The fire crackled and popped in the hearth set in the sandstone wall. The open balcony doors let in a cool breeze through the bedroom Layala and Thane were given. After Thane killed someone, Layala thought for sure they’d have been tossed into a dungeon or at least outside the walls but instead, they’d been given a suite and room service. At the party she’d drunk too much and tried to leave to find somewhere to use the toilet. Those dragon shifters easily herded her into a corner and started interrogating her about the real reason she and the others were there. Bastards. She wasn’t sure if they were sent by the royals, or if they had acted on their own. But it didn’t matter now. Three days passed since the queen’s birthday ball, and while the time since then was full of leisurely walks through gardens and exploring huge libraries, watching sanctioned fights in the courtyard with Prince Ronan as their escort, being in a foreign place left her worried and restless most nights. The snarls of the fighting in the courtyard below went on for half the night. That was how the dragons settled disputes of any kind, with their claws and teeth, not usually to the death but she’d witnessed a few bodies dragged away, bloodied, and not breathing in the last couple of days. It was no wonder no one batted an eye when Thane tore out a heart. This place was unsettling, and she felt like she hadn’t slept since they arrived.
Yet, the muffled deep voices of Thane and the others in the adjacent room soothed her already tired mind. She should be in there, talking with them about the plan they had in the works. But this bed was soft and the crackle of the fireplace, comforting. And with no fighting dragons in the courtyard, she tugged up the soft, silk blankets, turned on her side and let the night claim her…
Crickets chirped and sweet jasmine swirled in the air. She walked in a lush garden gliding over a white cobblestone path. The silver gown she wore sparkled like the moonlight and stars above. It was so bright here she marveled up at the sky for a while. It took her a moment to notice but did the stars look different? Layala knew them well, it was the best way to navigate the land, but she couldn’t find the three bright stars of the north shaped in a triangle… There were only two. Odd, she thought but kept walking. The fabric of her dress dragged lightly behind her until she spotted a blooming night lily. She squatted down and grabbed hold, snapping its stem and then brought it to her nose. It reminded her of home, like this is what it should smell like. Although she and Aunt Evalyn tried to grow the flowers that only bloomed at night, they hadn’t had much success.
“I’ve been waiting for you,” said a deep voice.
A chill ran over Layala’s skin, and she slowly lowered the lily. That wasn’t Thane, though they sounded similar, a trick she’d decided. Layala blinked, suddenly aware that she was dreaming. She knew who waited there. She didn’t want to run this time, didn’t want to be afraid of the mage who tortured her sleep.
Standing, she turned to face him, chin raised high. The hooded, broad-shouldered male waited a yard away. His presence didn’t seem as menacing this time, perhaps because she expected him.
“You’re not running.” He sounded surprised.
“No.” Layala even took a step closer. A long dagger appeared in her hand. “But maybe you should be.”
The sliver of light under his hood revealed a smile, a small scar across his chin, and a dimple. A breeze picked up pieces of her hair and made the fabric of his cloak float around his ankles. “You can’t hurt me here.”
“What do you want?”
“You must find me. I’ve waited a long time.”
“That’s not going to happen.” In the back of her mind, she screamed at herself to wake up, to not speak to the Black Mage any longer. It felt wrong, felt like he was awake and alive in her dreamworld.
“It doesn’t have to be this way. We don’t have to be enemies.” He waved his hand and the lily left Layala’s fingertips and traveled to his. He looked at it as if it was special. “I can give you power.”
“You’re talking to the wrong person. I don’t want power. I never have.”
He was suddenly behind her, his fingers gliding along her upper back, down her arm. He grabbed a piece of her hair and brought it to his nose. She clenched her teeth but refused to show her disgust.
“Everyone wants power,” he said and dropped her hair. His light steps circled around her. “You want vengeance. I will give you what your heart desires most.”
She turned to watch him on her left. “I can get my own vengeance.”
“Perhaps,” he said. “But your enemies are vast, even more than you know, and much stronger than you are now. You are afraid of your own magic.” He leaned close to her ear. “Afraid of what you truly are.”
Bristling at his closeness, she turned to shove him, and he caught her wrists. She would have sworn he was physically there, gripping her as if his life depended on it. As she tried to wrench herself free, he began to laugh. “You can’t even control your own mind. We’re in your world, in your head. Come on, break free.” She kicked out to sweep his legs and he vanished, appearing behind her. “Over here.”
Whirling around with the dagger, she slashed, and he was gone again. She searched among the bamboo and the exotic flora. A silver butterfly fluttered from one of the lilies and she watched it fly until it led her to him lying on a stone bench, with his hands behind his head. “You need me as much as I need you.”
“You’re wrong,” she said, gripping her dagger tighter. “I have everyone I need already. And one day I will destroy you.”
In a flash, he was in front of her, inches from her face. “Come and find me then,” he hissed. “I dare you to try.”
Layala shot up in bed, sweat soaking her hairline. She clutched the blanket and took in slow deep breaths through her nose. Maker, that was too real this time. Birds happily chirped with the morning sunrise. She could hardly believe the night came and went, when it felt like she barely closed her eyes. Thane’s side of the bed appeared undisturbed. Had he stayed awake all night?
