Page 34 of Wynter and the Stone Dragon

“Awake, my people, for I have returned. Peace be with us once again.”

The words flowed from her mouth as Pow-pow circled over the palace. As she spoke, her power mingled with the energy held in place by the twelve silent sentinels.

The magic rolled backwards, sweeping over the frozen residents of Erindale. Rock turned to ash, leaving dazed and confused residents stumbling.

By the time Pow-pow landed on the balcony that had once belonged to her parents' living quarters, the kingdom had awakened. The residents of the kingdom turned as one and looked up at the princess with snow-white hair sitting atop a stone dragon. She glowed with power and her gaze promised protection and love.

A burning in her palm drew her attention to her hand. She stared at the magical mark with eyes filled with tears. Ceto’s reign of terror had ended. Wynter could go home. Looking out over the kingdom, her gaze paused on her father, and she knew that this was where she belonged.

* * *

Earth: Deion

Khalid reined in his powerful stallion and instinctively touched the braided bracelet on his wrist. It was glowing again. Each time it did, he hoped it was a signal of Wynter’s return.

And each time, she never does.

No matter how often he scolded himself for wishing, he continued to believe that she would come back. He closed his eyes. It had been six months. The emptiness made it feel like years.

“You felt her again,” Giaf asked, reining in his horse beside Khalid’s.

He nodded, removing his hand. Wynter’s hair glowed in the darkness. He could feel her emotions—fear, fatigue, hope, sadness, and most suffocating of all, loneliness. For a while, he wondered if the emotions were a magnification of his own.

“What do you sense this time?” Giaf asked.

“Peace.” He tilted his head to stare up at the stars.

Giaf frowned. “Do you think she is alright?”

“Yes.” He looked at the bracelet again. “If something had happened to her, the light would have faded.”

Over the past six months, he had dreamed almost nightly of Wynter. He had often woken drenched in sweat and trembling with fear, his heart pounding so hard that he was surprised it didn’t burst through his chest.

The dreams had been filled with terrifying creatures and the constant threat of danger. He recognized that she was trying to shield him as best she could, but he was connected to Wynter. He knew in his soul that she would have returned to him if she could, but she would never do so if it would endanger him or this world.

And so he waited.

“We’d best be getting back before Dhat-Badan sends a search party out for us,” Giaf said, pulling him back to the present.

“Yes.”

They rode back to Deion in silence. The past six months, Khalid had turned his focus on rebuilding his country. Most of the external scars left from his uncle’s rule had been repaired, but there were still the internal ones that would take longer. There were still people who distrusted him because of his blood connection to Inarus.

A meeting between the tribal leaders throughout his country had been organized by Dhat-Badan in the ancient city of Deion. She was well respected by everyone, and he had agreed with her counsel that he needed to meet—and listen—to the concerns in a neutral place of trust.

They had gathered here three days ago. After endless rounds of meetings, he needed to escape into the quietness of the desert. It was here that he could let down his guard and remember the nights he had spent with Wynter, making love to her under the brilliant blanket of stars.

Come back to me, janiat alsahra' aljamila,he silently pleaded, stroking the ribbon of hair tied around his wrist. He hoped she heard him.

ChapterFourteen

Present Day: Erindale

Wynter stood on her balcony watching the chaos of merchants and pedestrians going about their daily lives. A cool breeze lifted the wisps of hair around her face. She brushed her hair back and closed her eyes. A faint plea swept through her mind.

Oh, Khalid,she thought.

A noise behind her broke the connection. She startled and opened her eyes.

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