by R. C. Reigh
“I mean it, anything you want--”
His stream of words halted abruptly when I took his face in my hands and forced him to look up at me.
“Dane, stop,” I said softly as my tears broke free.
I couldn’t stand to see him distraught like this. My heart just couldn’t take it. I ran my thumbs over the stubble of his jaw, and he closed his eyes for a few brief moments as he reveled in the touch. When he opened them, I willed the gaze of his eyes to mine, and I loved every single thing that I saw there.
“We will figure it out.” With my chest so tight I thought it might burst, I searched his face. “Together.”
A symphony of butterflies erupted within my chest as I pulled him toward me, meeting no resistance whatsoever. When our lips met, it felt as if I was finally coming up for air. It was like I hadn’t even known a heavy object was crushing my chest until it had been lifted. It was as if my lungs were able to fully expand for the first time in years. I could breathe again, and all the while, my heart was singing.
His lips were soft and gentle. This kiss contained none of the anger that our first had, but the mind-melting heat and desire once again surged into the core of me. Dane gently pulled away, pressing our foreheads together, nose to nose. Our eyes stared into one another, hazel to honey and honey to hazel.
All the tension between us had faded away.
I couldn’t help the smile that spread across my face because in that moment, I finally felt like I was where I belonged.
Cora
I was standing guard with wolves when a noise down the corridor caught my attention. We weren’t expecting anyone on this level. I reached for the hilt of my sword, ready to strike down any intruder, if needed and the other guards tensed in preparation. When the curvy shape of the visitor became apparent, I immediately knew who it was. I relaxed, and the guards followed my lead.
“I came to check on the princess,” Kessara stopped when she reached me. “How is she?”
“She will make a full recovery.” I replied, blowing out a relieved breath.
“What’s up?” She asked, cocking her head slightly as she gauged me. Kessara seemed to have a way of reading my mood. I tilted my head toward the hallway, and we stepped out of earshot of the other guards.
“They are all pretty amazed by what I did, but honestly, I have no idea how. . .” I shook my head.
I couldn’t fathom how I had done that kind of magic. Amelia had been at death’s door and about to slip through it, and yet somehow, I had managed to bring her back. There was no way I should have been able to do that, and yet I had.
Kessara studied me for a moment.
“There is something to be said about the power of love. Amelia is your family. I’m sure you don’t give yourself enough credit.”
Her response was kind, but I'd been hoping that maybe she would reveal some sort of ancient spell that may account for my sudden superhuman ability.
“I was wearing Amelia’s amulet at the time. Maybe that had something to do with it,” I muttered.
“That sounds very plausible,” she offered as she patted my shoulder, and I gave her a soft smile.
“I am glad you came by. I wanted to thank you. Without your help, Amelia would have been dead or taken who knows where by those creatures,” I confessed. The idea of what may have happened if we hadn’t gotten there when we did was unfathomable. I shuddered at the thought.
“I went out to the gates to see if I could be of help. I would have done more, but I was worried about Dane. He hates me and even threatened my life when you left to get Amelia’s scarf,” Kessara's tone softened as she elaborated, and I inhaled a deep breath in surprise.
“I’m sure he was just upset about Amelia,” I assured her. “He didn’t mean it.”
“I wish that were true, but he hates me to the very core of his being,” Kessara started, and I could barely believe she was finally opening up to me. “I helped him some time ago, and all I asked in return was a favor if I needed his help one day. It doesn’t seem like an awful bargain, does it?”
“No, it doesn’t. It’s pretty fair.” I tilted my head and gave her an empathetic smile.
“Ever since that day, he has been threatened by my power. I guess that’s what I deserve for showing my abilities to anyone. It’s why I’ve always been so secretive about them. I hope he doesn’t try to turn you against me. You’re the only person who has been genuinely nice to me.”
She gave a little shrug, and I opened up my arms to give her a hug. She stepped forward hesitantly like she had never had a friend-hug before and wasn’t quite sure what to do. My heart broke for her.
“You don’t have to worry about that,” I promised as I gave her a warm embrace. “You helped me save Amelia’s life. I know how grumpy Dane can be, but in time he will see that you are not the enemy. Don’t worry about a thing.”
Kessara
After bidding Cora farewell, I walked away with a self-satisfied smile on my face. I needed to be preemptive in case the prince found a way around the limitations I had put on him. I genuinely enjoyed my comradery with Cora, but first and foremost, I had a mission to complete here at the Bastion.
To avoid the increased number of guards in the lower tunnels, I ventured out into the night air, instead. I had only just begun to enjoy the quiet of the evening when the whoosh of wings descended next to me.
Dragon. . . Ugh.
“Roarke,” I stated in an indifferent tone without even looking at him.
“Kessara,” he replied as he fell into step beside me.
“Following me again? Your stalker-like tendencies are becoming alarming. Perhaps I should see administration,” I jabbed.
“Perhaps I should tell them all the naughty little things you’ve been up to,” he threw right back at me, matching my snarky tone.
