Chapter 24 #2
His laughter is warm and low, but then he turns serious. “Mayara, if ever… I think everything will be fine with the little dragons, but if ever… I don’t know. Don’t do anything stupid, all right? They’re just dragons. Enemy dragons who would happily burn us.”
That’s it, then. I can’t tell him—and the thought cracks my chest. I blink, pretending to be confused. “What do you think I’m going to do?”
“I don’t know. I’m just saying. Bringing them here was a lot of work, and it was the price for being recognized as my father’s son. I don’t mind you bonding with the dragons, but… don’t ever jeopardize my position.”
A threat laces his words, bringing a chill to my stomach, but I keep pretending not to understand what he means.
“Why are you saying that?”
He smirks. “Because sometimes I’m awfully jealous that you prefer to spend time with them than with me.”
“It’s not true.”
He raises an eyebrow. “You want to debate facts?”
“Hours spent together don’t equal preference, and I’m mostly asleep when I’m with them. If I count waking moments only, I spend more time with you.”
“Hmm. I will accept this explanation. For now. But let’s get ready. Are you coming to the star nectar party?”
I look down and, this time, don’t need to hide any of the pain on my face. “It reminds me too much of Celine.”
His eyes soften, and he caresses my face. “I understand. For me, it’s a good opportunity to fraternize with the recruits. Do you mind if I go without you?”
“Just don’t fraternize too much with the female recruits.”
He smirks. “Oh. I’ll fraternize just a little, then.”
I slap his shoulder softly. “You’re impossible.”
“Seriously, you can wait for me here. Then you’ll know I didn’t bring anyone to my bedroom. I can even get some nectar for you.”
“I’ll be fine. And I trust you.”
He kisses my cheek. “As you should.”
Actually, I’ll ask Nelly to keep an eye on him, but the realization that I don’t trust him, not completely, hurts.
It shouldn’t hurt if I’m going to leave him, and even this thought feels like a splinter lodged in my heart.
I wake up with Ava jumping on my stomach.
“Ouch. That’s rude.” I chuckle, relieved to see the little dragons more alert and playful.
Oddly, they seem to get better when I spend more time with them, and maybe coming early last night made a difference. Soon, soon, you’ll be out of this gloomy, stuffy room. I don’t dare voice the thought, as I can’t vouch that these walls are safe from prying ears.
Vos runs to me, climbs on my shoulder and jumps too.
“Oh, you’re both excited!”
I wonder if they can sense my feelings, that beyond all my fear, they realize that they’ll soon be free.
A pang hits me—soon I might never see them again. When I cross over, what will the other dragons do? Kill me on sight? I picture the black and purple dragon. He might save me, but I can’t bet my life on the mercy of his entire kind.
One thing I can’t do is simply put Ava and Vos on a boat and hope they’ll be safely delivered. I have to be with them and make sure they’re safe.
Well, I’ll face my fate. I should have considered it when I walked into that dragon nest and took two eggs.
Ava snuggles on my stomach, and I caress her cute horned head. So perfect, so innocent.
Then protect them, the rider’s words come to me. That’s my plan, even if I’m definitely not going to use the staff to save the little dragons. What was that rider even thinking? Did he assume I’d get to keep the artifact? And if I did, what would I even do with it?
Maybe I’ll never get a chance to understand anything. Maybe my life’s about to face its end. At least I won’t flinch in shame when I meet Thantos.
My hands tremble as I rub three small cloths over Ava and Vos, gathering their scent. I seal them inside a cheesecloth bag and head for my room, the first part of the plan in motion.
Nelly’s still in bed and looks at me through half-closed eyes. “Had a good night?”
I appreciate that she never insisted on asking where I spend my nights, but I feel guilty for hiding the truth from her.
“I rested well. How was the party?”
“The same.” She chuckles. “I got bored and came back early.”
I smile at her. “The Outer Beach is always enchanting at night. I bet it was still worth it.”
“I suppose.”
“Did you see Alayel?”
“He was there, yes.” There’s a strange tension in her voice.
“And?” My heart speeds up. I don’t know why it does that. Maybe I still want to know that he loves me, and then cling to that feeling even if I’m about to leave him.
“I came back early, but he wasn’t flirting or anything, no. You should trust him, you know?” She still sounds odd, and maybe it’s because she’s tired.
“I’m just asking. Well, let me go get washed.”
I place the bag with the cloths carefully in a corner where they won’t touch anything, then go to the lavatory, where I thoroughly scrub my body and hair.
