When Sari nodded, the sprite continued, “Good. I admit I don’t know Karein that well. He was my enemy first, but he saved my life and that of my mate. So he strikes me as a person of contrasts. But I do know one thing. In spite of all his paradoxes, if what you say of him is true, he loves you. Trust him, Sari.”
“I do,” Sari answered. “I trust him with my life, my body, and my soul.” But he felt something inside Karein just now, something that he didn’t trust. He’d heard that voice, urging Karein to kill. It sounded like Karein himself…but not. How could he explain that to Caelyn without sounding like a complete lunatic?
Caelyn squeezed his hand again. “When we were on the road, Graham and I kept fighting over the most idiotic things. I know it’s not the same, but what I mean to say is that you and Karein are just getting accustomed to the mate bond. You’ll see that soon, Karein will open his heart completely to you. Just give him time. He’s a private man, with a lot of secrets.”
A chuckle sounded in Sari’s mind. “I knew I liked him for a reason. He’s just like you, always so kind and diplomatic.”
“So you were attracted to Caelyn because he superficially resembled me? Wow.”
Sari might have actually been a little jealous at the thought, but he had greater concerns. Caelyn kissed his cheek and got up. “I’ll leave you alone to talk to him now. Whenever you want to see me, I’m here for you.”
“Thanks,” Sari replied. “I will.”
As Caelyn walked away, Sari leaned against the obelisk and focused on his mate. Karein was close to Eternelle now. Sari would have asked his mate for an explanation that would actually make sense—unlike the whirlwind of strange and somewhat unfamiliar emotions now invading their bond—but he wanted Karein to hold him when he gave Sari the answers he sought.
“I’ll hold you for as long as you like me to,” Karein replied. “Just as long as you don’t let other men kiss you.”
That was a strange comment to make, especially when coupled with the odd jealousy now rushing through their bond. Karein had just said that he liked Caelyn, and now he was angry because Caelyn had kissed Sari’s cheek. His mate’s possessiveness had always made Sari feel safe and protected, but not this time. This time, there was a touch of genuine hostility, maybe even hatred behind it. Now more than ever, Sari desperately wanted to see Karein, to make sure his mate was okay.
He didn’t have to wait for much longer, as soon, he spotted a dark shape against the horizon. There was no panic among the priestesses, and Sari guessed his mother must have spoken to them. Of course, the idea of draechen in Eternelle didn’t scare them since the monument was dedicated to Prince Kaelezrin, too. Judging by the strange gift Sari had received, perhaps the draechen prince still inhabited these lands.
As Karein approached, Sari shot to his feet. He found himself running while still gazing up at the sky, which made him stumble as he ran into someone he hadn’t seen. The person in question, Sage, steadied him and said, “Easy there. I’m sure General Shtamakarein wouldn’t appreciate you hurting yourself in your eagerness to meet with him.”
Sage still puzzled Sari a little. He seemed completely unfazed by Eternelle, even if he hadn’t known about its existence before. But Sari suspected that, deep inside, Sage wanted to see Karein, too. After all, the ice dragon had abandoned everything to rescue Sari. He needed some reassurance that he hadn’t lost his chance to be with his mate. Sari hadn’t told him what had happened in Draechenburg since the entire thing had shaken Sage’s trust in Sari.
“I’ll be more careful,” Sari replied. Taking Sage’s hand, he dragged the draechen after him. “Now come on. We’re wasting time.”
Sage complied, and they met Karein halfway. The huge black dragon landed and began to shift into his legged form. Sari gave him space, barely managing to contain his enthusiasm and anxiety. At last, when Karein stood in front of him as a man, Sari lunged forward and embraced his mate. Karein hugged him back, so tightly it almost hurt. “Oh, baby,” he whispered, “I thought I’d lost you.”
Sari didn’t answer, at least not by words. Instead, he swamped their bond with pure love, trying to chase the shadows of fear that still haunted Karein. In the meantime, Sage approached and bowed. “General Shtamakarein, I’m glad to see you arrive here safely.”
“You’ll be even happier to learn that my father won’t be a problem anymore.”
Even Sage couldn’t keep a straight face when Karein said that. “You killed the emperor?”
