Leah's Hero - Miranda Martin Page 0,38

impossible happens. Leah yells again and then Rakstan yells too.

I open my eyes in time to see her lift the rope from behind her and hold it up above her. The knife slices cleanly through. My weight pulls her over the edge as we fall.

We’re dropping fast. She’s screaming and I have the urge to scream as well but I must save her. I open my wing, causing me to go into a spin, but it slows my fall a little. The world spins around me faster and faster, but then she catches up.

I grab her and jerk her close to my chest. I snap the wing shut, wrapping it around her. Using my tail I turn us so that she is on top. I wrap my arms and legs around her, offering her all the protection my body can give.

White pain blinds me as we slam down, but then we’re sinking. Water fills my nostrils and I snap my eyes open. Water.

I struggle to break the surface and get one gasp of air before the rushing water pulls us back under. We’re tumbling, head over heels. I can’t tell up from down.

My lungs burn, muscles ache, but I’m never letting her go.

I ram into rocks, bounce off, and continue down the river. Using one arm and my tail I try to get us to the air again. We break the surface and both of us gasp, but then we’re tossed over a small waterfall.

It’s a constant fight. I don’t know how long it goes, but finally the rush of the water eases before we fall over another drop and land in a calm pool of water. I float on my back, keeping her on my chest, and swim for shore.

She’s shivering and gulping air as she clings tight to my neck. We reach the shore and she crawls over me then collapses on the sand. I claw my way up next to her then lie face down. The rain continues to beat against us, but it doesn’t matter. We survived. Somehow.

She coughs and water splutters out of her mouth. I rise to my knees, touching her face, leaning close to look at her eyes.

She coughs again, rolls to the side and exhumes more water. I gather her into my good arm and stand up. We need shelter and warmth. She is freezing cold, her body is shaking.

The sand goes for two to three strides before meeting the edge of the jungle. I scan the tree line for a minute before spotting a game trail, and I make my way to it. It will offer the most likelihood of shelter somewhere along the way.

She wraps her arms around my neck, but her grip is limp. My hearts pound, braced with fear. I have to turn sideways to enter the jungle, slipping between the trunks of two massive trees. The foliage is so thick, only a few drops of the rain reach us.

She needs warmth. A fire. My own muscles ache with the cold, feeling less responsive, and it’s harder to push myself to keep moving. The dragon’s roar and fire burns bright though, and that keeps me going.

I work my way through the thick underbrush and between the trees, searching for something that will serve as a shelter. Ahead there are two trees that have grown as almost one. Their trunks join together at about the height of my head. Vines wrap around the trunks, growing between the pair, making a small shelter.

I get to it and lay her down beneath it. Her eyes snap open and she clings to my arm.

“No!” she says. Her beautiful voice makes me want to do what she says instead of what is best for her. How can I make her understand?

“Safe,” I say, pushing her gently down to rest.

She lies down but her eyes watch me suspiciously. I frown and try to figure out how much of my language she can understand. It doesn’t matter. I have to make this shelter better and find wood to burn.

First, I gather leaves that have fallen close to hand. There are many big ones, some as big across as my chest. I gather these, piling them close to Leah. Once I think I’ve got enough, I weave them in between the vines over her head. It closes out the rain and provides more shelter. I keep working, tugging and pulling at the vines until I’ve made a roof and three walls. The job is made much