“Well, it looks like we’re at a stalemate then,” I replied, giving him a sarcastically saccharine smile.
“It appears so.”
He folded his hands together behind his back as he casually walked with me, like it was just a walk with any other random person.
“You still haven’t answered my question,” I stated in irritation.
“The Bastion is on high alert. There has been an attack on the princess of Avonlee,” he replied, and I noticed that he was casually surveying our surroundings.
“So, you thought you’d check on me again?” I smirked.
“No,” he scoffed as if the idea was absurd. “A patrol has been sent to check on things and no one else wanted the assignment of checking on you. I drew the short straw per se,” he replied casually.
“Ha, ha,” I glowered
“If you were hoping for a shoulder to lean on, I’m sure your boyfriend will be by later to offer you his. Once the all-clear is given, of course.” Roarke appeared not to be the least bit bothered by the boyfriend thing, and for some reason, it annoyed me. “Until then, you are required to remain at your tower.”
“I don’t fear what goes bump in the night, Roarke. They fear me,” I quipped back.
“On the behalf of the Bastion guard, I must insist you return to your turret,” he reiterated, yet again.
“I can take care of myself.” I lifted one of my perfectly manicured brows at him.
“Oh, I’m well aware of that, mistress of the night,” he grinned. “But, I have my orders,” he added as if he were delivering a message to any other student.
But we weren’t just any other students to one another, were we?
“Fine,” I digressed.
When we reached my tower, he waited by the entrance as I opened the latch.
“Good night, Kessara of Kearnox.” His eyes did that smoldering thing that I had begun to quite adore.
“Goodnight,” I replied, masking my disappointment that our chat was about to end.
With that, he flew off.
Almost as soon as I entered the tower, I took the steps up to my room and sent a pulse through my scrying mirror to sum
mon my father. Within moments, the greenish-gray mist formed in the mirror and his face appeared.
“You have a report for me, I suspect.” He raised his eyebrows and graced me with that sly smile he always wore when some sort of plan was in action.
“Yes, father,” I replied, and his face fell into suspicion of my tone.
“And by that look you’re giving me, I doubt I will be less than pleased,” he posited as he tapped his fingers in anticipation.
“That depends on the nature of your arrangement with the vampires,” I replied casually.
I had known my father would use the information about Prince Dane’s Fating when I gave it to him to exact our revenge, but I hadn’t been sure to what end.
“Ah, yes, that. I sold the information to the highest bidder. In this case, that was the vampires. They said their plan was for the princess to be kidnapped and used as ransom or leverage, but we all know their sort are never to be trusted.” He began writing with his quill.
As usual, my father had a sort of nonchalance about his dealings.
“Come now, my darling,” he continued, “You said that you had information to report. Let’s have it, then.”
I began removing my ruby earrings as I started to relay the evenings’ events to my father.
“Well, in that case, the vamps screwed it up badly and nearly killed the girl. For their efforts, they are all dead now. The wolf prince followed her scent to the scene and her emissary, Lady Coranithe, was able to heal her well enough to move her back to the Bastion.”
I unclasped my necklace and set it onto the table.
“I’ve just confirmed that she will make a full recovery.”
Father stopped writing and looked up at me in the mirror. I could see that his interest had been piqued.
Or was it that he had sensed that I had lied?
“Lady Coranithe healed her, you say?” He asked. A fissure had formed between his brows. He was onto something.
“She did,” I nodded.
“And you say the princess was near death?” He coaxed.
This line of questioning was heading in a direction I didn’t want to tread. Despite my general disdain for the other students here at the Bastion, I didn’t want my father putting a target or a bounty on Cora’s head. That being said, I couldn’t lie to him about the extremity of Amelia’s injuries. He would find out from the other kings, eventually.
“Yes, father,” I mimicked my earlier casual tone.
“Intriguing that an adolescent human would have that capability. Usually, someone of her ability wouldn’t have been able to perform such magic. How do you suppose she was capable of such a feat? Do you think she tapped into some kind of power that she has been hiding from us?” My father pressed, all but abandoning what he was working on.
“No, I suspect the injuries weren’t nearly as bad as they reported. The prince was working his own healing magic at the same time, and Cora was also wearing the magician’s crystal that belonged to Amelia,” I offered as an alternative explanation.
My father nodded his head. It was plausible even if it were a lie.
“Just as well. As you know, I don’t really care for the vampires, anyway. It was all just another means to an end. I’m sure I will find another way to stick it to Grimmnon and Simmion. The possibilities are almost endless, after all.”He went back to writing with his quill. “I am curious though, do you think that their heirs will come together now?”
“Yes, I believe they will, father,” I replied, or at least, I hoped they would. My initial deal with the wolf was riding on it.
He scrunched up his nose like the idea was repulsive to him.
“Then, I guess the whole Fating magic finally wore through that old curse I put on the girl. It’s much stronger than expected. Had I considered it back then, I would have used something a bit more robust than a bonding spell, or in her case, an antibonding spell.”
