Burn

by Penelope Fletcher

  “They attacked. That renders the promise of mercy void.”

  “Aren’t you supposed to be all about peace?” Marina asked archly.

  Lips peeling back in a snarl, Daniil glared. “Not when it comes to those dirty savages.”

  Staggered by his antagonism, she gaped, incredulous.

  His narrow-minded discrimination was upsetting. It was the first time she’d witnessed intolerance in Daniil. She didn’t like it. In fact, it unnerved her to see this unsavoury side to his character.

  Was he prejudiced of the Desert People?

  The thought floored her.

  “There’s no need for name calling,” she said tightly.

  Even Koen appeared unimpressed by his Second’s attitude. “Holding Court with Myron at nightfall with news of an attack by a feared enemy will cause panic. A contingent of men scouting the boundaries of the Barren territories bordering our Kingdom is sufficient. It will keep.”

  “Koen–”

  “My decision is final.”

  Daniil raked a hand through his warrior braids. Shook his head. “I have bad feelings. This is a mistake.”

  “Come.” Holding Daniil’s shoulder, he met the other male’s gaze. “We will take my Treasure home then reason this as we have done since infancy. Together.”

  CHAPTER THIRTEEN

  Marina wanted to be disgruntled. Being excluded from Daniil and Koen’s discussion about the Mages could be perceived as overprotective. The matter directly concerned her.

  It was she they tried to abduct after all.

  Only because she had more pressing concerns did she let Koen get away with slyly sending her away to ‘recuperate’.

  Where was her son was hiding?

  Boy was suspiciously absent. Usually she saw him throughout the day, but since Aver had officially begun he’d become a ghost.

  At dawn she’d slipped into his bedroom to talk, but his bed had been empty, the sheets warm, as if he’d left not a minute before she’d arrived. She’d returned to her room frowning, using the incident as proof he consciously avoided her.

  Rolling out of bed, she let Pasha fuss over her, and left a trail of destruction in her wake. Freshly bathed, she dressed in the colour of her house, black.

  She grabbed a piece of fruit from the lavish breakfast set out for her every morning.

  “You know the drill,” she told the servants, waving a hand over the meal.

  They nodded, smiling, and wishing her a good morning. They gathered up the foodstuffs.

  Calling goodbye to Pasha, who hummed a ditty as she straightened the room, Marina left to find her missing son.

  Knee high boots clomping loudly down the stone hallway, she bit into the red and purple flesh of the fruit. She was rewarded with a sweet, juicy pulp and her taste buds sung.

  Distracted by the scrumptious flavour she almost forgot why she aimlessly wandered the halls.

  After a moment’s contemplation, Marina grudgingly headed to Mikhail’s rooms. Boy often spent a great deal of time with his grandfather. It was as good a place as any to start, and more productive than drifting until she stumbled across him.

  She might not even be successful in her search.

  Boy possessed the innate ability to find people, and he could evade her for hours using the skill.

  It was how he’d been able to slip into her room to kill her the day they met.

  Mincing up to the ornate screen, she rapped her knuckles against the wood frame.

  The wait stretched and she tried not to jump to conclusions.

  The embarrassing fight between her, Cathryn and Mikhail had been spread Kingdom wide by nightfall as expected. The night before, Marina had been so tired from training and preoccupied with the Mages attack, she barely noticed the whispers and smirks.

  In the sunny morning light, the shame of it had her cheeks burning.

  She really didn’t have energy or time to dedicate to something this foolish.

  Before Koen found her at beach, she’d thought hard about what Cathryn said. As she cried, she relived the argument and felt weak with confusion at their behaviour and hers.

  Admittedly, she’d not been overly receptive of Mikhail’s overtures to grow closer. There was so much to accomplish in so short a time she’d assumed their relationship would survive on the backburner, left to simmer until she figured what she wanted from him, and what she felt able to give in return.

  Cathryn’s arrival had thrown their lack of emotional connection and loyalty into stark relief.

