“Where do you think you are going?” His voice drops to a low whisper. “Any sudden movement and the archers above will have your throat.”
I begin to hesitantly move my body behind Koen’s large frame, blocking my head and neck from the castle view.
“I am with you two… why would they release the arrows?” I mutter.
“They don’t know you.” His jaw ticks as he stays tense. “Even though you are with us, most of the guards of Eekatia don’t trust me.”
I close my eyes for a moment, exhaling calmly before I speak. “Why don’t they trust you?” My lips tug between my teeth as I contemplate what he will say. I’ve always suspected him to be dangerous, more of a rebel than his brother, but for the guards not to trust him, I feel my gut instincts have been right about him this whole time.
“I’m a bastard.” He clears his throat, voice dropping to a deeper tone. “Bastards normally aren’t allowed in the castle walls. But they fear Florian.”
My head shifts to the side, resting my head into his back for protection. “And why would they fear Florian?” My voice shakes, staring at Florian who begins to bend down towards the land.
“His curse.”
I hit Koen’s stomach, knowing it’ll radiate pain, but I do it anyway. “What is his damn curse?”
“He will have my tongue if I speak of it.” He takes a deliberate pause, his eyes meeting mine with such intensity it takes my breath away. “And I would have his, if he spoke of the truth of my mother. We have made a pact to never speak of these things.To the grave.”
My heart plummets to the pit of my stomach as he glares into my soul. My heart flickers wildly as my insides tighten, rolling around like snakes. His eyes linger on mine for more than what I am comfortable with. As if he is looking into the depths of who I am, what I will become, and is holding my life in his eyes, dictating every feeling inside of me.
“I told you to quit staring at me like that,” I hiss.
“You might want to look away if you are squeamish with bones breaking.” His lips form a tight line before turning around.
“Bones breaking?” My eyes widen in a panic.
What the hell does he mean, bones breaking?Whose bones will break?
I hear a guttering wail that pierces my eardrums. I hesitantly reach up to my ears, making sure no blood trickles down my skin. My eyes clench as tightly as they can. “What the hell is that!”
I peek around Koen, through his broad arms that pull on the reins for Zeei to walk backwards. The horse shifts, his musclesflexing with every move. I notice Florian’s horse begins to trot around us, moving as far away as he can.
Then I see…him.
Florian’s fingers claw at the ground as his back hunches upward, his high-pitched screech rattling my bones. He moans in agony as his clothes on his back begin to rip, and I catch his bones rippling underneath him. Each movement is followed by the unsettling sound of bones cracking and reshaping beneath his skin. His body convulses, muscles rippling as massive, leathery, ash-colored wings began to bulge and spread from his back. A guttural scream rips from his throat, echoing with raw agony as he shouts to the sky above. His skin stretches and ripples unnaturally, straining to accommodate the emerging form that is clawing beneath.
What the actual hell is happening to him.
“Forgive me, Gods,” Florian pleads out to the sky.
I slide off the horse, my boots splashing in the mud as I begin to run towards him.
But fingers dig into my skin, yanking me back with one forceful tug. Koen hovers over me with rage etched into every detail of his face. “Do you have a death wish!” he growls.
With all the effort I have, I try to yank free from his grip, but there is no use.
“What is wrong with him!” I tear my gaze from Koen’s dark eyes and watch Florian’s body rip apart.
“His curse.” Koen drags me away as I continue to fight to break free. “He must do this for us to enter.”
“I don’t want to enter then!” I plead out, my hair swaying in my face as I fight Koen’s vise. “This is insanity! How is this even possible?He will die!”
“Not to the people inside those walls.” He yanks me against his body, slamming into his solid chest. “You should fear this. You should be trying to flee from our presence, yet you stay. Youfight me to help him…why?” His eyes glance around my face, searching for any fear that might be present.
But there isn't. I don’t fear Florian. I don’t fear Florian as he transforms into…a dragon. I fear him.Koen.I don’t understand why, but in his eyes, I feel as if I have known them all my life. As if he was the monster hiding in my closet at night.
His hot breath tickles against my face as he pulls me closer. “Who and what are you, really? You should fear that beast that my brother is turning into!”
