“What will your parents think of you leaving?”
“I don’t know. They’ve always blindly followed your dad. That’s fine for them, but I can’t. I won’t.”
Somerly didn’t like the idea of taking Lex away from his parents, but at the end of the day it was his best friend’s choice, and he’d talked about the Council for a long time. Lex wasn’t running away because of Somerly’s need to get to Dre’Kariston; his best friend stayed at Court Ethelin to be close to him. As always, he was grateful to have someone who loved him with such fervor and hoped King Aleksander would be willing to take another dragon under his roof. If not, Somerly would appeal to the Emperor himself and beg him to find a wonderful new home for Lex.
“You still there?”
“Yes, sorry. Woolgathering.”
“Don’t worry, Somerly. It’s going to be fine. We’ll be fine.”
“I don’t know what I’d do without you.”
“Hey, what are best friends for? Besides, not only am I excited about getting you back with Dre’Kariston, but I get to join the Council. It must be better than the Consilium. I just hope I get to see your Court D’Vaire at some point. I want to meet all the people you have and get to know some magickind who aren’t evil like these fucking wizards.”
“We’re really doing this.”
“Damn right we are. Pack your shit, Somerly. I’ll see you in a few hours.”
Before Somerly could respond, Lex ended the call. Somerly considered the room he’d lived in since he was a child and could hardly believe he wouldn’t sleep in it again. He expected such a thought to fill him with sadness, but it never came. Staying in his father’s house meant saying good-bye forever to a life with Dre’Kariston, and that was simply a thought he could not bear. He wished it hadn’t taken him so long to prioritize his future and looking back, he longed for a do-over button.
Like the warlock Wullem who found his way to Court Ethelin, Somerly should’ve packed up his belongings and left with Dre’Kariston on the first day they met. Deciding it was a waste of time berating himself when there was so much to be done, Somerly set aside the lies he’d told and the damage he’d caused. When he found his way to the Council, he could focus on his apologies but for now, he had to remain focused on the journey itself. The road ahead was a grand question mark; he had no idea where he and Lex were going or what they’d find when they got there.
A ball of fear roiled in his gut, and an image of him being dragged back to Court Ethelin slammed into his brain. He shook off such dire thoughts; he wouldn’t let anxiety and doubt talk him out of his plan. Despite the insane conversation Somerly had with his father, a great part of him would miss his only parent. Someday he hoped King Boian would understand the path he had to choose, and they could rebuild the trust he was about to destroy. With an inner boost of fortitude Somerly was unaware he even had, he resolved to be his own man. He would stand on his own two feet and face the consequences of his every choice. The most important thing was to find a way to make Dre’Kariston understand how sorry he was and to put his mate first before all. The Consilium Veneficus and Court Ethelin might not understand Fate knew better than they did, but Somerly had managed to learn the lesson in the most painful way possible. Now it was up to him to fix it.
* * *
“I appreciate you being here, but you didn’t have to take time out of your weekend to babysit me and my broken heart.”
“Dre’Kariston, I’ve been there.” Arch Lich Chander Daray waved his hand to encompass himself and Alaric. “We’ve both been there. It’s devastating to lose your mate. We want to be here for you, to offer whatever support we can. There’s nowhere else on the planet we’d be instead.”
“You guys are amazing friends, and I appreciate it. I’m so glad you were able to work things out between you. I love seeing you two so happy.”
“So tell us how we can help,” Alaric replied.
“Got any way to speed up gutting out the feelings you’ve developed for your mate, so you can have a demon break the spell?” Dre’Kariston asked. He’d spent a sleepless night surrounded by his family and could honestly say he didn’t believe he’d made any progress in binding his wounds.
“Are you sure that’s the only way?” Chander asked gently.
“I can’t see another. I wish I could. What I need right now is something to get my mind off Somerly, so I can find a way to cope with the loss of him.”
“We’re going to paint your room and redo the decor,” Dra’Kaedan pointed out.
