We landed gracefully in the palace courtyard. It seemed his entire court was arrayed across the neatly pruned lawn before us.
The first person my eyes fell on was Emanual, King Helmut’s royal dragon. Emanual didn’t look sad, just disappointed.
I scanned the other faces. The fact that I had been dormant on the other side of the Wall for more than a decade hadn’t dulled my senses in the least. It was too easy to discern humans from dragons. Dragons’ human forms stood out; they were prettier than the humans.
Aware that I had hesitated a beat too long, I slid off Matt’s wing. Many of the dragons in Helmut’s service bowed. Their faces I had not forgotten. They used to be illustrious members of a dragon league.
Before I had a chance to greet even one of them, though, King Helmut appeared on the castle balcony. He hadn’t aged a day. Somehow combining grace and haste, he descended the marble stairwell to the courtyard, passed rows of his court with nary a nod of his head, and came to a halt before Matt and me in the unrelenting autumn sunlight.
He didn’t say one word. Just looked at me. The moment stretched like taffy. Then he broke into a smile and embraced me. “Welcome back, Jako. We were so worried about you. Where were you all this time?”
“You know me.” I smiled. “Always serving and protecting. Always a mission out there to take. How are you? I heard… things through the grapevine, but some gossip is hard to believe.”
His cheer faltered, but he shook his head as if to clear it. “I guess Sarafine gave Gor… gave him… too much of her essence.”
“I’m so sorry, Helmut.” Almost no one else could get away addressing him without honorifics. I decided to reclaim my status early. But I lowered my voice, the next part for his ears only. “I know it can’t be easy. Do they really think Tanya and I are behind this too?”
“Shh,” His eyes darted left and right before he regained control. “We can’t speak her name.”
“Seriously?” I laughed. “She was Kate’s Dent, Helmut.”
“Yeah, a Dent who looks guilty in every way with her absence.”
“She told me about that.”
The king of Tith took a step closer. “You know where she is?”
“Of course I know where she is,” I said. “Maybe she has a good reason to hide. We’ll see.”
“I hope you can explain why two royal dragons of the Malone court went missing when they were most desperately needed.” The resentment in his tone was unmistakable.
My lower lip curved on one side. Albert never told them. They would’ve made a huge deal over Elena’s return at the sight of me, at the sight of this mystery girl with the dark mark who had arrived at Dragonia Academy a couple days ago. Even Blake the Rubicon, however or whatever he knew, hadn’t told them about her. What is that boy’s problem? I decided not to mention her. Too many ears. “Albert sent me on this mission, Helmut. I’m sorry he died. Devastated. It wasn’t the plan.”
Helmut frowned. “There is more behind their deaths, isn’t there?”
“Haven’t you learned by now?” Those within earshot gasped at my insubordination. “There is always more when it comes to the Malones.”
“But Robert…”
I put my hand on his shoulder. “It wasn’t easy not telling Robert.” It was hard not to picture King Albert’s dragon in the moment, hard to ignore the twinge of nostalgia or… whatever that emotion was. Was it me, or were we dragons not the best at that kind of thing?
The regret on Helmut’s faced mirrored my own. “He didn’t know.”
I shook my head. “It was supposed to be only Tanya, but when she didn’t return, I joined the mission. I was desperately needed.” I didn’t add the part we both knew. The part about King Albert.
“Are we going to learn the truth behind all this? This important cargo you mentioned to Matt?”
“Soon.” But thoughts buzzed in my head: Why hasn’t the Rubicon already told them? Instead I asked, “When will I see the Ancients?”
“They said two weeks.”
“Two weeks? No, I needed to see them tomorrow. I almost died protecting this mission. Protecting Paegeia itself. It’s important, Helmut.”
“Then you’d better tell me, Jako. They aren’t going to grant you an audience for any old thing you claim is important.”
I wanted to tell him. “I can’t. I’m sorry, but I got separated from… it.” I refused even to hint that the daughter I’d been talking about had anything to do with the important thing in my care that was critical to our world. “I need it in my possession again before I share anything more. Even with you.” The regret in my voice was real, but I couldn’t trust even the king of Tith.
