Fiora touched her shoulder, feeling for a wound she knew wouldn’t be there. Without Jaxx touching her, she was able to recall in full detail the pain the brother would be feeling when his sister died. “Dulla and Brogan.”
“Yes.” Salena nodded. “Dulla’s husband was harming her. Brogan helped her escape from Shelter City. She’d tried running away before, but the husband found her.”
“I don’t expect anyone could hide for very long in a closed city,” Fiora answered.
“I would say that’s a safe assumption,” Salena said. “That city is no place to raise a child. It’s barely inhabitable for adults. They’ll be taken care of by Grier’s family.”
Fiora didn’t meet her sister’s eyes. She wasn’t even able to nod in fake agreement. To do so would be a lie.
“You don’t think so?” Salena asked, touching her arm to get her to look at her.
“No. The mother won’t be taken care of. She is going to die in labor, and there is nothing we can do to stop it. Jaxx and I tried to come up with a different scenario, but sometimes things are what they are. It’s the mother’s time. As much as I want to, I can’t stop it.”
Fiora hated the feeling of helplessness that came from visions like these. She saw the woman’s future change so many times, but none of the variations mattered.
“We should warn Yusef,” Salena said. “If he knows, he can—”
“No. It will make things worse.” Fiora wished her sister would stop, but Salena kept making suggestions, and Fiora kept seeing new versions of the mother’s death.
“Yes, I promise to be careful,” Jaxx said to his mother as he approached them, interrupting the conversation. “Yes, we will come back as soon as we’re done.”
“There has to be something we can do. We just need to find the right combination of events,” Salena insisted.
“It’s not like I wish her dead,” Fiora answered, standing. The tension headache had begun to build.
“I never thought you did,” Salena answered.
Grier came inside in the process of pulling on a shirt. “The path looks clear for travel.” He glanced between his wife and Fiora. He appeared concerned but didn’t ask about it. “Should we leave?”
“Yes.” Fiora went toward Jaxx and took his hand to stop the replay of the mother’s death as it settled back into the original version. She took a deep breath and let it out slowly as the headache eased.
Jaxx cupped her face, clearly not caring who saw his affection for her. “You can stop at any time. Just say the word. I won’t leave your side.”
Fiora nodded. “Thank you. I want to get it over with. Can we go?”
No part of walking into a packed city sounded like fun, but she hoped with Jaxx by her side this time would be different. Still, there would come a moment when she couldn’t hold onto him, that she would have to see the futures. And, worst of all, there was always the possibility that the death of the city would be like the mother’s—inevitable, fated, horrible to behold.
But what else could she do? Didn’t she have to try?
“Travel safe.” Olena followed them outside.
Fiora could see the woman’s concern for her family. She dropped Jaxx’s hand. A vision of Olena with her husband flowed into her. “Yusef will come back to you. I see a long future.”
It was the only words of comfort Fiora could offer. She couldn’t see Jaxx’s fate.
Olena opened her mouth, clearly ready to ask questions. Jaxx grabbed hold of Fiora’s hand to stop any visions. Olena changed her mind and simply said, “Thank you.”
The temperate breeze coming through the trees seemed at odds with the gravity of their task. They followed the path cut into the ground from years of foot travel. The packed red earth was dotted on each side with yellow ferns and sprouts of struggling green. Between the thick tree trunks she glimpsed fallen logs in the forest, covered with vines and moss. Fresh air mingled with the smell of decaying wood.
The thump of their footsteps didn’t appear to scare off the undulating hum of insects. The noise rolled through the trees as if their song traveled like a wave over the distance before suddenly stopping. The pause lasted a moment before replaying.
Dots of sunlight came through the canopy of trees, each leaf nearly as large as her torso.
“Beautiful night for travel,” Grier said.
“How can you tell it’s night?” Fiora looked up at the hints of sky she could see through the leaves.
“You can tell by the color of the light, the smells, the temperature,” Grier said. “It’s subtle but I’ve been told it doesn’t take long for newcomers to start to sense the changes.”
