With jerky motions, I rubbed my thigh until it stopped aching. I took care of my needs in the bathing area and washed quickly, dressing in leathers I found in the closet. My breath kept hitching in jagged gasps as if the air itself had decided to abandon me. A whirlwind of anguish and dismay tore through me—each burst leaving raw pain and an empty core where my dreams once flourished.
Tugging out the rest of my clothing from the closet, I started adding it to my bag. My fingers grazed the wooden dragon Vexxion had carved me, and I pulled it out, holding it aloft in my flat hand. It remained as motionless as it had been after he crafted it. I hadn’t seen it move other than that one time, and I’d begun to believe it never had.
Where was the woman who’d vowed the night before that she’d make Vexxion love her again? Her world had beenshaken, but her determination should still remain strong. I’d survived being dumped at the fortress as a child. I’d learned how to defend myself from bullies, dregs, and life itself. I’d found a family of friends who loved and supported me.
Not only that, but I’d also come close to killing Ivenrail. I’d bonded with and stolen his dragon. I’d freed more creatures inside the castle than I could count, and they could now live free.
I could survive Vexxion’s rejection. My core of strength still remained.
And I would not give up easily.
Growling at myself, I stuffed the dragon back inside the bag and secured the top. I armed myself with every sheath and blade I could find in the room and with the bag in my hand, I called out to Drask. He left his perch and soared in his cute, jagged way over to land on my shoulder.
“Hold on, buddy,” I said, my voice raw with unspent emotion.
When his claws tightened on my tunic, I flitted to the kitchen.
Reyla turned from where she worked at the stove. “Morning.”
“What can I do to help?”
“Everyone else seems content to sit in the parlor, chatting,” she said with a laugh that told me she wasn’t insulted that no one had offered to help her cook.
“Not me.” Please, distract me. I placed my bag near the door.
“Could you put dishes and silverware on the island?”
“Glad to.” With Drask bobbing around on my shoulder, I took things down from the cupboard, adding mugs for tea. Once everything had been laid out on the island, I checked on the tea pot, sucking in a whiff of the heady brew.
Despite the blade of Vexxion’s anger stabbing my heart, I was hungry. Funny how the body did all it could to ensure survival. It would carry on even if the heart couldn’t follow.
I helped Reyla dish up the simple meal, then I walked down the hall and stopped in the open parlor archway. “Breakfast is ready.”
I didn’t look at Vexxion, though I felt the weight of his gaze. Not giving up on us and knowing what steps to take to win his heart were completely different things. Back at the fortress, I’d never put much effort into attracting men. I liked guys. I enjoyed sex as much as the next woman. But fight for a man?
Never.
I was a dragon trainer. A rider. A weapon sent on a regular basis to kill dregs.
That woman had no idea how to win a man’s heart. But the woman I’d become wouldn’t give up without trying. I’d fix this soon, once I figured out how.
The others followed me down the hall and into the kitchen. When we sat, I didn’t take the stool next to Vexxion’s. I didn’t sit opposite him either. I purposefully settled in a place where I couldn’t see him without tilting my head to the side. I mechanically served myself food and ate, finishing everything. My heart had been ripped from my chest, but it somehow kept beating. My belly told me it needed food if it was going to continue this fight.
How did a woman lure a man she was in love with? If I remembered what happened at the fortress correctly, I’d tried to shove him away, but he’d refused. He’d kept at me from the moment he said I belonged to him, from almost the very instant I met him. He’d pursued me with a steely resolve that didn’t allow for refusal.
That man had been stolen away.
“Can I take some of the clothing I found in the closet of the room I slept in?” Airia asked. “Weapons too? I didn’t grow up training in a fortress, but I’m decent with a blade. If the dregs come after us again, I want to be armed.”
“Take whatever you want,” Vexxion said. “As for dregs, you don’t need to fear them. We’ll fly.”
Brodine huffed. “They fly now too.”
Vexxion’s worried gaze sought mine. “Since when?”
“Since the king shoved some magic at them,” Reyla said.
“Then we’ll have to keep watch.” His gaze scanned us all. Funny how easily he’d not only accepted that dregs could fly but taken control of our planning. “Tonight, we’ll stop in a village partway toward Lydel. There’s an inn there that often has open rooms. We’ll leave there with supplies though we may need to visit nearby villages to buy what we need during the rest of the journey.”
