Chapter 48
My head still reeling from the witches’ tale, it took all my remaining strength to keep my hold on Aurelia’s arms as the soldiers surged toward us.
“Mother, no !” I bellowed, stepping in front of Aurelia. “You cannot do this. She is?—”
“She is a monster!” Mother cried, waving her hand toward Aurelia. “You saw the creature she changed into. You heard what the witches said!”
My blood ran cold, and I gaped at her in horror. “How long were you watching?”
Her eyes glinted with triumph, and that was all the confirmation I needed. She had been watching the entire time. Waiting for this particular moment.
How much had she known? Had she figured out who Aurelia really was, even before the fete? I pictured her peering out the window, waiting for Aurelia’s true form to be revealed.
Rage burned within me. “Mother, what the hell did you do?”
“I did what I had to to save my court,” she said. “To save my son. And not a moment too soon, it seems. Imagine if you had married that creature.” Her face twisted with disgust.
A roar of fury burst from my lips, and I reached for my sword, only to remember my belt and weapon had been abandoned in the forest when I’d come chasing after Aurelia. I wasn’t even wearing a shirt.
Mother’s soldiers would cut right through me.
“Gorrick, please,” I said, my eyes landing on my captain.
Gorrick’s face sagged with regret from behind his helmet. “I’m sorry, Your Highness. The queen outranks you.”
“Fenn,” Aurelia murmured, her voice eerily calm. “Step away from me.”
I glanced at her. She gazed at my mother with lethal intensity. For a moment, her eyes flashed green, her pupils turning into narrow slits.
I released my hold on her arms as Aurelia’s body began to shift. She hunched over on all fours, her body elongating and sprouting scales and claws. A black tail formed, and she rose in height until she towered over the approaching soldiers.
Gods! She was going to kill them all.
My men. My people.
I sprinted forward, raising my hands to stop her. But the dragon looked down on me without recognition or warmth, its animal eyes surveying me as its prey.
“Aurelia!” I cried out, trying to reach the woman who knew me, the one who knew compassion and sympathy. That woman wouldn’t do this. “Aurelia, please! I will stop this, I swear it.”
“No,” Mother said loudly. “I will.” She nodded to someone in the distance, and a faint shriek filled the air.
I stilled, my heart sinking with dread as a pair of soldiers brought out a familiar black creature. Mal. A muzzle was clamped tightly over his snout, and his limbs were bound. A thick net was draped over him, trapping his wings.
Aurelia’s dragon froze, and a guttural moan burst from her.
“Come quietly,” Mother said, her voice ringing with authority, “and we will not harm the beast.”
My eyes grew wide. No. She couldn’t do this. She couldn’t ?—
Aurelia held perfectly still for a long, tense moment. My heart thundered madly against my ribcage. I wanted to sprint forward, to tear at Mal’s restraints and set him free.
But the line of soldiers standing in my way would cut me down. Mother would order my execution without another thought. I stared at the woman who had raised me. She was unrecognizable now. How much had she plotted without me realizing it? How much of this had she orchestrated behind my back, even as I was enraptured with the idea of marrying the woman I loved ?
Energy filled the air, and in a flash, Aurelia had shifted to her fae form once more, trembling in her wrinkled pink dress. I raced to her side, but Mother snapped, “Restrain him.”
Two soldiers gripped me under the arms and hauled me backward, away from Aurelia. “No!” I bellowed. “No, don’t! Aurelia !”
Aurelia’s shoulders shook with sobs, her voice breaking as she cried, “Release him! Release my dragon. Please, I beg you.”
“Not yet,” Mother said, her mouth curling with satisfaction. “I think you’ll find he’ll remain right here with you. You two are bound, are you not?”
Aurelia’s face twisted with rage, even as more tears poured down her face. “I will tear you apart. You think your soldiers can hold me?”
But Mother’s smile only grew, and my chest hollowed with dread. I knew that look. Mother had won. She had one last trick to reveal… I braced myself for the blow.
She withdrew a small pouch from inside her cloak and tossed it. It landed at Aurelia’s feet, spilling open to reveal a smattering of stardust.
My stomach dropped with realization.
“The bargain is now complete,” Mother said, gliding down the courtyard steps, her black gown swishing with her confident strides. “You belong to me now, princess. The bargain you struck with my son demands it.”
I shook my head. “No. You’re wrong.”
“Oh, am I?” Mother’s head whipped toward me. “Tell me again the terms of your bargain. We owed her stardust. She now owes us a dragon, does she not? A dragon with?—”
“The strongest fire,” I finished in a horrified whisper, turning my stunned gaze to Aurelia. Her eyes locked onto mine, wide with confusion, terror, and… betrayal.
“You told her?” she whispered. “You told her the terms of our bargain.”
“Aurelia—”
“Of course he did,” Mother said. “I’m his mother. And you are nothing more than a beautiful woman he thought he was in love with. His ties to me are far stronger than his ties to you, dragon wench. ”
The light in Aurelia’s eyes shuddered and died, replaced by something dark and full of despair. When her eyes closed, more tears poured from her eyes.
