Ah, yes, the famous son of Krite Ferradul Cyraltin. Truly, Caelyn had been a little surprised when he’d heard about Alwyn’s existence, but he supposed that, in the end, Krites were people, too.
Of course, that didn’t explain Eanera’s strange request. He was a just a sprite prisoner, right? What could possibly make Eanera ask this of them?
As always, Graham heard his doubts and questions. He squeezed Caelyn’s hand and gave Eanera an inquiring look. “If I may, Your Holiness, what exactly are we looking for? Is he dangerous? If so, I’m not sure I want him around Caelyn.”
The High Priestess released a heavy sigh. “The thing is, Mr. Powers, I met Alwyn Cyraltin. He struck me as a nice person. But at the same time, I have a feeling… something I can’t quite put my finger on. He’s close to Prince Rachen Tersain, which is why I can’t go ahead and claim Jenarra knows what based on a gut feeling. It might not be anything. He might not be the one to watch for at all. But Lord Alwyn has shown some alarming abilities. According to what I’ve heard, he actually has some sort of peculiar power over the world of the dead.” She shot Caelyn a telling look. “I realize that your priority is your child. But I think it’s important to have a sprite’s perspective on this. I’m just not comfortable with the idea of a sprite summoning back ghosts from beyond the grave and using them to his whim.”
She continued on to say something else, but Caelyn didn’t hear her. He simply couldn’t believe that a sprite would have done something like that. “Perhaps it was an illusion,” he suggested.
Eanera shook her head. “I assure you. It was very real. Lord Sutharlainn…Caelyn, I would truly not ask this of you. But I have this feeling that something is going to happen, something my Sari isn’t ready for. I need to know what it is, but with everything that happened…”
She trailed off, and for the first time since knowing her, Caelyn realized she looked uncertain. He distantly wondered exactly what had happened in Rose Noire. The priestesses of Eternelle hadn’t given him and Graham any details.
Worried, Caelyn reached out for her and took her hand. “Your Holiness, we’ll go. But if you want to tell us anything else, we’re here for you.”
Eanera met his gaze and finally smiled weakly. “It’s a long story, Caelyn, a very long story. But I suppose you deserve to know. It all started centuries ago, before any of us were even born….”
* * * *
The disaster in the throne room naturally led to more chaos all throughout the day. As a member of the Tersain family, Rachen was in charge with doing a lot of damage control. After making sure his brother’s mates were safe, he attempted to find all of Elina Eretar’s previous communications. One of his countless dilemmas was why the woman hadn’t approached them earlier if she had something so important to tell them. Granted, Hareem hadn’t exactly been very open toward her, but if she’d wanted to convey a message, she’d have managed to find a way.
He found very little information, and no one who could tell him anything about what secret Elina knew. More than once, he asked around to make sure Alwyn was safe, but he never managed to actually go and find the sprite. It almost seemed like Alwyn was avoiding him.
Night had already fallen by the time Rachen could go focus on searching for Alwyn. Intellectually, he had no idea where the sprite could be, but his instincts knew how to find his mate.
He found himself heading out of the actual palace and onto the cliffside that served as a landing area for both planes and draechen. Alwyn was there, on the very edge, gazing out into the night.
Rachen went to his side, wanting to hold him, to touch him and make sure he was all right. Alwyn had been pretty quiet ever since he’d been forced to send away—Rachen hesitated to say “kill”—Talbot’s ghost. Today, though, there was new tension in his shoulders, one which Rachen ached to ease.
Under different circumstances, Rachen would have hesitated to approach Alwyn. He still felt that he didn’t deserve a mate as beautiful as the young sprite. However, now was not the time for Rachen to allow his insecurities to get the best of him. Before he could overthink things again, Rachen wrapped his arms around Alwyn’s waist, holding him close.
For a brief moment, Alwyn tensed. Acknowledging the rejection, Rachen would have let go. However, just seconds later, Alwyn released a heavy sigh and relaxed in Rachen’s embrace.
Silence fell, one loaded with questions Rachen had no answers to. In the end, it was Alwyn who broke the strange quiet. “Any news on what killed Elina Eretar?” he inquired.
“According to our healers, she seems to have died of a condition to what humans would call a brain aneurysm,” Rachen answered. “It’s very rare for fire dragons, but occasionally, in moments of great tension, their blood can run too hot and burn like acid through their brains. No one really knows what to make of that, although Talrasar has said that he suspects the cause could have been a terrible shock.”
Alwyn said nothing at Rachen’s words. He just stood there, glancing out into the night. At that, Rachen released Alwyn and forcibly turned him around. Quiet dread rose inside him. “But you already knew that already, didn’t you?” he asked his mate. “What happened, Alwyn? Who killed her?”
