Nora is pushed forward by the door but stands her ground. I stand frozen in the middle of the roof, watching her.
She places her fingers to her lips and whistles. The shrill sound of her breath through her fingers echoes across the castle.
Two massive black dragons appear at the edge of the forest. It's been over a year since I last saw my dragon, Rave. I'm rooted to the spot, staring at the majestic creature.
'We have to jump,' Nora informs me.
The powerful wings of our dragons cut through the air. Their black scales glisten in the sunlight.
I almost forget the shouting around me until the first gunshot rings out over the roof. I recoil against the door. The loud banging and shoving against the iron. Bullets clang against the roof tiles and echo against the tower walls.
Our two dragons approach. I'm tempted to shout, to tell them to turn back. My greatest fear is that one of those dragons will die before my eyes. They are our only escape route, our only hope.
'On three.' I look into Nora's blue eyes, a mix of fear and trust. I take a deep breath and nod.
At this point, the pushing against our backs is almost unbearable. I have to plant my feet firmly on the tiles and push against the door with all my weight to stay upright.
'One.' A bullet lands before our feet on the roof and ricochets against the wall above us.
'Two.' The first shot reverberates along the large building.
'Three.' I release my hands from the door behind me, push off with my feet. My feet slide over the roof tiles, where I feel the cold bricks.
The door behind us flies open, the shouts of the guards trailing us. Bullets fly toward my feet on the roof tiles and bounce around me like hail.
We have only one way, and that's straight ahead, to the end of the roof.
The two dragons seem to understand our direction. They fly almost level with the roof as Nora and I reach the end.
My heart beats in my throat, sweat drips down my face. My breathing is so rapid that I can hardly feel air entering my lungs.
A meter before the end of the roof, I realize I have no choice but to jump. With the guards barely three meters behind us, there's no doubt.
I cast one last glance at Nora. Her blue eyes meet mine at that moment, filled with fear.
I take a deep breath, push off from the edge of the roof, and soar through the air.
My miserable life flashes before me. All the suffering, abuse, and tears play out like a movie. I see my mother in the coffin, my marriage to Christiaan, and last night. I almost wonder why I bother anymore. I'm in a bottomless pit, yet I still strive to get out and survive.
As if the dragons knew our plan, just as we seem to be falling, they swoop beneath us.
My feet land on the back of the creature. I twist my ankle and scream in pain. I see stars, feel nauseous, and close my eyes before realizing I'm on the back of my dragon. I grit my teeth and open my eyes, searching for Nora. I find her a few meters away on her dragon.
She places her legs on its back and grabs the reins. Her euphoric smile shines like the moon in the night.
I take the reins of my dragon and steer it away from the castle. Just as I begin to realize that I've escaped that prison alive, something happens that I will never erase from my memory.
Two cannon shots sound.
My eyes focus on Nora and her dragon, which are still too close to the castle.
The first cannonball narrowly misses Liva, Nora's dragon, as it streaks past. Liva jolts upward, flapping her wings in alarm. Nora, startled, grabs the reins. Just as I'm about to exhale in relief, the second cannonball whizzes past me.
I try to scream, to stop the bullet, but it's too late. The dozens-of-kilos-heavy bullet strikes Liva with intense force. The dragon veers to the right from the bullet's impact. Nora is thrown from the dragon's back, flying dozens of meters through the air before her lifeless body lands on the hard ground. The black dragon continues flying a bit further before its lifeless body also lands in the grass.
My breath is taken away, my heart seems to have stopped beating. I don't grasp what has unfolded before my eyes; I'm utterly petrified. My eyes are fixed on Nora's body in the grass, hoping she will move. Her body lies in the grass before the dragon, both lifeless.
This can't be, it's impossible. Night riders can't die. But there's no sign of movement or life.
Nora is dead.