Or perhaps it was Noah.
Either way, this…all of this…
Was her fault.
She rooted her feet in place, her lungs constricting. Noah let out a wail that shattered her heart and clashed against her ever-growing fear.
“Mare,” Larylis said, whirling to face her, “we have to keep going. I’ll take you somewhere safe.”
“Where? Where can you take me that will keep us safe from dragons?”
“I…I don’t know. They may only be attacking because they were provoked by the archers, and I doubt they’re here to hurt you. Not if what Cora learned in El’Ara is true. If I can at least take you somewhere the dragons can’t sense you…” His expression fell, shoulders drooping.
That told her enough to realize where his mind had gone. She voiced it. “The dungeon.”
Helena gasped. “You can’t take her to the dungeon.”
Larylis rubbed his brow. His voice came out laced with fatigue and regret. “Just until the dragons leave.Ifthey’ll leave. It’s the deepest level of Ridine. I’ll stay too, I’ll?—”
“Yes.” The word flew from her lips even as it sank her heart. The last place she wanted to be was in a godsdamned dungeon. But if it kept her and Noah safe…if it kept Ridine safe, her friends safe, and everyone else who was here…
She lifted her chin, portraying a queenly aura she didn’t feel. “It must be done.”
Larylis’ expression grew even more tortured. He opened his mouth, but before he could say a word, a figure bounded up the stairs. Mareleau’s eyes grew wide at the sight of Cora, her hair spilling from its updo, the delicate lace at the hem of her ivory gown torn and stained, even though she had half of it gathered in her arms to assist her climb. Their eyes met, and Cora’s countenance turned apprehensive. Still, she rushed straight for Mareleau.
“I’m sorry,” Cora said, voice strained as she reached for Mareleau. Mareleau froze, expecting an embrace. But her friend wasn’t here to comfort or hug her.
A sharp pain erupted from the sides of her neck. Then came the weight of something resting against her clavicle.
Cora took a step back, eyes glazed with tears. “I’m so, so sorry, Mare.”
Mareleau shifted Noah’s weight to one arm and lifted her free hand to her neck. Her fingers met a smooth, hard surface. She realized then what this was.
Cora had collared her.
20
Teryn’s first day as king consort had thoroughly gone to shit. Thankfully, Cora’s gamble with the collar had paid off. The dragons had disappeared hours ago, but only after leaving a dozen shattered windows, a crumbling keep roof, a charred battlement, and a few casualties in their wake. Teryn hadn’t seen what had sparked the fight between the archers and the black dragon, but Captain Alden’s report stated the dragon had grown hostile as soon as it had spotted the armed soldiers. Their arrows had done nothing to the creature, and they’d had no defense against its flames, hence the casualties.
Now those lives hung heavy on Teryn’s shoulders, if only because they weighed on Cora’s. She’d given the order for the archers to take their posts. He wouldn’t let her bear that alone.
He eyed her across the council table; she was seated at the head while he occupied the foot. She didn’t bother maintaining a regal posture as she sank deep in her chair. It was evening now, and their formal council meeting had ended. They’d come up with very few solutions regarding the dragons, only addressed reports of burned farmland, missing livestock, and the overall terror of the people who’d spotted the dragons in person. The wedding guests had been desperate to leave Ridine at once, and Cora and Teryn had decided to let them. There wasn’t much they could do to protect them, whether they were at Ridine, on the road, or in their homes, so if it made them feel safer to flee the castle, so be it. Only those who’d come from north of Khero were cautioned to stay until a scouting party could be sent ahead. Which, thankfully, was just one retinue.
Lex and Lily entered the room with hesitant expressions. A hazy figure swept in along with them, one only Teryn could see. The ghost was female, and from the look of her simple yet dated attire, she must have been a servant who’d died at Ridine decades ago. She swept down the length of the table, hardly noticing its occupants. But as soon as she approached Teryn’s end, her eyes locked on him.
She launched a floating step away, muttering to herself. “No, not you. No, no, no, no. Not that one.” Then she left almost as quickly as she’d come, disappearing into the nearest wall. That was the fourth spirit Teryn had spotted since entering the council room, but the first that had come so close. Not to mention her strange reaction. It reminded him of Emylia’s startled responses when she’d first learned he could see her as a ghost.
Thoughts of Emylia made him wonder if she’d made it to Zaras. If so, had she managed to gather any intel on Syrus? He wasn’t sure how fast a spirit could traverse great distances, but now that Emylia was no longer tethered to the crystal, he supposed many things were possible.
Cora brightened somewhat when she saw Lex and Lily, though the look held a fatigued edge. “Come,” she said, extending a hand to the empty chairs.
Now that the formal council meeting had ended, only two figures aside from Teryn and Cora occupied places at the table: Captain Alden and Lord Hardingham. The latter was a middle-aged man with neatly trimmed auburn hair, a short beard, and kind brown eyes. He was previously Larylis’ councilman—and his father’s before that—and was now Cora’s Head of Council. After Cora had lost her brother’s councilmen to Duke Morkai’s slaughter last summer, she’d been left with no one to fill the roles. So Larylis and Mareleau had strategically staffed her council with the most trustworthy men and women they could spare. Hardingham had been at the top of that list.
“Thank you for agreeing to meet with us,” Cora said as Lex and Lily claimed seats at Cora’s end of the table.
Lex blushed. “Thank you for including us in…whatever this is about. I hope we’re talking about those bloody dragons.”
“Yes,” Teryn said, giving him a halfhearted grin, “we are talking about those bloody dragons.”
