Chapter 20
Draevyn
The grand throne room echoed with music and chatter. The crowd of nobles, adorned in luxurious silks and velvets, danced and celebrated at the height of Atlas’s coronation ball as imported wine gifted from Elowynne’s kingdom, Sumnae, flowed freely.
Draevyn watched from the outskirts, feeling so similar to the last time there was a gathering at the castle. The night Esmyra had captured him, and the night everything changed.
He glanced up at the dais and frowned. Where King Rowe once sat, he watched as the onyx crown glittered on his brother’s head while Elowynne stood at his side.
Atlas didn’t even seem like he wanted to be here.
The man who thrived on gatherings—on drinking, dancing, and slipping away with beautiful women to spend the rest of the evening with.
So much had changed. The man sitting on Lephyrin’s throne was a shell of the brother he grew up with, someone he thought he knew to his very core.
The one person in the realm he thought would never be on the opposite side of where he fell.
He wasn’t sure of much, but Draevyn thought he’d always at least have his brother at his side. And while things between them had grown tense, and he ached to fix it, he just… didn’t know how. He knew where Atlas stood on Esmyra, and Draevyn refused to change his stance.
A tightness formed in his throat as it began to settle over him that nothing would ever be the same again.
Before Draevyn could think better of it, he straightened his jacket and forced himself through the crowd, pushing past the nobles whispering with wide eyes as they watched him.
Atlas noticed him immediately, his sharp grey gaze narrowing as he reached the edge of the dais. “Well, Brother,” he drawled, lifting his wine. “Enjoying the festivities?”
“Hardly,” Draevyn muttered. “We need to talk.”
Without another word, he climbed the steps, his heart hammering in his chest. The music swelled behind him, the weight of every eye in the ballroom pressed against his back, but he kept his gaze fixed on his brother. His king now.
The new crown sat heavily on Atlas’s head, though the proud, tired smile he wore barely concealed the shadows beneath his eyes. Elowynne watched silently from his side, her golden eyes gleaming.
“What about?” Atlas leaned back on the throne. “Is it how you decided to stop sulking in the shadows and join the celebration? How un-Draevyn of you.” He lifted a mocking brow.
His attempt at banter threw Draevyn off, but he was honestly grateful for it, hoping it would ease them into the conversation they needed to have.
Draevyn forced a tight smile. “Something like that.”
There was a long pause between them, and Atlas’s eyes roamed over him. “I wasn’t sure if you’d bother coming.”
Draevyn let out a lifeless laugh, the tension easing from his shoulders. “Neither was I.”
“I’ve been meaning to speak with you. About… well, everything,” Atlas admitted.
“That’s why I came. To apologize for what I did. For Esmyra. I—” Draevyn swallowed hard. “I lost my temper and let my heart get the better of me.” The lie tasted wretched on his tongue, but he needed to see his brother’s reaction. Needed to see if there was a possibility of salvaging this.
Atlas’s eyes widened a little at that, surprise flickering within them.
“And I did the same,” he finally said, his voice strained. “I let my rage blind me. Father… I know what he was. And now I know what he did to you too.” He shrugged, shaking his head slowly. “We’re both guilty.”
Draevyn’s chest ached at his brother’s words, but he wasn’t sure if it was because he believed them or because his own words weren’t true to his heart.
“I want to fix this,” Atlas admitted. “It’s not right. You’ve always been by my side. Through everything. I have every intention of that holding true for the remainder of my reign.”
Draevyn barely managed the half smile he gave. “So do I.”
He meant it. Truly, he did. But he also knew it wasn’t possible.
Atlas’s gaze softened. “We’re family. Never forget that; no matter what happens next.”
What happens next. The words set warning bells off in Draevyn’s mind.
Atlas had said that day in the throne room that he’d be ready if Esmyra ever came back. So, what was he planning?
He nodded once and cleared his throat. “I won’t.”
“Thank the gods,” Elowynne said from beside Atlas, and both of their attentions moved to her as she sipped from her wine. “What? Gods, you both have been so miserable. Time to kiss and make up.” She winked.
