by Donna Grant
Varek thought about the Fae and wrinkled his nose. “You’d have to know the Fae.” When she stared at him expectantly, he said, “The Fae came to our realm long ago because they warred with each other so much that they destroyed their realm and needed a place to live. There are two factions. The Light and the Dark.”
“I’m guessing the Light are good, and the Dark are evil?” Jeyra said flatly.
“Aye. All Fae are born Light. Their actions turn them Dark. The Fae are stunningly beautiful. All of them. The Light have black hair, silver eyes, and an affinity for flowers and bright colors. The Dark have black and silver hair, red eyes, and favor the color black. The Fae were drawn to our world because of the mortals—the Dark feed off them.”
Jeyra jerked back. “Eww. Are you telling me they eat them?”
“In a manner of speaking. You see, humans are incapable of staying away from any Fae. They’re drawn to them. A mortal who has sex with a Fae willna find fulfillment with anyone else except a Fae.”
“Not even a Dragon King?” Jeyra asked with a smirk.
Varek didn’t bother to answer. “The Light are only allowed to have sex with a human once. The Dark, however, have sex with the mortal numerous times, each time draining the human of life until there is nothing left.”
“Why doesn’t the mortal get away?”
“They doona wish to. You see, they experience pleasure unlike anything before. Why would they want it to stop? With each kill, the Dark’s hair turns more and more silver.”
Jeyra’s brows rose briefly. “The Fae sound…ghastly.”
“Some are. Some are no’,” he said, recalling Rhi, Shara, and even Balladyn.
Suddenly, he jerked as he realized there was someone else he could contact. Erith, also known as Death. She was a goddess who had formed the Reapers, Light and Dark Fae, who acted as executioners when Death passed judgement.
“What is it?” Jeyra asked.
Varek focused on her to find her head tilted to the side as she watched him curiously. “Just thinking about some friends.”
“Again, I don’t understand why the Fae would leave their babies in place of mortals.”
Varek ran a hand over his jaw. “My realm has Halflings. Half-human, half-Fae. The Fae leave them with mortals since they doona believe the Halflings can find a place in their world.”
“You actually think I was taken from a human family on your planet and brought here while a Halfling was left in my place to be raised by my true parents?” she demanded.
He shrugged and threw up his hands. “It’s something to consider. The few Halflings I’ve met were either raised by only one parent or were orphans.”
“How do I find out if the Fae are the ones doing this?”
“Free me, and I can get in touch with some of my friends so we can sort it out.”
Her lips flattened. “Nice try. That isn’t going to happen.”
“Lass, someone is taking bairns from their homes and dropping them here. You may be all right with what happened to you, but I doubt everyone is. I’m sure there isna a person on this realm who wouldna like to know where they came from or why they’re here now,” he snapped.
She rose to her feet and stretched her legs. “I suppose you have a point. It’s not something that’s talked about much. It’s just a way of life.”
“Maybe you should do some digging,” he suggested.
A soft curl tipped her lips. “I just might. But we’re supposed to be talking about you and the Dragon Kings. Tell me, Varek, how many humans have you killed?”
“How many have you slain?” he retorted. “You’ll reply that you’re a warrior, and that excuses it. I’ll reply that I was defending my clan as their King, which excuses mine. You willna believe my words, and I willna believe yours.”
She stared at him before sighing. “What do you suggest then?”
Varek hadn’t thought she would give in so easily. “I’ll tell you more about the Dragon Kings in exchange for you answering some of my questions.”
“Isn’t that what we’ve been doing?”
He smiled because it was. “Ask your questions, lass.”
“How many humans have you killed.”
His gaze lowered to the ground as he sighed. “Many more than I want to admit. I detested the verra sight of them for a large part of my life. It’s why I remained in my mountain, deep in dragon sleep—so I wouldna have to interact with them.”
“What changed?”
“The Dragon Kings are the strongest, most powerful beings in our realm. That brings all sorts of enemies to our door. We’re protectors of Earth, regardless of whether the threat is against us or the mortals. We defend our home. A threat emerged, and I was called to awaken, along with the other sleeping Kings. We went to war.”
She walked to the bars and bent to grab the bottle of milk. Jeyra brought it to her mouth and asked, “Did you? Win, that is?”
“Aye.” He didn’t mean to watch the way her throat moved as she swallowed, or linger on her lips that molded against the end of the jug.
His thoughts immediately imagined her amazing mouth wrapped around his cock. Varek barely bit back a groan. He ducked his head, pretending to scratch his scalp. At least he was sitting down so she wouldn’t see his erection.
She lowered the bottle, corked it, and set it back against the bars. “What kind of magic can dragons do?”
“Anything,” he replied. “If you can think it, we can do it.”
“But only Dragon Kings can shift?”
He nodded and glanced at her. “Aye.”
“How do you communicate?”
“Like anyone else.”
She gave him a stern look. “Nice try. Dragons don’t talk.”
