by Haley Ryan
“Why did you pretend not to know me?” I blurted out.
He stared at me. “Kira, it was just dropped on me rather suddenly that your mother is Queen of the Dragons, which means any friendship between us now has enormous political implications.”
That was not at all what I’d expected him to say, and I didn’t like it one bit.
“I thought you were safe back in Oklahoma City,” he continued, “but instead, I find you here, surrounded by people who you’ve always believed wanted to kill you. Well, that, and your brothers were looking as though they intended to eat me first and accuse me of trifling with you later.”
I choked back a laugh despite my frustration. Sadly, his assessment of my brothers was probably accurate. Too bad they didn’t know what I had become all too aware of—that Draven had no desire to trifle with me. At all.
But at least he didn’t seem angry anymore. His shoulders slumped as he adjusted his wings and leaned back against a rock, making him look more defeated than anything. “How long have you known?”
“I haven’t…” I stuttered and spluttered for a moment before I realized he wasn’t referring to my crush on him. Or my acceptance of the fact that he would never return it.
He was wondering how long I’d known about my family. If his simple question wasn’t quite accusatory, it was a close thing.
“For about twenty-four hours,” I said bitterly. “It’s been a rough day.”
“Kira.”
I forced myself to look at him—really look at him—and for a moment while he stared at me, he looked more like the Draven I remembered.
“Are you sure you’re safe?” he asked finally. “Is this where you want to be?”
In spite of how mad I was, his words warmed me in places I hadn’t realized were frozen. My friend was still in there somewhere.
“Yes,” I said, moving a little closer before hunching down and wrapping my tail around my feet. “I chose this, more or less. Not the part where my mother is queen—that I probably won’t ever be comfortable with—but I chose to come here and learn more. Because you were right, much as I hate to admit it—there’s so much I still need to know.”
He actually chuckled, softly, and the sound thawed my remaining anger. Well, almost.
Did I dare admit to him how much I’d missed him? How much it had hurt me when he failed to call?
It was a risk, but honestly, I didn’t think I had the strength to stop myself.
“Draven, why didn’t you let me know you were okay?”
“I couldn’t,” he said soberly. “Not without the Fae Court finding out, and with the demands my father has placed on me—plus trying to keep Rath in one piece—I knew I couldn’t allow anyone to link the two of us together. The danger would be too great, and you didn’t have enough protection.”
“So, you worried me half to death in order to protect me?” I asked, unable to prevent sarcasm from entering my tone.
“You were worried?” He sounded surprised.
“Of course I was worried, you nit-wit!” He made me so angry, a bit of smoke began curling from between my teeth.
Instead of looking properly chastised, the jerk actually smiled. But I wasn’t finished—not even close.
“I already knew your family treated you like crap, but I left you there, with them, right after we’d just killed your half-brother. I had no idea how they were going to take that! Anything could have happened to you.”
I was forced to choke back an emotion I didn’t want to name. “I thought you said we were… friends, Draven. And after I heard nothing for months, I had no idea what to think. For all I knew, you were dead. Or worse. Or maybe you just decided you hated me. Either way, it sucked, you idiot.”
I was still staring at the ground, trying not to lose control, when a warm hand settled on the curve of my neck.
“I’m sorry.”
Stupid fae. There he went apologizing and making it impossible to stay mad at him again.
“I swear I did it to keep you safe,” he went on. “On my own, away from the courts, I’m confident enough in my abilities, but I have so little control over what happens in my father’s world. I thought I could settle what was happening there before I returned to find you, and I thought your dragon and Faris would be sufficient protection in the meantime.”
“Faris,” I snorted. “That jerk is the one who went behind my back and talked to my family.”
“But they are not what you thought?”
Reluctantly, I shook my head. “No. Obviously, there was some misunderstanding. My mother was stunned to know that I was alive, and it’s been a bit of a fight to keep her from smothering me in bubble wrap and sticking me in a bank vault.”
“Give her time. She just doesn’t know you like I do.”
I was surprised into a laugh. “Really, Draven? I thought you knew me well enough to assume the bubble wrap would be a necessity.”
“Maybe to protect everyone around you.”
I decided to pretend he was joking. “Actually, I could have used some yesterday—someone tried to blow up my house.”
He didn’t seem all that surprised. “Before or after your mother discovered she had an heir?”
Obviously, he was better versed in the intricacies of dragon politics than I was.
“After.” A moment later I added, “And yes, we are all fine, thank you for asking. Nothing a complete remodel won’t fix.”
It was his turn to laugh, and it stunned me to realize that I wasn’t sure whether I’d ever heard that sound before. A brief chuckle here or there, but never a real laugh. I liked it a little more than I should have.
“I assumed you were well. And the gargoyle would have protected the house from any serious damage.”
I jerked my head around to look him in the eye, which was far easier with a long reptilian neck. “How do you know about Hugh?”
He was back to his “be patient with Kira” look. “How do you think the gargoyle knew where to find you? I sent him because I knew you were soft-hearted enough to take him in. And once he bonded with your house, he would protect it with his last breath.”
