He pulled his hand from behind his back. A black ball of magic swirled between his fingers, and he thrust it toward Jax. Odessa lunged at him with her arms outstretched, knowing that she wouldn’t be able to reach him in time. “Jax!”
A roar filled the air, and Bean jumped out of his hiding place. He blew out a thin stream of fire, into the space between Jax and Boris. With a shout, Boris drew his hand back, the movement catching him off-balance. He fell, landing on the hand that still held his curse. The magic disappeared into his chest, and he screamed as it began swirling around him. His body twisted and shrank, and when the black mist finally dissipated a disgruntled owl sat in the place where Boris had been. With an angry screech, it took off into the sky.
Jax pulled out his panpipes. “Don’t worry,” he called cheerfully to anyone who was listening. “I happen to be a Bird Catcher.”
Epilogue
JAX
“Well, that’s the last of the guests gone,” Dmitri announced as he entered the private parlor where Queen Ivana had insisted Jax and the prince join her for tea as soon as they saw the last of the visitors off. Jax followed a few steps behind, content to let Dmitri bear the full brunt of the queen’s attention. Though Jax had gone toe-to-toe with both giants and wizards, Queen Ivana intimidated him.
His eyes scanned the room as he entered, glancing over the soft, feminine furnishings and pastel and gold color palette and searching for a familiar head of silver-blonde hair. He couldn’t help the smile that spread across his face when Odessa met his gaze from her place on a low couch in the corner of the room. Wide double doors opened up to a balcony behind her, upon which a contented Bean had draped himself, soaking in as much sunshine as he could.
Jax crossed the room and plopped onto the cushion beside Odessa, nodding at the two women who shared the couch across from her. “Good morning, Your Highnesses.”
Sonya promptly abandoned her place in favor of climbing onto his lap and curling into him with a beaming smile. Jax’s arms instinctively closed around her. “And how is my little duckling this morning?” he asked, ruffling her hair. “Have we figured out where Bean has been hiding all the strawberries yet?”
She shook her head, though the sparkle of mischief in her eyes suggested that perhaps she was not as ignorant as she claimed. Jax leaned into Odessa’s space, speaking in a stage whisper, “I think your dragon is corrupting the child.”
“Our dragon,” she corrected, taking a sip of her tea and turning to him with an expression full of such unfiltered adoration that he was tempted to toss polite manners to the birds and kiss her there and then.
“Rude,”Bean grumbled sleepily from his position on the balcony.“Just for that, we won’t share.”
Sonya giggled and pushed away from Jax, hopping lightly to the floor and skipping out to the balcony to join her dragon friend. He stretched his arm out, resting it on the back of the couch just behind Odessa’s shoulders. “Still nothing?”
Though it had been several days since their curse had been broken, the little princess had yet to utter a single word, communicating instead through her smiles and giggles and expressive face.
“No,” Odessa said quietly, her eyes darting to the high-backed chair where Queen Ivana sat, still conversing with Dmitri. “But she was cursed from birth; it’s not as though she experienced a normal language development. Even Katrin said she wasn’t sure how or when she learned, right?” She directed her attention to the eldest princess.
Katrin nodded, answering in her calm, quiet voice, “I know it wasn’t until Odessa started coming around with Boris. She would chatter away as she cleaned, and while I was drawn simply by the sound of her voice at first, eventually I began to understand what she was trying to say. But I used to wish so badly that I could answer her, and I would often try to speak during the long hours alone when I was by myself. In some ways, Sonya never had to experience the same isolation. She has always been able to make her wishes known.”
Queen Ivana’s deep sigh interrupted their conversation. “Well, we’ve certainly given our friends and allies enough material to feed the rumor mills for at least the next year.”
Dmitri chuckled, finally seating himself in the empty chair on the other side of Jax. “But at least they know we have a dragon now, which might make them think twice before saying anythingtooinsulting.”
“Yes, a dragon but no engagement.” The queen set her cup and saucer on the low table beside her. “Which I was made to understand was the entire purpose behind the affair.”
Dmitri shrugged unapologetically. “I’m not nearly as desirable a match now that I’m not really your son.”
Queen Ivana gave him a fierce look. “Dmitri Petrov, I’ll hear not another word of such nonsense from your mouth. You are my son—if not of my body, then certainly of my heart. You cannot be cast aside so easily.”
Odessa sniffled, and Jax looked down to see her watching their conversation with tears welling in her eyes, no doubt thinking of her own father. He shifted, pulling his arm away from her shoulder and settling it between them. He reached for her hand and threaded their fingers together with a fond squeeze. She returned the pressure, leaning her head on his shoulder for a brief moment.
“I’ve no plans to,” Dmitri’s voice cracked with emotion as he answered. He cleared his throat. “But we also can’t ignore the fact that I’m no longer the heir, and alliances will look different now. I did receive several offers for Katrin.” He smiled reassuringly at the young woman, who had paled at the words. “I refused them, of course. You’ll have enough to navigate without worrying about proposals and finding a husband. We don’t have to approach that conversation until you feel ready, and when you do, I’ll be there to help.”
Katrin’s cheeks turned a blazing shade of red. She looked helplessly at Odessa, who nodded encouragingly. Jax looked curiously between them.
What on earth are they scheming?
“I–I don’t want your help.” Her voice was softer than normal, and she dropped her gaze to her lap, where her fingers were twisting together nervously.
Dmitri looked taken aback. “Oh. That’s alright, I suppose. We can always ask?—”
“No.” Katrin said quickly, before taking a deep, shuddering breath and looking squarely at Dmitri. “I don’t want your help because I want you to marry me.” She swallowed bravely. “I don’t know the first thing about ruling a country, but you do. You’ve been brought up for this role, and since you were willing to have a political marriage for the sake of the country before, I’m asking you to consider it still. I know that in your eyes, we’ve only just met, but I’ve known you for years. I’ve…I’ve loved you for years. I don’t expect that my affection will be returned, but I would be honored if you would consider it.”
Stunned silence filled the room as she finished, smiling tightly at Odessa before looking back down at her hands.
“For what it’s worth,” Odessa offered, winking at Dmitri, “she’s the one I would have picked for you. She might thinkyou hung the stars, but she’s at least reasonable enough to understand you had to use a stepladder.”