  Marina intuitively knew if she and her Sire were closer, Mikhail would have understood how much Cathryn meant to her and consequently would never have trespassed.

  A cynical side of her nature scoffed.

  He knew I loved Cathryn enough to drag her across dimensions to gain favour with me, but not enough to keep his paws off?

  What pained her most was she felt they’d put their needs over hers. Fine, she got it. There were times you were attracted to someone and needed release, but why now?

  The weirdness of it took too much for her to process, and worse, there was an underlying feeling of being offended on Almeria’s behalf.

  Which made no sense because her mother had left Mikhail, relinquishing her claim. She knew for a fact her mother slept with other men in the human dimension.

  How could she hold Mikhail to a higher standard based on that?

  Possibly she felt threatened by the concept a Phoenix could lust ardently after another female and forget his Treasure?

  Disturbed, Marina shuddered.

  Losing her mother had been hellish. For months she’d teetered the edge of a complete mental breakdown, not understanding why the accident happened. She hadn’t had any family around her except Cathryn during that awful period. Her friend kept her sane, and Marina had clung to that connection, revered it as she had the lost one with her mother.

  Was it fair to react so harshly towards Cathryn because she’d fallen from the pedestal Marina shoved her on?

  There was movement in the room.

  Whispering.

  Eyes downcast, Marina crossed her arms. Holding back her anger grew tougher. “Could you hurry up? I have things to do.” She cringed, hearing how bitchy she sounded with her own ears.

  The screen opened a fraction.

  Mikhail’s bare chest blocked her attempt to enter. Dark eyes were wary. “Daughter? I had not expected–”

  “Have you seen my son?”

  “No.” Mikhail’s forehead furrowed with concern. “Not since the day before yesterday.”

  Worried now, and done with the conversation, she turned to leave before she said something to regret.

  Mikhail caught her troubled expression. “He is missing?”

  “No one’s seen him.” She paused, considered her options. “The last was Pasha. She said he seemed in a world of his own. He slept in his bed last night, but was gone before dawn. The servants haven’t seen him. Not that they’re any help since they go out of their way to avoid him.” White lines bracketed her mouth. “They’re afraid of him.”

  “He likes to be solitary, and is talented at concealment.

  “True. After what happened last night it’s safer if he remains close though. Koen and I want him within reach.”

  “Last night?”

  “Mages,” she said absentmindedly, wondering where to check next. Boy often took lessons with Regent Myron, but with Aver in full swing she knew the lessons were placed on hold. “They attacked Koen, Daniil and I off the main shore, a little way from the port.”

  “The Barren Ones entered the Fire Kingdom?” Mikhail’s voice was furious, truly beyond horrified. “They broke the treaty? Attacked. Are you alright?”

  Snapping out of her reverie, she met him glare for glare. “What do you care? Wait.” She flashed both palms. “We are not doing this. It’s none of your business how I am.”

  “Marina, you are my offspring. So we have suffered a difference of opinion in a private matter. We
shall get past it. Your welfare is my business.”

  Arrogant to the core, Mikhail had simplified and compartmentalised their argument until, as far as he was concerned, she overreacted. His demeanour was condescending patience, as if she were throwing a tempter tantrum.

  It pissed her right off.

  “Yesterday you told me you were sorry to have hurt me.”

  “I did.” He sounded frustrated. “I am.”

  “Let me in.”

  “What?”

  “Move aside and let me into your chamber. Do so and we’ll forget yesterday as if it never happened. We’ll set aside time to talk about some of the issues, but for the main part we’ll have a clean slate. I’ll even hear you out about your fling with Cathryn.” Her jaw worked as she ground her back teeth together. “You do respect me enough to talk to me about it before you do anything with her again, right?”

  Shoulders slumping, he looked ashamed. “Marina, I–”

  “You won’t let me in because Cathryn is in your bed.”

  Mikhail’s earnest look died. His lips worked, but no denials escaped them.

