You wish to mate with Auren?
His big head came to rest beside me.
You know I do.
And if you were successful in mating her, but she neither wanted, nor accepted the bond? I replied.
That’s not possible, he said.
But if it was? If you mated her and didn’t realise how she felt until afterwards?
A big huff of breath led me to believe he was starting to understand.
I’d throw myself into the sea and let the current suck me under. Better to be dead than to dishonour a queen so.
Something hot and acidic rose inside me. More corrosive than even Argent’s spittle, it burned everything it touched, leaving me open mouthed and gasping.
Then tomorrow we head for the coast, I replied, because despite myself,I dishonoured Fern tonight.
That was not your intention. I see your heart, Dain. You wish to worship?—
If wishes were horses, we’d all ride, I said, feeling the ache in my eyes that made me want to close them, but I wouldn’t. More dreams, more visions, they’d come unbidden and then where would I be? My pencil moved across the page, making the details of my shame come to life.
Chapter 39
Fern
“What the hell is going on?” Lance snapped.
I tugged at my clothing, having wrestled it on as quickly as I could as I waded out of the water. The fabric had resisted at every turn, making the process far harder than it needed to be. Of course, the fact my cheeks were burning the entire time as I remembered what had happened was no help.
That moment of wonder as the swarm of prayer bugs swept down, seemingly to land in my hand. When I blinked, I could still see the gleaming shadow of them on the insides of my eyelids. That and Dain’s unending stare, but if I was walking down the path back to the camp site, Lance was taking it at a rapid clip. The minute he got close to the other riders, his sword was out. Viridians’s head rose as he watched the proceedings and so did Auren’s.
“Is this why you offered to take Lady Fern to this tomb?” Lance snapped.
“Not sure I know what you’re talking about, Lieutenant.”
Kael dropped a brace of dead rabbits to the ground with an audible thud before squaring up to Lance.
Gods, what were these idiots doing?I thought as my steps quickened.
Masculine threat displays are used to impress females, Auren informed me,and warn off competitors.
Competitors?I said, watching Lance step right up into Kael’s space. The way their eyes gleamed, the way Lorien dropped the sticks he was arranging to build up the fire and join them, didn’t make sense. All of this just so their dragons would get access to Auren? I glanced over at their beasts, who were placidly resting a small distance away from my dragon. Slate’s wings shifted, then his eyes fell shut.
“Did you think you could bring a lady all the way out into the wilds to dishonour her?” When Lance’s hand went to his sword hilt, Kael’s eyes narrowed. “That away from the keep, no one would protect her?”
“What exactly are you protecting Fern from?” Kael drawled. “The fire that we built? The rabbits we intend to cook for her dinner?”
“Lance—” I said, coming to stand beside them. “I’m sure this has all been a mistake. If Dain wanted to spy on me, he would’ve been better served lurking in the forest.” With a blink, I saw his stricken expression. Not quite the look one hoped to see on a man’s face when he saw you naked for the first time, but I think I understood why. “From what I can tell, he was lured forth by the sight of the prayer bugs, not me.”
“Is that what he did?” Kael’s weight settled on one foot as he looked me up and down far too slowly. “Well, he’s a better man than me. He just watched. I’d have joined you.”
“You…” Lance snapped, but my hand went to his arm, stopping him from pulling his weapon free. His eyes stared fixedly at my hand, then flicked up to stare into mine. “Fern, a man doesn’t go slinking through a forest to spy on a woman bathing, not if he’s got any decency at all.” He turned and took my hands in his. “We can fly to the tomb together. I might not know the way, but there are plenty of villages nearby. We’ll stop for directions and?—”
“Not going to be much help when you reach the tomb,” Kael said with a slight smile. “If you reach the tomb. You’re just as likely to fly around in circles until we find you and steer you straight.”
“Why do we need you when we get to Blackreach?” I asked. Lance sucked in a breath, ready to answer, but I was focussed on what really mattered.
