by Imogen Sera
Ingrid sat back in her chair and shut her eyes. She missed Helias. She understood why the research had become so consuming for him, especially once his brother had arrived. He wanted desperately to return home, and having Caelian here reminded him of what he was missing. She tried to keep the thought from her mind, but it was always there, always poking at her. She wanted him to be able to return home and be happy, but she struggled to imagine a way that she would be happy without him.
She watched the sun dip below the horizon and rose from her seat to dress and wash for dinner. When she emerged from the infirmary, she found Caelian pacing up and down the hallway, his face drawn and pale.
“Are you alright?” Ingrid asked gently, approaching him.
He nodded, looking confused, and then shook his head. “I don’t know. Something feels wrong.”
“Wrong?” she questioned.
He looked down the hallway for a moment, took a deep breath, and shook his head again. “I’m sorry Ingrid, I was just feeling...strange. Everything is fine.”
They walked to dinner together and he seemed to be back to his usual smiling self. Ingrid couldn’t help but silently agree with his initial assessment though; something felt wrong.
Sixteen
Tarquin arrived on a storm of black wings one rainy afternoon. Caelian had been at the house for nearly a month, and although he and Helias had spent most of their waking hours trying to find answers, they hadn’t seemed to have made any progress.
Ingrid was trudging across the muddy field with a soaking gown and a basket of eggs in her hand when she noticed Mira who was standing agape, staring skyward. Ingrid managed to shout over the rain to get her attention, and Mira simply pointed up where she was staring. There was a great onyx beast flapping its massive wings, unmistakably coming their way.
“I thought Lily was lying,” Mira murmured, not looking away from the sight.
After Caelian’s arrival, Ingrid and Helias had agreed that it was time to reveal the truth to the residents, given that it would need to come out sooner or later. Lily had seemed eager to help, and given that she was excited to know what was really going on and had a talent for gossip, she was a natural choice to spread the news.
Ingrid set her basket down and strode to Mira’s side. “I need to fetch Helias.” She gestured to the sky. “He’s invited, Mira, you’re perfectly safe.”
Mira nodded mutely, not taking her eyes from the ever closer black form.
Ingrid left Mira in the rain. She found Helias in the library, as always, and upon learning of his brother’s impending arrival he dashed upstairs, promising to be back quickly. Caelian grinned and accompanied Ingrid back outside.
From the porch, Ingrid could see that Mira was where she had left her, looking as if in a trance, and in front of her was a tall, well-built man with dark hair that fell down past his shoulders. The stare between the two of them made Ingrid uncomfortable to witness, perhaps because the man was completely naked, but then Caelian shouted for his brother’s attention and she looked away.
“Tarquin!” he yelled, hurrying over to him.
Helias appeared next to Ingrid and held up a pair of pants.
“I knew he would need these,” he smiled at her, then hurried down the stairs as well.
Ingrid followed behind them, and watched as Tarquin accepted the clothing reluctantly.
“Mortal prudery,” he sneered at no one in particular, but pulled them on.
Ingrid crossed to Mira’s side, and put her arm around the dazed woman. “Are you alright?” she murmured, and Mira looked confused but nodded.
Ingrid ushered the party inside out of the rain, and pointed the brothers toward the front hall where a large fire was burning. She took Mira by the hand and guided her to the kitchen where she found Lily.
“Lil,” Ingrid said, steering Mira to a seat at a small table, “I think Mira needs some tea. And some company.”
Lily looked at Ingrid curiously.
“Tarquin is here,” Ingrid elaborated, “He came by air.” She raised her eyebrows meaningfully.
“Ah,” was Lily’s response, and Ingrid promised to update her as soon as she could. She rushed to her bedroom to change into something dry, then hurried back to the front hall. She could hear Helias’s low voice and Caelian’s laughter, and when she entered the room, Helias stood to greet her. He introduced his brother to her and introduced her to Tarquin as the lady of the house. Ingrid extended her hand and he took it in his, raised it to his face, and sniffed deeply. She looked up at Helias, confused, and Caelian laughed loudly.
Helias pulled Ingrid onto the couch next to him. “Tarquin, you haven’t even tried to learn human customs, have you?”
Tarquin shrugged, nonplussed, and remained standing. “I’d like to see the shrine.”
Helias agreed to show him, and Ingrid shook her head slightly in response to his wordless invitation. Caelian also declined and Ingrid turned to look at him, surprised. He was staring into the fire, his usual smile noticeably absent, and at the sight, a chill crept down Ingrid’s spine.
•••••
“She’s your mate.”
Helias turned to Tarquin, surprised, as he lifted the trap door. “She’s human,” he said carefully.
“She’s not your mate, then.”
Helias was surprised by how much that statement bothered him. “I don’t know.”
Tarquin sighed. “You know. Either she is, and you don’t want to admit it to yourself, or she’s not, and you regret that.”
Helias turned that over in his head, not responding as he guided Tarquin down to the first room.
“Is she suitable?” Tarquin asked, breaking the silence.
“Yes,” he responded quickly. “She is.”
They returned to silence as Helias led him through the last passage to the stairs, and as they descended into the cavern, he heard Tarquin gasp.
