Chapter 18
I finished bathing and dressed myself in a pale gold gown with a lower neckline than I would have liked. When I was dressed, I glanced at the door leading to Varius’s chambers, wondering if I should have told him about my encounter with the soldier in the training yard.
No, I thought. He would only accuse me of harboring prejudices against the unseelie. And I wasn’t entirely sure he would believe me, either.
Besides, the fae hadn’t actually harmed me. Perhaps he had only uttered empty threats to intimidate me.
As I leaned my head against the wall, I had to admit, the intimidation had worked. And it reminded me that I wasn’t entirely welcome here. Varius might claim my presence was needed, but I wasn’t sure all the Shadow Fae felt that way.
Shaking my head to rid myself of the lingering anxiety, I withdrew the vial of birch root I’d stowed in the drawer of my armoire, then made my way to the balcony doors. My hand went to my amber necklace, and I asked, “Are you close by?”
“That soldier is an arrogant prick,” was Azure’s reply.
I smiled, relieved and a bit amused to find she’d been eavesdropping. “I’m glad you didn’t interfere. The last thing I need is for these fae to realize I’m hiding a dragon.”
“I was very close to incinerating him on the spot. He’s lucky. ”
I chuckled and opened the balcony doors. “Can you come here, please? I have no idea when Varius will intrude.” Enzira had told me he had a council meeting to attend to today, but I wasn’t sure how long it would last.
“Ah, so now it’s Varius? And not the Wraith King?”
I was spared from having to answer by the massive shape of my dragon appearing in the sky. Her scales shimmered in the sunlight, the brilliant blue blending in with the sky. With grace and ease, she landed on the balcony before me, then growled, lifting one foot.
I drew closer, inspecting the split talon. It had gotten worse; the barb that had punctured her claw had wedged itself deeper.
“Damn,” I muttered. “I may need some tools to get that out.”
“Birch root first,” Azure commanded.
“So bossy,” I muttered, but I uncorked the vial and poured a few droplets on the affected talon. A deep rumbling sound emanated from her chest, a cross between a sigh and a purr. Slowly, she laid her head down on the stone floor, her eyes closing.
“Better?” I asked with a smirk.
“Just get it over with before the effects wear off.”
I sighed, but I couldn’t blame her for her grouchy demeanor. She had been enduring the pain of a sliced talon for almost twenty-four hours. I couldn’t imagine the agony.
I ducked back into my chambers, heart in my throat as I expected to find Varius at our shared door once more.
But he wasn’t there.
I snatched the jeweled dagger and my pouch of gemstones from the armoire. I returned to the balcony, shutting the doors behind me.
“Brace yourself,” I said.
Azure tensed but kept her eyes closed. My lips pursed in concentration as I angled the sharpened point of the dagger directly into her split talon .
She growled, jerking away from me, but I urged the blade further in, easing it in the crack.
“Hold still,” I warned her. “If you move, I could push it in too deep.”
Azure grumbled something unintelligible as I continued shifting the dagger back and forth, trying to wiggle the barb free. It took several minutes, but at long last, the sharpened thorn clattered to the stone floor.
But it wasn’t a thorn at all.
Setting the dagger down, I sank to my knees to inspect the spike.
It was longer than I expected; about half the length of my dagger. And it certainly resembled a large thorn from a bush.
But when I held it up to the sun, it gleamed crimson .
I had never seen a crimson barb before.
“Please, Sybelle,” came Azure’s desperate voice.
“Sorry,” I muttered, digging through my pouch of gemstones until I found what I was looking for: the white moonstone. This jewel had the power to heal even the most dire of injuries.
I lifted the stone, holding it up to her claw where the barb had protruded from earlier. A white glow emanated from the stone, and warmth burned against my palm.
Within seconds, Azure made a humming sound of satisfaction, and I knew the healing was finished. I placed the moonstone back in the pouch and crouched down to inspect the crimson barb.
My fingers went to my amber necklace again. “Do you sense any magic in this?”
Azure’s head was cradled against one of her legs, and she made another low purring sound. “Perhaps. But I am too tired to focus on it.”
I suppressed a groan, knowing she needed to catch up on sleep. Climbing to my feet, I turned to the balcony doors, then glanced over my shoulder at Azure .
“You can’t stay here long,” I warned her.
She was already snoozing, her snores rumbling around us.
Biting back a curse, I opened the balcony doors, vowing to come back and poke her awake in an hour if she was still here. Even with the doors and curtains closed, it would be impossible for Varius not to hear her snores.
When I was in my rooms once more, the balcony doors shut and the golden curtains blocking the view of my dragon, I scrutinized the barb more closely. Certain parts of it seemed to gleam, almost like glass.
With a frown, I held it up alongside my dagger. The gemstones glistened in the low light of the sconces, and the barb did the same. When I held the barb up to the rubies in the hilt, it was almost the exact same shade of red.
Was this… made of some kind of stone ?
I resolved to ask Azure where she had found this.
If there were gemstones hidden nearby, I would need to find them.
Who knew what rare jewels I might discover here in the Shadow Court?
If this was from a gemstone, it wasn’t big enough to grant me any powers.
I had learned from my own experiments that a gemstone had to be at least the width of my thumb in order to give me magic.
A loud knock sounded at my door, and I faltered, nearly dropping the dagger and the barb. After hastily shoving both into the drawer of my armoire, I rushed to the door, hoping to send Ramia or Enzira away before they discovered Azure.
But when I threw the door open, it was Varius waiting for me on the other side.