“What I’m curious about is how Peter fits into all this.” Tate rose to her feet, nearly stumbling as exhaustion pulled at her.
Ryu caught her elbow, steadying her. “You alright?”
Tate patted his hand weakly. Suddenly, it was taking everything in her to remain upright. Tate felt like a wrung-out rag, limp and useless. The only thing she wanted right now was to find a horizontal surface so she could sleep.
It didn’t matter what surface it was. Even the cold stone below her feet would work.
Her stomach roared with anger and Tate pressed a hand to it, feeling like someone had carved out her insides. Correction, eatthensleep.
Ryu’s chuckle was warm against her ear. “I see the toll of taking Ilith’s form twice in one night is catching up to you. Best address that.”
Tate forced herself to push out of his arms and stand on her own. The world swayed dizzyingly, and her eyelids felt like they had weights on them. Gritty and tired as well.
“Here.” Dewdrop reached into the coat he was wearing and pulled out her a slightly worse for wear lemon bar Tate thought she recognized from the refreshment table in the ballroom. “I was saving it for later, but I think you could use it.”
Not in a position to reject it, Tate took it from him, stuffing it into her mouth with one bite.
Her cheeks bulged as she chewed and swallowed, barely tasting the bar in her haste. Pity. The food served to the emperor’s guests was likely better than anything she could find in the lower.
Finished, Tate looked at Dewdrop hopefully.
He sighed, reaching into his overcoat and withdrawing another cookie. “This is it.”
Tate took it gratefully. The lemon bar and cookie would barely make a dent in her hunger, but it was better than nothing. Right now, her stomach felt like it was going to chew a hole in her body.
Ryu moved toward the distortion. “Let’s get out of here before they decide to close the portal with us on this side.”
“Would they really do that?” Dewdrop asked.
“You never know with the emperor and his people.”
“I’m starting to get the feeling that our emperor has a bit of a twisted sense of humor,” Dewdrop said as he and Willa disappeared through the distortion.
Ryu sent one last glance Tate’s way before following them.
Tate lingered, taking a last look at the Rift. It no longer looked peaceful or dreamlike and instead reflected the remnants of the battle that had just taken place. The charred remains of the amalgam were scattered all over the place, the body of Earl Comber lying face up in the middle like a tribute.
Something about the scene felt jarring. Wrong. The passage to that other place shouldn’t be this way. Full of death and pain. It should be beautiful. Awe inspiring.
Not this.
Now that she’d seen Ilith’s world Tate knew exactly what her dragon had given up when their fates intertwined. What all dragons had left behind.
A place where the power they needed to live was abundant. Where they could be always free.
Never before had she questioned Jax or his motives. It was only now, standing at the intersection between worlds, having experienced the other in full technicolor that she couldn’t help but wonder why he’d created this place.
Tate’s mind shied away from the word evil, but that’s how she saw this.
The dragons that came through the Rift had very little choice but to enslave themselves to humans. Humans became quite powerful because of the bond, while Tate still didn’t know what the dragons got out of it besides survival.
To be bound into a tattoo and only released once in a while. It was no wonder dragons had a tendency to drive their bonded mad.
I can feel you thinking too hard,Ilith said, sounding tired.
Tate touched the dragon around her wrist, almost feeling Ilith’s ribcage expand and contract with her breaths.
“If I find a way to return you to your home, would you go?”
