The portal was just where we left it all those days ago. It shimmered faintly in the darkness, beckoning me closer, tempting me to try it once more. But I knew the truth of it. The portal would never let me escape. I may have been wronged, my sentence may have been a betrayal and a mistake, but the portal was forever bound to uphold the laws of the realms.
Aradia stood beside the portal, hugging her arms to her chest. I wanted to sweep her off her feet and kiss her tears away. Instead, I dropped her hand and stepped back.
“It’s time, Aradia,” I said softly.
“Maybe it won’t work,” she whispered as the tears rolled down her cheeks. “Maybe the magic really won’t let me back through. Maybe you’re wrong.”
“Maybe I am,” I said, heart banging. “But I need you to try to step through and find out.”
“Is this really goodbye?” She gazed up at me, her eyes begging for me to change my mind.
“It is,” I said firmly. “This is what must be done. There is no other way.”
“I...” She held out a hand toward me. I lifted my own, and the tip of her finger grazed my glove. I would never know how her hand felt in mine. I’d never be able to caress her skin with my touch. We’d been brought together by some strange twist of fate, but it had never meant to be more than a fleeting moment in time.
“You need to go, Aradia,” I said, my ancient heart breaking. “Please. I’m asking this of you.”
With a trembling sigh, she nodded. And then she was gone.
24
Aradia
Yuto vanished. Or, I supposed,Ivanished. One moment I stood in the forest, sobbing before him, and the next, bookshelves rose up around me. The scent of must and parchment swirled through the quiet, dark space. My heartbeat was the only sound in my ears.
No torches blazed from the sconces along the walls, and it took a moment for me to register my full surroundings. After a few moments, my eyes adjusted to the darkness. The shelves behind me were lined with skulls. So, I’d come out in the same room in the same library that I’d left from. At least I could be grateful for that.
Slowly, I edged forward. The door was wide open, leading into darkness. It didn’t sound like anyone was here. It was so silent that I could have heard a water droplet splat on the creaking floor. The library must be closed for the night. Still, I kept my feet quiet as I ghosted into the corridor. I padded along the slick stone floor, retracing the steps I remembered.
When I reached the familiar alcove, I poked my head around the wall. Just as I thought. No one was here. The library was closed, which meant I’d have no trouble sneaking out of here without being seen.
I tiptoed toward the front door and tried the handle. It was locked. Shit. I would be stuck in here for the night. Frowning, I retraced my steps to the portal. Things weren’t going according to plan already, but there were worse places to be trapped. In a few hours, the librarian would arrive and open the doors to the public. I could sneak out then.
I just needed to make it through the night.
Once again, I returned to the alcove, remembering a book I’d seen the last time I was here. It was calledThe Dragon and the Damsel. I found it quickly, pulled it from the shelf, and tiptoed toward a sofa in one of the reading rooms that lined the back wall.
I settled into the sofa with the book and flipped the page, reading by the faint moonlight. I’d expected fiction when I’d chosen the book. Some tall romantic tale about a mortal girl falling for a dragonlord, who swept her off her feet. They would live happily ever after, of course.
Basically, my life but with an entirely different ending.
But what I’d found was not fiction at all. There were dates and births recorded, along with battles and deaths. My eyes skipped along the words. Yuto’s name leapt at me from the page. Suddenly, I understood exactly what this was. The history of Pira. The history of Yuto Cirillo.
I snapped the book shut and held it tight to my chest, my heartbeat roaring in my ears. Yuto wouldn’t want me to read this. I knew it in my very bones. He’d always been so cryptic when he described his past.
This didn’t feel right. It was like prying open his most private journal and reading his deepest thoughts.
And yet...I would never see him again. He’d made certain of that. What harm could it do? It wasn’t as though he’d ever get the chance to tell me the full truth of his past himself. If I ever wanted to understand him, this was it.
Plus, I was just plain nosy.
Nodding to myself, I flipped open the book and turned straight to the page that mentioned Yuto.
Yuto Cirillo, the Lord of Dragons. My heart flickered in my chest. This was it. This was him. I’d found a detailed listing of his history, what was known of it. Eagerly, I flipped the page and found a portrait of him staring back at me. A million conflicting emotions raged in my chest. Strong and steady, dark hair curling over his forehead. His red eyes gleamed, even from the page. He looked like the male I’d met, only...different somehow. Harsher, angrier. Loss haunted his eyes.
My eyes scanned the page.
Yuto Cirillo, the Lord Master of Pira, reigned over the dragons for hundreds of years. His Thunder steadfastly stood by his side, protectors and fighters. The fiercest warriors the realm had ever seen.
