Page 8 of Queen of Serpents and Shadows

“We deserve a break, don’t we?” I asked playfully.

A creaking sound made me drop my hands and turn toward the light coming from the now open hatch.

“You two decent down there?” Laera called.

Ryvin let out a low, frustrated growl.

“From that sound, I’m glad I asked. You’ve got ten seconds till I come down.”

I sighed, then smoothed my tunic. “We were training, that’s all.”

“Right. I’m pretty sure even the shifter could have felt the sexual tension floating up from down here.” She climbed down the ladder, then walked to where we were standing in the center of the open cargo hold.

“You likely won’t ever hear me admit this again, so pay attention.” She crossed her arms over her chest as she turned toward Ryvin. “You were right. Selena’s been in touch with my mother this whole time. And I have news of Drakous.”

Her nostrils flared, giving away her anger despite her attempt to keep her expression neutral. “Our father has already taken the city. He killed the officials they left behind and he’s holding the princess hostage.”

I covered my mouth with my hand. “No.”

“What about the youngest prince?” Ryvin asked.

She shook her head. “I have no idea. Maybe he ran.”

“How did the city fall so quickly?” Ryvin asked. “They’ve never been breached.”

“Remember those strange dragons we saw in Athos?”

My mind filled with the creatures that charged our allies in the sky. They’d seemed easy to defeat, but there weren’t that many of them. I could already anticipate where this was going. Athos had been a decoy, which meant there were likely a lot more for the real battle.

“I don’t know where they came from, or how he hadaccess to magic like that, but there were thousands of them. They blotted out the sun. The dragons who were left to defend the city were so busy fighting those creatures that they didn’t defend their walls.” Laera shook her head. “It’s over.”

I dropped my hand. “It’s not over. We can’t let him win. We have to find out what those monsters were and how he’s so strong. There has to be an explanation.”

“Even if there’s an explanation, it doesn’t mean there’s a way to defeat him. Sometimes you just lose,” Laera snapped.

“What happened to killing him yourself?” I demanded. “What happened to the angry woman who demanded justice?”

“She’s also realistic,” Laera said. “I will risk my life, but I will not commit suicide.”

“It’s only suicide if we aren’t smart about it,” Ryvin said. “He’ll expect us to charge in. He’ll expect a glorious battle. It’s why he has those dragons. He’s preparing for doing things the way they’ve always been done.”

“Does the Dragon King know this information?” I asked.

“I’m not sure,” Laera admitted.

“Is this where the party is?” Vanth called.

We all turned to watch the shifter making his way down the ladder. When he turned to face us, his expression hardened and his posture tensed. He was instantly back on the battlefield. “Who do we need to kill?”

Laera rolled her eyes. “Shifters.”

“Drakous fell.” I explained what Laera discovered. With each word, I could see Vanth tensing more.

When I was finished, we were all silent for so long I started to contemplate clearing my throat just to hear a sound other than the waves against the ship.

“We have to get to Drakous,” Vanth said. “The dragons will be outside the city. They won’t be stupid enough to try to charge in. They’ll be planning.”

“They’re probably already there and our soldiers are on their way,” I said.

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