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"Well, this certainly is uncoht ahead "It was centuries ago, and I under­stand there wereto rekindle an affair? He'd assumed she'd just been kind to help hiht she'd o"

They rode on in onerous silence, but when they reached the rise over the camp, he found a scene that defied description

In full Sorceri regalia, Sabine appeared to beto herself as she shoved people out of her hile storon The beast was poised to attack a cornered group-with Puck a his sword as he spurred his horse, Rydstroed down the hill toward her He'd never reach them in time

When Sabine neared the beast, she yelled for its attention Rydstro flash ofscales

"No!" he bellowed "Get away!"

The beast hissed, darting its forked tongue Yet she faced it with her chin up and shoulders back, raising her palms Heat blurred the air above her hands When it swept its paws, she leapt over the tail "Hey! That was close! Stop this now!"

The beast slowed its tail, seelower in confu­sion

Rydstrom dismounted his horse in a full run As he closed in on theon She'd said she could speak to animals Could she hold it off?

"That's better You don't want to feed upon h I am the tenderest, I'm also poisonous" She chuckled as if at an inside joke "Don't be cross with us, great one" She cautiously reached up and petted its glea scales It jerked back, yet then

allowed another stroke "We didn't know this was your holanced at Rydstroht in her mask of kohl "Do you think it could eat me in one bite?"

"Move away from it!"

"So you can strike this exceptional fellon?"

"To protect you, yes!" Rydstro one such as that, but he readily would

"I've got this Luckily, one person here had the sense to free ainst your orders"

Could she control it? He didn't want her in jeop­ardy, but she looked as if she was havingfun Heout

The beast tensed "Keep talking," Rydstrom muttered to her as he helped Puck and another away Almost everyone had escaped

Sabine continued, "Confession tiht last summer, when my sister Lanthe and I were really bored, we alh a portal to a place called Times Square We've since seen why that would be hilarious only to us"

The creature's eyelids were growing heavy, as if it were mesmerized When all the people were a safe dis-tance away, Rydstro when she'd been freed, Sabine had voluntarily waded into a dragon's way to save oth­ers She'd told him she'd never help another if there was no benefit to herself Yet now she had

"Cwena," he ht with pride Little queen

The way she was interacting with the beast was thehe'd ever seen-it looked pow­erless not to be enthralled by her