“Then how did he survive Idria?”
“He said Llyr had specifically forbidden him to leave the castle or fight anyone. Treated him like a glorified butler. So when the battle started, he was still in his stone form.”
Well, there was one mystery solved. And speaking of mysteries…
“Draven, you know what I’m going to ask you next.”
He sighed and slid down the rock until he was sitting on the ground next to me. “What did I tell my father about Morghaine.”
“Why is he investigating her? He wouldn’t even have known she was there unless one of you said something.”
I watched him toy with a small rock for a moment before he answered. “It wasn’t me, Kira. Or Rath. It was the gargoyle.”
Those words hit me, and for a moment, all I felt was relief—my friends had not betrayed me.
But as the implications sank in, I struggled to process the reality hidden behind such a simple statement.
Hugh had told them about Morghaine. Had implicated her in Llyr’s schemes. Had told Dathair that she was actively assisting in the conspiracy against him.
All Hugh could know of Morghaine was whatever he’d seen at Llyr’s hidden base. Hugh had never left Idria before he came to live with me. He’d stayed at his castle, watching the years turn, content as sentinel and caretaker.
But as sentinel and caretaker, he would have been privy to all the comings and goings. Would have known who was a guest, and who a prisoner. And Hugh, unlike the fae, had nothing to gain from lying. If anything, he would have had greater motivation to lie about us—to claim that Draven and Rath and I were the conspirators. We were, after all, responsible for destroying his home.
But he’d named Morghaine, and with that, all of my carefully constructed defenses began to collapse.
I’d believed so hard in her innocence. Interprete
d everything in light of her love for me. But she wasn’t innocent. Not entirely.
There was still no way to know exactly what she was guilty of. Maybe Llyr was paying her for protection, and she was only guilty of hiring herself out as a mercenary to a terrible cause. Maybe she’d told herself she was doing it for me—so that we could continue to be safe.
But I couldn’t keep on defending her without evidence. I needed to find her. Needed to know the truth. Because until I did, how could I possibly decide which of my memories were real, and which were a lie?
“I’m sorry,” Draven said, and I thought he actually meant it. Even though he’d suspected Morghaine for months and tried to tell me to be careful, he also knew how badly I needed her to be innocent.
“Thank you for telling me,” I said. “And thank you for not betraying me.”
I stood up. Flexed my wings, preparing to take off. All I could feel was the intense desire to be alone, to deal with what I’d learned, and mourn what I could only call a death.
Because it truly felt like I would be leaving a part of me behind on that hillside—the part that was still very much a child. And that child wanted to believe that the people she loved were always innocent. But now I knew better. Sometimes, the ones we loved did terrible things and left us unable to decide how to feel. Did we go on loving them and make excuses for what they’d done? Did we reject their memory completely because it was tainted? Or was the answer somewhere in between the two?
I had no idea. I only knew that something inside me felt hollow and small, and I suspected it might be my heart.
“Kira, wait.” Draven came to his feet behind me. “Whatever you do, don’t make this about your relationship with her. Morghaine chose her path, and whatever she’s done is on her own head.”
He read my mind almost as clearly as Declan.
“And if she did all of it because she loved me? Because she wanted me to be safe?”
“Even the best of us might hurt the ones we love, but we don’t use them as an excuse.”
I looked back. He was achingly beautiful in the starlight, and I was grateful for his support. Relieved to know we were still friends. And yet, I couldn’t bear to stay here any longer. Draven was one more person I didn’t know how I ought to feel about, and right now, all I wanted was familiarity and comfort—the feeling of home. A place where I was loved, and everything was all right, and I knew exactly who I was.
But I didn’t have that anymore, and now I was beginning to think that perhaps I never had. That everything I’d once depended on was an illusion.
“I should get back to my room now. Before they send out the guard to hunt me down.”
“And slay me for consorting with their princess?”
I heard amusement in the question. “Probably. But don’t worry. I’ll tell them I kidnapped you.”
“It’s good to see you, Kira,” Draven said, so quietly that the night almost swallowed his words. “I’m glad you’ve found your family. That you’re safe. I hope you’ll get the answers you need.”
He was being so darned nice, my heart just couldn’t take it, so I launched myself off the hillside and headed back to the enclave.
I knew Draven was behind me but chose to ignore him, mostly because I was crying hot, steaming dragon tears and knew I needed to get them under control before I got back.
Just as we crossed the outer boundary of one of the meadows adjacent to the enclave, I heard the unmistakable sound of an outraged dragon—a roar that came from above and behind me and was rapidly getting closer.
I twisted and hovered for a moment, just in time to see a dragon plummet from the sky and hit Draven in midair, carrying him to the ground where they hit with an audible thud.
“No!” I screamed, and dove for the dragon’s head.
It was enormous, and though I couldn’t see the dragon’s color in the dark, once I was close enough, his identity became clear.
Callum had come looking for me. And given the circumstances, it was all too likely that he would do exactly as Draven predicted—eat first and worry about the consequences later.