That same strange force stirred at the back of Karein’s mind, flooding both him and Sari with discontent. “No, although likely I should have.”
Sari squeezed his mate’s waist, and Karein shook himself, frowning. “In any case,” he continued, “I’m not taking over. I will allow Hareem to do so. We’ll return to Draechenburg soon, so you don’t have to worry about losing touch with your family or your mate.”
“Thank you, Highness,” Sage answered. Obviously realizing something wasn’t quite right, he added, “I will leave you to reconnect with your mate. Let me know when it’s time to go.”
Sage departed, and Sari was left alone with his mate. The silence that fell wasn’t wholly comfortable, a first between Sari and Karein. Frustrated with himself, Sari made a split-second decision. “Come on. I need to show you something.”
“Mmmm…” Karein caressed Sari’s hair, refusing to let go when Sari tried to pull away. “There’s only one thing I have interest in right now.”
Sari had to admit that he felt very tempted to go with what Karein was asking. Jenarra above, his mate was completely naked. Dragging him through a temple of chaste priestesses would be disrespectful to say the least. But a niggling sensation at the back of his mind told him that he needed to do this. There was just something off about Karein, as if…well, as if he wasn’t really the Karein Sari knew and loved.
As Sari thought that, Karein released him as if he’d been burned. “I told you I would explain.” He actually scowled. “You told your friend you trust me.”
“And I do.” Sari took a deep breath. “Won’t you trust me back?”
For a few seconds, Karein just looked at him. His eyes flashed with a strange light that Sari had never seen in him before. It reminded him of the way the carvings in the obelisk changed and shifted on the surface of the monument. Even so, Karein nodded. “Very well, Sari. Lead the way.”
Relieved, Sari grabbed Karein’s hand and dragged him toward the main Eternelle compound. Fortunately, someone, likely Sari’s mother, must have anticipated what Sari planned to do, because their path was clear. As they approached the temple, Karein’s hold around Sari’s palm tightened. Their bond strained against the erratic emotions going through Karein. “Where are you taking me?” he asked, his voice low and threatening.
Sari experienced a brief urge to look behind himself, to see if his mate was really there and not some stranger. He had never thought things could be awkward and unpleasant between them, but they were. Regardless, Sari held onto the strong love they’d built together. “To meet someone dear to your heart,” he answered, pouring those feelings into his bond with Karein.
The shadows receded once again. Still, it seemed to take forever until they finally reached their destination, the Obelisk of Eternelle. A simple cloak and a pair of sandals sat next to the monument, obviously a gift from Eanera. It must have been impossible to find a suit of clothes Karein’s size, but those items would do for now. “Your mother thinks of everything,” Karein commented as he released Sari’s hand.
He almost sounded resentful, displeased at the simple gift. “I suppose she does,” Sari answered neutrally.
“Too bad she didn’t anticipate what would happen to you. All of this could have been avoided if she really cared about you.”
Sari’s eyes widened at the venom in Karein’s voice. To a certain extent, he was aware of Karein’s disapproval regarding Eanera’s tendency to always put Jenarra first. However, Karein had always been respectful of the ways o
f the Ivenians and had never made a comment like that. Yes, something was definitely amiss.
“She does care.” Much to Sari’s shame, his voice trembled and he felt tears gather at the corner of his eyes. Unfortunately, this was a sore subject for him, and having his mate expose it like that hurt, and hurt a lot. “Her position simply hasn’t been easy, but she loves me.”
Karein reached for him, releasing a choked sound. “Sari… I…”
“Hush.” Sari took a deep breath, fighting back the pain. “You’re not yourself. Come here.”
Karein complied, and together, they approached the obelisk. Taking Karein’s hand once again, Sari pressed it to the carvings. Karein twitched, and beneath his fingers, Sari felt a buzzing, as if a strange force was emanating from the obelisk. The entire thing couldn’t have lasted more than a few seconds, but then, Karein convulsed and slumped into Sari’s arms. Sari caught him and slowly placed him down. Panic swelled inside him. He’d been so convinced that this was the right thing to do. What if he’d made a mistake? The obelisk had obviously hurt his mate somehow.
