Chapter 24
CHAPTER 24
Farron
I t’s so bright in the High Tower, it’s almost offensive. Buttery morning light seeps into the room, casting a kaleidoscope of colors across the ground from the stained-glass windows.
Dayton kneels before his turquoise rose, head bent low, golden hair falling over his shoulders. His full lips are slightly parted, cheekbones sharp, square jaw clenched. Stars, he’s beautiful. He looks like a marble statue, and I don’t think even the greatest sculptures of Summer could capture his magnificence.
A dramatic rainbow plays over the hard planes of his chest. I want to place my hand there and see the colors swirl over us both. I want to run my tongue from his jaw to his ear, where I’d whisper how much I love him.
How much I still love him; despite the fact he’s found his mate. I think I love him even more. Because all my love for him is trapped, burning a hole beside my heart. A fire like this could turn me to ash from the inside out. The only thing tethering me to life is Rosalina.
But instead, I walk toward him and say, “Your rose looks terrible.”
A muscle feathers in Dayton’s jaw. “I thought being here would help, but even the soil around it looks rotten.”
I step over the briars. The briars. It’s so strange to look at them now as help rather than the enemy. So many crisscross and tangle around the High Tower. I always believed they were stealing Castletree’s magic. If Keldarion’s words are true, if the briars are keeping Castletree standing, then they’re protecting the roses. Protecting Keldarion.
Did the Prince of Thorns never fall out of love with Keldarion? Even so, it doesn’t justify what he’s done over the years. The lives the War of Thorns took. Keldarion’s parents, Dayton’s family … all collateral.
“Let’s see,” I say, kneeling beside him, keeping far enough away so that our bodies won’t brush.
Dayton’s turquoise rose sags, the blossom almost touching the ground. At its base is a pile of discarded petals. The surrounding soil reeks with the sickly sweet scent of rot. This isn’t good. If Dayton’s rose wilts, he could be stuck as a beast forever, and no mate bond could save him. No wonder he’s had such a hard time accessing his magic.
“Uh,” I mutter, struggling for words. “I’m sure it’ll perk up once we all pool our magic.”
Dayton straightens. “You’d think it would be like Ez and Kel’s. They’re like me. They found their mates but their curses aren’t broken, either.”
Keldarion and Ezryn’s roses are both wilted, but nowhere near as bad as Day’s. They look like they’re slowly dying … but not rotting .
“Fuck,” Dayton swears and stands, storming into the one dark corner of the room. He covers his eyes, but not before I catch a tear falling down his cheek.
My self-restraint breaks and I stand, crossing to him. All it takes is the brush of my fingers against his arm for him to pull me into an embrace. His grip is crushing. His head dips to my shoulder, tears soaking my vest. I feel so guilty because being pulled close to his sun-kissed body is what I’ve wanted for so long. I feel like I’m on some sort of high, inhaling the salt and sand scent of his skin.
“I don’t want to be a beast forever,” he says in a broken rasp. “But I don’t want …”
His voice trails off, but the unsaid word hangs heavy between us.
Her.
Because there’s only one way he can save his rose. His mate’s love.
Wrenley’s love.
How many times have I seen him like this? How many times have I seen the great Daytonales cry? A handful of times at most. But he’s never looked as broken as this.
I feel my own tears pool in my eyes, and I shake my head, feeling foolish. “Sorry, I’m supposed to be making you feel better.”
Then his large hand is on my face, calloused fingers wiping away my tears. “I thought it would be better once I got Rosie back,” he says hoarsely. “She was all I could think about, from the moment I woke until sleep claimed me. I just needed to know she was safe. But it’s consuming me even more.”
We’re so close now, hip to hip. I can feel his every breath as his chest moves against mine. I know I shouldn’t, but I ask, “What’s consuming you?”
“Rosalina,” he says. “You.”
“Day …” I move to step away, but he grips me tighter.
