The Darkest Wolves - A.K. Koonce Page 0,46
silence, but as I stand, they hold in place against my body; straining against the cloth but not falling to the ground.
I’d hate to harm one of them.
I feel like an asshole. Who steals from a blind woman? Who does that?
… I do.
Why would Agatha bury them? She isn’t as familiar with creatures as I am. Perhaps she thought they were useless. She’s blind, so perhaps she didn’t realize they were eggs at all.
But she’s also a mage. So it’s even more likely she knew what these things were and wanted to rid herself of them as quickly as possible.
I, on the other hand, am not about to throw away money or the lives of whatever these animals may grow up to be.
Their lives will be worth living. I want to make a profit, of course, but honestly, I just can’t stand the thought of not helping them. I don’t show it, but my little, slightly selfish heart loves these types of mysterious creatures.
Raising and selling magical animals is just a business for me. I can’t get attached. I have to make a living in this world the only way I know how.
On awkward steps and with aching arms, I carry the boulder-like eggs home. The dark forest surrounds me, shutting out the majority of the moonlight and making me stumble more than once before my small shack comes into view.
Glowing embers of ruby eyes greet me as I get closer. The sweet little hellhound rubs his warm temple against my thigh as I pass, but I don’t have a free arm to return the affection to my pet.
The dark and fuming hellhound, Grim, might just be the love of my life. It’s a pathetic love life that I’m leading, I’ll admit.
With the force of my hip, I bump open the door. A creaking cry comes from the hinges, and I don’t bother closing it behind me as I settle in near the dwindling embers of the fire. The one room home is tiny with a cot on the far left side of the room and a worn and rickety kitchen table on the other side. The small fire easily warms the abandoned shack that I made my home.
The smooth curve of one of the eggs fills my hands. My own reflection peers at me on the iron-like surface. The two others glisten near the fire. In the lighting, I can really make out their details. One’s a pure white color. It shimmers like fresh snow, while the one nestled next to it is as dark as blood. The third one, the one that I hold in my hands, is a consuming deep smoky tone.
They’re shining and beautiful.
“But what are they?” I whisper to myself.
I have a thing for creatures, the dangerous and the unique, and I’ve never seen an egg this large. It’s even bigger than an ostrich egg. Its structure seems thicker as well. I hold it close to my chest, and my eyes fall closed as a deep breath fills my lungs.
My magic is quiet within me. I’ve hidden it away and tried to save it up for when I know I’ll really need it in the future.
It’s there though. A numb sort of tingling feeling of power stings through my body.
A blur of a thousand images flickers through my mind. I search past them all until one faded image pulls to the front.
My sight shows me three colossal animals. Their wingspan is the size of the run-down shack that I’ve called home for the past year. Thick scales cover their bodies like proud armor. Long talons and sharp teeth lash down from the heavens, preparing to scoop up their next prey.
“Dragons.” My eyes open once more, the depths of my blue irises are inky in the reflection of its glossy shell.
A strong and quick beat begins to take over my heart.
They’re rare.
Deadly.
Expensive.
I’ve never sold a dragon before. The most I’ve ever gotten for a magical creature was a year’s worth of income for a pegasus. Would have been more if it was a unicorn, but the buyer didn’t believe me when I said its horn was just underdeveloped.
A dragon could pay for a new life though. A real life. Imagine how I could live.
With three dragons, I could start over. No longer would I be a drifter running from her past. I could have a home. A family.
A life.
A smile pulls at my lips, and I’ve already made up my mind.
Without another thought, I toss the