They both chuckled and Draevyn stood there a moment longer, the air around them still heavy with unspoken things. But at least this was something.
“Go,” Atlas said, offering a wry smile. “Enjoy what’s left of the night. We’ll speak in the morning.”
Draevyn gave a small nod before turning away and heading back down the dais. He couldn’t help but wonder if, like himself, Atlas was just waiting to see who would strike first.
But Draevyn couldn’t keep living like this, and he knew that he wouldn’t be able to break the crew out alone.
Scanning the crowd, he found Samwell and Tommy by the far table, where wine and food were spread out for the taking.
Glancing back, he found Atlas was already chatting with several lords, and no one seemed to notice him vanish.
He then stormed toward his crew members, trying to keep his steps at a steady pace, but he knew time was ticking.
They straightened when they saw him. “Captain,” Sam greeted.
“Good to finally see ya, lad,” Tommy said.
Draevyn offered them a poor excuse of a smile and ran a hand through his hair. “I need you. Both of you and likely the others.”
They exchanged uneasy glances. “For what?” Sam asked, his voice low.
He didn’t waste time. “The Night Wraith’s crew… they’re still rotting in the dungeons.”
Sam scoffed. “Where they belong.” He lifted his stare to Draevyn’s, a bit of challenge lingering in it. “Where we put them.”
Draevyn huffed through his nostrils. “Now that our father has been put to rest and Atlas has been crowned, he has the authority to punish them.” His gaze hardened. “You know what that means. They’ll hang.”
“For the love of Irah,” Sam cursed under his breath. “Exactly, Drae. It’s what they deserve.”
Gods-fucking-dammit, Sam.
“I know,” Draevyn hissed. “But I won’t leave them. I need you to help me get them out. Tonight.”
Both Sam and Tommy’s bodies went rigid.
“You fucking owe me,” Draevyn growled, his eyes narrowing on his first mate. “Truthfully you owe her.”
Sam’s head reared back slightly.
“I begged you to stop. I begged you not to shoot at Esmyra,” Draevyn finished, sparks lighting at his fingertips from the memory. He still felt so much anger, so much fury toward his best friend for aiming that gun at the woman he loved. “And yet you still shot at her alongside the other soldiers.”
“You wanted me to defy orders from my new king in his own throne room?” Sam shook his head, but his eyes were filled with guilt. “Drae, you can’t expect that of me after what she did.”
“And because of it, I expect you to come with me now,” Draevyn said as he grabbed their arms, leading them out a side door and into a shadowy hallway, away from prying eyes.
“You’re asking us to betray the crown, Captain,” Tommy finally said as he turned to face them. “We could all hang for this.”
“I know.” Draevyn’s voice cracked, but he forced himself to steady.
“What in all gods is wrong with you, Drae?” Sam whisper-shouted.
Many things, honestly.
“Listen, I know how this seems. I know what I’m asking of you, and I know it’s damn near insane. This isn’t an order. You can walk away now if you want. But I’m going.”
“And if the pirates try to kill us?” Sam’s words were clipped.
Draevyn shrugged. “If any of them are dumb enough to act out, kill them.”
“Oh yeah, let’s just commit treason, break out those bloody pirates that will likely kill us the first chance they get, and then run off after a goddess who’s on a death spree,” Sam mocked in an irritated, higher-pitched voice.
Draevyn just gave him a knowing look, slowly lifting his brow.
“For the love of Irah, I knew his woman was trouble the night we took her aboard.” Sam rubbed his temples, throwing his head back before letting out an exasperated sigh. But then he nodded. “We’re with you. Just tell us what you need.”
Draevyn blinked. “Wait really?” He didn’t want to give them the chance to take it back, so he pressed on. “Okay, we do this tonight, while everyone’s too drunk to notice. Most of Lephyrin’s security is in the throne room. The trickiest part is the crew is split up.”
“What do ya need us to do?” Tommy asked.
“I need you to break the mortals free from Lephyrin’s center prison. Leave the castle dungeons to me.”
“We’re so fucked,” Sam drawled.
Draevyn huffed out a laugh as he smirked, praying to Irah he was wrong.