Shards (Dragon Reign Book 2)

by Kit Bladegrave

  “Drive them back!” a familiar voice bellowed beside me.

  I managed a glance to my right to see Broden, two swords in his hands, face contorted as his demon shone through. His blades were bloodied, as was his face and shoulder. He’d been stabbed. I remembered it happening, but Broden had torn the plagued brute to pieces before charging on ahead. My own leather garments were drenched in black blood, as well as more of my own. Rest would have to wait a few more hours… just a few.

  A mighty roar cascaded over us as blue fire crackled, shooting from the mouth of the lead dragon. Malcolm. He spun in mid-air before barreling through those beasts managing to take flight. He sent them scattering, and I watched as he landed, smashing more beneath his clawed feet before finally shifting back—well, not all of him.

  His face remained exactly as Broden’s, contorted and fierce, just like a demon.

  “They are fleeing!” he yelled over the din of fighting. “We have beaten them back!”

  My arms sagged in relief, letting the soldiers behind me, demon and dragon, elf and human, sorcerers and all the rest, charge after the plagued beasts.

  Finally, victory was near, and we could rest for a moment at least. I wanted nothing more than to sink into the mud and collapse, but the hairs on the back of my neck stood on end.

  I had no idea what was coming, but from Celandine’s racing thoughts and how her dragon suddenly reared its head, I knew it wasn’t good.

  The ground shook beneath our feet, and all sense of victory was dashed as the sun disappeared from view.

  Darkness poured in, over the land, shooting up into the sky like a tidal wave.

  I was terrified, but Celandine was furious. I gripped the sword tighter and bared my teeth, daring him to come.

  Him?

  I needed to see, but a sharp pain shot through my head and I was thrown back into my present body, still in the cell.

  Magnus had opened the door and hovered over me now.

  He held his hands to the sides of my head, whispering words under his breath.

  My body shook uncontrollably as fear overwhelmed me.

  What was happening to me?

  Every time I blinked, I caught a glimpse of that tidal wave moving closer, ready to swallow us all whole.

  And all I could do was stand there and watch.

  Chapter 3

  Craig

  I yanked on the bars again, needing to get to Kate. Every jerk of her body and whimper of pain tore at me until I couldn’t bear it.

  “I have to help her!”

  “You can’t,” Magnus, this supposed healer, argued without turning my way.

  “Yes, I can, you bastard! Let me out of here!”

  He whipped around with a furious snarl, but when Kate screamed, flailing as if something had attacked her, his lips thinned, and he nodded to the two guards close by. “Bring him here.”

  The second my cell door was open, I sprinted across the corridor and fell to my knees beside Kate. Magnus had his hands on her head still, but I shoved him away angrily, growling protectively as I shielded her from him with my body.

  “I can help,” he insisted.

  I snarled louder, and he backed off.

  Gently, I rested my hands on Kate’s cheeks, holding her head as steady as I could without hurting her, and stared into her eyes.

  “Kate, I need you to listen to me,” I said firmly.

  Her eyes were glazed over just as they had been at the ruins, but something was wrong. She was slipping in and out of the trance taking her to the past, and whatever was happening back then, was not good. Her hands curled into fists at her sides, and her face screwed up in sudden pain.

  “Katherine, focus on me and only me. I know you can do it.”

  Every breath seemed to pain her, and it killed me to see her this way, but her eyes cleared again and latched onto mine.

  “That’s it, look at me,” I whispered. “Listen to my voice and only my voice. You need to stay here, in the present with me. Celandine is long dead. Whatever you’re seeing, it’s over, it’s already happened. You’re safe, Katherine.” I nodded slowly with her, and her body began to relax. “You’re safe with me.”

  “What did you do?” Magnus asked quietly.

  I kept my gaze on Kate’s, not ready to let go until I was sure she was firmly planted in the present. “I would tell you, but you wouldn’t believe me. No one does.”

  Magnus shifted nervously, and I studied the old man closely.

  “What do you know?” I asked sharply.

  “Nothing, nothing at all.”

  He was a damned liar, but I had to focus on Kate. I didn’t even blink until her eyes closed peacefully and she went completely limp in my arms. I shifted her, so she rested in my lap and then glared pointedly at Magnus.

  “You want to know what’s wrong with her? Talk to your dear precious prince who just betrayed us,” I snarled. “Talk to him and ask him why we were at the ruins, ask him what we saw, what we went through.” My arms closed tighter around Kate as if that alone could protect her from ending up like Celandine. “Get out of here. She needs her rest.”

  Magnus looked as if he was going to order the guards to drag me back to my cell, but thought better of it and stood. The three of them left us alone, closing and locking the cell door behind them.

  I hoped they’d forget to lock it, but no such luck.

  I held Kate for a long while, not wanting to move and disturb her sleep. She’d dug deep grooves into her palms from her fingernails.

  Gently, I ran my fingers over them, wishing I had some way to soothe the cuts. They’d sting whenever she woke up again. I hated to ask what she saw, but needed to know. Any bit of information could help us at this point.

