“How did you know we were out here?” I ask.
As far as Gliss knew, we were leaving in the morning, which means we should have still been in our room.
“I followed the wolf.” She quickly adds, “I didn’t listen to his thoughts, though. I only sought his presence.”
Erik’s brow furrows. I told him about Gliss’s abilities, but I left out the part where she told me about his family, how losing them had broken him.
“So you can track us,” I say, drawing conclusions from her answer.
If so, this is not welcome news.
“Only for a short distance. You were nearly out of range.”
I narrow my eyes at her. She could be lying. It’s hard to distrust her with her innocent, violet eyes and her open expression, but I remind myself to be wary. “You said here is better. Why?”
“Because the Frost fae aren’t listening.”
I glance at Erik and he gives me a nod. “There’s nobody else nearby.”
I relax a little, confident that Gliss doesn’t currently pose a threat I can’t overcome. “Speak.”
“I heard what the dragon said.”
My forehead creases. “Do you mean Thaden?”
She shakes her head and takes a step closer. “The dragon whose voice was trapped in that piece of metal.”
“The imprinted medallion.” I remember the way Gliss listened intently when I tapped the medallion with my hammer. The dragon’s roar filled the ballroom and everyone else flinched. Not Gliss.
“I told the Queen I couldn’t decipher its voice.” She’s tense and her face is suddenly pale. “She will punish me for this failure—and you know what her punishment looks like.”
I do. It looks like cracked bones and public disgrace.
My jaw clenches. I may not completely trust Gliss, but she helped Erik and healed me without hesitation. “Why would interpreting the dragon’s voice fall to you? Elowynn heard it, too.”
Gliss edges even closer. “Dragons aren’t like other creatures. Their thoughts are complex and concealed with magic:lightmagic. The purest kind. It’s the opposite of the dark magic you carry in the palm of your hand, Asha Silverspun.” She swallows visibly. “Elowynn has always protected me. Officially, she’s the stronger one. But I’m the one who can slip into a dragon’s mind and decipher its thoughts.”
I’m alarmed. “What about Thaden’s thoughts?”
“No,” she quickly says. “His mind is locked down and I wouldn’t invade?—”
“Then why are you telling me this if not to threaten me in some way?”
She takes a sharp breath. “Dragons can speak the human tongue. They can converse as easily as you and I. But a dragon’s death cry is something else entirely. It isn’t spoken in words. It’s…” She presses her lips together, as if she’s trying to figure out how to explain it. “It’s a wash of emotions, a blaze of sound filled with thoughts.”
She looks up at me. “I don’t blame you for not trusting me. But I’m here now because within the dragon’s death cry, I deciphered a message.” Her eyes are wide. “I think you need to hear it.”
Chapter29
I’m even warier now. “What message?”
“The dragon identified itself as Lysander Rex, the son of the great fire dragon, Graviter Rex. Graviter’s name meansSolemn King. He is the most powerful dragon. The one none of us wants to meet, let alone fight.”
My jaw clenches. I knew the dead dragon was strong, but the son of a dragon king… It only reinforces how dangerous Milena must be.
Gliss continues. “Lysander was betrayed by someone he trusted.”
That would fit with my theory: Milena used her alliance with the humans to lure the dragon to its death. I still don’t understand why she would risk alienating such powerful allies, though.
