Chapter 2

“Anyone can enter!” the man called out. “The rules are posted right here on the notice!”

I shoved past the people in front of me and leaned close to the notice. I read it twice, afraid of missing a single word.

The Dragon's Claim was open to commoners and nobles alike. All entrants would stand as equals, and the king would grant the winner one wish.

The Claim was meant to find the best dragon riders. The king believed anyone could become one, regardless of birth. Even someone like me could enter Dragon Valley and try to bond with a dragon.

Those who succeeded would advance to the main competition.

The notice also promised compensation to the families of contestants who died during the Claim.

A shoulder bumped mine. I steadied myself and leaned closer to read the deadline.

The man beside the notice raised his voice. “Once every six years! Registration is closing! Don't miss your chance!”

I caught his sleeve before he turned to the next group. “How do I enter?”

“Report to Crownfire Arena in Drakmoor before registration closes.” He pointed to the date at the bottom. “Two days left.”

“The capital? I have to be there in person?”

“Only two days?”

“That's right.” He tugged his sleeve free. “If you're going, you'd better get moving.”

The caravan was leaving for Drakmoor tomorrow. Entering the Claim meant giving up my job, but I couldn't hesitate. Mother didn't have six years to wait.

“Did you find someone?” Mother looked up as I pushed open our door.

She sat beside the window in her faded gray blouse, a needle poised over an unfinished shirt.

I shut the door against the noise outside.

“I found a way to ask the king for help.” I faced her. “I'm going to enter the Dragon's Claim.”

The needle slipped from her fingers.

“No.” Her chair scraped the floor as she stood. “You cannot go.”

“Mother, the winner gets one wish. If the royal family has the magic people say they do—”

“More than half the commoners who enter die in the preliminaries, Lena.” She gripped the edge of the table. “They never even make it to the main competition.”

She gripped the edge of the table and leaned toward me. “You've never even seen a dragon, Lena. How are you supposed to get close enough to bond with one?”

My stomach tightened. I hadn't known so many died.

She pushed away from the table. “You will stay here. Do you hear me?”

“I heard you.” My voice came out thin. “But I went looking for a cure today, and no one had one.”

“Then we'll manage without—”

Her cough cut off the rest.

She bent over, both hands pressed to her mouth. I hurried around the table and pulled the chair behind her knees before they gave out.

“Sit down. Please.”

She tried to speak again, but another cough shook her. I supported her shoulders until she could breathe, then reached for the water on the table.

Her trembling made the cup tap against her teeth. I steadied it and waited while she took a little, watching her throat move with the effort of swallowing.

“Don't argue yet,” I said. “Just breathe.”

She turned her face away from the cup. For a moment, the only sound between us was the air catching in her chest.

I crouched to pick up the needle before either of us stepped on it. When I laid it on the table, Mother caught my hand.

“Your father went.”

I stayed crouched beside her chair. Her grip tightened before I could ask.

“To the Claim?” I asked.

She nodded without looking at me. “I was pregnant with you.”

I opened my mouth, but Mother kept her gaze on the table. I waited for her to look up.

“He wanted us out of here,” she said. “He talked about a better home, somewhere a child could grow up without going hungry.”

I pushed myself closer to her chair. “For us.”

“Yes.” She wiped at her cheek. “He thought he could win.”

“I wouldn't—” I stopped. How could I promise I would be different?

I sank onto the floor beside her chair, still holding her hand. Neither of us spoke for a moment.

“He never came back, Lena.”

Mother wiped her cheek on her sleeve. I didn't know what to say to comfort her.

“They gave me some money after your father died.” She looked down at our joined hands. “But I still had a baby to raise. There was rent to pay, food to buy, clothes you kept growing out of. The money couldn't last forever.”

“I didn't know.” I tried to remember a time when she hadn't taken in washing, even when her fingers were cracked and sore. Nothing came to me.

“No. You were a baby.”

She let go of my hand. “I never wanted you to know.”

I looked at the unfinished shirt on the table. Someone else's shirt, waiting for the same hands that had worked to feed me after the compensation ran out.

“I already lost my husband.” Her voice broke. “Please don't make me lose my daughter too.”

She bent toward me, her shoulders shaking. I rose onto my knees and held her until the sobs eased. Her cheek was wet against my neck, and her clothes smelled of soap.

“Please, Lena.” She spoke into my shoulder. “Stay with me.”

“I'll—”

She coughed against my shoulder, struggling to draw breath.

I rubbed her back until she finally managed a shaky breath.

“Lena?” She lifted her face, waiting for the rest.

“I'm going to enter,” I said. “I'm sorry, Mother. I'd never forgive myself if I didn't at least try to save you.”

She searched my face, her lips trembling. I stayed on the floor beside her chair.

“Even if there's only one chance in a thousand,” I said, “I want to try. I have to try.”

Mother bowed her head. “Don't make me wait for someone who isn't coming home. Not again.”

I leaned forward and wrapped my arms around her. She caught the back of my blouse, holding so hard the seam pulled against my shoulder.

I shut my eyes against her hair. “I'll come back to you, Mother. I swear. If it gets too dangerous, I'll leave the Claim and come home.”

That last part was a lie.