Dragon-Ridden by T.A. White Page A

intricate S was etched into each carriage’s
door. The first few carriages held young men and women, most of whom probably
hadn’t even seen their coming-of-age ceremony. They waved and smiled at the
crowd.
    Older men and women occupied the
last few carriages. Unlike the women of the first few carriages whose hair had
been left hanging loose, these women had their sleek hair pulled back in
complicated knots low at the back of their heads. A few of them had brightly
colored pins or hairpieces holding their hair in place. The men, in their
darker clothes and hair pulled back into a tight queue, provided a more somber
contrast to the butterflies at their side.
    All of them had the same coloring
as Umi. They must be Kairi as well.
    For all the gaiety among the party,
an undercurrent of tension ran through them. Especially among the older men and
women. The guards walking on either side kept their hands close to their
weapons and watched the crowd for signs of danger.
    As Tate watched, a guard shoved
away a woman trying to approach one of the carriages, causing waves of anger to
ripple through the people she was pushed into.
    The women’s smiles had tightened
until they appeared to be painted in place. There was none of the usual
conversation between the carriage riders. The men seemed entirely focused on
the crowd, rather than the beauties at their side.
    Ricky had been right about tensions
riding high. Someone new to the city with no background information would
probably never have noticed.
    A feeling of unease sank in, and
she glanced to the rooftops. Perhaps it was time she headed back up there.
    As she was preparing to step down
from her perch, her eyes met the eagle sharp glare of a man seated in the last
conveyance. Her breath froze in her lungs as he held her gaze. He did not look
pleased.
    He stood, rocking his carriage and
leapt out.
    Snapping back into awareness, Tate
jumped off her perch. Of all the bad luck.
    Why was Ryu here? And why was he
with the Kairi in a royal procession?
    The crowd swallowed her within
steps. She kept her head down as she slid past people, hoping they would
conceal her figure long enough for her to get out of sight. She had to push
past several people, leaving angry shouts in her wake.
    Reaching the edge of the crowd
meant fewer people to fight through, but it also meant less camouflage. She
chanced a glance over her shoulder. Ryu was bearing down on her quickly. He
looked furious. The storm clouds gathering in his face and his considerably
larger figure motivated people to get out of his way quickly.
    She fled before him. All she needed
was to get back onto the roofs. He wouldn’t be able to follow her there.
Hopefully.
    Tate clambered halfway up a fence,
cursing as she went. Why hadn’t she chosen a different direction?
    Ryu grabbed one leg before she could
wiggle over it, plucking her off in one smooth motion. The world tilted as she
flew through the air. She was caught in iron arms that contained her frantic
kicking and punching. Her back pressed against his chest as he kept her wrapped
in a bear hug subduing her.
    “Where do you think you’re going?”
he asked.
    His breath puffed against her ear.
Good to know she hadn’t been an easy capture at least.
    “Let go!”
    “I don’t think so,” he growled.
    He dragged her cursing and wiggling
form out of the alley. People turned toward them as news of the spectacle
spread.
    The parade had paused when he’d
leapt out of the carriage and many had turned to see what had caught the
gentry’s notice.
    A tall well-dressed man shot him a
questioning look. Ryu shook his head firmly and waved them on.
    “Damn you, Ryu,” Tate hissed. “You
have no right to do this.”
    Ryu didn’t answer or even pause.
Instead, he carried her effortlessly away from the parade, not stopping until
they were several streets away. Only when he’d found a low budget
carriage-for-hire and thrown her inside did he release her.
    “Colton’s Place,” he