I had to stop my brother before he killed the one person who still had my back, and in the process, destroyed the last bit of my heart that wasn’t already broken.
Eight
I fully expected to find Draven broken and bleeding between Callum’s claws, but I probably should have given him more credit. He’d broken free, and stood facing my brother—weaponless, but with lightning sparking down the length of his arms and a fierce silver light in his eyes.
Callum hissed furiously, unable to communicate with his opponent in words, but not really needing them to announce his intentions—he was going to rip Draven apart, and diplomacy be hanged.
There was no time to talk it out, no time to persuade him otherwise. So I didn’t even try—I aimed straight for his head and barreled into him with teeth and claws foremost.
“Back off!” I snarled in his ear as he staggered backward, clearly shocked by my assault. I was too tiny to actually move his enormous bulk, so I dug in with my claws and hung on. “If you hurt him, I swear I will eat you, even if it takes me a year.”
“Kira, stop,” Callum growled in my head. “You have no idea who this is or what he’s capable of, and your ignorance is about to create a diplomatic incident!”
“I’ll give you a diplomatic incident, you overbearing lizard,” I shot back. “I know exactly who he is, and my friends aren’t for you to determine!”
“They are when your friends endanger our security! You’re a member of the royal family, and your indiscretions reflect on all of us!”
At that point, Callum tried to reach up and pull me off, like some sort of clinging nuisance, which was when I pretty much came unhinged.
Temper? Yeah, I lost it. Probably would have needed a telescope to find it.
It felt like rage exploded out of every pore. I clung to Callum’s neck as my mouth opened to vomit pure white fire, while I buffeted his head with my wings.
He shrieked, probably as much in shock as anything else, but I didn’t have a chance to hit him again—he shook his head so violently that I lost my grip and flew through the air to smack into the ground with a grunt.
Didn’t matter. I jumped up and went for him again, only to skid to a halt when I realized that he wasn’t attacking anymore. He’d pulled back, gasping for air and staring at me while wincing in pain.
Then his head turned to the side, and I saw where my fire had hit him.
I’d always believed that dragons were immune to each other’s fire. After all, Morghaine hadn’t been able to even singe me with hers. But where I’d hit Callum with those white-hot flames, his scales had disappeared to leave a long, raw area of burnt and blistered skin.
“What did you do?” he asked hoarsely. “How could you burn me?”
“I don’t know,” I said, “and I’m sorry I hurt you, but I will do it again if I have to. Draven Elduvar is a friend, and I owe him my life. I won’t let you attack him while he’s a guest here.”
“And will he just stand there like a coward while you fight his battles for him?” my brother returned bitterly.
I turned to Draven. He had a right to know what was being said about him where he couldn’t hear. “My brother, Callum, would like to know whether you intend to stand there like a coward while I fight your battles for you,” I told him bluntly.
Draven looked up at the dragon towering over both of us. “I will fight you if that’s what you want,” he said, with a shrug that said he didn’t really care, and Callum could bring it. I honestly wasn’t sure who I’d bet on in a fight where neither had a chance to ambush the other.
“But I also feel no shame in allowing Kira to fight for herself. The problem here isn’t about you and me, it’s about you and her, and whether or not you trust her to make her own choices.”
Good thing I was in dragon shape, because human Kira probably would have kissed him for that.
�
�It’s him I don’t trust,” Callum said. “Not you. You’re too young and innocent to understand what’s going on here.”
“Am I?” I snapped. “Tell me, Callum, do you call me innocent to give you an excuse to keep me under your thumb, or because you really believe it? I’ve been living on my own for months now. I run my own business, I pay my own bills, and I do a damn decent job of taking care of myself. Can you say that much? Have you ever stepped outside of your little dragon world to try living out there, where nobody cares who your mother is or what you shift into?”
“I haven’t had the luxury of caring about no one besides myself,” he growled at me. “This enclave relies on me for its prosperity and safety. I can’t afford to make mistakes. I can’t afford not to care. And I most certainly can’t afford to sit by while the future heir to the throne destroys everything we’ve built out of sheer ignorance.”
I sat back and folded my wings. “Yes, it’s true. I am ignorant. And I’m trying to learn. But I’ve just met you, and there are some things I won’t do, even for family. If you have a problem with that, just say so, and I’m gone. I’ll find my own way home and never trouble you again.”
“You can’t just leave! You have a duty! A responsibility to all dragons, to serve and protect.”
I pinned my ears back. “Don’t think I’m going to let you control me with this duty bullshit, Callum. I can leave, and I will if you try to intimidate me.”
He snarled, a sound of pure frustration. “I won’t keep arguing with you in front of a fae. The council is meeting tomorrow. If you won’t listen to me, maybe they can explain how vital you are to our future and how your behavior reflects on all of us.”
Somehow, he still thought I would behave as he imagined a dragon should. That I would let this council decide who my friends could be. I’d known this was coming, I just hadn’t expected it to happen quite so fast. But perhaps it was for the best.
“Fine. Council it is.”
“Tell the fae to return to his room and stay there. He’s dangerously close to wearing out his diplomatic welcome.”
