Chapter 38
Chapter Thirty-Eight
Just when Katla thought she had cried all the tears there were, more came. She assumed she had forgotten how deep loss could cut, how shocking death could be. How unbearable it was to no longer be able to give love to the one who was gone.
The world kept going while she sat numbly staring at the walls while reliving the moment breath returned to her body, only to find the last had left Merrill’s . It was unfair. Unjust . Merrill was needed. He could do great things. If one of them had to die, it should’ve been her. Not him. Never him.
She pulled her legs to her chest as she sat against the headboard. Rhi had offered her as much comfort as she could, but sometimes grief was better experienced alone. She didn’t have a lifetime of memories with Merrill . She only had a few days. But she went through each one, cherishing every moment.
A knock on her door pulled her from her thoughts. She debated ignoring whoever it was, but they might return. It was better to find out what they wanted now and then let them know she wished to be left alone.
“ Enter ,” she called.
The door opened to reveal Varek . He didn’t look as devastated as before. In fact, he looked almost hopeful. He stepped inside with his hand on the door handle. “ Did you put the sparks around the entity so Merrill could see it?”
Heartache surged in her chest, making it difficult to breathe. She pressed her lips together and nodded. “ I knew I was dying, and if I wasn’t there to show him, I wanted him to find the entity.”
“ You allowed him to find and defeat it. The entity tried its best to get away from Merrill , but he latched on and wouldna let go. I’ve fought beside Merrill . I know how powerful he is. What I saw today was something else entirely. I doona believe anyone but he could’ve destroyed the enemy. Then he saw you on the ground.”
Her eyes burned as tears flooded them, distorting her view of Varek .
“ I feared his madness would tip him into a killing rage,” Varek continued as he walked to stand near the bed. “ I was worried about my friend, and because of that, I forgot the despair and desolation that strikes our kind at such a loss. All he cared about was getting to you. Holding you.”
Katla dropped her forehead to her knees and wept. She didn’t want to hear any more. It was too painful. But she couldn’t tell him to leave. It might be the last things she ever heard about Merrill , and as excruciating as they were, she needed every word.
“ I doona know if he recognized me or Ulrik . But he knew you. His heart, his soul, they knew you. Maybe if he had recalled Ulrik , he would’ve known he was there to bring you back to life. Merrill may not have been able to understand me. If he had, he might have held on a little longer.”
Katla’s head jerked up. Her gaze met Varek’s . “ Why didn’t Ulrik bring Merrill back as he did me?”
“ It’s a strict law we’ve never broken. At least no’ on Earth .”
His implication was clear. She dared to allow hope to blossom. “ But not on Zora .”
Varek licked his lips as he looked at the ground. “ Ulrik is going to try to bring him back. We’re no’ sure if it’ll work. It willna on our realm. It might be the same here. If it does work, there’s a chance Merrill may no’ ever be able to return to Earth .”
“ He loves Scotland .”
“ We all do. But if it’s a choice between Dreagan and Jeyra , I’d choose Jeyra ,” Varek said.
“ What about the Kings protecting Earth ?”
Varek shrugged. “ We’d figure something out as we are now. The worst part may be that he is no longer a King .”
Katla didn’t know what to say to that one. “ So he would be a dragon, unable to shift?”
“ Or a human, unable to be a dragon.”
“ That would destroy him.”
Varek looked away. “ We want to give him the option. And we’d like you to be there.”
There was no way she would refuse such a request. Even if Merrill decided not to take the chances he may have to face for returning, she couldn’t stay away. Katla slid off the bed and stood. Varek motioned for her to follow as he led her out of the chamber and down a labyrinth of hallways. There must have been identifying marks to lead him, but she got turned around immediately. She wondered if they were in Iron Hall , but the thought was quickly replaced by thoughts of Merrill . Except it wasn’t tears that greeted her. It was hope. It was dangerous to hold onto that, yet she grasped it with both hands.
What seemed like an eternity later, they came to a room. Varek went inside, but Katla lingered at the entrance. Her gaze landed on Merrill’s prone body and she had to grip the doorjamb to stay upright. Con stood near Merrill’s head, his face tight and his dark eyes intense as they met hers. At Merrill’s feet was the dark-haired man she had woken to see. He apparently had the ability to bring someone back to life.
Con nodded to the other man. “ I doona believe you got a chance to meet the King of Silvers . This is Ulrik .”
Katla met the Dragon King’s gold eyes. “ Thank you for what you did for me.”
“ My pleasure,” Ulrik said, bowing his head. “ I hear you’re a verra powerful Druid .”
“ I didn’t even know that word until recently. Merrill believed I already had magic and didn’t know it.”
Ulrik flashed a brief smile. “ Merrill had an uncanny ability to see things like that in others. I’ve no doubt you did.”
“ Then Villette got involved,” Varek said.
Katla grimaced at the reminder. “ If I had known…” she began.
Con held up a hand, halting her words. “ No one is demanding an explanation. None of us will. If there was any doubt about your true nature, your actions have disabused anyone of it. We know Villette deceived you, just as she did Merrill .”
“ As she has many,” Varek added.
Ulrik’s lips flattened. “ I’m almost sad I’ve no’ had the displeasure of meeting her.”
“ We had the chance to kill her,” Katla said.
Con nodded solemnly. “ No ’ anyone around will say you chose wrong. We can always find Villette later. The same couldna be said about saving Merrill .”
Katla braced herself and lowered her gaze to Merrill again. The sight of him so still and silent was a sucker punch. She fought to catch her breath, even as her feet brought her to him. She reverently touched his hand, tears threatening again. She blinked them back and looked up at the men. “ What now?”
“ Now , I reach out to Merrill ,” Ulrik said.
She watched as he closed his eyes and placed a hand on Merrill’s leg.