  “The way I see it, if you were truly sorry and affected by what I felt you would’ve at least tried to mend the bridge between us before you went there again.” She stared him in the face, letting him see how badly he’d screwed up. “So you misunderstood how much she meant to me the first time round. You assumed I’d be okay with this. I accept that. Shit happens, and as Cathryn said, we are all adults here. But after the way I reacted yesterday there was no uncertainty. You knew how strongly I was against a relationship between you.”

  “You do not tell me what I can and cannot do.”

  “No, I can’t.” She rubbed her forehead. “Whether my reaction was right or wrong, justified or not, someone who cared about me would have let me cool off for a few days then spoken to me about it. You didn’t. You disregarded my feelings and took what you wanted. Again. That’s fine. As you say, it’s your right. Just as it’s my right to feel betrayed when my parent expresses a wilful indifference my feelings. So, you no longer have a say in my life, and I don’t want you as part of it. I need people helping me stay sane, not trampling over my emotions and fracturing my concentration. I need people I trust. You no longer fall within that category. You’re no longer welcome inside my inner circle. Neither is she until she apologies.”

  Mikhail exhaled shakily, eyes burning. “You are my heir. There is no way for you–”

  “Distancing myself is best.” She met his gaze. “Koen is protective right now.” An understatement. “I could keep you around for appearances sake, but he’d feel the tension and react badly. If you’re sleeping with Cathryn she’d be around a lot more. I’m barely keeping him from going after her as it is let alone to dangle her in his face all the time.”

  “I shall protect her.”

  “Glad to hear it. She’s lost my protection until she apologizes. Boy and I will have moved rooms by nightfall. I’ve inherited my mother’s wealth, so I’ll pay you back for any losses you’ve incurred putting us up since I arrived.” She paused. “I’ll also pick up any of Cathryn’s expenses up until you took ownership of her welfare.”

  There was a muffled thump and a terse, “I’ll pay my own way,” from behind the screen.

  “This is absurd,” Mikhail said tightly. “I do not want your coin. You are my offspring and heir to House Zar. You have responsibilities to our vassals that do not disappear because you are angry.”

  “Before Almeria took the name Zar she was Ryu, daughter to the beloved sister of the Lord who leads them. Found that out yesterday when I asked about accommodation here at the Citadel. House Ryu is here for Aver. I sent word and they’ve offered me inclusion into their House should I desire it. I met a boy at the feast, my cousin if you can believe it.” Having a second cousin and a great uncle was a big deal to a woman who’d grown up with one blood family member. “He impressed me. Their House is now mine until I legally join Raad.”

  “It is not an Imperial House.” He sounded offended to be passed for a House of lesser power. “Ryu is barely noble, Almeria was the best of them, and her Sire was tremendously powerful.” His eyes flashed. “They are not even Drackai.”

  “I respect the ice breathers. I’m honoured to be related to them by blood.”

  “Bah, I respect them. My Dragon is part of them, but they are less.” He growled knowing nothing he said would sound good. “Chosen bear the name of their Sire. It is tradition.”

  “Big mistake preaching to me about tradition.” She averted her gaze. “So that’s that.” She fell foul to the bitterness roiling in her gut. “I hope it was worth it.”

  “This is not distance but severance. You punish me.”

  “I admit I felt a small need to get back at you. I got over it. Honestly,” she jerked a shoulder, “I can’t deal with negative emotions you’re inviting into my life. I’m exhausted all of the time. I have people trying to kill me. Boy is going through some serious changes and gets a fraction of my attention. He deserves so much more. Aver is the most difficult thing I’ve ever participated in, and it hurts me to be away from Koen. Physically hurts. There’s so much going on, and I expected you to become this rock I would lean on. Someone other than Koen or Daniil I could depend on.” Her voice sounded hollow. She realised how much she’d wanted to be close to this male. “That’s gone now.”

  “But why?”

  “It just is.”

  “I made a mistake.”

  “Same mistake twice, actually.”

  His hands fisted. “All this because your friend and I are intimate?”

