Page 79 of Betrayed By Dragons

If I were holding anything, I'd drop it. As things stand, all I have to let fall is my jaw, and it basically hits the floor.

I sputter. "What--"

"We're very sorry you need to hear it like this," Li says.

I look to my mates, who are as stunned as I am.

"They're lying," I swear.

I shake my head so hard it hurts, but I can't wrap my mind around it all. Three seconds ago, they were accusing Amy, and now they've turned on me.

"Think about it." Atina jabs a finger in my direction. "She's a mysterious figure with no family and no past, clearly imbued with dangerous, dark magic that she's tried to keep secret from you."

"From us all," Li adds. "That bracer--"

My skin flashes cold. I move instinctively to grab my arm, but I stop myself.

Jianyu and Rafe blink, as if seeing the bracer for the first time. Considering the magical veil it seems to be hidden behind, perhaps they are. Only High Priestess Fang was able to peer through and sense its true power.

"It's a powerful magical artifact," Atina continues. "With Shadow Dragon origins."

"Ember." Jianyu's whole face is falling, and oh God.

This is just like with Storm. Just like with my father, who disappeared, and my mother who abandoned me.

It's like every single person I've ever cared about. They've all turned their backs on me.

Jianyu and Rafe...they're my fated mates. They're each a part of my soul. They can't leave me.

Right?

"Jianyu." My voice is barely a whisper, and my ribs are closing in around my lungs. I can't breathe. "Rafe--"

With all I am and all I have, I pour my devotion and my hope into our bond. I pour my love--which I should have told them about. I've been holding back all this time, afraid of letting them get too close to my heart, and for what?

Can they really have so little faith in me? Does what we have mean nothing?

"Is it true?" Jianyu asks quietly.

My throat closes up and my eyes sting. "The bracer is magic, but it's not evil. I just... I don't know what it is, exactly."

I just know that Rhiannon offered it to me, and it selected me. I know that the moment it snapped itself around my wrist, it showed me a dark night full of stars and light, and a locked door inside of me swung open.

I know that the minute it became mine, everything changed.

Mere minutes ago, I was cursing the bracer for causing everything in my life to go off the rails, but in this moment, all I can think about is how my life has gotten so much better. I found my mates, and a power to protect myself. I heard my dragon roar within my chest.

I felt complete.

Only that isn't true, is it? There's still something missing inside of me, but that's not the bracer's fault.

"I didn't attack anyone," I tell them, and that's true. Entirely. I look to Atina and Li, and there's a new malice in their eyes.

A cold ball of fear forms behind my ribs.

Followed by a clarity as sharp as ice.

"They did." The words slip out of my mouth, and I can barely hear them. My ears ring, and my mind flashes back to all the impossible moments and strange things. I turn my gaze to my mates, and I'm suddenly filled with conviction, even as my heart is breaking. "They lured you away from the summit right before the bomb went off. Remember?"

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