Chapter 88
Shilan stopped at my back but didn't dig his claws into it, much to my annoyance. He looked at Arden and asked him something, and Arden stayed silent while he looked between the two of us with a thoughtful look on his face.
He growled in warning and narrowed his eyes when Arden didn't say a word, and a look of annoyance flashed through them, even though I couldn't see it with my eyes still closed and back facing them.
"That is not up for me to decide," Arden said and bowed his head a little in apology. "If it gets broken again or not is something that the Gods and the Great had wished for. I am sure that it will be just as painful as the first time, but that is something that I do not know."
"And I will go through with it as long as it keeps us safe and have them off my tail," I said and gritted my teeth together while I closed my eyes tighter shut.
"I know that there is a chance that they, whoever we are facing, knows that it is me but need some sort of confirmation before they can do something else. "
Shilan whined sadly and nuzzled my side. He said something to me that I couldn't hear, and I couldn't help but roll my eyes and scowl, pressing my lips into a thin line.
"Gee, I do not know, Shilan," I said sarcastically while I rolled my eyes and scowled, pressing my lips into a thin line.
"I don't even know your question because I can not hear you and will not be able to hear you until you dig your claws into my back for a second time and set up the freaking bond between us. "
Shilan growled and rolled his eyes. He dug his claws into my back a little harder than he had to out of spite, and I gritted my teeth together to keep myself from screaming out in pain.
Tears pricked the corner of my eyes, and I had to cover my face so that they wouldn't realize how bad it had hurt, especially since I had Arden break whatever protection was on my back before that.
My whole body ached from pain, and it took all of my self-control not to groan with that pain, even though my body seemed to grow tenser with each second that passed with him digging his claws into my back.
"Shilan," Arden hissed as if he knew that I was in pain and was trying to save face while I tried not to cry. He scowled and narrowed his eyes at my dragon, and my dragon looked at him with wide eyes before he looked at me.
"What?" he asked, and I had to bite my lip to keep myself from crying with relief when I was able to hear his voice in my mind again.
"What did I do wrong?" He dug his claws further into my back and pulled his claw down my back before he released it and pulled his claw out of my back, playing it on the ground beside him. "I did nothing wrong."
"You made it more painful than you had to," I said, my voice barely above a whisper and shaking from the relief that I was feeling coursing through my body while I talked to him through our new bond that had formed between us.
"I had been through too much pain already for you to do that. "
Instantly, Shilan looked at me and pricked his ears toward me, even though I didn't look at them and waited for the pain to subside.
"Did you say something?" he asked, trying but failing to hide the excitement out of his voice.
"Marini, did you say something, or am I imagining things? "
"You are imagining things," I said sarcastically.
"I can not hear you, even if I try." I licked my lips and blinked back tears, too afraid to move and have this wave of nausea continue to wash over me until I threw up.
"Do you think that you can take care of my back and the pain that I am feeling, Arden, please?
" I asked, my voice barely above a whisper.
"I need to train, but I do not think I will be able to without feeling the need to throw up. "
"Of course," Arden said, biting back a small sigh of relief. "Does that mean you can hear him?" he asked, trying but failing to keep the hope out of his voice, and I nodded in confirmation. "And?" He raised an eyebrow in question while he studied me with a frown on his face.
"And?" I asked and raised an eyebrow in question, even though I didn't turn to look at him. "What do you mean by "and," Arden? And what?"
"How are you feeling?" he asked and bowed his head. He placed his hand on my back and muttered something under his breath, healing the wounds that I had received after Shilan had dug his claws hard into my back.
"Complete," I replied and blinked back more tears that wanted to fall, especially since I was not in pain any longer.
I sniffled and cleared my throat before I opened my eyes and turned to look at Arden and Shilan, sitting up and pulling my shirt down until the claw marks on my back were covered. "I f-"
I grunted after I was cut off and wrapped my arms around Shilan's neck after he barreled into me, and I closed my eyes while I hugged him. I didn't try to finish my sentence, but I knew that I didn't have to because Arden already knew what I was about to say.
I feel complete because I have my other half with me in my mind...
"Are you ok?" Shilan asked and hugged me closer to him. "What happened? Why was I not able to contact you? D-"
"Go through my memories, Stupid, and see for yourself," I all but snapped at him while I held onto him closer to me, and he growled but didn't pull away from me, especially since this had been unexpected for us.
"I do not know what happened, but it can't be good, especially since it doesn't look like it was supposed to happen. "
Shilan grunted and did not say a word. He did what I wanted him to do and started to go through my memories of everything that had happened, and I could tell that he was worried that something like this would happen again.
But this time, there would be no one to protect me...
I held back an eye roll and pressed my lips into a thin line.
I didn't say a word about what I caught from my dragon and instead pulled away from him so that I could look at Arden, who was watching us with a pained look on his face.
"Jonah doesn't need to know what was on my back," I said in his tongue, and Arden raised an eyebrow in question while he studied me.
"Please, it's going to hurt him far worse than anything else and have him more worried about me than he should have to. "
"Are you sure?" Arden asked and cocked his head to the side while he studied me, and I nodded in confirmation. He sighed and moved a hand through his hair and across his face while he shook his head. "You are putting me in a tight spot, Marini," he said and narrowed his eyes playfully at me.
I shrugged and grimaced, pressing my lips into a thin line.
"Well, I am being put in a hard position, too," I said sarcastically, and I couldn't help but narrow my eyes at him.
"I have to be careful of what I say and when and who to trust with what information.
There is a chance that they, whoever they are, will find a way to get the information out of someone that I have told before now. "
"And this will lead to your death?" Arden asked and raised an eyebrow in question while he studied me, and I nodded in confirmation.
"And everyone else's," I replied before I cleared my throat and shifted on the ground, holding onto Shilan tighter against me. "So please, do not tell Jonah whatever you saw because I am going to need him more than I am going to need you or anyone else besides Ilas."
And the boy that I was destined to be with, even though I had no idea why...