Mina enters with two purple vials in her hand, the glass catching the dim light. “This will help you sleep through the cycle. You’re a full four months ahead of schedule.” She offers the vials to Raven, and she stares at them like they contain poison rather than relief.
“Great, still an overachiever,” Raven mutters. She pops the top and drinks the first vial quickly, the liquid disappearing in two quick swallows. The face she makes tells me the flavor must be horrible, her nose wrinkling in disgust. I can tell the minute it starts to work—she wobbles on her feet, her perfect balance deserting her. “I’m so tired.”She yawns, and I help her lie down, my hands gentle on her shoulders as I guide her to the makeshift bed.
Thauglor has joined us, and he looks beside himself, his usual composure cracked with paternal worry. “You need to drink the second one, Raven—you’re too strong not to.” His voice is soft as he takes the second vial from me and offers it to his daughter, the glass clinking softly against her fingers.
“Okay, Daddy...” She sips it slowly, her movements becoming increasingly sluggish, and turns and looks at me with eyes that are already growing heavy. “Don’t leave, I’m scared.” A single tear rolls down her cheek, catching the light like liquid silver, as her eyes get heavy with approaching sleep.
“I wouldn’t dare,” I whisper, the words a sacred vow that settles into my bones like truth. We watch as her eyes close, long lashes casting shadows on her cheeks, and I lay her down the rest of the way, my movements careful and reverent. Thauglor shows me how to place her wings so I don’t accidentally damage them, the membranes delicate as silk despite their strength.
“You’re a good male, Corvis. Abraxis and Balor will cover your classes until this is all over.” He looks around the interior of the cavern, taking in the rough stone walls and the gentle steam rising from the hot spring. “I thought about killing you when you were young.” He arches a brow, looking at me with an expression that’s part confession, part warning. It explains why he pushed me harder than the other males, testing me in ways that went beyond normal training.
“You never gave up or complained. You are just the male my little girl needs.” He rests his hand on my shoulder. The gesture is warm with acceptance and approval before brushing a strand of obsidian locks away from Raven’s face with infinite tenderness. “We’ll bring food and drink and switch out when you need a break.” His eyes drop to his daughter, and his expression softens with paternal love. “Thank you.”He stands and leaves before I get the chance to ask for what, his footsteps fading into the tunnel.
Three days is the average a female stays in season, three days of protective vigil ahead of me. Here goes the first break I’ve taken in twenty years, though watching over my mate hardly feels like rest. I choose to lie down in front of Raven and rest my hand on her forearm, feeling the steady pulse beneath her skin and the warmth that radiates from her sleeping form.
Raven is the embodiment of everything I could have ever hoped for my mate to be. She’s smart, with a mind that cuts through problems like a blade through silk. She’s strong in every sense of the word, her body a weapon and her spirit unbreakable. And she has a good heart, generous and kind despite the predator’s training that runs in her blood. I’ll stay with her until she sends me away, and even then, I’ll never be far.
For now, I’ll enjoy being close to my mate, breathing in her scent and listening to her steady breathing, even if she doesn’t know what I am to her yet. Soon, very soon, she’ll be twenty-one, and then nothing will keep us apart. The thought makes my chest warm with anticipation and my dragon purr with satisfied possession.Mine. She’s always been mine, and soon, she’ll know it too.
Chapter 6
Raven
My head is a pounding mess,each pulse of pain feeling like someone turned my skull into a piñata and let loose with sledgehammers. Even after my most brutal training sessions, I never hurt like this—every thought feels wrapped in cotton and soaked in agony. My limbs are slow to respond as I try to move and open my eyes, my body heavy as if I’m swimming through thick honey. That tonic really kicked the hell out of me, leaving me feeling like I’ve been trampled by a herd of war horses.
Eventually, I get my eyes to open, though the world is blurry and unfocused, shapes bleeding together like watercolors in rain. I blink my eyes several times before they clear up, bringing the stone chamber into sharp relief. Lying before me is Corvis. There’s a body pillow between us, and he’s asleep with his back to the door. His broad shoulders creating a protective barrier between me and any potential threat. He’s putting himself in harm’s way to watch over me, and the realization makes my chest tight with something I can’t quite name.
