With my cousin, Chelsea's, boyfriend who I met on my way to her house, I walk on one of the many streets — if you can call them streets — of Reustan.
If five adults stand side by side, they'll not fit on these narrow, pitted streets that are flanked by wet trash, and boxy buildings, precariously piled up to make space for homes and shops.
Roofs are lined with faded plastic banners, weighed down by bricks and stones, to keep the rain water away. The outer walls are patched with tin sheets and decaying wood panels. None of the electric poles are straight, hoisting wires that are way past the limit. Tapered passages lead to more houses inside.
This is where the poor and the outlaws of our coven live. My cousin, however, is neither poor, nor an outlaw — she's someone who doesn't like the restrictions of our coven, so she finds her liberty by living in this godforsaken place.
Her boyfriend walks with me up to her house and then leaves to man his workshop at the outer circle of Reustan. I enter her home — that's never locked — and she's not here.
There are no rooms or backyards to search in this house. If I can't see her as soon as I'm in, then she's not here. I step outside and look left and right. There's no one on sight.
She asked me drop by today, so I came. I look around her home. There's a gaudy wooden dresser at the back that I'd always hated, with a pile of clothes on top. The small rectangular sliding window at the sidewall is useless, to say the least, as the sun doesn't shine this far into this urban jungle of poverty. Her vanity is overflown with makeup and plastic boxes. There's a wall calendar near it from two years ago. There's also the small firepla—
I notice a basket, covered in a white cloth, in front of the burning fireplace. There's a note taped to it. I peel it off and read.
Angry at what she had done, I look at the bulge at the centre of the basket. I kneel beside it and gently remove the cloth and see the large egg. The wrinkles between my brows disappear. I gently place my palm over it. It's warm. "How am I going to take care of you?" I ask.
It's illegal to posses dragon eggs. I don't know why or how Chelsea got this one but I'm not surprised she did. Now she had to leave for work for a few weeks, and needed someone to look after the egg.
I can't leave it here since neither can I visit it everyday, nor is it safe to leave it unattended. Good thing I live in my own apartment. I probably can sneak this in and no one will know. I cover it back and pick up the basket. Clutching it tightly, I walk to my car parked just outside Reustan. After I secure the egg at the backseat and get in at the front, a knock on my window startles me.
Hayden bends down and waves. I quickly roll down the window. "What th—"
"Before you say anything, I was here first," he says.
I panic when an old man passes by. "Get in!" I tell Hayden. He comes around and I open the passenger door.
"What are you doing here?" he asks.
"What are you doing here? And how did you find me?"
"I was at Hopkin's pub at the fourth circle. A few minutes ago I sensed you nearby so came looking for you."
"Sensed me?"
"I'm your mate, remember? I can feel your emotions at times, and your proximity. You were feeling..."
"Feeling what?"
"Maternal?" he says unsurely.
I turn to look at the egg.
"What's that?" he says.
"Nothing."
He reaches for it. I grab his hand. "Don't touch it."
He looks at my hand, and I immediately let him go, feeling my cheeks heat up.
"What's inside?" he asks after taking back his hand.
"It's a dragon egg."
He looks surprised.
"You don't need to know," I tell him, "and just because you know I'm nearby doesn't mean you've to drop by and say hello. I told you we can't be seen together."
"No one here knows who or what we are. People here mind their own business."
"Whatever you say. Now that we've met, you can leave."
"No. We're going for a drink first," he says.
I gape at him. "Are you serious?"
"Do I look like I'm joking?"
"I'm not leaving anywhere with you."
He looks at the egg on the backseat.
"Don't you dare," I threaten him.
He looks back at me. "If you want me to leave it alone, come with me."
"Why do you want to take me out for a drink? Don't tell me the mate bond is getting to your empty head."
He smirks. "You would like that, wouldn't you? I was going to call you tomorrow. I've something that can help us. Now that you're here, let's have a talk."
I sigh. "Fine. Where?"
He gets off the car and walks to my side. "I'm driving."
