Her feet trembled with every step that she took but it was sheer willpower that kept her going.
He might look like a scary savage beast in dragon form, but he saved her life.
In her heart Fiona felt she was doing the right thing. Suppose she freed him, and he transformed and ate her to get his strength back.
She would worry about her decision-making skill later as she moved to untie the ropes that bound him to the tree.
His head bowed; the dragon raised his head the moment the wind carried her scent to his nostrils.
They made eye contact, and he must really be weak because he hadn't heard her coming and now, she stood directly before him.
Tiamat was surprised to see the weak female out in the pouring rain trying to help him.
Another gust of wind blew through her black wavy hair, and she unconsciously brushed a few tendrils away from her face.
"I'll have these ropes undone before you know it. Umm… please don't roar or do anything that may draw attention to us."
When her gentle voice assailed his ears, she left him speechless.
At first, he thought he was hallucinating but she was the whole reason he was in this mess and now it seemed she was hell bent on returning the favor.
Tiamat sheepishly closed his eyes, continuing to conserve his energy, he would continue to observe the young maiden's actions to see if she would be friend or foe.
He was in a dangerous business and spies were everywhere. He doubted this would be the last time that he would be betrayed by a beautiful woman.
It was like she had read his mind. Tiamat had considered doing his dragon roar, but her actions just now changed his plan.
He would wait a bit longer to see his savior reveal her true intentions.
She wasn't strong enough to pull the rope that bound him with her bare hands, lightning flashed and a dagger that belonged to Tiamat flashed nearby.
The men had tossed it after they searched his body because it was old and didn't look valuable.
Fiona retrieved the small dagger and used the serrated edge to hack away at the thick rope.
It showed she had never used a dagger properly before and he worried that she was more than likely to hurt herself with it than to free him.
Nevertheless, she persisted at her task even though her hands trembled, and he couldn't decide if it was due to the weather or because she was afraid of him.
Finally, she had hacked through the last threads of the rope and his hands were freed.
His rescuer came to stand before him and gifted him with a smile before she awkwardly tried to return his ceremonial dagger.
Tiamat shook his head and said gruffly, "No you keep it."
The raspiness of his voice made her eyes widened and he realized it was the first time she heard him speak.
Clearly, he had been around his men too long and needed to remember to tone down the power in his voice when speaking to a lady.
"Let's go," she said but he didn't move.
Fiona's mood instantly soured. Was he daft, did the beatings damage his brain? He continued standing still as if rooted near the tree.
The guards could return any second and she didn't want either of them to die. She couldn't just leave him behind as she would need his help to navigate the new terrain.
It was clear the sea had swept her far away from Seabury.
When her family died nothing surprised anymore, she was a survivor and would make the best of whatever life gave her. Maybe she was being too harsh on him.
"Come, you can use me for support," she offered with outstretched hands. "You can trust me, but we need to get moving now," she said with urgency.
The caves would have been nice to get out of the rain, but the soldiers were camped out over there they would have to go around them.
Tiamat heard the fear and desperation spiking in her voice the longer she pleaded with him. He wanted to calm her down and soothe her frazzled nerves.
For he could hear his men approaching but she tugged on his shirt trying to pull him alongside her.
He heard the signal that sounded like an eagle's cry over by the caves.
His men already inched along the walls of the caves and pretty soon they would have the enemy camp surrounded.
Tiamat was amused by her efforts to help and willingly placed more of his weight after she took his right arm and brazenly put it around her own shoulders.
He could hear the enemies laughing and having a good time together as they huddled together to eat and keep warm.
The idiots had left no lookout because they never thought anyone would be serious enough to attack them during the downpour of a thunderstorm.
Every last one of them would die for their stupidity.
He gave a faint answering whistle and he looked down to see if the woman noticed but right now, she was busy muttering something about mud and new shoes to herself.
She was clearly oblivious to the fact that a battle had already started by the caves.
It seems like she gave up being distraught over her shoes and blushed when she realized he had been listening in on her private tirade the entire time.
"Sorry. I'm just hungry and exhausted. Don't mind me," her teeth chattered as she shivered, and chills ran down her spine.
Fiona let out a loud gasp when his freezingly cold hands pulled her into the warmth of his embrace. The heat from his body soaked through her wet sundress.
She tried to shift from his grasp, but his hold tightened and gripped her with surprising strength.
He terrified her.
It was his sheer size she decided even in his human form he was still larger than the average human and could easily overpower her.
Fiona would rather go it alone than be around someone so dangerous.
"Well now that you seem to be feeling better maybe it's time, we both parted ways," she foolishly suggested.