But Sari didn’t allow that terror to paralyze him. Instead, he transformed that fear into healing energy, flooding Karein with it. As it turned out, he shouldn’t have been worried quite so much, because Karein recovered quite quickly. He blinked several times, as if to clear his vision. “Sari… What? What’s going on?” He reached for Sari and cupped his cheek with a tender hand. “Are you all right?”
It was so like Karein to be worried for Sari when he was the injured one. As Karein’s fingers brushed over Sari’s skin, though, Sari realized the reason for his mate’s concern. He was crying.
Quickly wiping his eyes, Sari gathered his wits and explained, “You were acting strangely, so I took you here, to the Obelisk of Eternelle.”
With Sari’s help, Karein got up. Upon spotting the cloak left by Eanera, he grabbed it without comment and wrapped it around his shoulders. “So this is the obelisk,” he said, unmasked awe in his voice. “I’ve seen it in your memories, but being here is quite different.”
“You didn’t look very impressed before.” Sari arched a brow. “Do you remember anything at all?”
“Bits and pieces.” Karein scowled. “I recall leaving Draechenburg, landing… We spoke… I’m not sure what happened really or what I said.”
“It was very odd. Like…you were you, but not really.” Sari arranged his robes and his hair, laughing nervously. “Like you had an evil twin or something.”
At that, Karein’s expression darkened. “I think it’s time I explained my last secret. Do you have a room here? We need privacy for this.”
Sari nodded and guided Karein inside. As he did so, he kept his thoughts to himself so that he wouldn’t learn what Karein intended to say before his mate was ready. Whatever Karein was hiding, Sari could handle it. He was his draechen’s mate. Karein might want to protect him, but it went both ways. Sari would do whatever it took to make Karein see that together, they could defeat anything. The first step had been taken. The strange shadow had disappeared. Now, the ball was in Karein’s court. What had truly happened back there? Sari had a feeling that he wouldn’t like what he would find out.
Chapter Sixteen
Karein paced back and forth in the room, struggling to come up with a way to begin this conversation. He threw a look his mate’s way, who sat patiently on an armchair, studying him with those lovely silver eyes. Karein’s memories of the past hour were fuzzy, but he distantly recalled making Sari cry.
And yet, even with all the mess in Karein’s mind, body, and soul, Sari hadn’t given up on him. Still gazing into those brilliant silver orbs, Karein took a deep breath and began to explain. “You know how most draechen have twins?”
Sari nodded. “It’s a shape-shifter thing, right? Single births are very rare.”
“Well, for once, I wasn’t an exception.” Karein rubbed his eyes, wondering if this was such a great idea after all. Now that he’d started, though, he couldn’t stop. He couldn’t disappoint his mate by keeping secrets between them. “I was supposed to have a twin brother, too,” he continued.
Sari didn’t say anything else, allowing Karein to take his time. “You know, this is somewhat connected to what happened to you in Draechenburg, why everyone, including Sage, refuses to believe you’re carrying my child,” Karein said. Deciding to stop beating around the bush, he blurted out, “My powers manifested before I was even born. When I was in my mother’s womb, I absorbed the living energy of my brother’s life. I had a twin with whom I should have shared an egg, but instead, I killed him.”
His mate’s jaw dropped. Obviously, Sari hadn’t expected something quite so bad. “Jenarra… I’m so sorry, Karein. It must have been so terrible for you.”
Karein chuckled, although he felt no amusement. He knelt next to his mate and leaned against Sari’s knee. He was wearing silken robes again, and the soft feel of the material was sinfully familiar, reminding Karein of when they’d first met. “You would. I wasn’t the one who died, baby.”
A gentle hand landed in his hair. “A small part of you did,” Sari said. “Finish the story.”
Karein heaved a heavy sigh. “There isn’t much to tell really. I’ve always known about it, but for a while, when I was a child…I didn’t handle it well at all. I heard voices all the time. In fact, I couldn’t think or do much of anything half the time.” Memories resurfaced, but this time, they brought no vengeful shadow with them. “I suppose it was a schizophrenia of sorts. Anyway, the emperor refused to have an insane child. I was a soldier, so I ignored it all until it finally went away. I guess it never fully disappeared.”