“I never realized how much I’d miss darkness,” Salena said.
“Mother always said monsters couldn’t find us in the dark,” Fiora answered. Even though the idea still made her feel safe, she knew her mother had been wrong. Monsters could find them anywhere.
“Perhaps we could install a virtual reality booth,” Grier said to Jaxx.
“Yes. I’m sure there are many programs filled with nightfall. Princess Samantha still has contact with her old crew.” Jaxx’s hand tightened on her slightly. He adjusted the pack he carried on his shoulder, resetting the weight.
“That wasn’t a hint,” Salena said. “I don’t expect you to build a virtual reality booth for me.”
“If it would make you happy, I’d build an entire planet for you, my love,” Grier said.
“Who is Princess Samantha?” Fiora asked.
“Payton’s mother,” Salena said. “Payton is a friend of ours, a cat-shifter. Her mother is a human married to the Var commander. Payton told me her parents met when her mother kidnaped her father and took him to space. It sounds ridiculous, but since she can’t lie to me it has to be true, or at least she believes it to be.”
“I don’t think she’s human,” Jaxx corrected, “but she is humanoid.”
“She was a space pirate,” Grier added. “And as far as I know, the story is very true. She captained a spaceship.”
“Was she on the same crew as Olena?” Salena asked Jaxx.
“No,” Jaxx said. “My mother ran with a rougher crowd. From all I’ve heard, Samantha’s crew were more gentleman pirates. They mostly did things to annoy the Federation.”
Fiora didn’t ask but could well deduce that Olena had run with criminals in her youth. Had they not told her, she would never have guessed.
Fiora stayed quiet as the others talked about people she had not met. Salena told her of her time on the planet, of her adventures in Shelter City, of being at the Var palace. Grier spoke of treaties with the cat-shifters, of old wars and new fears. Jaxx focused more on making sure she knew what to expect when they arrived at the city.
Jaxx held her hand so long that their palms began to feel clammy. The forest backdrop became constant in its sameness and if not for the path, she would never have known where they had come from. The path forked in three directions, and they took the left. They’d been walking for what felt like hours.
“Are we close?” Fiora asked.
Jaxx and Grier looked at her in surprise.
“We’ll have to sleep in the forest,” Jaxx said. “We should arrive tomorrow.”
“I would have sworn it was much closer,” Fiora said. “I must have been out of it when we flew to the place from the stronghold.”
“Flying is much faster than walking,” Grier said.
“Then why aren’t we flying?” Fiora asked. She wanted this trip to be over. “Unless it’s bad etiquette to assume you’d carry us?”
“Not at all. We’ll gladly carry you,” Grier said.
“After last time we didn’t think you’d want to fly,” Jaxx said.
“Because I got sick on you?” Fiora couldn’t blame him.
“No, because you had visions when I touched you in dragon form. Whatever stops them from happening didn’t work when I was shifted.” Jaxx lifted their joined hands and kissed her knuckles. “We can walk.”
/>
“If that is your only reservation, we should fly,” Fiora said. “Selfishly, I don’t want to rush because I would rather this walk last forever. I don’t want to go into the city to read timelines. However, logically, I know the sooner we get to Shelter City, the sooner we will find whatever answers there are to find. Catastrophic disaster is coming, but I don’t know if it’s tomorrow, in a year, in three years. Though with how strong the visions were, I’m guessing it’s sooner rather than later.”
“I don’t want to make this trip any harder on you than it has to be,” Jaxx said.
“And I thank you for that, so make sure you don’t toss me around too much as you fly.” She gave a smile, hoping to illicit one from him in return.
“Fiora’s right,” Salena agreed. “We’ll arrive much faster if you take us.”
“Jaxx?” Grier asked, leaving it up to his cousin.
“Are you sure, Fiora?” Jaxx asked.
She nodded.
“You can change your mind at any moment,” he said. “Just tap me, nudge me, kick me, whatever you want, and I’ll bring you right back down.”
“I will.” She nodded again.