Finally, Alwyn looked at him. When Rachen met the sprite’s gaze, what he saw in Alwyn’s eyes chilled him. There was something about Alwyn’s dark orbs that felt different. They felt deeper somehow, like Rachen was staring straight into an abyss of darkness, need, passion, and despair. In that moment, he knew without a doubt that Alwyn was his mate. He saw it right there, undeniable, so very real.
Almost instinctively, Rachen tightened his hold on Alwyn. Alwyn didn’t seem to mind. Instead, Rachen’s reaction seemed to encourage him. He brought their bodies closer, and in spite of the circumstances, Rachen’s dick went rock hard.
Alwyn just buried his face in Rachen’s chest, clutching Rachen as if he were an anchor that was keeping him from going adrift in a world that had stopped making sense. Rachen just let the sprite do whatever he wanted, because no matter what his stupid libido thought, now was not the time for sex.
For a while, Alwyn simply held onto Rachen. Rachen allowed himself the luxury to bury his hands in Alwyn’s soft hair and just stood there, enjoying the feel of having his mate in his arms. Of course, while they kept the embrace platonic, Rachen couldn’t help but feel that wherever Alwyn’s palms touched, a blaze of fire seemed to brand him, arousing Rachen’s every instinct.
All too soon, Alwyn let go. He seemed a little calmer now, and even if his eyes were red-rimmed, they were dry, like Alwyn hadn’t allowed himself to cry. Still, Rachen could tell that something was very wrong.
“Tell me,” he said simply.
“I didn’t hurt her,” Alwyn replied instantly. “I…wouldn’t have. Right? I wouldn’t have hurt her.”
Rachen didn’t like the fact that Alwyn even felt uncertain about it. “What makes you think that you even have anything to do with this? What happened in there, baby?”
The endearment flowed from his lips, and it seemed to encourage Alwyn. Perhaps, like Rachen, he realized how right it felt, how true their bond was. Either way, when Alwyn replied, he appeared to draw strength from Rachen’s support and proximity. “I’m…I’m really not sure. I just felt something in the throne room, something I can’t really describe. I looked around, and then, I don’t really remember, but the next thing I know, that woman was writhing on the floor and dying in front of us.”
“Well, that doesn’t mean you killed her,” Rachen answered. “What possible reason would you have, after all?”
Alwyn licked his lips and faced Rachen, looking more apprehensive than ever. “I have a confession to make, and I believe I owe you an explanation. Remember how I managed to empower Talbot’s ghost?”
Rachen nodded. How could he forget? He’d been wondering about that, but he simply hadn’t found the right moment to ask. At first, he’d thought that Alwyn might have been affected by the Ancient Horror in some way, but now… After everyt
hing that had happened, he doubted that the Ancient Horror would have managed to keep hold over Alwyn too, even as he controlled Onyerre. Besides, Rachen himself felt like he’d have known if something was wrong with Alwyn. So what had happened then?
Alwyn hesitated briefly, and Rachen tried to smile and look comforting. “It’s all right. You can tell me anything. Did you figure out something about that time?”
The other man took a deep breath. “Well,” he finally added, “I suppose you know that bringing spirits back isn’t exactly a sprite power, but…it didn’t feel wrong. When I first started to see Talbot’s ghost, it seemed like I understood him at a level I can’t even express in words.”
“What exactly are you saying, baby?”
“To tell you the truth, Rachen, I don’t think I’m a sprite.” He hesitated, his nails digging into Rachen’s flesh painfully as he obviously struggled for words. “In fact…I don’t think I’m Alwyn Cyraltin at all. And she knew it. Elina knew it, and she died for it.”
End of Book 5: Emperor’s Consort
To be continued in
Book 6: Fire’s Embrace
WWW.SCARLETHYACINTH.WEBS.COM
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
A native Romanian, Scarlet was born in 1986 and grew up an avid fan of Karl May and Jules Verne, reading fantasy stories and adventure.
Later, when she was out of fantasy stories to read, she delved into her mother’s collection of books and, of course, stumbled onto romance.
As a writer though, Scarlet Hyacinth was born one sunny summer day, when a dear friend of hers—the same friend who introduced her to GLBT fiction—proposed they start writing a story of their own. As it turns out, the two friends never did finish that particular story, but Scarlet discovered she had a knack for writing and ended up starting to write individually. And so, between working on her dissertation, studying for exams, and reading yaoi manga, she started writing the Kaldor Saga. Along the way, Scarlet met a lot of wonderful people who supported her, and in the end, she found her story a home and, in the process, fulfilled a beautiful dream.
For all titles by Scarlet Hyacinth, please visit
www.bookstrand.com/scarlet-hyacinth
Siren Publishing, Inc.
www.SirenPublishing.com
Emperor's Consort [Chronicles of the Shifter Directive 5] (Siren Publishing Epic Romance, ManLove) Page 28
