Black Crown

by Kelly St Clare

  I blinked. What the hay?

  What’s he doing? Tyrrik asked, his confusion mirroring my own.

  No idea.

  The emperor pivoted toward Tyrrik, my father just slightly taller than my mate. With a nod, Draedyn said, “You will both stay in the palace.”

  He then swept back to his place, and a servant hurried to set a place for the Drae glued to my side. Draedyn picked up his goblet and, staring at me over the rim, said, “I hope now you will be open to what I offer, heir.”

  Back to heir, was I? I made no answer.

  As Tyrrik and I sat at the table, Draedyn spoke again, “Yes, you are most welcome here, mate of my daughter.” He smiled and took a long sip, letting the fluid trickle down his throat with only the smallest swallow. “Most welcome.”

  Tyrrik dipped his head in the emperor’s direction, no more than courtesy demanded, and then dug into his food. My mate was way better at this acting game although I was fully aware of the tension radiating from him through our connection.

  The game hadn’t shifted in our favor, not really. My mate would help with my defenses against my father, but now Draedyn knew I controlled my thoughts and had access to my Drae power. So while I’d be able to protect myself by shifting, Draedyn had removed both Drae from the army, and there was the possibility Tyrrik might be used against me despite the emperor’s professed love of the mate-bond. Which I didn’t believe one bit.

  Even with all those worries, Tyrrik was right. The palace was where we needed to be. The war against Draedyn only ended when he was dead.

  We have an emperor to kill, I said to Tyrrik conversationally as I cut through a potato and popped it into my mouth.

  He swallowed his mouthful and poured more gravy onto his chicken. Yes, my love. We do.

  35

  I’m pretty sure all the female Drae hate me now, I complained, really only mildly irritated because honestly, I had bigger potatoes to fry. I’d filled Tyrrik in on the events of the last few days as we walked back through the graphite abode of the emperor.

  Ask me how much I care right now when all I can think about is you, Tyrrik said as I closed the door to my chamber.

  His onyx energy swirled behind me, relief and desire blending together in a tangled mess. My back heated as he drew closer. The desire I had for him was just as strong, but confusion about my father’s game tainted my want.

  Don't you want to know why he's so willing to have us both here? Why work so hard to separate us if only to bring us together? I asked.

  Tyrrik brushed my hair away from my neck and over my shoulder. He stroked his thumb from the base of my neck up to my hairline and then trailed kisses over my exposed skin. Mate.

  I trembled. The force of his drive nearly overwhelmed me. Yes, I replied. But don't you think we should figure a few things out first? Like why Draedyn is so eager to have you here?

  I was missing something, I knew. He’d removed both of us from the fight outside, but I knew there was more.

  Mate. He circled his hands around my waist, gripping the sack-like tunic in each fist on either side of my navel. His restraint disappeared, the tension he’d held at bay burst, and his fangs lengthened, pressing on my skin with each kiss. Mate.

  My mind clouded, and I waded through it, grasping onto the confusion holding me back. You are not only monosyllabic, but you apparently have the vocabulary of a single word.

  He pressed the length of his lower body to mine, rotating his pelvis as he pushed into me. Okay, that felt good. Maybe a little Tyrrik and Ryn time was necessary. Now.

  He gripped my hip bones and growled. I’ve missed you so much. Please?

  I gasped and tilted my head to give him better access.

  He nipped me, just the tips of his fangs grazing the soft skin of my neck at our mate mark, and midnight fire pulsed through me. I shifted, turning toward him. His talon grazed the soft flesh of my abdomen as he tore through my tunic. Holy pancakes.

  In one fluid movement, he turned me and pressed my back to the door, pushing his lower body to mine. Through the torn tunic, he explored my body—my waist, the underside of my breasts, my hips. His caress was followed by a bruising kiss. He slid his knee between my legs and tugged me closer until I was flush against his hard body.

  I trembled as I fumbled blindly with the ties of his aketon.

  The remaining shreds of my clothes fell to the floor as well as his aketon. Apparently, I could multitask.

  Ryn. Please, he begged. I need you.

  Yes, I breathed. My own need to feel him just as strong. Mate. Now we were both monosyllabic.