I have no idea how long I’ve been sleeping, but my entire body is stiff, muscles protesting every slight movement like I’ve been carved fromstone. Carefully, I scoot a little closer and study him, drawn by an irresistible urge to memorize every detail. His hair is silver, like his dragon’s scales. Each strand is iridescent in the torchlight that flickers against the cavern walls, creating shifting patterns of light and shadow. I reach out and brush his hair away from his face. The strands are soft as silk between my fingers and warm from his body heat.
He has a slight bend to his nose from when we were sparring a few years ago and I broke it with an overly enthusiastic strike, the imperfection somehow making his face more interesting rather than less. His lips are full for a man, with a perfect cupid’s bow that makes me wonder what they would feel like pressed against mine—a thought that makes heat rush to my cheeks.
Shaking my head, I smile to myself, the expression feeling strange on my face after sleeping for so long. The first love of a little girl, hopeless and pure and utterly impossible. If my father ever found out that I had a crush on Corvis for most of my life, he would kill him on the spot without hesitation. Then again, so would my mate, whoever he is. Shit.Is he worried about me? Does he know where I am?The thought makes my stomach clench with anxiety. Most times males make themselves known to the father of the female before she’s able to sense him, but what if mine is different?
I see Corvis waking up, his breathing changing from the deep rhythm of sleep to something lighter. I close my eyes, leaving them slitted open just enough that I can see everything he’s doing through my lashes.
He opens his eyes slowly and looks around, then back at me, his silver gaze sharp and alert despite having just awakened. His eyes are slitted like his dragon’s, the pupils narrowing to vertical lines that catch the torchlight like polished metal. Slowly, he reaches out and moves my hair, his fingers gentle against my scalp as he checks my scales, I guess. A relieved breath escapes him, the sound soft in the quietchamber, and he grabs his phone to text someone, the screen’s blue light casting his features in sharp relief.
Mom comes in, her footsteps silent on the stone floor, and rests a hand on his shoulder. “You’re a good male, Corvis—she’s lucky to have you,” Mom says softly, her voice carrying approval and something deeper that I can’t quite identify.
He nods and tilts his head, watching me with an intensity that makes my skin prickle with awareness. “I just want to see her happy.” The honesty in his tone pulls at my heartstrings, the sincerity so raw it makes my chest ache.
“The winter formal is coming up in a little over three months. I would like you to ride with Raven as her guard.” The way Mom is staring at me, I know she knows I’m awake, her maternal instincts as sharp as any blade.
“I would be honored.” He bows his head and stands, his movement fluid despite having slept on stone. “I’m going to grab the cooler and hit the bathroom. I’ll be back quickly.” I watch Mom nod at him, and he turns and leaves, his footsteps fading into the tunnel beyond.
“Raven, I know you’re awake.” Mom sits before me, and I open my eyes fully, abandoning the pretense. “Out of all my kids, you are the best at faking being asleep. It’s your eye color that gives you away.” I furrow my brow, looking at her with confusion that must be written all over my face.
She saw the brighter blue of my dragon’s eyes bleeding through, the telltale glow that marks our kind. “I’ll remember that in the future.” Slowly, I stretch one wing at a time before sitting up completely, feeling joints pop and muscles protest the movement. “Do I really need an escort for the formal?” I keep twisting, trying to loosen up tight muscles that feel like they’ve been bound in iron.
“As a princess, you need an escort,” Mom says firmly as Corvis comesback with food and drink, the scent of fresh bread and roasted meat making my stomach growl with sudden hunger.
“I am not in the line of succession. I don’t count.” Turning, I accept the sandwich from Corvis and a drink, our fingers brushing briefly in a contact that sends electricity up my arm.
“Bahamut forbid if Klauth and his heir suddenly die, that means your father is next in line. As his firstborn heir, you will be in line to rule.” I almost choke on my drink, the liquid going down the wrong way and making me cough violently. Corvis pats me on the back until I can breathe normally, his touch gentle but firm through the fabric of my shirt.
Closing my eyes, I shake my head, the political implications making my brain hurt worse than the tonic hangover. “Between Klauth’s temper and Allister’s mouth, it’s possible.” As I open my eyes, I raise both eyebrows. The reality of royal succession suddenly feeling very real and very dangerous.
“Don’t remind me.” Mom turns and looks over at Corvis, her expression shifting to something more businesslike. “You need to take Raven to learn to ride the war horses.” Before I can protest, Mom raises her hand to stop me, the gesture carrying absolute authority. “Unlike you, your other siblings have been going for riding lessons for years.”
