Court of Fury (Their Dragon Rider #2)

Chapter 1

Harper

“Hello, my lady,” I repeat back to the Hollowborn, turning his words over in my mind even as I speak them aloud. “Hello, my lady.”

Is this what the Hollowborn are like?

Is this a game?

Am I in danger?

The air whistles around us in the thick clouds, but I can’t see where the other riders are.

Not even glimpses of their shapes or flashes of color.

Do they even know I’m no longer on my dragon?

Do they know I’m with our enemy? And is Ebron safe without me?

I know he’s big and tough, but I’ve already seen that he’s not invincible.

The Hollowborn holding me astride his bone wyrm studies me. His face is not the empty skull I’d expected but painted to mimic bone. His eyes are so pale they’re almost white, touched with a golden sheen that shouldn't exist. He stares for a long moment, unblinking. Then he smirks.

A Hollowborn. Smirking. At. Me.

“I wasn’t sure how else to greet you.” There’s an unfamiliar accent to his words, a lilt that’s almost pleasant to listen to, which, given how intimidating he is, comes as a surprise.

My hair tangles about my face as we regard one other. “So, what now?”

What does this Hollowborn have planned for me? Is this little encounter going to end in my death? Or will Ebron and the other dragon riders reach me in time?

“Now?” he asks, the smirk vanishing from his face.

“We’re enemies, right?” I ask, even though I already know the answer to that question.

“I guess,” he says, tilting his head.

“What are you going to do with me?”

His smirk returns as his gaze runs over me. “I haven’t decided yet.”

I nibble my bottom lip, feeling uneasy. He has a weapon at his side. I have one at mine, but neither of us reach for them. “Are you going to return me to my dragon?”

Leaning forward, crowding my space, he reaches up with a big hand, and I flinch, but he simply pushes some of my blonde hair back from my face. “I may let your dragon have you,” he says, a thoughtful note to his voice.

“It’d be smart. There’re only a few of you, and many of us.”

His eyes gleam. “You think there are only a few of us?”

Realization dawns on me. “That’s why you seemed to be everywhere at once.”

He nods.

Well, fuck. Can we take on several Hollowborn at the same time?

“So, you’re the female dragon rider?” he asks, his deep voice and lilting accent a strangely pleasant combination.

“Clearly,” I tell him, and almost laugh at the absurdity of our situation.

“How much weight do you hold with the king, little dragon rider?”

The truth is, I have no idea. “I think I’m like an amusing pet to him right now, and that’s about it.”

There’s something in his eyes I can’t quite read. “You’re an honest woman, aren’t you?”

I shrug. “I mean, if I could figure out what to say to you to be returned to my dragon, I’d say it, regardless of whether or not it was a lie.”

He grins. “Well, pet to the king, I wonder if you could send him a message for me?”

That must mean he plans to let me live, and to return me, so I say the only thing that makes sense. “I can do that.”

He leans in closer, energy crackling between us. “Tell him that the Hollowborn are ready to make a deal. An agreement of sorts. To create peace between our people.”

I’m shocked. There have only been a few times in history where there were tense peace agreements between our people. “Really?”

He nods. “We finally have something to offer you. Something of value.”

“And what’s that?”

“The answer to why male dragons aren’t being born. Your people are on the verge of dragons dying out. There are so few male dragons remaining that if you lose any more, there won’t be enough variety between them to have healthy dragons.”

Again, this man surprises me. “And what do you want for this information?”

“Peace. Trade between our people. The chance to have dragons of our own.”

I don’t know what to say. The Hollowborn are supposed to be frightening, undead, monstrous creatures.

But the figure before me? He’s just a person.

A scary-looking person, but a person all the same.

If what he is saying is true, then making peace with our enemies would be beneficial for everyone, especially if it brings more male baby dragons.

“Send him my message, won’t you?” he asks, the lilt to his voice makes my stomach clench.

“I will.”

“And when you have your response, you should fly to the south, past the city, to the mountain that looks like a thumb, and give us the king’s answer. And come alone. Should anyone else come with you, we’ll have to kill you all.”

“Okay,” I say, even though I don’t like the thought of doing such a thing.

He leans forward. I watch him warily. My eyes are wide as he comes inch by inch closer, and then he places his lips on mine. I’m about to jerk back, to say something, to do something, when he pushes me off his bone wyrm.