Dre’Kariston raised his tired gaze to his only brother. “Something a bit more intense than a project that’ll take a day or two at best.”
“Well, I’ve got nothing,” High Arcanist Delaney D’Vaire responded. “Idris and I aren’t working on anything exciting right now.”
“I wish we were,” High Arcanist Idris D’Vaire added. His indigo eyes were swimming with compassion. Dre’Kariston may have spent most of his life alone, but now he was surrounded by the most amazing and caring people. He was angry at Fate for fucking up his matebond, but he sent her thanks all the same for landing him in this amazing home.
“Are you serious? Do you really want something to do?” Chander asked.
“Yeah. I don’t want to think about Somerly. I’m not good at drowning in my emotions. I want something to distract me, to take away the pain until it’s manageable—if such a state exists.”
“Idris, you’re closest to the door. Would you mind shutting it?”
Dre’Kariston lifted a brow. He’d retreated to the Coven of Warlocks’ office in the hopes of finding something to do but instead, ran into a swarm of caring sorcerers. In addition to the Arch Lich, his mate, the two D’Vaire wizards as well as their leader Prism Wizard Vadimas Porfyra, and Dra’Kaedan, his brother’s familiar and their cousin were lounging about in the room. “We need secrecy?”
“Yeah, I don’t know if my project’s possible, and I don’t want to get people’s hopes up. Specifically, Trystan and his mate,” Chander responded as soon as Idris enclosed them in the space.
“Trystan and Blodwen? What have you planned for them?” Dra’Kaedan asked. The pair called D’Vaire home, but Dre’Kariston couldn’t imagine what special project the ruler of the Order of Necromancia might’ve cooked up for them.
“For Trystan’s parents,” Chander corrected. “It’s been on my mind forever, but I’ve hit a stumbling block. When Dre’Kariston went dark, a new avenue opened up for it.”
“Score one more for the fantastical world of dark magic,” Delaney crowed.
“So, you have something in mind for the Reverent Knights?” Dre’Kariston asked. Trystan’s parents were the mated rulers of the fallen knights who Chander resurrected centuries ago.
“Well, as you know, the Reverent Knights were once dragons. As emperors they were murdered in their bedroom. I rezzed them, then locked Conley in stasis while Drystan ran the Order of the Fallen Knights. It was a stupid fucking decision to separate them, but eventually I got Conley’s body back from the asshole wizard whose father kept him hostage,” Chander said.
“Okay, I’m not even going to address the fact that you’re still beating yourself up over a decision you made six hundred years ago with help from others at the age of seventeen fucking years old. Drystan and Conley are reunited and very happy,” Dra’Kaedan countered.
“It’s such a relief to me that they’re happy, and I love that I’ve been able to rebuild my relationship with them, but I’ve got this bug in my brain. Del, I asked you to build a spell to resurrect fallen knights with their beasts, and you managed to create one,” Chander responded.
“It’s a prototype since the Reverent Knights aren’t ready to test it until all the sentinels are trained at the Ascension Center. Are you afraid the spell I created won’t work? The simulator gives a high percentage of success when I use your unique half demon, half necromancer parameters,” Delaney replied.
“No, I know it’ll work. You’re a genius an
d you crafted a great spell that I’m eager to use, but I want to take it a step further.” Chander stopped and sucked in a deep breath. “I want to reunite Drystan and Conley with their dragons.”
The room was silent for several minutes. “We discussed this when Del worked on his project to craft the spell to resurrect a fallen knight with their beast. The binding between shifter and man is rooted in the soul. To reunite a mated pair like Drystan and Conley while they’re both alive would mean finding a way to locate their dragons on the other side of the veil. I wouldn’t even begin to know where to begin such a search,” Prism Wizard Vadimas said.