  His hands slid under my thighs, and then he lifted me.

  The world, and all of the problems in it, disappeared. The bands of our bonds danced together, entwined, melding as our passion and bodies became one.

  Time ceased to have meaning.

  We lay staring at each other in the aftermath, sheet drawn up to our hips, our legs tangled together beneath it.

  I felt so strong when Tyrrik was by my side.

  I was not made to be parted from you, Ryn. He shuddered with the words, his desperate relief echoing through to me.

  Hush now, love. I traced my fingertips over his exposed chest which shined from our recent love-making. He captured my hand and held it to his lips.

  A moment later, he tugged me closer, tucking me under his arm so I was pressed against his side. I wrapped my arm around him, and emboldened by the lingering fear I felt in him, I climbed on top of him. Trailing kisses from his abdomen to his neck, I sent small pulses of healing energy through our bond to buoy him, replenishing him in every way that I could.

  He responded, and his frantic movements quickened my own.

  This time, after we’d both shuddered with release, his eyes closed and a small smile played at the corners of his mouth. He whispered, I love you.

  I pressed close, our chests together as I sent him another burst of healing power with my kiss. I love you too. You rest. Before he could protest, I pressed my fingers to his lips. We need it, you more than me, just for an hour or two. Then we’ll plan.

  Al’right, he said, making me grin. Tyrrik's breathing soon evened into a slow rhythm.

  I was not such a fool to believe my father had changed his intentions. But I didn’t know his plan either. With another kiss for Tyrrik, I rolled out of bed. I pulled a clean sack tunic on and grabbed a second one, intent on a short bath if the halls were clear.

  Lucky for me, they were. I checked my powers, grinning as I saw my lapis lazuli happily entangled with Tyrrik’s onyx energy, and there was my Phaetyn web. No oily green nastiness in sight. Good, good.

  A Druman stopped me before I reached the stairs, his eyes narrowing in a glare. I returned the look and said, “Don’t mess with me. I have no problem severing your head from your neck if you get between me and my bath. I’m not aiming for trouble, so go back and report to Daddykins.”

  The smart mule stepped aside. In a blur, I grabbed his knife as I passed. Not that I needed it, but I didn’t want him to have it either. I ducked into the dark stairwell and started down. If I put on the Phaetyn veil, I was afraid Draedyn would come looking for me, and I hadn’t lied. My intent had been a bath, but as I approached the sulfurous pools, I thought I heard someone behind me and turned. I studied the dark, shifting enough to bring my Drae eyes forward. There was a Druman standing there. Why?

  As soon as he turned away, I decided to take the risk. I put up my Phaetyn veil and snuck after him. He’d disappeared into an alcove in the corner, and I creeped to it on silent feet.

  I waited another couple of minutes, reaching my Drae power through to feel Tyrrik’s peace through our bonds, and with assurance of his current safety, I darted to the alcove, pursing my lips at the narrow stairwell. Even with my Drae vision, I couldn’t see to the bottom, and my gut churned a gentle warning. What was down there? Decision made, I ran down the stairs.

  At the bottom of the stairwell, a long hall extended into the mountain o
f graphite. There was no light, and even with my Drae vision, the misty darkness made it difficult to see. The smell of sulfur hung heavy in the moist air, and I rotated my arms to trail my fingers along the walls on either side. Only a couple dozen feet down the hall, a gap opened up on my right. I peeked through the doorway and froze when I saw the bars. Cold iron rods, just like in Irdelron’s dungeons, made my stomach roil. I blinked, but the vision didn’t change. These were Draedyn’s dungeons.

  The Druman was here, inspecting each cell, and I stood back, safe in my veil as he finished and walked back up the stairs to the top.

  I inched forward to see the occupant in the closest cell.

  My heart tripped as I looked into the lavender eyes of an emaciated Phaetyn curled in the back corner of the cell. Vivid images from my past assailed me, and I reached a hand up to touch my forehead where a sunflower had once woken me in a dungeon much like this.

  I reached out another Drae tendril to my mate for reassurance.

  Ryn?

  I’m al’right. Just a bad memory. I was outside the cage, at least for now, anyway.

  Do you want me to come to you?

