Chapter 107
CHAPTER 107
Rosalina
D espite the warm air of Summer drifting in through the ship’s window, despite being enveloped in Dayton and Farron’s arms, despite it all, my dreams are cold.
Snow flurries melt on my heated cheeks, and a stiff wind tugs at my white nightdress. I stand and look around. I appear to be in a canyon, barricaded in on either side by tall, icy walls. My bare feet trudge through the snow. The flickering light of a fire cuts through the darkness.
My heart is drawn to it.
Keldarion’s broad shape is hunched over the fire as he warms his hands above the flames. He glances my way as I approach, orange light tangling between the thick waves of his white hair.
“My Rose. You’ve come.” He opens his cloak, and I quickly fall into his arms. He tugs me onto his lap, enveloping me in the warm fabric.
“Where’s my father?” I whisper.
“He’s resting.” Keldarion gestures to the other side of the fire where a figure lies covered in blankets.
My voice cracks. “My mother?”
Keldarion is silent for a long moment. Finally, he sighs. “Rose, I’m so sorry. We couldn’t get her out.”
I close my eyes, each breath a painful rattle in my chest. “Oh,” is all I manage to say.
“We failed, Rose. There is more keeping your mother in the Below than a cage. Something not so easily broken.” Kel absentmindedly touches his bargain bracelet. “I’ll explain everything when we are together again, I promise.”
I nod, fighting back tears. She’s alive. That’s all I need to know. Seeing her, even for just one moment, has strengthened my resolve to free her. As much as I want to push Kel for all the details of her imprisonment, I know this dream will not keep me with him for long. If things go wrong tomorrow, I want this last moment with Kel.
“Thank you for trying,” I say. “For keeping my father safe. I understand so much more than I did before. Through our connection, I even had the chance to speak with her.”
“You did?” He pulls back to get a better view of my face. “What did she tell you?”
“I have a sister.”
Kel nods. “Ah, she told you. She shared that with George, as well. Wrenley.”
“Yes, Wrenley. But she’s also the Nightingale,” I say, desperation creeping into my voice. “My mother asked me to save her. After everything she’s done to us, I would be crazy to try and help her, wouldn’t I?”
“Wrenley and the Nightingale one in the same.” Kel’s eyes flash. “Dayton’s mate?”
“Not Dayton’s mate,” I say.
Kel gives me a knowing look. A part of me suspects he’s already felt the awakening of the bond between Dayton and me, but he’ll wait for me to explain. “Do you want to save her, Rosalina?”
I look down at my hands, thinking. In the moments I’ve spent with Wrenley, there have always been cracks of light shining through her anger, small glimpses of someone who laughs and loves and grieves. There’s a deep, overwhelming sadness within her.
When I was young, I fell through the ice and almost drowned.
A part of me thinks Wrenley has been drowning her entire life.
“Yes,” I say to Kel. “I want to save her.”
“Then trust your heart. A year ago, no one believed the princes of Castletree could be saved. Look what you’ve done for us, Rose.”
I force a smile and touch his face. “Well, I’m still working on one of those princes of Castletree.”
Keldarion weaves his fingers through my hair, gaze softening. “If only you could know all the ways you’ve already saved me. Your sister may not realize it yet, but she is so very lucky to have someone like you, Rose. You bring out the sunlight in a storm. Your love is magic.”
“You saw something in Caspian that could be saved,” I say softly. “Your love is magic, too.”
Keldarion stiffens and his hand tightens in my hair. “Do not do yourself the disservice of equating us. When he wants to be, Caspian is untouchable, even by love. Be careful when it comes to him.”
A flash of fear flickers in his eyes. Will he ever be able to trust the Prince of Thorns again? Though, perhaps Kel is the logical one. Here I am, trusting Caspian with my whole heart, even though a voice inside is screaming it could kill me.
I press away from Kel’s chest and look around. It’s hard to see anything beyond the flicker of flames on the icy cavern walls. “Where are we?”
“The Anelkrol Badlands. Your mother brought us here, though I can’t ascertain as to why.”
“She must have had a reason.”
“I’m sure. She’s different than how I expected the Queen to be. A bit … peculiar.” He raises a brow. “Like a couple other O’Connells I know.”
I laugh and fall against his chest.
“There’s happiness radiating from you, Rose,” Keldarion murmurs. “It’s beautiful to see.”
“It’s Dayton. Our mate bond awoke. His curse is broken, Kel.”
A smile breaks across Kel’s face. “I suppose you won’t appreciate me punching him in the nose anymore?”
Another laugh bubbles out of my chest. “Only when he deserves it.”
“Well, it is Dayton, so I suppose I’ll still have my chance. Even you being his mate won’t stop him from acting like an idiot from time to time.”
“I think we’re both being idiots tomorrow,” I whisper. “We fight for Hadria. So much relies on me. I don’t know if I can do it.”
Keldarion takes my face in his hands and pierces me with his gaze. “Do not let doubt cloud your courage. If it does, take every piece of mine.”
“Kel …”
He kisses me deeply, then pulls back only a breath. “Inside you is power the realms have not seen in an age. Embrace your legacy. Let your heart guide you. This world was created by the same magic that flows through your veins. Do not doubt for a moment that you have the strength to shape it.”
My hands grip his shirt. The winds of Winter begin to whip around me before turning to a warm breeze. “I’ll see you soon, Kel. I promise.”
“Wake now, Rose, to a glorious dawn. Shadows may be falling from the sky, but you are the sun. People pray for your light.”