“Which has been my stumbling block all along. I know I need to find their exact dragons. Thankfully, Conley was the only gold dragon ever born, and you’ll find the two together since, like their fallen knight counterparts, they’re mates. It’s been no use trying to shadow walk alone when I have no connections on the other side. I don’t know who my parents are. I have no relatives to call upon to track down these beasts.” Chander’s pewter eyes bored a hole into Dre’Kariston. “You’re dark. You could shadow walk with me. I’ll cast the spell, so you don’t dabble in necromancy and ruin your magic for other spells. We could find your parents, and they have a connection to dragons. Their son is mated to one. I’m not sure if that helps, but it seems to me that it would be an in with the beasts on the other side.”
Dre’Kariston was flabbergasted by the idea but his heart—so beaten up and damaged by Somerly—soared at the idea of being with his parents. Six centuries had passed since he last saw their loving faces.
“I’m so jealous of you right now. Go with Chand. See Mom and Dad,” Dra’Kaedan insisted.
“There’s no pressure here. If they can’t help, then you’ve at least gotten to visit with them. In fact, we can go shadow walk in the future if you’d like to see them again. I have Alaric on this side now to keep me from staying too long on the wrong side of the veil. You have connections on both sides, so your health won’t be at stake,” Chander said.
“I want to go,” Delaney announced.
“I can’t take you. You’re dark, but you have no blood or soul connections on either side. You don’t know your biological family, and you haven’t met your mate,” Chander responded sadly.
“I blame you, Idris,” Delaney teased. “You told me if I asked Fate for my other half, she’d send him here.”
“It worked for me, so maybe you need to keep asking,” Delaney’s best friend replied.
“I think you should ask for him,” Dra’Kaedan told Idris. Then he stood and lowered himself in front of Dre’Kariston’s chair, so they were eye-to-eye. “This is just what you need right now. Talk to our parents. They’ll be happy you went dark, and you need their comfort right now.”
“It kind of seems unfair to you.”
Dra’Kaedan smiled. “I got to see them a few years ago when Carvallius’s spells nearly killed me. Yes, I’d love the opportunity again, but it’s not meant to be. It’s a different story for you, and I think you should take full advantage of being dark.”
Getting to his feet, Dre’Kariston pulled his brother into a hug. Tears threatened, although Dre’Kariston couldn’t say exactly why. Everything inside him was in turmoil, so it was difficult to separate one emotion from another. With Dra’Kaedan still in his embrace, he turned to the Arch Lich. “I’ll go. Let’s figure out this dragon thing and give the Reverent Knights their beasts.
Chapter 21
Somerly climbed down the trellis outside his window, with the party in full swing inside the house. He hoped to hell no one glanced outside and saw him scaling the side of the building. When he hopped down and felt the ground beneath his feet, he breathed a sigh of relief. The first obstacle to getting out of Court Ethelin was out of the way. Though he had a backpack crammed with everything he thought he’d need, Somerly didn’t let it slow him down as he sped toward his treehouse.
He steadfastly refused to think about all the nights he’d waited here for his sexy warlock to teleport him to Court D’Vaire. It wouldn’t help him to drown in misery; he had to stay focused on getting back to Dre’Kariston and finding a way to explain how sorry he was for hurting him. And more importantly, assuring him he wouldn’t be marrying Lucretia and only wanted Dre’Kariston in his future. As Somerly arrived at the meeting place he’d arranged with Lex, his best friend’s trusty sedan crept into sight.
The car came to a stop, and Somerly swung open the passenger-side door and climbed in. “Thanks for this, Lex.”
“Are you kidding? My pleasure. You ready to go?”
“Absolutely.”
“Okay, so I think I know where all the guards will be patrolling, but we’re going to have to keep an eye out for men in the shadows and dragons overhead. We’ll also need to drive slowly, so we don’t raise attention to ourselves.”
“Fine. I’ll just be over here with my eyes peeled and probably crapping in my shorts.”
“More searching for dragons than shitting yourself.”
“Right.”
Somerly trained his gaze out the window and scanned each tree, house, and cloud above as Lex pulled away from the treehouse. He got them back onto the paved road that would lead them out of Court Ethelin. “I’m not seeing anything yet.”