  No. I’ll be back in a few minutes. Let me take a bath.

  I could join you.

  I snorted in my mind. Then I wouldn’t bathe. Let me be.

  “Who are you?” the Phaetyn asked, the high pitch of her voice declaring her a female.

  Right, she would be able to see through my veil.

  I stretched the mossy-green webbing over, covering her and our conversation from the Druman above.

  “Ryn,” I whispered. “Who are you?”

  “Ash. Are you here to drain me?” When I shook my head, she sagged, smiling slightly, or maybe that was a grimace. “I haven’t seen a female Drae for probably twenty years.”

  I swallowed the emotion that clogged my throat, sure I couldn’t have heard right. “Twenty?”

  She shrugged, her sack-tunic sliding off her shoulder. “Maybe more, maybe less.”

  “Ryhl?” I asked, my heart fluttering with anticipation. “Did you know Ryhl?” I pressed my face between the bars.

  The Phaetyn straightened. “Did you know her?”

  I nodded. “She was my mother.”

  The Phaetyn stood and hurried over to the bars. “Is she still alive? Has she come—”

  “She . . . died,” I said. “But she sent me.” Maybe not in as many words, but because of her, I was here.

  The woman’s gaze narrowed as she studied me. “To end his reign?”

  I gave the tiniest nod in answer. “With my mate. The Phaetyn queen, Lani, Luna’s daughter, is outside the mountain, fighting with the others of your people.”

  She smiled. “How would you kill him?”

  This time, I grimaced. “Permanently. That’s the plan. I’m Phaetyn and Drae,” I joked, weakly. “Draedyn doesn’t stand a chance. I’m actually referred to as Most Powerful Drae in some parts of the realm.”

  Ash reached through the bars, slapping her bony hand to my mouth. “He can hear you.”

  I shook my head and pulled away so her hand dropped. “I have the ancestral power from Queen Luna. I’ve covered us. He can’t hear a thing. No one can.”

  “How do I know I can trust you?”

  I shrugged. “You don’t,” I answered honestly. “Anyway, I wanted to know if my friend is here. I’m looking for Kamini. Do you know her?”

  Ash sucked in a breath, and her eyes widened, making her cheekbones more prominent, and her entire frame appear even more wasted. “How do you know Kamini?”

  I rolled my eyes. Hadn’t I just said she was my friend? Ryn the magnanimous needed to make an appearance here in Draedyn’s dungeons. Al’right. I could totally do that.

  “Yep. I met her in Zivost a few months ago. Is she here?”

  Ash shook her head. “No, Draedyn took her to his private prison a few days ago. Up by his rooms.”

  Dungeons were commonplace, I supposed. But surely owning a private prison near your personal rooms meant for sleep and relaxing was a sign you should check your sanity levels. “Where’s that?

  “In his tower.”

  Of course it was. “Umm, any chance there’s a prisoner named Dyter here?”

  Ash shook her head again. “Is he Phaetyn or Drae?”

  “Neither. Human.”

  Her lavender gaze darkened. “The only humans the emperor tolerates are the ones willing to work for him. If this Dyter is human and against the emperor, Draedyn wouldn’t have him here. If he found him, he’d kill him.”

  “He doesn’t keep human prisoners?” I asked, my voice catching. “Ever?

  She pursed her lips. “Not in the seventy-five years I’ve been here.”

  Drak.

  “Let me have your knife,” she said, pointing to the Druman’s blade.

  “It’s not mine. I pulled it off a Druman.”

  She waved at me to give it to her.

  “Just don’t cut yourself,” I cautioned. “It might have Drae blood on it.”

  This time it was Ash who rolled her eyes. “He wouldn’t waste his blood, and the mules’ blood isn’t strong enough to hurt us.”

  I handed over the blade though my skin crawled at the wide-eyed excitement on her face. I gulped in horror as Ash buried the blade into her belly, all the way to the hilt.

  “What the hay!” I shouted.

  “Don’t,” she snapped, hitting my hands away as I reached through the bars to heal her. “If I’m lucky enough to die, it would be a release from this place, a blessing from the stars.”

  She wrenched the blade from her body and then held the hilt out to me, shaking the dripping knife when I didn’t take it right away.

