The man in the photo couldn’t have been more different from the one who’d lived in her home the past week. But they were the exact same. There was no mistaking it. No disbelief. Alashiya stared at Taevas, atAdon,on that screen and felt the world give way beneath her feet.
She believed him. Mostly. But it was still deeply jarring toseeit there. To look at his photo, to see the tattooed dragons standing guard just behind him, to look into those shiny sunglass lenses andknow.
Good gods, he really is who he says he is.
A part of her was glad she’d never bothered to seek out the news before then. If she’d known that her Adon was the leader of a territory… Well, she had no idea what she would’ve done differently, except maybe shrivel up in abject humiliation at the thought of fantasizing abouthim.
“He’s always looked too smug to me,” Debbie sniffed, breaking the spell that shock had cast over Alashiya. “Just look at that smirk. He’s plotting something right there!”
“No, he’s not.” The words came out quick and sharper than they should’ve.He’s a good man,she wanted to rage.He’s good and kind and patient. He might be a pain in the ass sometimes, but I wouldn’t trade him for anything.
Fortunately, Debbie didn’t appear to hear the real heat in Alashiya’s voice. “Ugh, you girls are too easy. A nice jaw and some money. That’s all it takes. Don’t you see that’s how they get you?”
Alashiya glanced down again, her attention drawn irresistibly to the web page Debbie had been scrolling through. It was hard to keep her attention away from the photo, from theproof— not only that he was who he said he was, but that he was her Adon.
The photo was part of an article, she realized. With a nervous, unskilled touch, she scrolled up to see the headline. Another picture popped up, this one of a wizened dragon in a dark suit addressing an audience of reporters. His face was grim and somehow familiar, though she had no idea how that could be.
ISAND STILL MISSING, PRESUMED DEAD: UNITED CONGRESS URGES DRAAKONRIIK TO HOLD SPECIAL ELECTION, REFUSED AGAIN?—
“We won’t appoint a new Isand until a body is found,” Constantin Aždaja, First Advisor to the Isand and his paternal uncle, told the world at the latest press conference. “Or until we have no other option.”
A month has passed since Taevas Aždaja’s disappearance and the outside pressure for the gap in leadership to be filled, even temporarily, continues to grow. Following the assassination attemptson all the leaders of the UTA, the need for stability is rapidly growing.
Sophie Goode, leader of the Coven Collective, still hasn’t made a public appearance after her release from the hospital, and the Orclind is in official mourning following the death of Queen Sigrid. Fearing what could become of the Peace Charter if stability isn’t found quickly, many powerful voices in the United Congress are calling for someone — anyone — to replace Taevas Aždaja, filling what could potentially be a devastating power vacuum in the second wealthiest territory on the continent.
Alashiya couldn’t read more. Her gaze skipped like a broken record needle over the words, blurring them. A part of herwantedto keep reading, but she couldn’t stomach it.
This is my fault.
All that suffering, all that worry. Her stomach curdled. She knew she’d been selfish, keeping him with her. It didn’t matter that he’d consented to it. Sheknewthat he wouldn’t leave without her, and she’d used that to play house with him.
It was all so abstract. A part of her hadn’t grasped, hadn’tbelievedthat it was real. She’d waved off the realities of him being exactly who he said he was. If she couldn’t wrap her head around it, living in the fantasy was easier. Beingscaredwas easier.
Alashiya pushed the tablet back to Debbie. She thought her voice would be croaky, but it came out deathly calm when she said, “I’ll be fine in the city. I just need a car.”
“You got a valid license?”
“Yes. I updated it last year.” She was good about things like paperwork and taxes and such. It was all part of keeping her world stable, her land protected. If she slipped up on something like her license, it was a slippery slope to making a mistake that might get her whole world ripped away from her.
“All right, I guess. You stop over at my place and talk to Mike. Tell him I said you need the blue car. It’s one of the good ones. If he’s a dick about it, come back and get the bat.”
She shook her head. “Thanks. I’ll head over there now. Enjoy the plums.”
Debbie grunted, her attention already back on her tablet, onTaevas.It was a deeply bizarre, almost out of body feeling that came with knowing Debbie was aware of the man that had been her secret for so very long. Even before he crashed into her barn, he’d been hers. She never talked about her clients with anyone in town, never mentioned her imaginary husband.
But they’dknownhim. They’d known him far better than her.
She had just opened the door when Debbie called out, “You see any extremists in the city, run ’em over!”
“Will do.”
Alashiya stepped out onto the street. Her skin was clammy. The warm summer breeze that had carried her into town now felt accusatory somehow, like everytime it brushed her skin it wanted to remind her that she’d done something wrong.
She wanted to rush home and vomit out an apology, but what good would that do? Taevas didn’t need her to be sorry. He needed her to get a damn car. That was the only reason he’d allowed her to go into town at all, and she could only imagine that every second that ticked by saw his worry increasing.
He was worried aboutherwhen he had an entire territory to think of.Gods, I’m an ass.
Alashiya hustled down the street, her hand-me-down boots clicking on the cracked sidewalk. Normally she was extremely vigilant when she was in town, especially during the summer, but not now. All she could think about was that photo, and Taevas, and how badly she’d messed up.