It had been one of the concerns Karein had as his two hundredth birthday had approached without him finding a mate. The two issues had seemed unrelated as nothing documented such an affliction happening to black dragons. Sure, a small part of Karein had wondered about it. However, he’d actively tried not to remember, and it had worked, until Karein’s panic that he had lost his mate had broken every barrier he’d ever set up.
Oddly enough, though, as Karein thought back to what he’d done, he no longer sensed the dark shadow encroaching upon his mind and consciousness. He didn’t even hear the voice anymore. It was like a heavy burden had been lifted off his mind and heart.
“You healed me.” Karein shot to his feet, gazing at Sari in shock. “It’s gone. I don’t feel it anymore.”
He might not remember everything he’d done since landing in Eternelle, but he clearly recalled the light of Sari’s powers bathing him in pure love. Sari must have gotten rid of Karein’s longtime disease. There was simply no other explanation.
“Are you certain?” Sari asked.
“Positive.” Karein grabbed Sari’s hand and pulled his mate into his arms. “You know, baby, I realize I’m not exactly the man you deserved for a mate. My past is tainted with blood. But I swear to you, I’d die before I ever harmed you, or our child.”
At that, Sari smiled, cupping Karein’s cheek in a stern, yet gentle gesture. “I don’t want you to die, Karein. I want you to live, to love, with me.”
As he met Sari’s silver gaze, Karein forgot all about the past. He just knew that his mate had been returned to his side. He’d come so close to losing this, the most important, precious thing in his life. His family. Overlords, it was only by miracle that Sari and their child had survived. Watching the events in Draechenburg unfold without being able to help had been a torment Karein didn’t wish even upon his worst enemy. But now, the past didn’t matter anymore. Just the present did, and the future.
Karein’s instincts stirred inside him, wild and hungry. He needed to claim his mate again, to reassure himself that this wasn’t a dream, that Sari was truly safe and not a figment of Karein’s imagination. With a hungry groan, he pressed his mouth to Sari’s. As Karein licked across the seam of Sari’s lips, his mate melted in his embrace and eagerly granted him entrance.
At first, Karein managed to keep the kiss
tame, to explore Sari’s taste, so fresh, so familiar, so alive. They’d been apart for too long. Even before Karein had left Draechenburg, they’d been forced to play that ridiculous charade of being at odds because of what Karein had supposedly done to Caelyn. But there were no more lies now, no more secrets or deception. Everything was out in the open, and just their honest passion remained, flooding their bond and their hearts.
When they broke the kiss, Karein scanned Sari’s face one more time. Sari beamed at him, his cheeks flushed, the gem in the center of his forehead twinkling like a star in the night’s sky. He passed his hand through his hair, as if to put it back in order, and Karein fell in love with him all over again. He hadn’t thought it possible, but the extent of it choked him. It was like a dam that had held back the true extent of his emotions for Sari had finally broken, and he finally experienced the truth of it. Oh, he’d acknowledged it before, but now… It seemed as if that perpetual fog of doubt and self-hatred was finally gone, defeated by the love that pulsed within him like a living thing.
Karein couldn’t take it anymore. He had to touch his mate, to show Sari how much he meant to Karein through the one method that had never failed him. Slowly, he guided Sari to the bed. Sari obediently sat down, still holding Karein’s gaze. It seemed that he had anticipated or heard Karein’s thoughts, because his hands started to work the bindings of his robes. Karein discarded his own cloak and sandals, and then joined Sari on the mattress. “Let me,” he whispered.
He had to admit that he had a nearly worshipful fascination with undressing Sari. There was something powerfully sensual and almost transcendental about the experience, like he was pushing aside an earthly shell to reveal a star hidden beneath. Sometimes, Sari helped him, but more often than not, the fae got too worked up to focus on disrobing. Now was no different as Sari’s hands were trembling, and he didn’t manage to make much progress. Karein took over and began the process of undressing his mate.
Draechen's Mate [Chronicles of the Shifter Directive 2] (Siren Publishing Epic Romance, ManLove) Page 24