“I don’t expect to see much. I’m pretty sure your dad thinks the entire court is at his party.”
“I wish he didn’t have so much land. I feel like it’s going to take us forever to get beyond the boundary of his domain.”
“It works to our advantage, Somerly. There’s maybe a handful of guards, and they have a large swath of territory to cover. It’s going to be the key, I think, to not getting caught.”
“Do you think others have left?”
“I know they have.”
“You think they all went to the Council?”
“Wouldn’t you?”
Somerly turned to consider his best friend’s profile. He had the steering wheel gripped in both hands and was darting his eyes from the windshield to the window on his side. Guilt swept through him for putting Lex through such stress, but his best friend had to be better off getting out before he was sold to a wizard. “The Council does seem nice,” he tried to reassure him.
Lex turned to him and smiled. “I have a feeling it’s going to be—”
He never got to finish his sentence. The car jerked, and Lex whipped his head forward. Letting out a stream of curse words, he slammed on the brakes and they were both knocked back into their seats. The force from the impact had Somerly’s body lurching forward again.
“What the fuck just happened?” he blurted out.
“We hit something,” Lex said as he reached for the door. Somerly did the same and they stared at one another, then carefully stepped out of the vehicle.
Though Somerly wasn’t sure he wanted to know what they’d hit, he made his way toward the front of the car. On the ground lying in the glow of the headlights was a hooded figure.
“Fuck!” Lex yelled.
“Do you think we killed him?”
“I’m not dead,” the body retorted in an agitated voice without moving. “Bloody hell, do you always drive so recklessly? How did you not see a dragon walking across the road?”
“It’s dark, thank you very much. And you’re in all black,” Lex retorted. He reached down to try and help the man up, but the shifter shoved his hands away to do it on his own.
“Are you hurt?” Somerly asked.
“I’ve just been hit with a car. Yes, I’m hurt. Likely only bruises and scrapes, though.”
“I wasn’t driving that fast,” Lex defended.
“Good thing for me since you don’t have sense enough to look for obstacles in your path.”
“Maybe you shouldn’t decide to run across the road in front of oncoming vehicles,” Lex countered.
“Let’s not fight. Can we give you a lift somewhere? Back to your home so you can recuperate from your injuries, perhaps?”
�
��Somerly, we don’t have time to take this guy home,” Lex argued.
“Prince Somerly Ethelindraconis is it, then?” the stranger asked. His voice was full of humor.
“Don’t you get any ideas. His father isn’t going to pay you a dime,” Lex said.
“His father likely doesn’t have any money to give. He’s forever running out of the stuff.”
“You sound as if you know my father well.”
“I’m an Ethelin dragon just like you. Now I’m gravely injured and could use a lift.”
“You aren’t gravely injured. You said yourself you only have some cuts and bruises,” Lex contradicted.
“It’s hard to tell the extent of my injuries—the pain is too great. Now, how far are you traveling? I need a lift as close to the edge of Court Ethelin as possible.”
“Are you running away? We’re headed off the land ourselves. We could drive you.”
“Somerly, what the fucking hell? Why are you telling a total stranger our plans? Secrecy is vital,” Lex shouted.
“Then perhaps you should stop yelling and get on with it,” the stranger taunted. Before anyone could respond, the wily man climbed into the front seat on the passenger side.
“Great. Now we’ve got some nutcase sitting in my car,” Lex grumbled.
“We did hit him. The least we can do is give him a lift.”
“Get in the car,” Lex bit out.
Somerly raced to the back seat and climbed in. He and Lex slammed their doors at almost the exact same time.
“Hope you don’t mind me riding shotgun. Seeing as how you’re missing about a foot in height, I figured you would fit easier in the back of the car. I have long legs,” the stranger said to Somerly.
“Don’t make fun of his height. He can’t help it,” Lex warned as he put the car in gear and started down the road again.
“Were you in an accident of sorts?”
The Summoner's Path (D'Vaire, Book 10) Page 15
