It all coalesced inside her. All the pain and regret for the future she wouldn’t have with them.
She’d give anything to hear her father’s gruff voice, even if it was insulting. Or to hear Davin’s laughter.
To see him teasing Marla and playing with his hatchlings.
Everything was so different now. There was no going home. She no longer even had a family.
This was even worse than when she’d been kidnapped. At least then her family had been intact.
Alive.
Now...
Davin and her father wouldn’t be there. Ragna would be executed.
And Reva...
Her heart stopped as she thought of her other sister. Pulling back from Dash, she turned toward Keegan. “Did Reva have anything to do with this?”
Keegan looked a bit startled by the question. “I don’t know. She was there when we were summoned to come here to meet the centaurs. But I have no idea what she participated in. You know how she and Ragna always are.”
Tighter than fingers in a fist. But Ragna didn’t always trust Reva, either.
Finding a new purpose, Tanis wiped at her eyes. “What were you told?”
“That there were vermin we needed to exterminate. Ragna said that we were to escort her to a meeting. We didn’t question anything beyond that.”
Because they taught not to question orders.
“How did Ragna know I was here?” Tanis looked at Dash.
“Probably one of the gryphons. Or another spy. They’re all over my court. Part of Ryper’s job is ferreting out spies, but he doesn’t find them all. They breed like rats.”
Tanis nodded then turned back to look at her father’s remains. Tears choked her again at the injustice of what had been dealt to him.I know I wasn’t your favorite, but...“I will avenge you, Papa. I promise to make sure your throne is secured by our rightful heirs.”
How ironic that she was the last one he’d want to hear that promise from. That knowledge made her ache all the more. He’d died disappointed in her.
But it didn’t matter. She’d keep her promise regardless. While he might have let her down as a father, he’d been a fair and good king. Just as Dash was.
And at least Davin had secured their lineage. He had three sons to inherit Indara’s throne. Those hatchlings had been her father’s greatest treasure.
If Reva and Ragna were executed over this, Tanis would be the only one left of her father’s children.
As much as she despised her sisters, and as cruel as they’d been to her, she wasn’t sure if she could see them executed.
You’re not a dragon. You’ve been tainted by the mongrels who took you.
Perhaps her father had been right, after all. She didn’t have that same killer instinct inside her that he required of his dragons. She wanted what was fair.
The problem was that she was no longer sure what fair meant.
Heartbroken, she left the temple to head to...
She didn’t know where. This wasn’t home and these weren’t her people.
I have nowhere I belong anymore.
That harsh reality slapped her so hard that for a moment, she couldn’t breathe.
