My grip loosened. The room tilted sideways.
Benedict shouted my name as Kieran and Kaida squeezed my hands and Ronan reached for me.
Benedict roared for Enya.
But the world had already gone gray around the edges, sound thinning to a distant hum.
The world went white.
Then black.
Then—heat.
The wards rippled.
The entire mountain lit from within as a sheet of shimmering heat rolled over it—red, gold, silver, blue—draken colors dancing like living flame.
A deep pulse followed, but it wasn’t violent or angry. It was warm and settling, like the mountain and the entire world itself was exhaling and letting out a deep breath.
The volcano went quiet again, but not dormant. Instead it felt steady, and alive, as if humming reassurance:
All is well.
Everything went dark.
Chapter Thirty-Two
BENEDICT
Kieran dropped beside her immediately. “Wren.”
I held her in my arms as she panted, utterly spent, her white scales slick with heat. Her wings trembled violently with each breath she dragged into her lungs, breaths that came too shallow and too fast. Blood pooled beneath her thighs, dark and frighteningly thick.
Too much blood. It made my heart skip a beat. I studied Enya, Mara, and Yazmine. Their expressions were tense and serious, but they weren't panicky. Not yet.
For a heartbeat I froze, my chest tightening with a terrible sense of déjà vu. The last time she had screamed like this I had not been there to help her.
I moved before the thought could paralyze me again, kneeling on her other side. Ronan stood behind Kieran. Mara didn’t look concerned Wren was about to pass out. She was focused on the baby.
“Quick,” she snapped. “Put your arms here.”
Before I could ask what she meant, she grabbed my armand forced it forward. Ronan’s arms were shoved beside mine while Kieran knelt between us, three grown drakens huddled around our crying, bleeding mate.
“Come on now, nearly there. One more push,” Mara encouraged.
“Our warrior queen!” Kieran said to her.
Ronan was stony and white-faced.
He was afraid. Just like me.
“AGGHH!!” Wren cried out.
A slick weight slid into our hands, all three of us bearing its weight. The slimy bundle was warm, and fragile, but alive.
For a stunned second I could only stare.
Ourchild.
