Heart of the Dragon, Book 6 Update!

Greetings all!

I apologize for not updating this blog!  My day job has been cracking the whip, I recently moved into a new house, and the holidays are coming up!

Heart of the Dragon, Book 6, The Dragon's Legacy, will not be ready until next year at this rate.  I was hoping to have it finished by November of this year, but clearly, that won't happen unless time stands still ;-) 

The Dragon's Legacy picks up where Book 5 left you hanging!  It all comes to this--a dungeon and dragons ;-)  Isn't that the way it should be?  I will have to say that Aristo does not appear in this book.  The man is gone.  He has completely abandoned the very pregnant Tania.  Tania, in her despair and horror, will flee to the arms of another dragon.  Which will it be--Stephan, Thomas, or the traitor Narcil?  Not only does Tania have to find inner strength to survive in a dark dungeon while pregnant, she also has to speak with her abusive father and the woman who abandoned her, the mother who seeks to sacrifice her. 

When I was pregnant, life was hard enough.  There was an overflow of emotions--fear, vulnerability, extreme happiness--now imagine being pregnant while the world literally crumbles around you!  I would not want to be Tania right now! 

I'm putting Tania through the ropes because I want her to grow as a person.  She has been abused, mistreated, and unloved for so long, that she has lost much of herself.  Giving her more trials will only strengthen her resolve and that is what will happen.  My heart soars whenever the dragons take her hand.  To be unwanted for so long, to be lonely for so long, is something no one should have to suffer.  Tania deserves to be happy and she will be!  She will find what her soul craves throughout these books and we will all watch her grow beyond the curs who mistreated her!

I don't have much written, but here is a little snippet from Book 6:


A crow cawed four times, breaking the ominous silence and waking Tania from her restless sleep.  She grimaced.  Her head pounded, her muscles ached, her lungs hitched with each intake of air.  Everything hurt.  Even her eyes stung.  A few tears crawled down her cheeks as she rubbed at her eyes.  She blinked a few times and finally began to notice her surroundings.
It was dark.  Shadows lingered in every corner.  Straw and dust littered the stone floor.   Huge stone bricks lined the walls.  The ceiling was covered in rafters that looked as if they were about to fall at any moment.  Several of the rafters had cracked. 

There was only one door in the room.  On the opposite side, was the only window in the room.  It was small and didn’t have any bars.  No one but a mouse could fit through the window.  A tiny stream of moonlight filtered in.

Tania stared at the nearly full moon and thought of Aristo.  Could he be seeing the same moon?  Was he thinking of her?  Was he safe, sound?

A scuffle from the corner of the room caught her attention.  She peered into the shadows but couldn’t see anything.  The moon failed to fully light the room.  She sat up and placed her hands on a soft, yet firm flooring.  She realized instantly it was a man’s chest she had been laying upon.  She instinctively jerked back but the arms pulled her into a tight embrace.

“I am glad you are awake,” Stephan said softly, his deep voice even and smooth, “I was worried.”

Tania laid back into his thick, muscular, and nude chest.  She listened to his heart thump steadily and slowly.  She closed her eyes and tried to ignore the agony biting her aching muscles.  She was in pain.  She had no idea why.

Her hand trailed Stephan’s strong forearm and lingered on his bulging bicep.  His strength helped her feel protected and gave her more freedom to speak, “What happened?”
Stephan delicately kissed the top of her matted hair, “We were attacked.”
“By whom?”
“By someone I had believed was long dead.”
Tania sighed, “Who is this person?”
“She’s a dragon.  She’s the White Dragon.  Her name is…” he paused and pursed his lips.  There were certain pieces of information he did not wish to tell Tania.  He knew she was hurting and he did not dare hurt her further.
“What is her name?” Tania asked.
Stephan shook his head, “It no longer matters.  She is not the same person she once was.”
“How do you know?”
“The White Dragon attacked Black Rock Keep.  She kidnapped Polas, you, and me.  She left so much destruction in her wake.  Several of the Nobles were engulfed in her fireballs.  Or rather, Narcil’s fireballs.  She no longer cares who lives or who dies.  She used to be warm and kind.  Now she is a monster.”
Tania sat upright and stared directly in Stephan’s warm eyes, “Narcil?  He attacked us? Why?”  She had always known Narcil was cruel, but never did she think him a traitor to his own kind.
“From what I can guess, he is in league with the White Dragon.”
“What do you mean, from what you can guess?  Do you not know?”
“No one has spoken to us.  I can only speculate on our situation.  It has been quiet here for a while.”
“How long is a while?” she asked.
“We have been imprisoned for three days.”
Tania did not know which question to ask first.  So many questions yelled at her to be answered but only one blurted out, “I’ve been asleep for three days?”
He nodded, “Now you can understand my concern.  How do you feel?”
“Sore.  Tired.  Scared,” Tania’s lower lip quivered.  She was pregnant.  She should not be in a dungeon with dragons or rats and she needed to eat.  What if she lost her child because she could not properly take of her unborn baby?  At that moment, her stomach growled, “And hungry.”
Stephan pushed her hair back from her face and kept his hand on her cheek, “I will take care of you, I promise.  Your child will be fine.”
I hope to hear from you soon!