  I wondered what Forrest was doing right now and if he enjoyed being back home amongst his own people. If his father was doting on him, so glad to have his son home, alive and well.

  I remembered his yelling when the guards came and attacked us, but they didn’t listen to him, and now we were all captive.

  Possibly worse than captive. If Kadin believed we kidnapped his son, he would demand retribution. My life and Kate’s hung in the balance, and I had little faith Forrest would get us out of this mess in time. If at all.

  Kate stirred and opened her eyes, squinting up at my face. “What happened?”

  “I think your past life is still trying to show you something,” I whispered. “Go back to sleep. You need your rest.”

  “No, I don’t think I can sleep.”

  I expected her to push away from me, but she stayed right where she was as I leaned my back against the wall. Being near her was comforting at least, even though I sensed we both knew the serious trouble we were in.

  “It was horrible,” she whispered, and a shiver rushed through her.

  “What you saw?”

  Her head bobbed. “We were in a battle, long before the shield was stolen. I saw it, whole and in my hand. It was so powerful… and the Executioner… you and Forrest were there, too.”

  She shut her eyes again, and I worried she was slipping back into another memory, but when those green eyes opened, they were clear.

  “We were fighting the darkness, pushing it back and we weren’t alone. All the races were there behind us,” she said in awe. “Fighting together to save our world… but then… then he came, and everything changed.”

  “He? What he?”

  It seemed she wasn’t able to answer for a long, tense moment. “I don’t… I can’t remember the name, but I felt his presence, and I saw a tidal wave of darkness rise over us. It crashed down… I couldn’t stop it,” she whispered, horrified, and appearing to be in physical pain. “The dead, there were so many dead…” She trailed off, curling in on herself.

  I held her close, doing my best to keep her calm. These raw emotions of hers were going to drag her right back into another memory. We had to get out of this place before that happened and she lost control completely.

  “It’s
over now, you’re safe,” I reminded her. “You’re back in the present.”

  “For now,” she muttered darkly. “I can’t keep doing this, but she’s trying to tell me something.”

  “Who, Celandine? How do you know?”

  Roughly, she wiped at her face and sat up. “When I was in her head this last time, I felt like she knew I was there, and I felt more a part of her than the last time. I know that makes no sense whatsoever, but whatever happened back then, we need to see. Maybe it’ll tell us who erased everyone’s memories.”

  “Unless it kills you.” I was tired of seeing her with blood streaming down her nose and out of her ears, shaking violently as if some dark force possessed her.

  “It won’t.”

  “You don’t know that, love.”

  I pushed to my feet, needing to get up and move. I was anxious for what was going to happen next, but I was more worried about Kate. I’d dealt with physical pain before. I could handle it.

  But Kate? She was a Darrah, and whatever Kadin decided to do to her, I knew it wasn’t going to be easy, or simple. I walked until I reached the bars and rested my head against them. It was bad enough we were locked up in cells, but if Kate continued to have these damned mental attacks, I wasn’t sure what we’d do.

  I started when her hand slipped into mine. I hadn’t even heard her get up. Mine closed around hers automatically, and she turned me around to face her.

  “You worry too much,” she mused with a slight smile.

  I watched as her face shifted from Kate to Celandine and back again, my heart pounding in my chest as the Broden in me realized she was alive.

  Broden loved that woman, and I realized quite suddenly, I was bound to do the same with Kate. There was no fighting it, and I didn’t want to.

  The longer I stared into her eyes, the harder it became to decide which emotions were mine and which were Broden’s, but suddenly I didn’t care.

  I closed the short distance between us and kissed her. She was so warm beneath my hands, and we moved back, so she was against the wall, wrapping her arms around my neck and standing on her toes.

  I’d never known what it was like to be home, have that secure feeling, but with Kate, I finally knew, and I never wanted to leave it. I gently ran my fingers through her hair and kissed her cheeks and her forehead before simply holding her in my arms.

  “We’re going to be fine,” she whispered against my shoulder. “We didn’t come this far to fail now.”

  “I damned well hope not,” I replied and kept my gaze averted so she couldn’t see the fear in them, that just like Broden had back then, I was going to watch her disappear from my life forever.

  Chapter 4

  Craig

  “Well now, isn’t that precious sight?”

  I jerked awake at the sound of the familiar voice and glared fiercely through the bars at Raghnall, standing there with Reginald and two guards at his side.

  I thought a day had passed, perhaps two, but there was no way to tell how many hours passed down here in the darkness of the cells.

  “What the hell do you want?” My arm was already tightening around Kate’s shoulders protectively.

  She’d fallen asleep with her head on my shoulder before I passed out from exhaustion, too.

  “A father can’t visit his son?” he leered.

  “Cut the shit, Raghnall, we both know you never considered me your son.”

  His face went blank, and I braced, waiting for him to command for them to open the cell, so he could come in and take his anger out on me—or Kate.

  I wasn’t about to let him lay a finger on her, but he remained safely on the other side of the bars.

  Not that it was too comforting.

  “What were you doing at the Darrah ruins?” he demanded.

  “Since you asked so nicely, I’d be happy to tell you,” I answered with a smile.