“Where is this thing?”
From behind me, Matt’s voice was startling. “It is safe.”
My gaze shifted to him. He was good at keeping secrets. Matt was back in his human form, wearing a robe. That was what I missed about Paegeia. He knew it was not his story to tell. He would wait, no questions asked.
“Okay,” Helmut said. “Welcome back to the palace. I’m sure you’ve missed it.”
I roared with laughter. “You have no idea.”
He led Matt and me up the grand staircase to the entrance of his home. For one second, I wished I was in my dragon form… as grand as the architecture around me. In some ways, the palace in Tith was prettier than the one in Etan.
But I missed my home. I missed the mountains in Etan, the secret caves, the waterfalls.
I badly wanted to tell Helmut about Elena. But how could I tell one king who was best friends with another that his friend had kept something as big as his heir from them.
“I need to see them tomorrow, Helmut. It’s for Paegeia’s survival. It’s not royal nonsense.”
He frowned. “I’ll see what I can do. Come. You must be starving. I want to hear it all.” He led us into his home.
Matt, with a knowing smile, excused himself to give us some privacy, saying he was too eager to see Emanual to wait until after dinner. Perhaps he was.
I had been here many times in partnership with King Louie. Endless meetings, the war when we almost destroyed all the princes, and so much more.
But braver than this generation of kings was the first for Paegeia. They ruled with their hearts and not their minds.
“Jako!” Queen Magerite appeared just inside and pulled me into a hug. “I thought we were never going to see you again. Where were you all this time?”
“Important business, like always.”
“Still doing King Louie’s bidding even after death?”
“Something like that.”
“You should retire.”
“Oh, believe me, I wanted to, but the royals are a pain in my butt.”
She didn’t laugh; her face fell. “You didn’t hear. They both died about fifteen years ago.”
“I heard. I’m so sorry for everyone’s loss. It wasn’t easy on Tanya, but that was when our paths split.”
Magerite’s eyes widened. She shook her head.
“Tanya?” repeated a boy about Elena’s age, who had blond hair and vivid blue eyes as he stepped forward. “Who is Tanya, Mom?”
“Is this little Lucian?”
The teenager looked at me and back at his mother. Not impressed.
“Lucian, not now, please. We have guests.”
He grunted. “I can’t believe you guys. Who the fuck is Tanya?”
“Language,” Maggie scolded. “Sorry about that, Jako.” Maggie looked at me.
“Who are you?” Lucian asked.
“A guest.” Maggie put her foot down.
“It’s okay, Magerite.” I smiled. “My name is Jako. I was King Louie’s dragon. I’ve known your father since he was in diapers.”
“Sorry for my rudeness,” Lucian said begrudgingly.
“The last time I saw you, you were roughhousing with the Rubicon in the gardens in Etan.”
“I don’t remember that. I was too young.”
“Of course you were. I bet you’re as eager to take your father’s spot as he was to take over from your grandfather.”
Helmut came from behind and touched Lucian’s shoulder. “I wish.”
“I still want to know who Tanya is. This conversation isn’t over. Nice meeting you, Jako, and welcome home.” Lucian turned around and walked left via one of the grand halls to another wing.
“I warned you not to speak her name,” Helmut said.
“He doesn’t know who Tanya is?”
“The Ancients wrote her out of history.”
“That’s ludicrous, Helmut. For all we know, Queen Catherine and Tanya were the first proper dent. And they want to erase it … and you’re letting them.” I didn’t bother keeping the disgust out of my voice.
“It’s a difficult subject, Jako.”
“She was her Dent. She would never have betrayed Kate. She would’ve died for her.” I was starting to lose my temper.
Maggie said placatingly, “Jako, it wasn’t like—”
Helmut put up his hand. “No, Jako’s right. We should’ve fought harder. All of us should’ve fought harder.”
Silence descended.
“Come,” Maggie said. “You must be hungry. We’re preparing a room for you in the west wing. Lucian will be fine.”
“No, he won’t,” Helmut said. “He’s on the brink of figuring out that we lied to him, withheld vital information that could help him claim Blake.”
