Free Dragon Storm (Dawn of the Dragon Queen Book 2) by Tara West

your daughter if he didn’t love her, and I know Safina loves my Gabriel, too.”
    The barb of Josef’s words sank deep, piercing Fiona’s heart with cruel clarity. She hadn’t counted on Gabriel loving Safina or of Safina returning his love. Safina was just an infatuated child, giving her heart carelessly to the first mortal who showed her attention, and Gabriel, well, he was a man, and men weren’t to be trusted.
    But what if Josef’s words were true? What if Gabriel did have a compassionate soul? What if they loved each other? Would Fiona have been cruel enough to separate them? To force her daughter to play out the same heartbreak she’d suffered for the past five hundred years.
    Fiona recalled the last night she’d seen Safina. She had dismissed Safina’s affection for Gabriel and threatened to send her back to the cocoon. She’d even gone so far as to strike her child. Why? Was she truly afraid Safina would lose her heart to an underserving mortal? Or was Fiona more afraid of losing her daughter’s love and attention? The thought of Safina nestling in the arms of a loving embrace other than hers soured Fiona’s stomach.
    Fiona fell into a chair beside Josef, burying her face in her hands. It was not Safina’s heart Fiona had been trying to protect but her own. She’d let her jealousy and hatred of a man come between her and her daughter, and now she may have lost Safina forever.
    Oh, great goddess! I am a selfish monster.
    “I have made a mess of things,” she cried, her chest rising and falling with convulsions. “I have no mother, no mate, and no child. I have nothing left to live for.”
    “Have faith, mi reina.” Josef placed a comforting hand on her back, a kindness she did not deserve. “I know they will come back. Gabriel loves his family, and your daughter loves you.”
    Fiona looked at him through a sheen of tears. “Of that, I’m not so sure.”
    Fiona could not forget how she’d so foolishly slapped Safina or the pained look in her daughter’s eyes as her pale cheek swelled with the angry imprint of her hand. And Fiona remembered with heartbreaking clarity the words that had followed. “I hate you,” Safina had said before running away.
    Looking back at the way Fiona had treated her child, she knew with every fiber in her being Safina had spoken the truth.
    A dragon’s word is her honor.

Chapter Nine
    D uncan jumped from the train, putting as much distance between himself and the steaming locomotive as possible. He had enough reasons to sweat in this stifling Galveston air. He did not need another. Heat flamed his face and chest. He was angry with himself for foolishly missing the earlier departure. It was nearly nightfall—too late to form a search party for his daughter. She would be all alone in the open sea until morning unless she transformed into a dragon and flew to land. But then what would happen to her if she was spotted?
    He checked his pocket watch. The hour was late. He’d need to find accommodations and start his search in the morning. He grumbled when he knocked over a piece of luggage. The pain jarred his leg, forcing him to limp toward a bench as his knee swelled. He was still not accustomed to such pain. And with this new pain came a new fear—if his wounds wouldn’t heal, he was no longer immortal. For centuries he’d defied death. He’d been shot in the chest, scalped, and even beheaded. Each time his injuries magically healed. And now a simple piece of luggage had the power to cripple him. He was in a sad state, and Duncan feared his predicament would only get worse.
    He jolted upright at the piercing sound of a feminine scream. “Help! Help me, please!”
    Instinctively, Duncan ignored his throbbing knee as he raced toward the sound. He knew he put his life at risk, but fool that he was, he was unable to ignore a cry for help.
    He came upon them in an alley behind a noisy saloon. A tall, reedy man with a crooked hat and a tapered moustache used a cane to