Dragons of Marak: Book 1, Wings & Sword

#14

 Cee was gone.

Her father had torn him from her hands.

Ana felt pained as she remembered the incident from the day before. She shook, holding in tears for Cee. She was scared for him.

She stared at the white curtains of her four poster bed, overhead. She lay on her back, feeling helpless as she ruminated over what her father might have done to him. It was late in the morning now. Almost a full day since Cee had been declared a slave by her own father.

When she'd met him, she had never thought she'd feel so close to him as she did now. She really missed him. She was really scared for him. She needed for him to be safe. He wasn't just her partner, he was her friend.

Ana remembered the struggle when they first tried to take Cee. She'd punched the dragonbound with the rapier. It hadn't made a difference.

The woman had taken Cee, and the dragonbound had held off Ana and Luka. Ana had shouted, but it had done nothing. Eventually, the woman and Cee had disappeared back up the stairs. It had been futile to resist any longer. She'd stopped struggling. Cee was gone, and there was nothing she could do about it.

Ana got up and slinked over to her window, sitting in a chair to stare out of it. She could see the gardeners cutting the grass down below. A bird sat on a tree, staring at the window. A fly smacked up against the glass. She suddenly thought of Ashwell. He had been taken too, a last minute decision by her father.

"I've had enough of your complaining, Lukel," Ana's father had said.

"It's Luka," Luka had corrected him. "And-."

"Fine. Luka. We're taking your dragon, the sparkdra, too."

The dragonbound had pried Ashwell from his hands, whilst Luka let his fists go wild.

Suddenly, the bird outside flew away, as if startled. A boy—Luka—emerged on the grass. He stalked across the lawn and waved at Ana.

Ana felt shocked. How did he know where she lived?

Ana waved back to him, and Luka motioned for her to come down. She sighed, then got up and got dressed.

Whatever he was doing here, she knew it must have to do with the day before. She went out the back door to meet him.

"Ana, thank the Uniter I've found you," he said.

"My father won't like it if he finds out you're trespassing," Ana said, and as she said it, she realized that he probably already knew. This was his house, and people like Gio kept it constantly monitored.

"I don't care about him," Luka said, sounding brave. "I came to talk with you. I've been all over town, searching for a way to rescue our dragons..."

Luka leaned in close. Ana did the same. She had been thinking all night about how she might convince her father to set Cee free.

"And?" she said.

"I've been to see the police," he said. "They said there's not anything we can do. Because the dragons signed a contract, it's legal for your father to take them."

Ana's body tensed. That made her angry.

"The contract is making them slaves!"

Luka frowned. "I know."

"How is it legal to enslave dragons?" she said. "They have rights, just like us. It's in the law. That's what we learned in school."

"The police say it's not enslavement. The dragons are technically employees. The contract releases them after one year of employment."