He still looked hesitant.
“I’ll be all right,” she assured him.
“I won’t drop you, but if you were to fall, put your arms out to your side, and I will grab hold of them and catch you,” he said.
Fiora placed her and on his chest. “I trust you, Jaxx.”
He frowned. “And if the visions get too bad—”
“I’ll nudge you,” she assured him, “and you will bring me down.”
Jaxx nodded.
Grier pulled his shirt over his head and handed it to his wife. He watched Jaxx as if trying to decide if his cousin would change his mind.
“I’ll carry the pack,” Salena said, reaching for the bag Jaxx held slung over his shoulder.
Jaxx hesitated before releasing Fiora’s hand to give the bag to Salena.
“Bring me his clothes when he’s done,” Salena said, as she shoved Grier’s shirt into the bag. She walked with Grier up the path until they were hidden from view.
“I supposed we could look at the positives of this experience,” Fiora said.
“Positives?”
“You have to remove your clothes to shift into a full dragon,” she said.
Jaxx glanced after his cousin and, not seeing him, stepped closer to Fiora. He cupped her face and turned her mouth to meet his. Passion poured from his kiss, but more than that, she felt his love.
“I want nothing more than to protect you,” he whispered against her mouth. “I don’t want to bring you into danger. I don’t trust myself once I’m shifted not to fly you to a cave and hide you away.”
“I know you won’t do that,” she said.
“The animal inside me wars with the man. I get the logic of what we’re doing, but the dragon…” He pressed his forehead to hers, staying close to her. “The dragon is controlled by his primal instincts.”
“To the man, I will say we must do what we have to in this life, not what we want to. I have seen the honor in you, and in your people. Neither of us can stand aside when so many lives are on the line. It is that trait I see in you, and it is your honor that makes me love you even more.” She tilted her head back to give him a quick kiss before letting her forehead drop forward to touch his once more. His eyes were closed, and his breath fanned against her cheek. “To the dragon, I will say I love you, and it is because you love me that I know you will do what I need you to do. Flying me to a cave might protect my body, but it will kill our souls. We cannot find happiness at the expense of so many others. So, dragon, if you want to save me, then you have to help me.”
He slowly nodded and opened his eyes. “You’re right. Of course you’re right.”
“I know.” Fiora took little pleasure in being right about this. “Now, hand me your clothes.”
Jaxx gave a small laugh and did as she said. He stood straight and pulled his shirt over his head.
Her eyes went to his tattoos. “Where did you get these?”
“Some of my mother’s old crew acquires certain items for us,” he said.
“Like the food simulators?”
“Yes. They also brought something called Old Earth moonshine. We drank until we couldn’t see our hands before our faces and then…” He lifted his arm to show his marking.
“You got drunk and woke up with a tattoo,” she concluded.
“I got drunk, lost a bet, and then had to be the first to test the tattoo laser,” he corrected.
“What was the bet?”
“I honestly can’t remember. Moonshine has a way of blurring reality.” He reached to pull out of his boots. “Though I think it had something to do with jumping into a ship’s cooling tank naked.”
She flinched at the very thought of it. “That’s insanity. I’m pretty sure old factions used to do that to torture people.”
“I thought my dragon skin would protect me.” He hooked his fingers into his waistband and stopped. “Before I turn, do you want me to carry you by the arms like last time, or do you wish to ride on my back?”
“Back,” she said, not wanting to dangle in the air again. “That sounds…more solid.”
“I won’t be able to speak to you, but I will understand you,” he said.
“All right.”
“I won’t hurt you.”
“I didn’t think you would.”
“I don’t want you to be frightened. I’m told it can be scary to see the shift.”
“Jaxx?”
“What is it?” He looked as if he might change his mind about taking her up if she but said the word.
“Take your pants off and give them to me.” She gave a meaningful glance at his waist. “Stop stalling.”
“As my lady wishes.” He gave a small bow before tugging his pants off his hips.
Her eyes followed the gesture, and she smiled at the sexy view. “I don’t think we have time to take care of your arousal, do we?”