“Aurelia, it’s not true!” I shouted, but she didn’t seem to hear me.
“I suppose I should be grateful,” Mother went on, grinning widely. “Without this bargain, we never would have acquired a dragon as powerful as you. Because you possess the strongest fire.” She pointed a long finger at Aurelia, then turned to smirk at me. “Very clever of you to word the bargain like that, my darling.”
“No!” I shouted. “No, I release you from our bargain. Aurelia, I release you !”
Mother laughed. “It’s too late for that, Fennick. The terms of the bargain have been met. She has her stardust. And we have our dragon.”
Aurelia unleashed an almighty scream that rang through the forest, echoing in the vast space. A trio of soldiers surrounded her, gripping her arms tightly to keep her in place.
I struggled against the men holding me, desperation flooding my veins. I had to do something. I couldn’t let them take her.
Digging deep within myself, I summoned my power, drawing up every last drop of strength within me. I held nothing back as I bellowed, “ You will release her !” The words sounded deep and animalistic and not at all like my own voice. The sound of my shout echoed around us, piercing the air. “ Step away from Aurelia and the dragon. ”
The soldiers went completely still. Even Mother froze, staring at me.
Then, slowly, the guards lowered their arms, releasing Aurelia and Mal. They took several steps away from them. Mal was still tied up and muzzled. Aurelia was gaping for breath, her eyes rimmed in red and tears staining her cheeks. She stared at me with disbelief.
“Aurelia, run!” I urged. “Get Mal out of here!”
“No!” Mother roared. “Guards, stop them!”
“ Do nothing !” I bellowed, infusing more power into my words. My vision swam, and my head swayed as fatigue overtook me, but I would not let her win. I refused. “Let her go! ”
“Gag my son, now ,” Mother ordered, her face twisted with rage as she stormed toward me.
“ Do not —” Before I could finish speaking, a filthy piece of cloth was shoved into my mouth. I choked, trying to spit it out, but the guard shoved it hard, blocking my voice completely. I wriggled against his grip, but my limbs were weak. I had overexerted myself.
I looked at Aurelia, who had hurried to Mal’s side, fumbling with his restraints. My eyes burned as I mentally pleaded with her to go, to run .
“Seize her,” Mother said, pointing to Aurelia.
I screamed against the gag in my mouth, thrashing and fighting, but the soldiers held me back, keeping me from running to Aurelia’s side.
Aurelia had managed to untie Mal’s legs when two soldiers approached. I was powerful, but my command couldn’t span the entire squadron of soldiers, especially if none of them were inclined to obey. Judging by the sour looks of these two soldiers, they were on my mother’s side. I would never have been able to persuade them anyway.
“Mal, get out of here!” Aurelia sobbed as the soldiers pinned her arms in place. “Please! You have to leave.”
Mal’s legs were free. He could take off into the forest. He could be free. But the dragon let out a muffled whimper, shaking his head slowly.
He would not leave Aurelia. Even I knew that much.
Aurelia sobbed harder, her legs giving out. Were it not for the soldiers’ hold on her, she would have collapsed to the ground.
“Don’t worry, my dear,” Mother said with a savage smile. “He won’t be alone. He can keep the blue one company.”
Aurelia sucked in a sharp gasp, her gaze sliding to the queen. “What are you talking about?”
“We have one of your dragons already. Or didn’t you know?” Mother’s catlike smile widened. “She was weak after giving birth. Snatching her was so easy… No one even noticed. Not even her little hatchling.”
Oh gods, no. My chest seized, tightening until I couldn’t breathe.
“A shame, really,” Mother said. “The beast was too injured when we captured her. She doesn’t produce any fire at all. So it’s a good thing you struck this bargain, Fennick, otherwise we would have still had no Dragonfire.”
My eyes closed. I was going to be sick.
“I’m surprised you didn’t tell her, darling,” she went on. “You seemed so taken with her, I thought for certain the first thing you would do was free that dragon.”
No. No ! Aurelia looked at me, her eyes full of that darkness, that wretched, haunting agony. “Fenn,” she said slowly. “Tell me it isn’t true. Tell me you didn’t know about this.”
I shouted against the gag, but I couldn’t form any words. And even if I could, what would I say? I couldn’t lie to her. I had known about it. And I hadn’t told her.
But now I knew for certain that it was the Blue Amethyst. The mother of the dying dragon that could save Aurelia’s people.
“You bastard.” Aurelia shook her head, her eyes full of rage. “You—You—” She broke off with another cry of anguish as she wept.
I moaned, trying to speak her name, but the gag stifled my words.
“Lock her up,” Mother ordered. “And if my son resists, tie him up in his rooms.” Her eyes were cold as she surveyed me. “You could not do what was necessary to protect our people, so I will . Do not stand in my way. I will not hesitate to cut you down.”
With that, she turned on her heel and strode into the castle. Aurelia screamed as the soldiers dragged her away. I struggled against the men holding me, desperate to get to her, to free her, but there were too many guardsmen. It was useless.
I cried out for her once more, my throat burning, but her screams drowned me out. They echoed around me, even long after she disappeared from view.