  His eyes widened for a split second and then they narrowed again. “Insolent bastard!”

  “But I’m your bastard,” I shot back, still grinning.

  He grabbed at the bars, shaking them in his fury, but the two guards moved closer as if ready to drag him back if he went too far. “You will tell me what you were doing with the prince and a damned Darrah, and you will tell me, now!”

  “Why? It won’t change anything, and before you try to lie to my face, I know you too well, Raghnall. I’m not telling you a damned thing.”

  “Open this door,” he growled, but the guards refused to move. “Do as I say!”

  “Kadin has given us strict orders not to allow you near him,” one of the guards replied firmly. “The prisoner is still under his protection and his guard, King Raghnall.”

  I smiled wider at his being denied what he wanted, watching the veins bulge at his neck in his rage.

  He ground his teeth, and I hoped it would be enough to send him on his way, but that would be too easy.

  “I know we’ve had our differences,” Raghnall said, and I fought the urge to laugh in his face at his sudden attempt at a gentle tone. “However, I can help you with this quest of yours.”

  That caught me off guard, and I froze. What game was he playing at? “Help me?”

  “Yes, with finding whatever it is you’re looking for.”

  “And why are you interested now, when for years I tried to tell you what was happening, and you refused to listen? What’s in it for you?”

  He said nothing, but his demeanor shifted to a more aggressive stance, and I caught his eyes dart to Kate then back to me.

  I was on my feet in a shot, blocking his view of her, and snarling in his face at the bards.

  “You will never lay your hands on her,” I growled in warning. “I will kill you first.”

  The guards moved in closer, too ready to act, but they weren’t fast enough.

  Raghnall’s hand shot out too fast and grabbed me by the throat, yanking me forward as he choked me.

  I clawed at his arm, but he didn’t seem to feel the pain as he squeezed.

  The guards yelled, aiming their spears at him, but they weren’t the ones who got him to let go, as dark spots filled my vision, and I started to go limp.

  A roar that reverberated off the stone walls and shook the floor erupted behind me, and a bright flash of blue-green light shot out, surrounding me and sent Raghnall flying back against the bars of the other cell.

  His head bashed into them as Reginald and the guards struggled to stay on their feet.

  I sank to my knees, hacking harshly as I held a hand to my bruised throat.

  My vision was blocked when Kate stepped in front of me, the runes on her body pulsing with power.

  “Touch him again,” she snarled, “and I’ll rip your heart out and shove it down your throat, Raghnall the Weak. Raghnall the Betrayer.”

  That voice… that was not Kate, but I wasn’t about to stop her. The guards helped Raghnall to his feet, but he angrily shoved them away with a curse.

  “You, you will regret this,” he snarled at me, but I saw fear in his eyes for a second when Kate continued to growl at him, but it was all she could do since Magnus had bound her dragon.

  He should feel so lucky. He brushed the dirt from his black shirt and turned to leave.

  “Who was Broden?” I croaked, forcing myself to stand.

  Raghnall’s steps paused, and he threw a glare over his shoulder. “Who?”

  “You know damned well who.” Every word hurt, but if he was so interested in what we were doing, he knew something, I was sure of it. “Who was he?”

  Raghnall stormed off with Reginald behind him, not saying a word.

  Behind me, I heard a curse and whipped around in time to catch Kate when she started to fall.

  “Damn it, love, will you stop doing shit like this?”

  She managed a weak smile as we sat down together, her fighting to catch her breath as the runes stopped glowing.

  “Saved your ass again, Craig. What am I going to do with you?”

 
; Her lips curled in a teasing smile, but I was wondering the same thing about her, and I wasn’t smiling. Not anymore.

  Chapter 5

  Forrest

  Only a single candle burned in the infirmary. I tossed the blanket aside, and my bare feet hit the floor silently. A guard would be posted outside, but I was not going to spend another night cooped up in here, forced to rest my tortured mind that was not tortured at all.

  When I’d woken earlier, I found Magnus sitting at my side, staring at me with a strange air of curiosity—as well as worry—before he told me Craig and Kate were safe in the dungeons.

  Safe. None of us were safe, not yet.

  And from the way Magnus’ eyes twitched, I knew he was lying. Something had happened to him down there while he checked on them. He saw something, or heard them speaking. His conviction that I was crazy seemed close to slipping, but that conviction wasn’t ready to fall by the wayside just yet.

  There was a second way down from the infirmary tower. It was a tight squeeze, but it would have to do. I did not want the guard alerting Magnus, or worse my father, that I was up wandering the palace at night.

  My father seemed content to believe I had some spell placed over me, and would have me sent right back. And this time, I had no doubt he’d chain me to a bed until he believed I was well. Not that he had visited me since I’d been forced to take to bedrest. Apparently, he was content to wait this out, wait until his true son emerged once more. Eventually, he would be forced to see the truth, just as I had been.

  I moved to the rear of the room and shoved aside an old tapestry showing the family lineage of the Chimalus clan. Not so long ago, I’d been proud to say I belonged to such a great family, but now… now I might be the son of a murderer.