I huff and stomp out of the kitchen to my father. I bend down and hand him the pitcher, then set the plate on the coffee table. I stand over him while he drinks straight from the pitcher. When it’s empty, I take it back and give him the biscuits.
“Aya, go home,” he tells me with his eyes on the floor.
I huff again and go back into the kitchen to get him a refill. Mom snatches the pitcher out of my hands. “Aya, stop. He’s fine. He’s just tired after a long day’s work.”
I stomp my foot. “I don’t want to lose you. I don’t want to lose Dad.”
Mom closes her eyes and sighs. I hold out my hand to stop her and sniff the air. A lot of wood is burning. There’s a fire not far off. Mom opens her eyes and frowns at me.
“What is it?” she asks.
I leave the kitchen and head back into the living room, where Dad rests on the sofa. He’s sniffing the air while he bites down on a biscuit.
“Something’s burning,” I tell him.
“Uh-huh,” he answers around his mouthful. He doesn’t seem concerned enough to get up. That’s not like him at all.
“What?” I demand.
He swallows his bite. “Sniff again, daughter.”
I glare at him, but I breathe in deep through my nose. This time my wolf goes on alert, and I freak out. That’s not just any smoke. It’s dragonfire.
“Shit!” I take off and yank open the front door, then pull it closed behind me. I jump down the porch steps and break into a hard run, practically speeding out of House of Zorah and into the forest.
I tip my head back to the sky. I don’t need to track the scent to follow it. Gray smoke climbs over the trees with an orange glow underneath. It’s coming from the far side of the community lands. I skid to a stop with my heart pounding, and it’s not from running. Ezra snuck off and visited Charity. “Goddammit!” I yell.
I break into another run. I kick off my shoes to get better traction and leave them in the dirt. Where the pines crowd too close, I jump at the trunks and push off them to keep my speed. I leap over fallen logs and duck under low branches. The ones I miss whip at my arms. My wolf shoves me faster. The smoke thickens. It burns my nose and stings my eyes. What if someone is in there? I’m getting there as quickly as I can, and it’s still not fast enough.
When I finally reach the clearing, I leap out of the trees and come to a hard stop. Charity’s shed is in flames. Even from the tree line, the heat bakes my face, and the yard stinks of burnt grass and lightning. I glance over and see exactly who I expected to see. Ezra has his head down with Kade standing in front of him. I turn to Charity, and she hides her face away from me in her father’s arms.
I march across the grass to them. “What happened!”
That’s when Josiah walks out of the forest, and there’s pride in his scent. Oh no. Ezra took advice from Uncle Jo. When is he going to learn?
“Anything done in the honor of love can never be a crime,” Josiah announces as he strolls up to us. “Only a lesson for those who dared to test it.”
Kade whirls on Josiah. “Shut the fuck up. You were here, and you knew he was about to do this. You were supposed to stop him.”
“And what would that have gotten him?” Josiah asks. “More bullying against his mate.” He points at the fire. “I think now Ezra’s gotten his point across.”
Kade throws her hands up. “First the bears, now the fucking dragons!”
“Calm down. It’s just a shed,” Josiah drawls. “It can be rebuilt in a week.”
“That’s not the point,” Kade snaps.
“You were worried he was going to set fire to the dormitories again,” Josiah reminds her. “He didn’t.”
Kade snorts, shuts her mouth, and narrows her eyes at him. I’m done listening to this. I grab my mate by the arm and turn him to face me. “Ezra, what the hell?”
He looks me dead in the eye, and I forget what I was about to yell. His eyes are usually blue-green, but now they’re full Stormscale blue like his father’s.