Helias gazed across the lake which was glowing unnaturally green. Tarquin stood next to him, struck by the eerie sight.
“I know what’s happened here,” Tarquin said quietly. “It’s happened before, far from here. It’s what drove us away from the human lands in the first place.”
Helias looked at him curiously.
“I was on the other side of the world when I got your letter. I had followed rumors to a settlement not unlike the one down the road from here. It had been struck similarly, but there were no survivors,” he began. “It’s a remote, hard to access village, and perhaps that’s why the illness never spread after the initial outbreak. There were only ruins left. The land is shriveled and barren, even centuries after the outbreak. I searched it thoroughly and found a dragon shrine very similar to this. It wasn’t hidden, though, they’d built an entire temple around it. It was this exact shade but faded with age.”
“No survivors,” Helias responded, gathering his thoughts.
Tarquin looked at him oddly. “Do you know how the shrines work?”
Helias nodded. “The source of our power.”
“Not just that,” Tarquin said, “but our only vulnerability. And this one’s been poisoned, just the same as the one that I found.”
“Poisoned?” Helias questioned.
Tarquin shrugged. “They can’t be destroyed by conventional means. Not for mortals. They have to be corrupted. Defiled. Sabotaged.”
Helias paused for a long moment, feeling wrath rising in him. “You’re saying this isn’t natural? Someone did this on purpose?”
“I’m sure of it.”
“Why would this someone have wanted to punish the humans as well? It doesn’t make sense.”
“I’m not sure that it was intended,” Tarquin said thoughtfully. “I believe that the human illness was a side effect of attacking the intended targets.”
“Us.” Helias thought of Ingrid and felt ill. Her life had been viciously torn apart for absolutely no purpose, just fallout. “What do we do about it?”
“Burn it.”
Helias
sighed. “I can’t force that on her,” he said, focused on the water.
“Remember who you are,” Tarquin snarled suddenly, then turned and studied his brother’s face. “I hope when the time comes, she’ll do it herself.” He turned and stalked up the staircase, out of sight.
Helias remained there for a long time, staring into the swirling depths and considering his brother’s words.
Seventeen
They received word from Augustus the next day. He would be arriving within the week, and he would be bringing a guest and news with him. Ingrid felt helpless. With each new arrival and each day that passed, they were hurtling toward an end that she didn’t want and couldn’t prevent.
Ingrid ran her fingers through Margaret’s silken hair before twisting it into a braid. There were many patients, and she wasn’t sure why she was so attached to the unfortunate woman in particular, but for some reason caring for her felt like a form of therapy.
Ingrid finished her task and administered the herbal pain remedy. She knelt next to the bed and took Margaret’s hand in hers, as she did every time she was going to leave. She squeezed it gently, and promised to see her again soon.
•••••
Ingrid went back to her room to change, and Helias was already there, looking very pleased to see her. She was relieved to have a moment alone with him, and he easily talked her into allowing him to join her in the shower. She was exhausted and he seemed to sense that; he washed her gently, and as she leaned her head back while he cleaned her hair and massaged her head, she was struck again by how strong her feelings were for him.
Ingrid had believed herself in love, once, but she’d been very young and desperate after all of the loss she had faced. It had been so long ago that she couldn’t even remember his name. She had tried hard to be what he had needed: positive, loving, interesting, happy. He had never seemed to care what she had needed, and after a year and a half of apologizing for being herself and having a partner who neglected her when she needed him most, she saw the light and ended things. He had stayed at Dragongrove for another year after that, trying to win her over again, but luckily, she had Lily to keep her head on straight, and she finally plucked up the courage to force him to leave.
She sighed and leaned back into Helias. He was everything she had ever been afraid to want, and now that she had opened herself up to him, she found that she needed him. He never needed her to pretend to be happy or chatty or bubbly; she was rarely any of those things. He just needed her. It was a relief to be cared for so unconditionally.
They finished in the shower and laid in bed together, facing each other, basking in content silence. Ingrid wanted the moment to last forever: no shrine, no brothers, no illnesses or gossip or mysterious pasts. She lifted one of his palms to her mouth and kissed it gently, and then the other. He grinned at her briefly and then looked serious, suddenly.
“I’ve been talking to Tarquin about something,” he started abruptly. She nodded softly, and he drew her hands up to kiss her palms, too. He looked nervous and seemed to be stalling.
“What is it?” she asked, worried at his reluctance.
“I know you don’t like the idea of mates,” he began strangely, “of not choosing who you love.”
She nodded again, acknowledging her reaction to their first and only conversation on the topic.
He continued. “Tarquin is the only one of my brothers who had found his, so I needed to ask him about it.”
Ingrid stared at him, wide-eyed, scarcely daring to breathe.
“Ingrid,” he began again, his voice shaking and his hands holding her cheeks, “I know for sure now. You’re it—her. You’re my mate.”
Her reaction was primal. She quivered with pleasure, then wrapped her arms around him, and her legs around him, and kissed him passionately until her lips hurt and her thighs shook, and then he entered her. Somehow, with this new knowledge of what they were to each other, he filled her more completely. He knew exactly what she wanted, and before long they were both calling the other’s name, entangled and exhausted and spent.
