Within the Shadows (Complete, Savage Series #1)

Chapter Six

Icy water stings my throat and I thrash against the weight pulling me down, kicking at both the current and waterfall which are trying to kill me.

I can’t die like this! Not now! I begin to swim in and out of consciousness, vaguely noticing everything begin to darken as I stop the struggle. A large shadow is cast over me and a large, scaly serpentine body wraps around me, pushing me up towards the light. Two lean arms grab my waist and pull me to the surface, but I’m completely numb. I slip into unconsciousness as his hands begin to pump my chest. Is this really it?

All of a sudden, the water in my lungs is launched up my throat and Danny pulls his lips away from mine as I cough up the water, gasping for breath.

“Are you alright?” He asks, looking at me with a concern I didn’t know he had.

“I’m fine, what the hell did you do?!”

“When you fell, I jumped in and a water dragon helped me save you. When the chest compressions weren’t working I gave you CPR.” I blush at the thought of Danny’s lips and mine meeting, then push him away.

“Do you need help up?”

“I’m fine.” I growl, stumbling when I stand. A strong, warm arm wraps around my waist and the other pulls my arm around his shoulder, putting my full weight on him.

“I’m fat, you don’t have to help.” He chuckles and murmurs, “You’re light as a feather, sweetheart. Let’s just get you warm, and in dry clothes.” He pauses to look at my face, gently touching my black eye. His fingers feel soft against my skin and he whispers, “You didn’t deserve this.”

“I know.”

“No, you don’t know. You still think you deserve it, but you don’t.” Ignoring my odd look, he walks up to the door and takes the key from around his neck, pulling it off and sticking it into the key hole.

The dark oak wooden doors slide open silently and we walk into a large hallway, adorned with sculptures of dragons on both sides of the elegant hallway. The floors are made of whit marble and the sculptures are of red and white ocean jasper. Leading to another doorway is a silk red carpet, and the pillars are made from red marble while the ceiling matches the flooring. A chandelier from above is made of red-orange gems like rubies, garnet and amber.

“Why is everything so pretty?”

“Because it’s how we honor the dragons. Our duties are to honor their memories and take care of them, to keep them safe.”

“And how does everything being fancy help that?”

“It shows our dedication to the dragons. We can talk more once you get what you need.” He turns right down a hallway and the same white marble and silk carpet fill this one as well. Along the walls are paintings of the dragons, the frames in red. “Why red and white? I feel like I’m Alice and this is The Queen of Hearts’ castle.”

He laughs, giving me a sideways glance before answering, “Centuries ago, colors were given symbolism and therefore each dragon type has a specific color, and that color in Latin is the name for the general population of Caregivers. Ground dragons have gold, flying dragons have red, and water dragons have white. This city is ruled by both flying and water dragon Caregivers, so the colors are mixed.”

“That’s cool.” He opens a door - a red one - to my right and inside is an amazing room. Red walls, white carpet, red pillows and a white comforter on a circular bed directly in front of me, almost against the back window covered in white drapes. All the wood for the bed, bureau against the right wall, and bookshelf on the opposite wall is natural cherry wood. There are red chairs in the left corner of the room along with a fireplace and in the opposite corner is a desk covered in red utensils and materials needed for studying and whatnot. There’s white door near the bureau and one near the bookcase, but besides that the room is empty.