“Ouch again,” I muttered.
“I’m sorry, Aradia.” He knelt beside me and searched my eyes. “You caught me by surprise. How are you feeling? Does anything hurt? Do you need anything? What about some water? I could fetch you some food if you’re hungry.”
I gave him a weak smile. “You’re sweeter than you think you are. Except when you’re in one of your grumpy moods.”
“Hmph. You must not feel too terrible.”
“I actually feel like a butcher has taken an axe to my head.” I rubbed at my skull, mussing my hair. “What happened?”
“Panos must have put some poison on the arrow. He wanted to be certain you were killed. If the arrow wound didn’t take you out, then the poison would.”
“Well, I hope that doesn’t mean I’m dead.” I blinked. “Because then that means you’re dead, too.”
He gave me a tight smile. “The arrow barely scraped your arm. It was enough poison to make you ill, but not enough to kill you. You were lucky.”
“Lucky enough to run straight into you.”
I didn’t want to think about what might have happened if Yuto hadn’t been stalking around the forest when I’d been hit. I’d likely have awoken in a far different castle. Instead of a bed, I’d be in a cage. Or on top of a table for a feast.
Shuddering, I suddenly remembered everything I needed to tell Yuto. My escape would have enraged Panos even more. He’d lost the one thing he needed in order to draw the Lord of Dragons into his little trap. But he wouldn’t stop there. If anything, he would be even more determined to sink his teeth into Yuto’s neck. I had to tell Yuto what I knew so that he could get out of this place before Panos made his next attack.
“Yuto.” Groaning, I wiggled higher onto the pillows so that I wasn’t flat on my back when I told him the news. “I found something in the library. It’s why I came back.”
The bed hinges squealed as he settled onto the mattress. He took my hand in his, once again clad in his ever-present glove. “What do you mean, my love?”
My love.
Those words on his tongue always made my core quake.
“The library doors were locked for the night, which meant I was stuck inside. So, I did some research...” I squeezed his hand, the metal cool yet rough against my bare skin. “How I came to find it doesn’t matter. What I’m trying to tell you is that I found some answers. I think I know how to get you through the portal.”
His entire body went as rigid as a corpse. With the firelight of the hearth dancing in his eyes, he leaned forward, the scent of wine-berries frosting the air. “I hope you are not joking around, Aradia. Because this would be a very cruel joke.”
“I mean every word.” I slid my hand against my tunic, only just realizing that I no longer wore the shredded ribbons. Now, a soft cotton nightdress hugged my frame. Yuto must have changed me. Need coiled tight, tempting my focus away from the words and onto his lips. But then I shook my head. “The clothes I was wearing. I had a book wrapped inside my shirt.”
He cocked his head. “Ah. I had wondered about that.”
“Did you look inside of it?” I asked slowly, almost dreading his response. He might not be thrilled to discover I’d been digging into the secrets of his past. His family. Everything he’d lost.
His eyes narrowed. “No, but your tone of voice is betraying you, Aradia. What is it? Tell me now.”
“It’s a detailed history of the Dragon Court. Everything about you and your people is in there.” My heart thumped hard. “Everything.”
Yuto perched on the mattress, body and face frozen. He didn’t even blink. He might not have even breathed. I swallowed hard.
“Yuto?”
His head swivelled to the side, and then he slowly stood. A flicker of fear flamed around my heart. He wouldn’t hurt me...would he? After everything he’d done to save me, surely he wouldn’t take it all back just because I’d read a book. It seemed silly to even question it, but the dark look in his eye sent all my insides twisting and turning and screaming to flee.
“You found a book about my people,” he said in a low, dangerous voice. “In your mortal library.”
“That’s right,” I whispered.
“How do the mortals even know about me?” he demanded.
“I don’t know, Yuto,” I said, clutching the sheets. “All I did was find a book. I don’t know anything more beyond what lies between the pages.”
“Between the pages,” he muttered and then whirled on his feet. With tense shoulders, he thundered across the floor and ripped open the wardrobe. Inside, several freshly-woven dresses hung from the clothing rod. A single shelf sat above them. It held the worn, leather-bound book and nothing else.