  “No. Koen helped me see things more clearly. And after I tossed and turned about it last night, I realised Cathryn was right. You’re grown ups and not related. The only connection you have is me. I told you, I understood that you underestimated how important she was to me. She’s my sister. You are my father.” Her voice coarsened. “While I could divorce the concept that you would be a father to her as well, I cannot ignore the fact that you failed in your duty as a father to me.” She sucked down a breath. “I failed you too. Perhaps if I’d been softer ... easier to talk to we would’ve developed loyalty between us.” She gave a sad smile. “My objection was never to you yourself, only what you represented.”

  Mikhail’s lips thinned. “I represent loss?”

  “Hope. Hope I had another parent who loved me as much as my mother did, and hope that we’d be as close, maybe even closer, as I was with her. I think I’m more like you than her.”

  “So much time has been stolen from us. I will never forgive Almeria for that. Never.” Pale, Mikhail scrubbed hand over his face. His voice was hoarse. “I would never betray you.”

  “But you have. I understood the first time. After ranting for a few days I would have worked through it.” She motioned to the room beyond the screen. “This second time cements the betrayal. You decided my opinion didn’t matter.” She blinked rapidly. “I’m sorry for the way I acted. There. That’s all I have left to give you right now.”

  He shook. “Marina–”

  “If you see Boy ask him to find me?”

  “I lose him too? Will you keep him from me?”

  “Don’t be ridiculous.” Marina started towards the stronghold throne room in search of Daniil and Koen. “You love him, and he adores you. I won’t stand in the way of that.”

  CHAPTER FOURTEEN

  Bored of the Red Citadel and its grandiose ornamentation, the stressed ambience of the room grated on Koen Raad’s nomadic concentration.

  He hooked a leg over the armrest of his throne.

  Sipping from his goblet, he wondered if Marina had found Boy yet. She’d been worried about him on their journey back to the Citadel. The attack barely fazed her. Her calm reaction reflected her unwavering confidence in the strength of his protection, and that warmed him, and made him feel worthy.

  He knew eventually it would be instinct to allow her to protect him while in battle, but it did
his pride good to know she trusted him as he would have to trust her.

  Myron paced the floor beneath the dais, craggy face so tense his wrinkles smoothed. “Why? Why now? After so many years of peace, why would they dare trespass now?”

  “We are closer than ever to an Emperor ascending the throne.” Daniil lounged on the steps leading to the dais under the throne meant for Koen’s Treasure. He lethargically broke his fast, picking at a plate of roasted meat. “Perhaps they sense now is the opportune time to sow discord and uncertainty. The Kingdom is in disarray until the new Queens are crowned. While martial strength is at its peak with the Wyvrae gentry here for Aver, the ice breathers may not support the alliance between Realm and Kingdom while the thrones sit empty.” He shrugged. “And no Emperor to convince them otherwise.”

  “That is not why they wanted my Treasure.” Koen stared at the empty bottom of his cup. “If they had wanted chaos it would have been prudent to send an entire legion across the border to slay her. We would have been unprepared and hard pressed to protect her.” It galled him to admit it. In order to save her he would’ve had to run from battle, a thought that sickened his beast to the core. “By approaching us so boldly they alerted us to their hostile intentions. I sensed their invasion was an opportunity to avert a war not begin one.”

  “Idle speculation gets us nowhere.” Myron threw up his hands. “This may have been a genuine act of war endorsed by the Grand Mage, or simply the act of exiled troublemakers.”

  Daniil licked his fingers. “Ask Khan.”

  “It will offend him,” Myron protested. “He will believe I ask because we concluded he must have been involved.”

  “So? You know he will know something. At the least give us an indication of what prompted the attack. Even if we discover their identities we can investigate their allegiances.”

  “Such questioning will not only offend his deep sense of honour, but ruin the trust he spent years building here.” Myron was livid. “Dragon Lords do not extend trust to Mages. Against all odds he has made friends here. If we do this he will become a pariah.”