Chapter One #2
Marcus had gone over and over it in his head without discovering a solution.
And there wouldn’t be one until someone went to the other end of the hallway and discovered what was there.
The caved-in corridor was unlike the others fanning out from the atrium, almost as if it had been constructed for a special purpose.
But why just the one hall? Then again, the entire city had yet to be mapped.
There could be other areas like it that they hadn’t found yet.
Were the builders the same ones who had brought the tech they’d discovered in the corridor that had stumped even Ryder?
Each King had a special skill. For Ryder, it was any and all tech.
But he had said that it was unlike anything he had ever seen before.
That same piece of tech had transported Hector thousands of miles away from Iron Hall to Highvale, an island only accessible to those with magic.
Minutes ticked by as Marcus stalked down the hallways, moving about the maze of the city from one floor to another while keeping clear of others making their rounds. Some of the walls were adorned with murals, but he didn’t see them. His mind was too full of the current problems plaguing the Kings.
When he came to a passageway crossing, he paused and looked down one side, then the other. After a moment, he looked ahead. He should continue forward. It would take him on another loop of the city before bringing him to a set of stairs where he could go down a level. Instead, he turned right.
His heart rate increased with the first step, yet he didn’t stop.
He kept walking, even though he knew he should turn back.
He didn’t stop until he stood at the atrium’s entrance and gazed at the stunning domed ceiling and the starry blue middle of the six-pointed white star.
He tried to take a deep breath, but it felt as if an unseen hand had wrapped around his chest and squeezed.
It didn’t matter how many times he saw it.
He always stood in awe of the vestibule.
Each of the star’s points on the dome correlated with a hallway that branched off.
The symmetry was perfect, the design flawless—as was all of Iron Hall.
But the atrium was uniquely special. The builders placed great significance on the area, and someone only did that if it was important.
He lowered his gaze to the corridor across from him and looked down it to the rock that blocked the section, preventing him from seeing farther. Had this area been constructed to highlight whatever was on the other side? Marcus needed to know the answer. It would haunt him unless he figured it out.
Con had put up the barrier to keep everyone out. As King of Dragon Kings, Con was the largest and strongest of all dragons. And his word was law. It could be weeks or months before Marcus talked him into reopening the area. There was no way he could wait that long.
He glared at the atrium’s wide opening, where the barrier began.
He hadn’t heard the voice in hours. Was Con’s magic keeping it from reaching him?
Would Marcus hear it again if he got closer to the corridor?
He lifted a hand, ready to try and bust through Con’s magic.
It was such a shocking move that he froze, wondering at his thoughts.
If anyone knew he was there, they would start watching everything he did.
His gaze landed on the table and the numerous plans there—some spread out on the surface, and others rolled and stacked in a box on the floor.
His work was there. He needed it. Maybe he could use it as an excuse to go against Con’s order.
Suddenly, the sound of whistling reached him.
Marcus frowned as he took half a step closer and peered into the atrium.
Shock rolled through him when he spotted Teo, the young lad Hector had brought from Highvale, reclining in the doorway of one of the halls, whistling as he tossed something long and slender into the air and caught it.
“What are you doing?” Marcus demanded.
Teo startled, bolting upright, his bright blue eyes widening when they turned to Marcus. “Am I not supposed to be in here?”
“Nay, you’re no’.”
“Um…perhaps there should be a sign or something so others don’t just wander in,” Teo said with a nervous grin only an overconfident youngster on the verge of adolescence could muster.
Marcus narrowed his eyes as he looked from the skinny eleven-year-old with his mop of dark, wavy hair to Con’s barricade. “Did you no’ feel the barrier?”
“Barrier?” Teo asked as he jumped to his feet and walked over. “I felt something brush against me when I went through.”
“Are you telling me that you walked through a wall of bloody dragon magic without any effects?” Marcus asked in disbelief.
Teo went still, his eyes bugging out and his face paling. “Nope. I would definitely not say that.”
“Do you know what you are, lad?” Marcus asked softly as he studied him.
“I…um…” Teo licked his lips and shook his head as his gaze darted away. “I do not.”
The lad could see the Kings as dragons, even though they walked around in human form. And now, apparently, not even Con’s magic had much effect on him. “If you want to find out, I’m sure we can help with that.”
“I’ll think about it.”
Teo obviously wasn’t sure what to make of Marcus, which made two of them. “What are you doing out of bed?”
“Can’t sleep. I miss the sound of the ocean,” Teo answered.
“You should’ve told one of us. We can make it so that sound fills your room.”
Teo grinned. “The way you Kings use magic is effortless. I wish I could do that.”
Marcus was about to call him out of the atrium when he looked at the caved-in hallway once more. He strained his ears, listening for that wispy voice saying his name. “Do you hear anything?”
“I hear you,” Teo answered, looking at Marcus as if he were daft.
Maybe he was.
Marcus met the boy’s blue eyes. “Do you hear a whisper? Perhaps someone asking for help?”
Teo slowly shook his head while his brow furrowed.
“Come on out,” Marcus said with a sigh. “Let’s get you back to your chamber, and I’ll make sure the ocean puts you to sleep.”
* * *