“What?” I blurted.
“He’s trying, Jako.”
“Claiming a dragon who doesn’t belong to him?”
“He’s more like Albert than Helmut. You’d would think Al was his father,” Maggie chirped.
Helmut laughed.
“Oh, shut up. I love you and no one else.” She winked and gestured for us to follow her to the dining hall.
“I’m just teasing her. Our boy truly believes that if his heart and mind are in the right place, he can claim that dragon.”
“You know the Rubicon is going to kill him, Helmut.”
“Then what do you propose we do, Jako? We promised this time Blake will be saved. This is our attempt to keep that promise. Besides, Lucian’s really good at what he does. You should see him in action sometime.”
“I’d love to.” I smiled.
We entered the dining room, where the long, ornate table was beautifully set for four at one end.
I took a seat and so did Maggie and Helmut. We waited for Lucian until a servant came and announced he wasn’t going to join us.
We dug in.
Helmut and Maggie chatted about the past fifteen years. How much things had changed.
It became clear that the Malones had been the glue holding Paegeia together. Without them, everything was deteriorating.
Helmut explained that he and Caleb, the king of Areeth, were constantly at odds. They couldn’t resolve half the issues presented to them. Caleb had lost his dragon, Yvonne, in the ambush, and things had been different with him ever since.
We spoke about that night, too.
Kate had been incinerated in her own bed.
I closed my eyes. Tanya had felt everything. It was so sad.
The creepers came. Helmut described them as thick, giant plant stalks that came to life when someone came within five feet of them. A horrendous thing to witness.
But neither of them mentioned their other child. They had a daughter, their eldest.
“So, where is Desire?”
They both stared at me.
What the hell?
Helmut looked down at his plate and took a deep breath. Maggie laid her hand on his.
“What happened?”
“Wyverns. You know how much Albert wanted to forge an alliance with them. He believed there were great ones out there. They petitioned for a truce, and I was the fool who opened my house to them. Desi fell for one, and he murdered her.”
I clenched my jaw muscles so hard, my molars hurt. “When did this happen?”
“About eight years ago.”
“I’m so sorry, Helmut. I didn’t know.”
“Of course you didn’t.” He smiled.
“And Lucian?”
“Well, Maggie wasn’t wrong that his mind works more like Albert’s than mine. Like Al, he hates thinking that one day he must take over. He feels he’ll never be ready enough. He treasures his friends, treats them like brothers, and made a promise to Blake that he’ll try to claim him, no matter how difficult it gets. He’s already tried twice now. And each time I pray the Rubicon won’t kill him. I have to admit, he’s learning a great deal at Dragonia.”
My interest piqued, I interjected, “Oh right, he attends Dragonia?”
“Yes. In fact, he’s only here for the weekend.”
“I need to speak to him.”
“I’ll call him,” Maggie put down her napkin and stood .
“Why are you so interested in Dragonia?”
I sighed. “I have a daughter. We got split up. It’s a long story, but Matt took her to Dragonia.”
“The new student? She’s your daughter?”
“Yeah.” It occurred to me to ask him how he knew about the new student, but I didn’t want to arouse too many questions. “I went by a different name on the other side, and it’s all a big mess. We got ambushed the night we tried to come back, and if it hadn’t been for Matt, we’d both be dead.”
“I heard she made quite an entrance.”
I smiled. I was sure she had. “She thinks I’m dead.”
“You want me to contact them, let her know you survived?”
“No,” I said quickly. Blake. If he hadn’t already told people who she was, it could only mean one thing: her secret kept her safe. “I’ll need to show her I’m alive. Can you take me tomorrow morning, please?”
“Of course,” Helmut promised.
“Dad?” Lucian appeared, following Maggie through the massive arch doorway.
Helmut nodded at him. “Please sit. Jako would like to ask you a few questions about Dragonia.”
“Sure.” He took a seat after pulling out his mother’s chair for her.
I smiled at him. “You’ve met the new girl?”
“You mean Elena?”
I nodded. Hearing her name warmed my heart.
