but he isn’t perfect. I’ve been hunting him all my life and know what his tracks look like.
I may be the only one who does.
He’s the only naga ever known to my tribe that isn’t primitive and vicious. His tracks aren’t like those nagas, which are as apparent as the gorilla’s. No, Iskursu’s tracks are careful and often hidden. They’d be invisible if it weren’t for…
I squint my eyes and search for the sign I’m hoping to find. Shifting up to the next branch, I part the heavy draping of vines—There!
My heart goes wild.
The branch to my right droops. Like something massive had braced upon it. It’s evidence of the one thing Iskursu can’t control: his tail.
It is huge. And by huge, I mean it has grown thick and long. It’s longer than any naga tail I’ve ever seen. Most are half or a third the length of Iskursu’s, even if they’re a big naga. But Iskursu’s goes on and on forever…
My hands clench at my sides, recalling the velvety feel of his scales under my palms. Wiping my now sweaty hands on my skirt, I jump onto the drooping branch.
I’d only felt his scales once, four years ago, long after I’d blossomed into a woman and one day, when I was bathing in the ocean after a messy hunt, Iskursu came to me.
He’d never come to me before, not unless I needed help—and he always knew when I needed help. So when I turned and found he was there watching me from the shore, I froze. I hadn’t seen him this clearly, not since we were kids.
Not since I chased after him when both of us were children. I’d followed him into a cave that became his home after his parents died. It’s the same cave where Milaye found Drazak, the one they now call home. Much of the cave crumbled when Drazak transformed into a human. I’d escaped during the chaos, but Milaye, Drazak, and Iskursu didn’t. They were trapped for days before they found freedom.
It’s still the biggest regret of my life, escaping when they didn’t.
I wish I had been trapped in the cave with them… I wish I had never run when I could. If I’d been down there, then maybe Iskursu could see me like a friend, and not just some half-human, half-dragon girl he can’t get rid of.
That was fourteen years ago, and I’ve been hunting him since. I lick my lips.
Studying the branches, I decide he’s gone up and across, towards the trees to my left. His tail has left an unusually clear path for me to follow. I climb higher and maneuver my way through the foliage to see where it leads. From branch to vine, to ledge to trunk, I track him for a time, surprised he’s being so careless.
It’s not like him…
Crouching, I hop to the next branch and realize it’s never been this easy to track him—ever, even when we were kids. It’s almost like he did it on purpose…
I hesitate, my eyes narrowing. Wrapping my tail around the branch I’m on, I listen to the sounds of the jungle, quieting my breaths. If he did this on purpose, then he wants me to follow him?
If that’s true, is he watching me? Waiting? But I hear nothing unexpected. I suck in my lower lip and begin searching for subtle movement.
My fingers twitch. My skin warms. His eyes are on me, I know it, even if I still don’t see him. I feel his gaze trailing over my flesh, or at least, I think I feel it. I shudder, wondering if that will shake the sensation away.
It doesn’t. Instead, my back straightens, and my nerves go on edge. He’s hunting me.
He laid a trap, and I took the bait.
I’ve never been hunted before. Butterflies fill my stomach at the thought. Iskursu seemed to always know where I was, but he’s never done anything like this.
What does he want?
Four years ago, when Iskursu snuck up on me while I was bathing, I’d never been more frightened. I hadn’t heard him shifting the sandy shore as he neared, and my hearing is more than human. But there he was, the sight freezing me in the water. Naked. Without a single weapon on me.
I shake my head. I’ve recalled that day so often that every detail has been amplified in my memories. I remember the intensity of his dark stare, the way his hands clenched at his sides, and most of all, his