He held her and laughed, as she looked at him questioningly.
“I thought you’d be angry,” he said. “I was so worried.”
“A month ago, I probably would have been,” she said, resting her head on his chest and her hand on his arm. “But I don’t care. I don’t have the energy for that now. I love you, there’s no reason to fight this.”
He smiled and kissed her forehead.
“Is that why you’ve been acting strangely?” she asked, chewing on her lip. “I feel like I’ve been losing you lately.”
He squeezed her tightly but shook his head. “Not exactly.”
She waited for him to elaborate, but after a moment she accepted his silence and lay comfortably next to him, eyes heavy.
They were startled by a loud banging on the bedroom door. They both jumped up and dressed quickly, and opened the door to Caelian, who excitedly informed them that Augustus had arrived with a friend in tow.
“Do you want to stay here and rest?” Helias asked Ingrid, “I know you’re exhausted.”
She shook her head. “I want to meet him.”
Eighteen
They went to the library together, which seemed to have become the dragons’ personal library, Ingrid mused. Augustus was seated in the middle of the couch and looked much like his brothers: tall, muscular, handsome. His red hair was unexpected, though. Ingrid looked around for his guest and realized she had overlooked her.
A petite young lady was seated next to Augustus, but pressed next to him as closely as possible, and she looked terrified. She was a small woman by any measurement, and next to him she looked tiny, all except for her big, round belly which her hands were protectively covering. Augustus seemed to notice where Ingrid was looking, and he too placed his much larger hand there.
Ingrid looked up at his face, embarrassed, and smiled in what she hoped was a friendly way. He nodded almost imperceptibly. Introductions were made quickly between Augustus and Ingrid. Then he introduced his companion, Annie, who looked even more frightened. Ingrid took pity on her and announced that she was going to fetch some tea for the group, and asked Annie if she would care to help.
Ingrid guided her to the kitchen after Annie nodded eagerly, and as she set water to boiling, she asked Annie about her travels.
“I wanted to fly to get here faster,” Annie said, visibly relaxing, “but Aug insisted on a carriage because of my...condition.” She gestured at her midsection.
Ingrid was curious about that, but politely steered the conversation elsewhere. It seemed that Augustus had disobeyed his father’s orders and returned to his homeland with Annie, but something had just recently happened that spurred their departure.
As Ingrid finished preparing the tray, she said, “You’re safe here, you know that, right?”
Annie nodded, avoiding eye contact. “It’s just a little intimidating, I suppose.”
Ingrid laughed, agreeing. “Tarquin makes me so nervous. They all seem to like him so I’m sure he’s fine, but,” she trailed off, giving a mock shudder.
They started back to the library. “Not him,” Annie disagreed. “The oldest one. He—” She cut herself off as they reached the door.
Ingrid looked at her, confused. Why in the world would Annie be frightened of Helias?
She put the thought from her mind and set her tray down, taking her place on the couch next to Helias. He pulled her close and she clasped his hand, and she saw Annie’s eyes widen at her.
Augustus was asking if Helias had heard from their two middle brothers, and Helias shook his head. They halted their conversation as the women returned to the room.
“I suppose since we’re all here, I should give you the news,” began Augustus, rising from his seat. “First of all, Annie is my mate.”
Ingrid looked around, and only Caelian looked surprised at the news.
“She’s carrying our child,” he continued. Ingrid’s
eyes widened and she met Helias’s gaze. How was that possible? “It was unexpected but we are very pleased.”
Helias grinned and rose to embrace his brother, followed quickly by Caelian. Tarquin offered an awkward nod.
“I never thought I would be an uncle,” Caelian said, and Helias wore a grin as he settled back in his seat next to Ingrid. He laced his fingers with hers and squeezed her hand.
“Yes,” Augustus started again, “I have unfortunate news as well. When we learned of the pregnancy, Annie and I returned to Arnes. I was ready to face our father, but it was impossible. He had lost what was left of his mind.”
Ingrid shuddered and glanced at Helias; he had tensed against her and was and staring at Augustus.
“We were both immediately arrested and separated, and he ordered my pregnant mate and me into the dungeons,” he seethed, fire in his strange amber eyes. Annie reached out to touch his hand, and he visibly relaxed. “We were imprisoned for over a month, and I was never allowed an audience with him. Reis came to me eventually, he had learned of our imprisonment and freed me. We fled immediately, but I learned what I could from Reis.”
Augustus turned his attention to Helias. “The country is in the middle of an uprising. Father lost his mind and the nobles rebelled. There is death and destruction, and we need a leader.” He paused and breathed deeply. “Helias, father is dead.”
The room was deafeningly silent. Ingrid turned to Helias as he took a deep, shuddering breath, and steeled his jaw.
“Helias,” Augustus said again. “You’re king.”
Ingrid looked up at her mate, chills prickling down her spine. She wished he would laugh or make his brother stop being ridiculous. But instead he sat still, scarcely breathing, jaw determined and focused on his brother.
“King?” she breathed. He looked down at her with sorrow in his eyes.