Celine’s absence still cuts deep, and much deeper when I sit with Nelly for breakfast. My hunger is a gaping hole I try to fill as I pile my tray with three oranges and two apples, along with three loaves of bread.
Nelly looks at my tray with wide eyes.
I know it’s odd, but what can I do?
“I’m trying to be healthy,” I say, even if it doesn’t explain the ridiculous quantity of food I’m getting.
“It’s good to eat well.” She smiles, then proceeds to cut her apple.
Except that it’s not normal. A shiver runs through my back. Could I be pregnant? I think back to the times I slept with Alayel. I always applied golden oil, and I’ve been drinking bitter tea frequently. I can’t be pregnant, but I’ll drink some more bitter tea, just in case.
Alayel doesn’t show up in the refectory, and since Nelly has class and I don’t, she goes her way before me, leaving me to my mountain of fruit.
When I finish, I go up to my room, take one of the cloths that has the hatchlings’ smell, put it in a small burlap bag, then descend the stairs, my heart racing.
I leave the academy through the front doors, and when no guards are looking, open the bag and drop the cloth by a tree in the plaza in front of the castle, then cross to the other side, wondering if the scent is enough to attract Auranius.
He doesn’t appear to be flying anywhere, so I walk toward the city, eyeing the sky from time to time.
After many minutes, I spot the gigantic dragon flying out of his lair, circling the castle. From the looks of it, he hasn’t noticed the cloth yet, but I walk back to the plaza anyway. When I’m fairly close, Auranius dives.
I approach and see the monstrous dragon thrashing in the plaza, his tail shattering flagstones. He slams his huge head against the tree, sniffing, as guards scatter in terror.
An acolyte comes running with that golden thurible burning the herbs I can’t recognize. Their job is distasteful, but nobody can claim they aren’t brave.
Auranius then chomps at the cloth and swallows it. At least any proof of my involvement in this is gone. At the same time, the confirmation of why he’s so interested in the baby dragons horrifies me. And the fact that he can smell them from a long distance doesn’t bode well.
I return to the academy, and as I’m entering, a guard approaches me.
“Follow me.”
My legs feel wobbly. What if they figured out my plans? What if Laristella betrayed me? But she wouldn’t do that, would she?
We climb a few sets of stairs, and when we enter a hallway, I realize this place is familiar. The guard leads me to an even more familiar door. Mallor’s office.
I step in, and I’m left alone as the door closes behind me.
The commander is standing, arms crossed. He then opens the passage to his secret room, and I walk in, much less fearful than last time, though the man still intimidates me. And there’s another problem. If he can really detect lies, I’ll need to be extremely careful.
The man who never bothered to be my father takes a seat at the round table, and I sit across from him.
“I have great news,” he says. “And some grim news as well.”
“What grim news?” My heart chills, wondering if he has given up on helping Kaio, or somehow caught me.
He taps a finger on the table. “Silvia was found dead.”
At first, I don’t understand why he’s mentioning her, then I realize it’s because of Alayel. It has nothing to do with him, unless... “That’s unfortunate, even if we weren’t friends. Was she murdered?”
“Strangled. Found naked in a deposit in the academy. Was seen with the bastard the night before.”
“When was she found?”
“Yesterday.”
“Alayel was with me the night before yesterday.”
“The whole night?” He raises an eyebrow.
A hint of nausea reaches my stomach. “No, but…”
He sighs and covers his face with his hands. “Mayara, you’re trying to tell yourself—or me—that he hasn’t been sleeping with other women, and that might be true. Or not. The problem is much, much bigger. He might be a murderer. Yesterday, it was her, tomorrow, it could be you.”
I don’t believe it. “He has killed men, yes, but in self-defense. To save my life, in fact. Why would he kill a female recruit? Aren’t you suggesting he’s not faithful? Why would he get rid of a beautiful woman willing to sleep with him?”
“You tell me. Why would he do that?”
“I don’t think he would.” My voice comes out weak. But why would he kill Silvia? It makes no sense.
Mallor huffs. “I’m looking into it. Let me warn you, even if I find out it was him, I doubt he’ll face any consequences.
First, recruits are expendable. Second, with each day, the king is getting more and more enamored by his bastard son.
It’s like he’s being bewitched or something.
What I’m asking of you is to keep an open mind.
Maybe you don’t believe your betrothed could be a cold-blooded murderer, but you shouldn’t dismiss the possibility.
Be extremely careful around him, but act normal, or he might suspect something. ”
“I’ll be careful.”