She finally looked up at him.
“When we saw the dragon, I couldn’t keep it to myself. I said something.”
“Who did you say something to?”
“The only person I could.”
Jason leaned back, staring at his sister.
“Not the marshal.”
She licked her lips, swallowing. “What choice did I have?”
He breathed out. Here he had blamed Therin for what had happened, and it still might be Therin who was responsible, but would he have come so quickly?
“I’m sorry, Jason. It is my fault. I didn’t know. I still don’t know.”
“I don’t understand,” Sarah said.
Jason closed his eyes. “The marshal is tasked with ensuring we’re prepared for a dragon attack.” He had known that his whole life, that the marshal was responsible for making sure the ballista were all prepared for the possibility of an attack, that the bolts remained ready, and yet, now that he understood the Dragon Souls and the role they played, he wondered something else. He had never given it much thought before, but after learning about the dragons and learning about Lorach, he should have considered it.
What if the marshal was tied to the Dragon Souls in some way?
“He told me that he would take care of it,” Kayla said. “All I wanted was to keep us safe. After what happened to Father, and the way that Mother has been…”
Jason squeezed his eyes shut. It had been his fault, but it wasn’t really. The dragons weren’t around the village because of him. They were there because of Therin and the Dragon Souls. He couldn’t take the blame or the credit for it.
But neither could his sister.
“None of that matters anymore,” he said.
“It matters. They have them.”
Hopefully, he didn’t say. There was the possibility that everyone from their village was dead, though he didn’t want to admit that to Kayla. “They do. And now we have to figure out how to get them back.” He turned and looked at Henry. If anyone would have some idea of how to get them back, it would be him. Only, would Henry be willing to help?
4
Flames crackled nearby, the steady warmth of the fire pressing upon Jason. The sweet smell of the woodsmoke drifted into the room, far more agreeable than the stench of burning dung he’d known his entire life. This was something almost pleasant.
He sat on a plush chair looking across the table at Henry. A mug of steaming tea rested untouched in front of him.
“You have something in mind,” he said to Henry.
“I have an idea, but it’s going to be difficult,” he said. “We can’t involve the entirety of the rebellion in this. Too much would be risked. But there might be something that would work.”
“What is it?” Sarah asked, joining them from the far side of the room. She stood near the fire, resting with one arm on the mantel.
It was only the three of them, though Sarah had sent word to William, and Jason wanted to see the other man. Kayla had gone to sleep. It had taken a while for her to settle down, so Jason had sat with her, holding her hand the way that she had once held their mother’s hand while sleeping.
“We have one of two options,” Henry said.
“What are they?” Sarah asked.
“We can either try to infiltrate the Dragon Souls, or…”
Jason blinked. He knew what the or was.
“You want me to be a slave.”
“You would fit. You have the look. And I don’t think they would watch too closely. If they’ve placed your people anywhere, it would be in the pens.”
“You can’t expect him to get in there and back out,” Sarah said.
Henry didn’t turn toward her. “I didn’t say it would be easy. I just said it would be something to consider. Neither are good options.”
“I’ll do it,” Jason said.
Sarah moved away from the fire, blocking him from looking at Henry. “You don’t even know what’s involved. You can’t do that.”
“If it means getting close enough to try to help them, I have to do it. Besides, they won’t be expecting me to be able to use any power.”
“They might know,” Henry said. “The pens are dangerous for many reasons, not the least because of how brutal they can be. Going there willingly… I can’t even imagine. The problem is that you wouldn’t be able to fit in very easily as a Dragon Soul. You have the wrong color eye.”
“There are ways around that,” Sarah said.
Henry looked over at her. She had deep silver eyes, and unlike Jason, she could have been a Dragon Soul.
“None that would pass scrutiny, and none that would last long enough for us to be effective with what needs to be done.”
“What are you talking about?”
Henry looked over. “I don’t know that it’s ever been tried.”
“What?” Jason leaned forward, glancing from Sarah to Henry.
“She wants you to draw upon the dragon pearl to change yourself.”
“It can do that?”
“Drawing upon the power of a dragon pearl does many things, and changing your appearance is just one thing that would be possible. We have used it temporarily. You can mask your presence when you learn enough, but we’ve never attempted to hold on to that power.”
“But it can be done,” Sarah said.
“Again, we don’t know if it can be held long enough to pass scrutiny.”
“I don’t know if it would be better to go in as a Dragon Soul or as a slave,” Jason said.
“If you go in as a Dragon Soul, you’d be able to learn,” Henry said. “You would have more access than you would as a slave, and you wouldn’t be abused nearly as much.”
Jason started to smile. “Nearly?”
“Training as a Dragon Soul is incredibly difficult. Not everybody survives.”
Jason leaned back, shivering. “Wouldn’t it just be easier for me to go in, free a few dragons, and see if we can’t draw their attention that way? Then we could rescue my people.”
“Without knowing where your people were placed, I don’t know that you could.”
“I could go to David,” he said.
He had no idea if the other man would even help, but if anyone would, he thought the Auran would be invested. He had already done enough, though Jason wondered whether he would violate the vow he had made.
It was the reason there were such security measures now around Dragon Haven. Having an Auran know how to find it was dangerous. He didn’t know what David might do and doubted that the other man would try to harm anyone here, but it was possible that he would.
“We can’t trust an Auran,” Sarah said.
Jason crossed his arms, looking up at her. He wasn’t about to get into that argument again, but David had helped when the rest of the people from Dragon Haven had been reluctant. David had done it because of an interest in the dragons, and he had done it because of a commitment he’d made through the words of the flame.
She dropped into a chair, shaking her head. “I also don’t like either of these plans.”
“I can’t just do nothing,” he said.
“No one is telling you to do nothing,” Henry said.
“I realize that, but…”
He lifted the tea, taking a sip of the bitter liquid. Strangely, it helped clear his head. He squeezed his iron dragon glove, trying to work out the throbbing in his hand. As he did, he could feel the iron dragon somewhere distantly.
Strangely, when he closed his eyes, he caught snippets of color. Almost as if he were using his dragon sight, but it faded.