He tilted his head over his paper again as he began reviewing his correspondence, and my lips twitched in annoyance.
“You put a curse on the princess?” I tried not to sound accusatory.
“Yes,” he chuckled. “After I learned of the betrothal when the two of you were little children, I spelled her to have a deep-seated distrust of the wolves. Although, back then, I wasn’t aware of the Fating. It’s something we will have to take into account in our future dealings with the shifters.”
“Of course, father. I will make a note of it,” I nodded.
No wonder it had been so difficult for me to complete my first task of bringing them together. I should have realized the princess was cursed. It must have really been torture for the wolf prince. I grinned at the thought of his suffering.
“Well, darling. If there is nothing else, then I must prepare for a meeting with one of my associates.”
He looked at me expectantly before I smiled and replied, “No, father. There is nothing else.”
I was just full of deceit this evening. . .
“Then I shall bid you goodnight for now, my darling. Don’t forget to send your love to the stars,” he said as he smiled at me affectionately, the little lines crinkling up at the corners of his eyes.
“Goodnight, father.”
I should have felt guilty for lying to him. I was lucky to have a father that loved me very much. He was the man who raised me, my closest confidant, and, in many ways, my best friend. But I had my own agenda, and in this case, what he didn’t know wouldn’t hurt him.
As the greenish-gray mist dissipated from the mirror and my own reflection became clear, a satisfied grin turned up on my ruby red lips before my head tilted back in a wicked laugh.
In helping the prince locate Amelia, I had completed both of my bargains with him. Now, I had two favors from a prince.
And I had every intention of exploiting that to the fullest.
Soon these fools would see just how much chaos I had in me. . .
Preview of Kingdom of 7 Sovereigns - Dragons
Dax
Alarms blared through the Bastion, signaling the highest alert of lock down. From my perch high up on our tower, my golden dragon eyes scanned the horizon for any sign of the enemy.
A band of vicious vampires had attacked the Princess of Avonlee just beyond the Bastion gates nearly an hour ago. The guards of Laramidia had been sent on the hunt and located a second group of the blood-thirsty vermin shortly thereafter. Between the attack and the recent death of King Pythios, it was beginning to feel as if something sinister were at play.
A sudden movement to my left caught my attention. My pulse quickened as a sense of foreboding launched me into action.
Careful not to let my quarry know I was in pursuit, I made my way across the rooftop like an undercurrent, silent and unnoticed beneath the placid surface of a stream.
I needed to see where he was headed before I intervened.
My target meandered along the perimeter of the eastern courtyard, weaving in and out of the shadows of night fall.
He was waiting for someone.
I descended the roof tiles, taking care to be discrete and blend in to the slate. Making only the most calculated and delicate of movements to make sure I would not cause any to fall, I advanced forward.
Once certain I hadn’t been detected, I scrambled down the wall onto a balcony and slipped into the shadows alongside a parapet.
My mark suddenly careened back from the outer perimeter toward the octagon building of the academy.
The scales along the ridge of my wings prickled as a realization dawned on me; I was about to discover his secret rendezvous.
The sound of casual footsteps emerged from the lower tunnels onto the gravel below and a hooded figure sauntered into view. It was a figure whose gate was all too unique to be anyone other than one person: the Necromancer's daughter.
The development was all too concerning. I had known from the moment I had laid my eyes upon the witch earlier in the fall that Kessara was a real and dangerous threat.
<
br /> As time went by, some students claimed what had been said about her was rumor, some claimed she was a friend, others claimed she was just misunderstood. Now, it was blatantly clear that I had been right all along.
My quarry immediately moved in toward her. What’s worse was that she didn't look surprised to see him. There was a level of comfort and familiarity between them that made me ill at ease. This was not their first meeting.
I ground my teeth.
Her consorts knew no bounds. They continued together down the open path, and I adjusted my position to keep them in my line of sight.
The witch was kerosene, dancing along the edge of my family's volatile flame, and the situation was poised to ignite into a hell storm.
Only after she entered her tower did my target take off in flight. I gave a heavy sigh as I watched Roarke soar away over the rooftop.
Oh, little brother, what the hell are you getting yourself into?
Acknowledgements
I'd like to take the time to send a deep and heartfelt thank you to everyone who helped to make this book possible and cheered me on along the way!
To my beautiful children, Everett and Ashlyn. Thank you for being the reason that I push myself beyond my comfort zone. I will always encourage you to do the same. I love you, so much.
Brandon, thank you for our insightful discussions on the world of magic and for all of the hours you put into working to bring the map of Vaalbara in my head to life.
A special thank you to Diana for designing the wonderful book cover.
Hannah, you are an angel for having the patience to edit my work. Thank you for taking my cringe-worthy, unedited mess and turning it into something acceptable. I also want to say thank you for all of your feedback and helpful insight on my stories. You are truly fantastic!
Thank you to my wonderful parents for always being a constant source of love and support.