Page 8 of Storm In The Sky

Jarvis stared at him for a moment.

Winter wanted to ask what he was looking for, but he didn’t dare. He just waited for Jarvis to come out with it.

“I’ve noticed how tense things are between you and Keylon,” Jarvis eventually said. “I think everyone has.”

“I can’t help it,” Winter snapped, already defensive. “Everyone expects me and Keylon to get back together or whatever, but I’m not Alvin.”

Jarvis raised his hands. “I know, and I’m not telling you that you have to be with Keylon. I’ve gone through this, so I understand how things are. I understand how different you are from Alvin.”

Jarvishadgone through the same thing. He’d found his dragon, and just like Winter, Marlow had lost his memories. He wasn’t the man he’d been before, yet he and Jarvis were together. They even had a kid, although Winter had been told the boy was Marlow’s son.

Jarvis sighed. “I was hoping I’d never have to have this conversation, but I’m not surprised it happened. Look, Winter. I don’t know you. I knew Alvin, but you’re a mystery, and that’s okay. We all knew you wouldn’t be Alvin, and none of us expected you to fall back into Alvin’s life. I have to be honest with you, though. Keylon needs a shield. He needs someone to protect him, and for now, that someone is you. There’s nothing you can do to avoid that. The bond between you and Keylon exists, and while it doesn’t have to be permanent, right now, it’s what might keep Keylon alive if Carlyle attacks.”

“But I don’t want to be his shield,” Winter argued. He sounded like a child, but Jarvis didn’t say anything about it.

“I understand that, and I’m sure Keylon does, too, no matter how much it breaks his heart. No one wants to force you intoanything you don’t want, but for now, you’re all he has. If there’s an attack, you’re the person who’s supposed to protect him. That means you need to stop running. I won’t allow you or anyone else to put one of my brothers in danger just because you’re afraid or don’t want to deal with what’s going on.”

There was a harshness in Jarvis’s voice that told Winter how serious he was. Winter wasn’t surprised. He’d watched the mages together, so he knew they were more like brothers than friends. He supposed it made sense since they’d been living together and supporting each other for decades. They’d been together when they’d lost their dragons, had felt the same emotions, had looked for the dragons together. Their shared experiences had pulled them together.

Winter looked down at his hands. “I don’t want Keylon to get hurt. I just feel out of control of my life, and I hate it. This doesn’t feel right. I was happy with Samuel’s clan, and I didn’t want to leave. I should have known better, but he insisted that he wanted to find out who was trying to find me.” And they’d ended up on Jarvis’s doorstep.

A gigantic castle’s doorstep.

“Running away won’t help either of you,” Jarvis said gently. “Whatever you two decide for your future, you and Keylon have to talk about it.”

“I know.”

“I guess I just wanted to ask you to please keep Keylon safe if he needs it. I don’t want to lose anyone else.”

That was something Winter could do, so he nodded. He hadn’t been lying when he’d said he didn’t want Keylon to be hurt.

The problem was that he knew that by the end of this, Keylon would be.

Keylon had been hoping for a reunion with his dragon, and instead, he’d gotten Winter. It might not have been so bad if Winter had been willing to stick around and give Keylon achance, but that wasn’t what Winter wanted. He had a life with Samuel and their clan, and he wanted to go back to that. He’d never remember his old life, but his new one hadn’t been bad, and he didn’t want to lose it.

Chapter Four

Keylon didn’t know what was happening, but he didn’t understand why, after weeks of hiding and slinking around like a terrified cat, Winter was noweverywhere.

Everywhere Keylon went, every room he stepped in, Winter was there. Even when Keylon was trying to avoid him, the dragon popped up, and Keylon had reached the end of his patience. If Winter popped up in front of him again, he’d scream.

Since he didn’t want to alarm the others, he’d started spending more time in his office and in his rooms. There, Winter couldn’t enter, which meant Keylon could be at peace. He still hadn’t heard from Faith and Cora, but they’d promised they’d start looking for dragons who wanted to be shields, and Keylon didn’t think it would take long. Being a mage’s shield was an honor.

Keylon had never understood why. The dragons were the ones who put themselves in the most danger. They had to protect the mages while they were casting their spells, and although most of the time nothing happened, sometimes the dragons were hurt or killed.

Or, in Winter’s case, kidnapped and robbed of their memories.

Keylon didn’t feel it would be an honor for anyone to become his shield. He wouldn’t be doing this if he didn’t need protection. Even with Carlyle gone, there might be someone else out there who wanted to take his place or who would be stupid enough to attack Keylon and the other mages. The bonds between mages and shields had started a long time ago, when infighting and wars had been more common, but they were still necessary. They would be especially necessary during the fight against Carlyle.

Keylon looked out the window of his office. He’d been hiding here most of the day, eating lunch at his desk and trying to work. He wanted to go outside, though, and since it was almost dinner time, he thought he could get to a door without anyone noticing him. Jarvis would try to talk to him soon. He had to be worried that Keylon hadn’t been in the dining room for meals for a few days, but that was something Keylon would deal with when he had to.

In the meantime, he left his office and slunk around the castle, careful not to cross paths with anyone. He was almost free of the oppressive tension hovering around him like a cloud when he heard a noise. He quickly reached for the door, but before he could open it and sneak outside, a voice stopped him.

“There you are. I’ve been looking for you.”

Keylon closed his eyes for a second, telling himself to have patience. He schooled his expression, then turned to face Winter. He crossed his arms over his chest. “Have you? I find that funny, considering that the last time I tried talking to you, you kept running away from me.”

Winter winced. “About that. I should probably apologize.”

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