Page 22 of The Keeper of the Kingdoms

“On this day,” I continued. “Nyx had already put him in his place for saying something about me I hadn’t even heard and he was sore about it. So when Nyx and Kol took their tussling to the sky, I was left alone and Heren moved in. He slapped my book out of my hand and then took great delight in kicking it away before I could stoop to get it. He pushed me down and when I said I would tell on him, he shifted to his dragon form to intimidate me—not that he needed help. He roared in my face and while I had my eyes shut against the blast of hot dragon’s breath, he swiped me up in his talons and carried me away. His friends were laughing as we ascended.”

“Oh, Kiera.” He sat forward, taking my hand. “I’m so sorry that happened to you.”

I pulled away. Not cross with him, just needing the space to get the rest out. “I’m not finished.”

Jaxus withdrew and sat back to listen to the rest.

“He flew me straight to the top of the grand spire,” I toldhim, keeping the emotion out of my voice as best I could. A clear picture of the palace’s largest tower burned into my soul forever. “Then he dropped me onto the roof, where I had no hope of catching hold of anything that would stop me from sliding off the edge. It’s too steep a pitch, you see. Built that way to prevent dragons from landing up there. I almost slid right off, but I caught hold of a drainage pipe and held on for my life. While Heren flew by time after time, whipping his wings to try and make me fall.

“I was not built for survival, Jaxus. I was built for the library! So I held on as long as I could but ultimately, I lost my hold and fell. It’s a long fall when you know you’ll die at the end, let me tell you. I faced the ground, rushing at me from hundreds of feet up and could do nothing. Then, right at the last moment, I was snatched up and flown to safety. I thought it was Nyx or Kol come to save me, but I wasn’t so lucky. Heren was just toying with me. He tossed me into the pond and then shifted back. He waded in and shoved me down when I tried to stand. He told me if I said a word to Nyx, he wouldn’t catch me next time.”

Jaxus leapt to his feet.

“Where are you going?”

“To find this Heren and put him down,” he snarled, stepping around the table and heading for the door.

“Wait!” I cried, jumping up to stop him.

He rounded on me. “You don’t have to fear him now, Kiera. No one hurts my—hurts you like that and lives to tell the tale.”

I lifted my hand and placed it on his heaving chest, feeling his hammering heart beating out his fury. “He didn’t live,” I said. “He was killed in a skirmish with the Vestar almost ten years ago.”

Jaxus deflated right in front of me. All the rage in him released on the long breath he let out. “Just tell me Nyx put him in his place for doing that to you at least.”

“Nyx spent years keeping him in his place, trust me. But not for that. I never told a soul what he did.”

Jaxus’ anger flared once more. But before he could puff up again, I towed him back to the couches and sank down beside him with a sigh. I reached for my tea and watched him over the rim of the cup as I sipped. He sat and seethed, not looking my way.

“Drink your tea,” I said lightly, trying to encourage him out of his scowling mood.

He reluctantly picked up the cup which looked ridiculous in his huge hands, and took a sip. Seeming pleasantly surprised by the taste.“So you hate flyers because of him?” he asked quietly, keeping his anger suppressed.

“I don’t hate flyers. I’ll admit that barring those I was already fond of as a child, I’ve made no effort to know any others particularly well. But flyers are not the problem. Flying is. And heights in general. “

“But I’ve seen you on landings. Some of those are high up.”

“Not near the edge, trust me. And when I go out on those, it’s always for a patient, so their need surpasses mine and I deal with it as quickly as possible.

He put his cup down and turned in his seat to face me. “I can help you.”.

“I don’t see how.” I shrugged.

“It’s a matter of trust,” he said. “I know you hardly know me, but you can trust me with your life. That’s what a ryder does every time they fly.”

I shook my head, physically backing away slightly. “I’ll never get past this, Jaxus. I’m sorry. You don’t know what it was like facing my death rushing up to me like that.”

“I’ve had plenty of falls,” he replied flippantly.

“Yes, and can produce wings on command!” I snapped, not meaning to sound so scathing.

Jaxus shrank back, seeing my point, and let me have myvictory. He thought for a moment and I dreaded his next move, knowing I would soon run out of ways to shoot him down without losing my patience. “If you’d allow it. Our bond would reassure you that I would never let harm come to you.”

Intellectually, I knew that was true. But it didn’t mean I’d ever take to the skies with him. Which was one of the main reasons I kept my mind and magic tightly locked against him at all times. Feeling the thread of magic that bound us was enough to bear. If I let him in to my mind and felt the way his magic played with mine, I would be in too deep to pull back. I needed the distance and I couldn’t allow a meld to happen, or there would be no resisting.

“It’s—for the best—that we—don’t,” I said haltingly, as if even voicing my intention to defy the Goddess was difficult. She was watching, I knew, and did not accept my defiance. I swallowed, afraid of the consequences I could earn with my need for self-preservation.

“Kiera, it’s not up for negotiation. You know that. I never knew I’d have a ryder. It’s as much a shock to me as it is to you. But we both have to adjust, and who knows how great our power could be together? The benefits we could gain from melding could make you a greater healer than you are now. The Goddess needs us together for something. We owe her everything. We must repay her by doing this.”

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