“They do, just no’ in the way you think. We speak telepathically. You’ve asked several questions. Now, it’s my turn. How long has there been a border between your people and that of the dragons?”
Jeyra’s face crinkled as she shrugged. “Well before I came here.”
“How long ago was that?”
“Long enough.”
He couldn’t contain his smirk at her evasion to avoid stating her age. He left it alone for the moment, but he’d find out soon enough. “How close was your home to the border with the dragons?”
“Not close at all. There was no reason for the dragon to come at us.”
Varek tucked that nugget away for the moment. “How many others died from that dragon’s rampage?”
“I don’t know.”
“I find that hard to believe. I think you know every detail of that day.” Her brief frown caught his attention. “Or could it be that you didna look deep enough into things because you took everyone at their word?”
Jeyra walked close enough to the bars that he could reach out and touch her if he wanted. “I was there. I didn’t need to ask anyone anything.”
“Surely you would’ve wanted to know how many others were killed. Otherwise, how would you know what to prosecute me for?”
She stared at him with amber eyes blazing with fury. “I won’t be the one bringing charges against you. That’s for the council to do.”
“But you’re the one grilling me. That makes me think you have a stake in it.”
“I do. I’m representing my family, those who were killed.”
He nodded, accepting that. “And where are the others who represent their families killed by the dragon?”
Chapter Nine
Why did Varek have to make so much sense? Jeyra didn’t like that he’d put questions in her head.
But the truth was, she didn’t know how many others the dragon had killed the day her family died. She wasn’t even sure what had happened to the dragon. She’d just been happy that it went away. Rankin had told her that she was safe, and she believed him.
More annoying than that was the fact that she couldn’t stop looking at Varek’s mouthwatering body. She wished he’d put a shirt on because she found it difficult to keep her thoughts on
their discussion. “Are you ever going to put your shirt on?”
In response, he lifted his hands, showing the manacles and the chain attached to both of them.
She glanced at the discarded shirt near his feet, wondering how he had gotten it off. As if reading her mind, he lifted it and showed her the rip down the middle and along the sleeves so he could remove it.
So much for her getting him another tunic. There was no way he could get it on over those chains. But his nakedness was a distraction, to be sure. It wasn’t as if she didn’t know what a man looked like. She’d had her share of lovers, though none had developed into anything serious. That was as much her fault as it had been theirs.
She had to think of something other than Varek’s appealing body or what he might look like without any clothes on. “What kind of magic do you have?”
“As I said, a dragon can do all kinds of magic.”
Jeyra couldn’t help thinking that he wasn’t telling her everything. Then again, why should he? If she were in his place, she would keep as many secrets as possible, only divulging what she needed in order to get what she wanted.
“Do you have a wife?” She wasn’t sure why she’d asked that. Maybe it was thinking of her past lovers and the fact that she didn’t have anyone now that’d put her mind on that train of thought.
“I’ve no’ found my mate yet,” he answered.
His choice of words was interesting. “Mate and not wife?”
“One and the same. You say wife or husband. I say mate.” He shrugged as if that answered it all.
And she supposed it did.
“Do you have a husband? A wife?”
She smiled and shook her head. “I don’t have a husband, no.”
“I find that difficult to believe. You’re beautiful, strong, and intelligent.”
Jeyra was at a loss for words. After everything she had said to him, he complimented her? Her first instinct was to wave away the words as lies, but something in his eyes made her hesitate. As she stared into the dark depths, it dawned on her what it was. He was telling the truth. He really did believe her beautiful, strong, and intelligent.
“I’ve shocked you,” he said with a crooked smile.
If his bare chest, voice, and handsome face distressed her, that grin caused her lungs to seize. He was stunning at any angle, but that smile transformed him into something alluring and beyond gorgeous.
They were enemies, yet he treated her with kindness and patience. He had shared some of his past and listened to hers. He hadn’t rebuffed, chided, or ignored her. And the more she was around Varek, the more he fascinated her.
First, he made her feel remorseful for him. Now, she wanted to know more about him. This wasn’t right. It couldn’t be. He was her nemesis, the same type of being as the one responsible for her family’s horrible death. He needed to pay for those crimes.
Didn’t he?
“I’ll be back,” she told him and hurried from the dungeon.
She blinked against the bright light of the sun when she emerged. Everything was mixed up and jumbled. She wasn’t sure what was up and what was down anymore, but she did know one thing—she needed answers. Jeyra didn’t give any of the guards a glance as she left and went looking for Rankin. He was the one who could give her information on what she needed to know. It maddened her that she hadn’t thought to ask how many others had died the same day as her family, or what had happened to the dragon. Why hadn’t she asked those questions? Why hadn’t she pushed for more?
Because you trusted Rankin.
She had. He was a good man, a great warrior. He’d been a surrogate father when there had been no one else. He never spoke of that day, ever, unless she brought it up. It wasn’t right to be angry at him for not divulging specifics if she hadn’t asked him about them. But she was asking now.