“Yeah,” Lucian said, though his tone was grim. “She sure took a beating this morning. A prank that could’ve gone horribly wrong.”
All my protective instincts went on full alert. “A prank?”
“It was stupid. A Moon-Bolt dragon tried to scare her.”
“Why?”
“I don’t know.” He looked a little cagey, but I decided not to press him. “Master Longwei had to tell us something about her appearance that night, and he mentioned that Fox and his team ambushed you.”
“Fox?” Helmut asked.
“It’s a long story.” I quickly told him.
“He thought it was funny. I didn’t, and neither did Master Longwei.”
My poor bear must have been petrified.
“Jako, you okay?”
I shook my head. “I withheld many things from Elena, including our world. I had my reasons, but I can only imagine what she must be going through.”
“Oh, she was shaken, that’s for sure, but I spoke to her tonight before my father picked me up. It’s long forgotten.” He smiled. “She solved a riddle tonight.”
“What?” I asked.
“She said she never solved them before, that you always gave her riddles, but tonight was the first time she got one.”
I chuckled. “That is the first.”
“She’ll be okay,” Lucian said heartily. “She’s tougher than you think. Already made friends with two kickass first years.”
That brought an even bigger smile to my face. “Thank you, Lucian.”
“She thinks you’re dead.”
“I know. I’ll rectify that soon. Please, until then, I need you to do me a favor. Don’t let her know I’m here.”
Lucian narrowed his eyes. “Why?”
“It’s complicated. It may be hard to believe, but it’s for her own safety.”
“Jako, Dragonia Academy is the safest place she can be.”
“I know,” I said, nodding. “But please, don’t tell anyone about tonight, Lucian.”
He looked unconvinced. He didn’t trust me like his father did. The boy had no idea who I was.
“I’ll explain everything tomorrow after my meeting with the Ancients. Please excuse me. Dinner was lovely, but I’m exhausted. Tomorrow will be a long day.”
“Sure,” Maggie said. “Bernadette will take you to your room. Rest well and deeply, Jako.”
“Thank you, all of you, for your hospitality.” I aimed a serious but hopefully nonthreatening stare at Lucian. “Please… not a word.”
He hesitated for a beat, then nodded. “You have my word.”
“Thank you.”
I followed the servant Bernadette to my room in the west wing, too consumed by my own thoughts to make small talk. Tomorrow I’ll pick Elena up and the truth will come out. She needs tutors, many of them.
As a courtesy, she pointed out Matt’s quarters as we passed; he was staying overnight, too. I know he wanted answers and had figured out who Elena was. But what he wanted to know was how Tanya smuggled her past the Wall so many years ago. The tale was horrendous, but they needed to know what my Thunderlight had done for her. Elena deserved to know too.
It felt good to sleep on satin again, to be surrounded by riches.
Before I became a royal dragon, I was never impressed by opulence, but I’d gotten used to it with Louie, and then I’d had to make do without it again. Raising Albert’s daughter, keeping her safe, in a state of… well, not poverty, but far from this.
I struggled to sleep. Brooding on all the new fears and dangers that awaited Elena. And how unprepared she was for them.
Enemies hid everywhere, even now doing Goran’s bidding. I hoped Chong Longwei was keeping an eye on her. Better yet, two eyes. He must have seen the resemblance; he had to know in his heart who she was.
Blake was my other concern. If the boy chose not to tell them who she was, it could only mean one thing. He’d slipped far into his darkness, but not completely. Elena would’ve shown the signs too. Even if they were apart. She was his true rider, and a bond like that… Well, I’d experienced it. It was already so strong. But how did he warn me yet not tell anyone about her? He’d said he would never hurt her, but did his silence tell another story?
What would’ve happened if I wasn’t here, alive, to tell the Ancients who she truly was?
I couldn’t think about it.
I was so tired, yet my eyes refused to shut, my mind refused to quiet, and worry settled heavy on my heart.
What is Elena going through? Believing I’m dead, not knowing I am alive?
My poor bear.
Tomorrow her life was going to change. I hoped she was ready.
