Chapter 24
CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR
Kane
“Deirdre!”
The stone wall broke apart right under her, sending her plummeting over.
Running full speed, I sprinted out of the atrium and dove off the battlement, transforming in the air. Shadow wings were helpful, but I was faster in dragon form.
She disappeared into the clouds, her screams growing distant, the storm blocking her from my view.
Thunder boomed, precipitation filled the air, and the cry of the storm drowned out her cries for help. Water droplets splashed against me, the tempest gaining speed.
Rain pelted my scales in sharp, needling bursts. Wind ripped at my wings.
Nosediving, I angled my body, speeding through the sky. The clouds broke, revealing her flailing form tumbling about. Her screams howled within the growing thunder.
She’s getting too close to the ground.
I need to be faster.
Roaring, I moved quicker, reaching out to her with my talons and snatching her barely twenty feet from the ground. Banking right, I used the momentum to shoot over to the cliff side of the palace, veering out of the way of the trees and back up toward the sky.
If we had been at any other tower of the castle, I never would have reached her in time. I gripped her gently and angled myself over to a grassy area near the top of the cliffs.
I folded my wings as I hit the ground in a controlled skid, careful not to crush her on the landing.
She rolled out of my clawed hand. “That's it. I can't take this anymore! I am done with this kingdom!”
Tears sprung from her eyes. She stood, wiping the dirt off her already tattered dress.
Still in dragon form, I watched her pace back and forth, the aftereffects of a near-death experience working its way through her thoughts.
That’s two near-death experiences today. Even for Deirdre, that’s excessive.
Since her arrival, my little thorn had fought to keep her head. At every turn, she proved to be more than some mere form of entertainment. Her tenacity was impressive and almost admirable. With every obstacle she overcame, her right to rule became clearer.
“Everything here hates me! This place, your court, you!” She pointed an accusatory finger toward me, the wind whipping her wild hair about her.
Immediately, I shifted back into fae form, thankful my magical wristbands kept my clothes intact. “I don't hate you.”
Her chest heaved, her pale cheeks rosy-red both from adrenaline and the wind. She shook her head. “I don't believe you. I don't understand why I'm here.”
“Because of—”
“No!” she yelled, interrupting me. “You don't believe in it. I did. My entire life, I believed that me, the girl with the ugly mark on her face, would one day save the world and yet that can't be further from the truth.”
Thunder boomed in the sky, making her jump. Heavy rain followed, drenching us and creating a barrier I suddenly wished wasn’t there.
I thought back to what the vampyre said. The Lich King wouldn’t want her if she wasn’t important. “You’re special.”
With a careful step, I moved toward her, raising my voice to speak over the storm, making sure she heard every word. “I know it’s been difficult, and I didn't go about things the right way.”
I took another step. “I'm sorry.”
Her eyes widened and I paused, shocked that those words left my lips, but I was sorry.
“That's the first time you've said that to me.” A hand to her chest. The rain flattened her hair, removing the luscious waves I’d come to find quite lovely.
I scratched the back of my head, not sure what I should say, but the human king was right. If we wanted to protect our people, Deirdre and I had to trust each other first.
“What if we start over?” I blurted out, sounding foolish.
Thunder and lightning clashed in the sky above us and I wanted to get her out of this rain, but Deirdre didn’t seem to mind the storm at all. She stood there, staring at me.
“Why?”
“We’re married. Don't you think we should try to get along?”
Lightning crackled above us, and I wished we were anywhere else but out here getting drenched.
“I don't know how.” Her shoulders slumped and she turned away from me, hugging her middle. “How am I supposed to forget everything that's happened? I don't know if I can.”
Reaching for her arm, I tenderly turned her back to face me. “I'm not asking you to forget. I will never ask that of you. You don't even have to forgive me.”
Rain mixed with her tears, her mouth opened slightly, the rosy flush from before being replaced by the paleness of the storm we stood in.