“I hear Grier and Salena just around the corner.” Jaxx looked down to where his shaft had lifted as proof of his desire for her.
“Because if we did, I am more than willing,” she assured him.
“As am I, but…” He again glanced down the path.
“Fiora? Are you ready?” Salena called.
“Technically yes, but I would rather take time to have sex with Jaxx first,” Fiora answered. Her cheeks heated, and she knew they were turning red at the admission. Under her breath, she muttered, “Damn my curse.”
“I know the feeling, but it will have to wait,” Salena said. “Tell him to shift. I’m coming in one minute to grab his clothes.”
Hard, dark armor grew over his skin. It hid his erection beneath a protective layer. As fascinating as it was to watch, she was sad to see it go.
A loud pop sounded, drawing her eyes back up to his face. Jaxx’s jaw disjointed and pushed forward. Protrusions grew like spikes from his head. She flinched, imagining the pain that he must have felt. His eyes changed shape and filled with the golden glow of his shifted form. His teeth sharpened and lengthened. Talons replaced his nails, and he fell forward to the ground. Wings sprouted from his back.
“Dragon,” she whispered, half in panic, half in awe. She tried to calm the beating of her heart, knowing he wouldn’t hurt her, but still seeing the large beast growing before her caused her stomach to tense with a thread of fear. A tail grew behind him. It swished in the air when he flicked it.
Heat wafted through the air as he breathed, like the blast from a furnace. When his mouth opened, she saw a hint of fire burning in the back of his throat.
Was it too late to change her mind?
The first time she’d flown, she had been overwhelmed with timelines and hadn’t noticed just how monstrous the dragon actually looked, or how large.
No, not monstrous. He wasn’t a monster. This was Jaxx. She knew him, trusted him.
Fiora pu
shed her initial apprehension aside. She had no reason to fear him. The sound of breaking bones stopped, and he stretched his wings. He turned his attention toward the trees.
As the initial shock of seeing the transformation dissipated, it was replaced by another feeling—attraction. Not so much for the dragon, but for the man inside the dragon. The power of Jaxx’s shift, of what he could easily become, made her feel protected. None of the general’s soldiers would be able to take on a dragon.
Jaxx’s wings lifted slightly. He stared at her before slowly lowering his head, as if trying to make his posture as nonaggressive as possible. Fiora raised her hand and stepped toward him to explore the feel of his skin.
“Hide those jewels, Jaxx,” Salena yelled. “I’m coming.”
Fiora jerked her hand away from his neck before making full contact. Jaxx lifted his head and looked toward Salena.
“Oh, good, you’re ready,” Salena said.
Jaxx nodded his head once.
“I find it easiest to climb on the back and grab the base of the wings,” Salena said, as she picked Jaxx’s clothes off the ground and shoved them in the pack. “Then hold on tight and try not to fall off.”
Fiora nodded.
Salena joined her sister in front of Jaxx. She placed a hand on her arm and took a deep breath. “He’ll take care of you.”
“Why do you say it like that?” Fiora asked, wondering at the strange finality in her sister’s tone.
“No reason.” Salena turned to go, only to stop and come back. “Actually…”
“What is it?”
“I know we’re not connecting like we used to. I thought when we found each other we’d click, like two missing pieces. I thought… I don’t know what I thought.”
“We’re not the same people,” Fiora said. “We can’t be the same young girls we were back then. We’ve been through too much. I’m not the same, and I don’t want to be that girl again.”
“Now I have to ask, why do you say it like that?” Salena crossed her arms over her chest.
“Quite frankly, you were a little bossy. You liked to tell us what to do,” Fiora said. This didn’t feel like the perfect time to have a heart-to-heart conversation with her sibling. “I couldn’t lie to you so you always got the answers you wanted. Piera was too kindhearted to go against you. She liked having her decisions made for her. You can lie to us, so you could convince us to do things.”
Marked Prince: A Qurilixen World Novel (Qurilixen Lords Book 2) Page 12