Only Madrood, to the left and behind the king as always, continued to stare at me. I hadn’t decided what, if anything, I should do about the king’s pet. Had he purposefully saved my fury or was he startled into killing the Nullen as she’d suggested? This dragon had been loyal only to Ivenrail from the time he hatched, sliding right into Ivenrail’s waiting hand. The king showed more favor to his pet than he ever had his sons or whatever fae woman currently warmed his bed.
Vexxion!Fury’s voice burned through my skill. The horror and panic in her tone made time stop. My heart plummeted. A silent scream echoed as terror’s icy grip wrenched me sideways.
Where?I asked Drask.
Through his gaze, I studied the empty sitting area. She hadn’t taken him with her.
Where are you?
She didn’t reply.
“I need to go,” I said, hating that I had to say even this.
Ivenrail lazily looked at me, his fingers gliding back and forth along the arm of his throne as he continued to float in the bliss of my power. “Why?”
“One of the high lords has arrived to attend your wedding and has need of an awakening.”
Grunting, the king’s lips thinned.
High Advisor Adwarin’s breath caught, and he subtly leaned closer to hear each and every word I said.
“Very well.” Ivenrail stared dreamily at the floor. There’d be no more business conducted today. “Return when you’ve finished.”
A command, not a request.
With a curt nod, I flitted to the aerie, but I didn’t find Tempest outside the building.
Where are you, Fury?I bit out.Tell me.
The lack of reply tore through my belly, gutting me.
When I stumbled over a Nullen lying dead across the end of the hall, I knew what had happened.
Ignoring all promises and respect, I flung my mind into Tempest’s to see through her eyes. Then I flitted to the highest peak of the mountain, landing behind her as she stood on the edge of the cliff, staring down with dismay.
She kept whispering the same thing, over and over.Dead. Finally dead.Blood poured from wounds on her arms and legs.
My breathing ragged, I cupped her shoulders and gently turned her my way, studying her face that looked like someone had torched it.
She stared up at me with eyes so dull that for one instant, I feared some fiend had found her. Drained her. That she was gone, and I’d never find her again.
“I killed Delaine,” she murmured in an almost singsong voice. “The bitch is dead. The bitch is very much dead.” Strength started to churn through her words, and I welcomed it with relief. “She didn’t think I had it in me, but I surprised us both.”
Only now did I hear the uproar behind me. I turned, keeping her snug in my arms.
Iasar, the dragon Tempest freed from the door, kept blasting icy flames at five Lieges standing near the edge of the scruffy forest. Their stolen magic combatted his quite easily.
I needed to exercise caution. He’dknowme.
Two Lieges peeled away from the others, moving around behind the dragon while he continued to scald the rest. The Liege’s arms lifted, and white bands of power—stolen from Nullens and Ivenrail because they had none of their own—shot toward Iasar, freezing him as if he’d been turned into petrified wood.
“No,” Tempest cried, staggering away from me. She hobbled toward the dragon as if, once more, she’d save him. When I caught her around her waist, she struggled. “Let me go. I have to help him.”
Flitting her from here was the wisest option, but I suspected if I left the dragon she’d befriended at the mercy of the Lieges, she’d never forgive me.
I lifted her with my threads and placed her farther up the mountain. “Wait here. Please.” I added the last because of thestorm clouds gathering in her eyes. “You’re hurt. Let me do this for you.”
At her nod, I flitted, landing behind the dragon. I shot my threads toward the Liege on the right.Feed.They did so eagerly, consuming the Liege until only his cloak and bone coin lay smoldering on the stony ground.