Setting her feet on the soft sheepskin rug, she slipped out of bed and peeked in the other room. Thane lay back in a huge beige armchair, staring up at the ceiling. Siegfried, Leif, and Fennan sat in a half circle around him. None of them slept? What had they been doing all night? That’s when she saw the table between them all was full of silver and blue chips, playing cards and coins. The pile in front of Siegfried was the largest.
“You four stayed up all night playing poker? We have plans today.”
In the middle of pulling his dark-blond hair back tight, Siegfried looked to Layala and stood. “Plans will continue.” He gestured to the chair he’d been in and leaned against the wall.
She folded her arms against the morning chill, even the thick sweater she wore didn’t defend from, and stepped into the room. Thane dropped his chin and smiled. “Hello, my dear. Did you get any sleep?”
She shrugged and sat in the soft, maroon armchair Siegfried had given up. “A little.” Should she tell them about her dreams? About how this connection she had with the Black Mage seemed to be growing? “But I had a nightmare.”
“Oh?” He cocked his head to the side. “Do you need me in there to chase them away?”
She rolled her eyes as the others laughed. “The Black Mage was in my dream. And—this wasn’t the first time.” She pawed at the tangles in her hair, thinking about the venom in his voice with the last words he said.
The four males looked back and forth between each other. Leif grumbled something about his Nana and prophetic visions but rested his chin on his fist and stared at her.
“What kind of dreams?” Thane’s brows lowered and he sat forward, leaning on his thighs. His loose dark hair fell forward. She hadn’t noticed it before, but it had gotten longer. It must reach his mid back now.
She thought about the first one he appeared in. “In the beginning, he would chase me through dark woods. And I was terrified.” She chewed on her lower lip. “But this time… it felt real. Like it wasn’t a nightmare at all but as if both of us were there, in the same garden together, talking.”
Thane kept his face placid. “About what?”
“About waking him up, finding him. He said he could give me power.”
Fennan shot to his feet and cursed. “You can’t let him get in your head. What if it is real? What if he has found a way to get to you?”
“I’m not letting him in.” She rubbed the back of her arms, shaking her head.
“But he has,” Thane said slowly, eyes lined with concern. “He has gotten into your head. Is there more?”
Layala looked down, watching her bouncing toes. Angry tears stung. “I’ve heard his voice, calling to me even while awake.”
“Why didn’t you tell me this before?” Thane asked. He didn’t sound angry but frustrated and worried.
“I thought it was you!” she stood and began to pace next to the low-burning fireplace. “When we were apart. Come to me. I need you. He sounded so similar to you and when I realized it wasn’t, I didn’t say anything because I was scared of what you would think.” She shoved her hand toward Leif who looked more nervous than the rest. “You’re afraid I’m like him, aren’t you? Afraid that I’ll go bad.”
Leif shook his head, blinking rapidly. “No, Fightbringer. You don’t need to be afraid of that or what we think. You’re good. I know you are. It’s just disturbing that he’s found his way to you. And I’m afraid for you. We need to stop him.”
“How? He’s dead and he still has more power than all of us.”
Thane leaned back and his chest rose and fell. “You must find a way to keep him out. Is it every night?”
“No… just sometimes.” This was the first time it had happened in days.
Thane stood and slid his hand around her waist and stopped her pacing. He wrapped his arms around her from behind and hugged her close. “It’s your mind. You have the power there. You control it. Force him out.”
“What if I can’t?” she whispered.
“You can, Laya.”
“Well, this just proves we need to get the scepter and fast,” Fennan said. “We better pray to the Maker that today we have luck on our side. All the other days have been shit.”
A knock at the door startled them all. Layala nibbled on her lower lip, hoping that whoever stood on the other side hadn’t heard anything important.
Siegfried jerked his dagger loose and swept to the other side of the door, ready to get the jump on whoever it might be. Piper was the only one from their group not with them. Thane nodded to Siegfried, and he pushed down on the flat gold handle. The door creaked open to reveal Prince Ronan and Piper. She looked so dainty next to him. At her five foot six and his over seven feet, his silver hair, and her bright red, they were quite the pair.
“Good morning, all,” Ronan said cheerfully, and placing his hand on Piper’s lower back, he escorted her in with him. He did a quick survey of the room and then his jaw dropped. “You didn’t invite me to poker night? I’m offended.”
Siegfried placed his dagger back and closed the door behind them, retaking his spot on the wall.
“You’re more than welcome to join us tonight,” Thane said.
“I think I will.”
Layala noticed that his hand grazed Piper’s, almost as if it was a request. She tucked her hand in her pocket but smiled up at him. Interesting.
“Anyway, we have a tour of the history museum this morning as requested. I’m intrigued that the elves are interested in dragon history.”
Thane leaned his elbow on the fireplace mantel. “Ever since you showed me that book I’ve wanted to know more. Wars with gods, other realms, who wouldn’t like to know more?”
Layala smiled. “It’s fascinating.” And it was, but so was the scepter.