Jeyra went to each of his favorite taverns, the arena, his flat, and even the council building, but he wasn’t at any of them. Thinking he might be on some mission, she realized that she would have to wait until he returned.
Then she remembered there was another way to get some answers. Jeyra went to the library and searched the archives section for the day her family had died. She read the notes taken at the council meeting, including the part where Rankin had asked to raise her.
As she flipped a page, she realized something was wrong. Upon closer inspection, she discovered that an entire page was missing from the archives. She flipped back several pages and saw that at least two other pages were gone, as well. One was her testimony. It was against their laws to remove pages from an archive. Who had taken them?
And more disturbing, why?
She softly closed the book and returned it to the shelf. Out of the corner of her eye, she spotted one of the library workers watching her. So as not to look as if she were searching for anything in particular, she took out three other archives and rummaged through them.
Finally, she raised her gaze and met the librarian’s. “I’m trying to uncover any honors Rankin received. I’m doing something special for him. Do you know where I can find that?”
The woman’s pinched lips widened slightly into a smile. “Right where you are,” she replied in a nasal voice.
Once the woman was gone, Jeyra continued flipping through other archive books to see if more pages were missing. As far as she could see, it was just on the day her family had died. Particularly the part where she had told the council her side of the story, Rankin’s statement of how he’d found her and her family, and the other warriors’ testimonies.
She put all the books back, plastered a smile on her face, and walked from the library. She had expected to find answers there, but her discovery only made her more suspicious. The only person she could ask was Rankin since she didn’t trust anyone else.
“Where are you, Rankin?” she whispered as her gaze moved over those walking along the street.
The more she thought about the missing pages, the more concerned she became. She briefly thought about going to the council with it, but they might say she was the one who took them. As it was, she would be lucky if they didn’t discover how Varek had come to be their prisoner. Why would she bring undue attention on herself if there was no need?
Because someone took those pages. You wouldn’t know about that if you didn’t go looking. You can thank Varek for that.
She wasn’t sure she wanted to give him credit. He’d caused her to think about the past in ways she hadn’t before.
You can’t blame him for pointing out something you know you should’ve looked into long ago.
Why did her damn subconscious always have to be right? It was very irritating, especially when she was trying to prove that Varek wasn’t someone she could trust. Trust. She snorted at the word. Why would she even think to trust him? He was a Dragon King. No doubt he was lying about everything.
He wouldn’t have known about the missing pages in the archives. All he did was nudge you to find answers. You’re the one who went to the library.
She fisted her hands and started walking, telling herself to shut up before she did something stupid. As she made her way through the crowd of people, she noticed more than one person staring in her direction. Jeyra ignored them, or at least pretended to.
With no particular destination in mind, she was surprised to find herself in front of Rankin’s home once more. He lived on the outskirts of the nobles’ district. His years of loyal service had earned him that. She hadn’t cared that they’d lived so close to the upper class of society. Rankin had never put on any airs, and neither had she. What mattered was that she had a home to go to, somewhere she could be herself. And a man who had taken on the role of father and mother.
She wanted to talk to him. He might be angry with her, but she knew he would listen to her, at least. He was wise, and his advice was always worth whatever lecture or story she had to endure to get it. If she could trust anyone, it was Rankin. Though now, when she needed him, he was nowhere to be found.
When she reached it, she drew up on the reins to halt the horse. She dismounted and let the mare eat at her leisure as she looked around. Jeyra wasn’t sure what she was searching for. Maybe she just wanted to jog her memories. Walking through the rubble of the house and barn, and even through the nearby woods, gave her nothing more than she already had.
She was surprised that no one had taken over the land to farm it since Loyd’s crops had been in such high demand. Many, many years had passed since then, but her memories hadn’t faded. She knew how proud Loyd had been to have the land so many others wanted. Why wasn’t it being farmed? Why was no one else living here?
More questions. Her stomach was one huge knot. She was mentally and emotionally exhausted, but she wouldn’t get any rest until she found the answers she sought. At the current rate, she feared that might be years.
Her thoughts turned to Varek and his questions about the babies—or bairns as he’d called them—the border, and any others killed by the dragon. She had snapped at the King because she’d thought she knew the answers. Until she tried to explain them. That’s when it occurred to her that she didn’t know any more than what she had been told. And she had happily believed it and moved on with her life.
Oddly enough, that had been just fine with her. Why? Why had she accepted everything she was told without looking deeper or searching for anything? Was it because she wasn’t from this realm and was just grateful to have someone caring for her? That might have been an explanation when she was younger, but once she went out on her own?
She was someone who always pushed for more, be it training in weapons, learning about history, or any other number of things. Yet she had simply accepted so very much.
Jeyra walked to the mare and mounted the horse before turning the animal back toward the city. She clicked, starting the mare walking as her mind tumbled the new thoughts over and over again. The closer she got to the walls of the city, the more she had the urge to ride away. While anyone could come and go as they pleased in Orgate, she knew some kept track of such travel.