  “What are you doing? What do you want me to do with it?” I asked, my voice hoarse with shock.

  “Stab him. At some point you’ll be close enough, and I would love to have my blood help poison the emperor.”

  We’d been talking just seconds ago. I’d given her the blade to protect herself. Shaking, I accepted the weapon, holding the gruesome knife between my thumb and forefinger. I didn’t have the heart to tell her I didn’t need her sacrifice, that I had everything I needed inside. “I’ll do my best—”

  Ash reached through the bars and yanked me to her, hissing in pain with the movement. “Don’t do your best. Your best won’t be good enough. You need to stab him in the chest, right near his black heart. Kill him for all of us. Avenge us.”

  Ryn! Tyrrik bellowed.

  “I’m sorry,” I said, pulling away from her desperate clawing, trembling as my eyes took in the silvery blood covering the ground.

  “Go now and do it,” she shrieked.

  I backed away, my eyes wide.

  “In the heart,” she screamed after me, followed by a wet cough.

  Gasping for air, I sprinted out of the dungeons, up to the bath chamber, and up the stairs to the main hallways of Draedyn’s castle. The castle seemed eerily empty; everyone was probably asleep. The moon’s silvery light seeped in through the windows, highlighting the blood on my fingers and the knife.

  Retracing my steps to my room, I asked Tyrrik, Is everything okay? What’s happened?

  He didn’t respond, but I could feel his urgency through our bond.

  Not that I needed the extra motivation. The walls became hazy as I released my Drae power to aid my speed. I burst through the door, and Tyrrik blurred as he leapt from the bed to meet me.

  I dropped the knife just before he crashed into me, the force throwing us several feet back. He cradled the back of my head, preventing it from crashing into the stone as he pressed into me.

  Whoa.

  Tyrrik muttered under his breath, and I only glanced at his heated gaze before he crushed his mouth to mine.

  Surprised by his desperate drive, I struggled to respond. He growled possessively and then trailed kisses down my neck while he inched the edge of my tunic upward with his hands. He stroked up and down my thighs, kneading from my hips to
my waist as he repeated, “Mate.”

  “Wait, Tyrrik. What’s wrong?” Chills danced over my skin with his feral want. He’d always been measured and careful with me before, but this . . . This wild need felt animalistic.

  He nipped my lower lip, and I opened my mouth to him. Our tongues tangled, and he pulled my arms overhead, trapping my wrists in his grip. Foggy desire pounded through our bond, clouding my mind with his singular focus.

  He pushed my neck to the side.

  “Tyrrik,” I gasped. “What’s happening?” This wasn’t him. Something was wrong. I felt the pressure of his fangs on my skin, not just anywhere but on the exact space where he’d first touched me. Over our mate mark.

  He bit hard and I shrieked, his teeth piercing my skin. Hot fire coursed through me, making me moan with the surging swell of desire.

  Mine, he growled.

  “I-I.” I clung to the wrongness of a moment earlier and pushed back. “No, Tyrrik. Stop.”

  Tyrrik stilled.

  Holy-drae-babies. I blinked through the fog and croaked, What’s going on?

  Ryn?

  Who else would it be? I clutched the side of my neck and swam through some serious waves of I-want-to-jump-Tyrrik. You just bit me!

  His mouth dropped. I bit you? He seemed genuinely horrified.

  The tremor in his voice made me freeze and my heart pound. An ominous weight pressed on my chest, and terrified of what I might find, I turned my attention to his Drae energy, my abdominal muscles clenching as my stomach turned. I studied his onyx power, comforted when I saw only rich black. Even so, I said, Please tell me you remember what just happened.

  He ran his hand over my hair, stroking my head and back. His heart pounded in his chest, never slowing, even minutes later. “Yes, at least I think so.”

  What’s the matter? I asked. Talk to me, please.

  Look over my powers again, Tyrrik said suddenly. Scour every twist of my energy.

  Al’right. I turned inward to my lapis lazuli energy and followed the glorious strands of onyx to Tyrrik’s Drae. Why are you so worried that you bit me?

  I bit you on your mark? he said to himself. What was I thinking?