Avian (The Dragonrider Chronicles) by Nicole Conway Page B

fragile.
    Her angry-looking father definitely minded the hugging, though. Sile was standing in the doorway. He arched a brow at me and cleared his throat, narrowing his eyes into lethal slits. Somehow, it reminded me of the way Icarus glared at me. I knew that was probably going to be my only warning. I had about two seconds to let his daughter go before he made good on his promise to rip my ears off. Growth spurt or not, I was well aware that Sile could still beat me within an inch of my life without ever breaking a sweat.
    We jumped apart immediately. Beckah was blushing as she hurried over to pick up the bowl of soup. She skirted around her dad as she went out of the room like she couldn’t get away fast enough.
    “Oh by the way, he’s awake,” she added quickly.
    Sile gave her a hard look as she disappeared into the hallway. “I can see that,” he grumbled. When she was safely downstairs and out of earshot, he curled a finger at me to follow him. “You can’t walk around naked in my house, boy.”
    I followed him to his room, keeping a hand on the wall because my legs were still wobbly. They tingled like they had been asleep for a long time. As I walked behind him, I noticed I was taller than he was now. That startled me a little, and it made me want to shrink down some. I didn’t feel like I deserved to be taller than Sile.
    “They’re going to be too short,” he said as he opened his armoire and started throwing clothes in my direction. “But they’ll do for now. Figures you’d inherit his stature.”
    I pulled a green tunic over my head and stepped into a pair of pants. They were definitely too small. The shirt was tight across my chest and back because my shoulders were bony, but broad. The pants were so short they came up above my ankles. The waist was a little too big for me, though, so I kept pulling them up until Sile finally tossed me a belt. When I finished dressing, I noticed Sile was still standing there with his arms crossed, sizing me up like he always did.
    “You feeling all right?” he asked.
    His concern caught me off guard. “Yes. I’m a little sore. It’s already getting better, though.”
    I met his gaze. For a few long, uncomfortable minutes, we just stood there staring at each other. His brow was furrowed, and he was frowning like he wanted to yell at me. I wasn’t sure why.
    “You know I had to buy a coffin. It’s leaning up against the side of the house outside.” He snapped. He acted like I had forced him to do that.
    I didn’t know what to say. I wondered if I should apologize or not. I wasn’t sure what I’d be apologizing for, though. Almost dying?
    “Don’t do that to us again,” he warned.
    I nodded, even if I wasn’t completely sure what he was talking about. “Yes, sir.”
    He snorted and looked away, scratching at the back of his neck uncomfortably. “I suppose I should thank you.”
    “For what?”
    He started toward me, and I couldn’t tell if he was about to hug me or punch me in the face. I cringed because both options seemed uncomfortable. When he got close enough, he put a hand on my shoulder. “It was my fault. I forced you to do something you weren’t ready for, and it almost cost you your life. But what you did—”
    Like a bolt of lightning, the memories of what had happened burst into my head. His wife had been dying right in front of my eyes. Then Sile had insisted I do something about it. And… I had done something, I just didn’t know what. I couldn’t stand it anymore; I had to know.
    “What did I do?” I interrupted.
    Sile smirked at me and shook his head some. “Why don’t you go downstairs and see for yourself?”
    Sile followed me as I went down to the first floor. The more I walked, the steadier my legs got. I was stiff, and parts of me were sore, but it was getting better by the second. The more I moved, the better I felt.
    I could hear singing coming from the kitchen, and I thought I recognized Mrs. Derrick’s voice.