Screaming, I fall through the clouds and land on a hard surface. Blinking, I reach down and clench scales. Black scales.

Ebron! Relief and happiness flow through me at being reunited with my dragon.

I thought you fell into the water. I could not find you, Ebron tells me, concern in his voice.

I was on the back of a bone wyrm.

And you survived? Interesting. You are a warrior the likes of which no one has seen before.

Ebron switches directions. Other dragons come out of the clouds, their riders on their backs. There’s determination in their faces. This isn’t a drill any longer. It’s a battle.

And yet, I don’t see any of the Hollowborn now. As quickly as they came, they vanished. Suddenly, Prince Gareth explodes out of the clouds, his expression frantic. When he spots me, he swoops down and flies next to us.

“What happened to you? Ebron was searching for you in the water.”

“I was on the back of a bone wyrm!” I shout back.

His eyes widen. He makes a movement with his hand, and the other riders line up behind him.

They dive back into the clouds, and Ebron and I continue to fly just beneath the clouds, waiting for any sign of a battle we should leap into, but there’s nothing.

Just silence. Not that I expected something to happen.

If the Hollowborn was there to deliver a message, he’d done his job.

I doubted his people would stay around looking for a fight, especially when they’re seeking peace with us.

Soon all the dragon riders return from the clouds.

It’s clear that the Hollowborn are gone, just like I thought.

We missed them, and I can’t say I’m upset at the lack of a battle.

As strange as what just happened was, I don’t really feel like having my first battle with the Hollowborn right now, especially if they came with a peaceful mission.

Prince Gareth flies up to my side. “Let’s head back to the academy!”

I nod, and Ebron steers us toward the academy.

The other dragons follow. Every step of the way, I scan the skies, thinking of the golden-eyed Hollowborn.

I wonder how close he is now, and if what he really wants is peace, or if this is some kind of trick.

I guess I’ll never know. All I do know is that I’ve been charged with delivering this message to the king.

And I’m going to do it.

My thoughts drift back to the prophecy that female dragon riders and their male dragons bring about a time of peace for the Dravari people.

I didn’t entirely believe that when I first heard it, but this can’t be a coincidence.

I think I’m meant to be here, to deliver this message to the king.

Maybe to bring about a peace that will lead to more male dragon babies.

We land in the training area, and the princes’ dragons land beside me.

Above us, the other dragon riders continue to circle, likely searching for any sign of the Hollowborn.

Ebron lifts his wing to assist me off of his back, and I climb down, then rush out of the training yard.

I need to go straight to the king to deliver the Hollowborn’s message.

“Harper!” I hear Prince Gareth shout my name from behind me.

I ignore him, knowing this is important.

“Harper! Stop!” he shouts again, this time closer behind me, but I’m on a mission.

A hand closes around my wrist and spins me back. Prince Gareth is breathing hard. His shoulder-length black hair is wind-swept around his face. His deep blue eyes are filled with confusion and anger. The anger is expected. The confusion is new.

“What the hell is going on?”

I don’t want to explain this to him. I don’t feel like he’s owed this information after the way he’s treated me, but I also know this irritatingly stubborn man. If I don’t tell him something, he’s not going to let me go.

“I need to speak to the king.”

“The king? Why?” I hear Prince Lucien ask, as he and Prince Alaric come up behind Prince Gareth.

The brothers are looking at me with equal intensity.

Prince Lucien’s long blond hair is almost comically messy compared to how sleek he usually keeps it, and his green eyes are guarded, yet focused on me.

Prince Alaric has his large shoulders drawn back, and his brown eyes are curious, willing perhaps to give me a little bit of a benefit of a doubt.

I sigh. “I have a message from the Hollowborn.”

“The Hollowborn?” Prince Gareth asks, his expression shocked.

Realizing that he still has his hand on me, I yank my arm from his grip. “Yes, and if you don’t mind, I’m going to deliver it.”

Spinning on my heel, I march through the academy building, out to the courtyard, and into the castle that’s connected to the academy grounds.

There’s a scrape of boots as the princes fall into step behind me.

As I approach, the guards’ gazes slide past me, ignoring me as they nod respectfully to the men at my back.

I get the feeling I wouldn’t be passing without the three shadowing me.

I start down one hall, but Prince Alaric says, “Other way. He’s likely in his study. ”