“I can't take back what happened. If I'm being honest, if that's what we're doing right now…” Heat flushed over me. “If I would have done things differently, then maybe… no one would have died.”
Shaking her head, she held a trembling hand to her mouth. “It's my fault he's dead. The blame is on me. I never should have left the temple. I never should have hoped for anything. If we had never left, he would still be alive.”
“That is not your fault. I was the one who killed him.”
“You may have landed the killing blow, but I’m the reason he was there.” Her shoulders shook. “I have been so angry with you I failed to see the truth. It's me. It's my fault. Everything that’s happened is because of my choices.”
Her voice hedged between her words, her breaths coming faster.
“Don't say that. Hate me, be angry with me.”
“You're not making that easy!” she screamed and I stumbled back. “Every time you show me a little kindness, it gets harder to hate you.”
I wanted to ask if she still hated me, but I didn't know what to say. This was the most we'd ever spoken to each other.
A sob ripped from her throat, and she fell to her knees. “I'm so tired. I'm tired of the ache in my chest. I'm tired of being afraid of pointy teeth.”
I arched a brow at the statement, but in all fairness my people had not been kind to her.
“I'm so tired.”
The rain had soaked her clothes, her hair. Mine too. Her dress clung to her hips, accentuating her curves, and I found it difficult to look away, to ignore the unbidden desire that seemed to follow whenever my gaze lingered too long.
Sobbing, she dug her hands into the grass.
What could I say? Yes, Crispin would be alive if she had never left the temple, but did I want her to hate herself?
Not knowing how to respond, I sat on the ground next to her, staring up at the castle, the rain pelting my face.
This would have been a significant moment to share something of myself, but I hadn't been one to get very personal with anyone.
We sat there until the storm lightened, the rain turning into a soft drizzle.
Our arms nearly touched one another, the tattoo symbol of our unity connecting us. I looked at the tattooed runes and wondered if we could have more than just an alliance. If that was even what I wanted…
Glancing over at her, I really looked at her, how the sunlight breaking through the storm highlighted the specks of gold in her brown eyes, the unique birthmark signifying she was destined to be mine since birth, the soft plains of her skin, how her lips were the perfect shade of petal pink just like the roses she had bloomed in the grove.
“Why are you looking at me like that?” she asked while wiping the water off her face with her fingers. There was no malice in her tone. No anger.
“What?” Panic flashed in her eyes.
“I owe you a proper tour of the castle.”
She scrunched her face. “Haven’t I seen enough?”
“This is different, and I promise there’s nothing with pointy teeth where we’ll be going. I'd like to bring you to the royal courtyard.”
“What's that?”
“I think you'll like it. I need to be somewhere tomorrow, but the day after I’ll show you. For now…” I stood and held out my hand. “It's time I get you back. I'm sure your handmaiden has returned and they're probably all wondering where you are.”
She looked at my hand, debating whether she wanted to take it.
Right when I was about to pull away, she grabbed it. I tugged her up, a little too roughly, and she bumped against my chest, my other hand sliding to her waist to steady her. She stood against me, peering at me with wide eyes, cheeks flushed, and a hint of curiosity in those luscious, dark eyes.
I took her arms and wrapped them around my neck, then leaned down to lift her into my arms. Our faces were close, and this time there was no anger or fear in her expression, and when her gaze went to my mouth, it was harder to think… to breathe.
Sunlight replaced the rain, a rainbow arching over the castle. A sign of new beginnings.
“Hold on tight,” I whispered into her ear, then launched us into the sky, wondering if the symbol in the sky meant new beginnings or something else.
With her in my arms, I questioned my actions.
Could I truly trust this human with more than my heart, but with my people, or would she be my undoing? My father had given his heart to a human once—three of them, in fact—and each betrayal left another piece of him broken. In the end, it was one of them who delivered the final blow.
I did not want to follow in his footsteps.
But with every stolen moment, I was.