“I slept in the library last night, and when I woke naked among the shelves, all I could think about was you two. It felt like my body was going to tear itself apart unless I could be inside of you both.”
I flutter my eyes closed. “You shouldn’t be saying these things. You have a mate.”
His thumb brushes over my mouth, and my whole body quivers. He doesn’t move away, the tip of his thumb pressing between my lips, slowly pulling them apart.
“Just one kiss, Fare,” he whispers.
I blink at him. He looks almost delirious. For so many months, he’s tried to be so good to Wrenley. So why now? Why is he breaking apart now?
Make him remember our love. A wicked thought crosses my mind. It sounds like Caspian. But I can’t. His rose … Day’s rose is so weak.
There’s only one person who can save Dayton now. And it’s not me.
“Come on, Fare,” Dayton whispers. “One last kiss.”
I thought every part inside of me was broken, but this shatters me even more. “We’ve already had our last kiss.”
I turn away, my mind grasping for the memory of that moment as if it would help me hold on to him. When he found me wandering the streets of Florendel—did we kiss then? Why didn’t I hold on tighter, savor the taste of his lips? Just kiss him for one moment longer.
Steps sound on the stairs. I quickly wipe away my tears, watching Dayton do the same. The door opens, and Keldarion and Rosalina walk in. Rosalina’s gaze flicks between us as Keldarion holds the door for her. Her eyes are too keen to hide anything, and a wave of sadness and understanding passes through our bond.
“We’ll have to stay here for a while,” Keldarion says. “Without the High Prince of Spring, it will be harder to restore life to Castletree.”
Rosalina usually stands to the side of us, but today, she goes to kneel before the Spring rose. “I’ll see if I can do anything.”
“Aren’t you a little bitter, Rosie?” Dayton mumbles. “He couldn’t break his curse and ran away. Left this place.”
Rosalina shakes her head. “I’ll find him again. My heart is resilient. I’ll love Ezryn forever.”
Even though she said Ezryn’s name out loud, a part of me wonders if she also meant Dayton.
The Summer Prince digs his fingers into the rotten soil beneath his turquoise rose. Kel takes a place before the sapphire rose, and I take my position in front of my own. It is a bright orange, blooming amid my mate’s golden briars.
“Together,” Rosalina says.
The four of us bow our heads. A dam breaks within me. Magic flows into Castletree through my rose. But Castletree doesn’t only take; magic flows up through me from Castletree itself, from her roots that weave deep into the earth of the Enchanted Vale.
My mind hums as we stay bent together. Magic courses around us for an hour, for two, until I forget my hands, arms, my legs. My body feels misty, and my entire self is filled bit by bit with this enchanted energy. Finally, a voice breaks through the haze in my mind.
“That’s enough,” Rosalina says. “That’s as much as we can give.”
We all fall back with a strange sort of weariness. Exhausted, but in a good way. My magic feels stronger, and as I look at Keldarion’s rose, I see it has risen slightly. Surprisingly, the Spring rose has perked up too. Lastly, I look to Dayton’s. The soil no longer appears rotten, the color of the petals brighter.
He sees me watching him, then smirks, waving his hand as a thin stream of water comes out and splashes me in the face. I can’t help but give a small chuckle, especially when I hear Dayton’s own booming laughter. With a mischievous grin, he shoots another spray of water toward me.
“Seems like the Summer Prince has found his magic,” Keldarion says, freezing the stream. Dayton flashes a grin at him.
The earlier weight feels lifted, even though all we’ve bought for Dayton is time. Renewing his magic hasn’t changed anything.
Frantic footsteps sound on the stairs, and we lurch to our feet. Keldarion crosses in two steps to Rosie and clutches her against him.
Rintoulo, the butler, bursts open the door with an anxious expression.
“What is it?” Keldarion growls.
“Master,” Rintoulo gasps, “a visitor just came through the Autumn door. It’s Rosalina’s father.”