Page 70 of Cam's Treasure

"That they do," I agreed with a chuckle. "Looks like they couldn't sleep."

Cam scowled, his face darkening as he hopped onto a barstool. "Damned Ravenshire. I should've burned the whole place down years ago."

My brows shot up at the venom in Cam's voice. Cam was mischievous, sweet, and funny, but I rarely saw him as angry as he appeared right then.

I hadn't met Micah when he'd first escaped Ravenshire, and I couldn't hope to imagine how traumatizing it must've been for a ten-year-old to be removed from the only home he'd ever known. I still didn't know exactly what had happened, but Iknew it was nothing good. I'd seen the scars on Micah's back, and I knew without asking he got them in Ravenshire. What had they done to my sweet mate?

Finding out Kai had been hurt by people from the same island must have been hell for Cam's dragon. No wonder he was so on edge.

"What exactly is wrong with them? Are they just plain evil?" I didn't really know much about Ravenshire. I'd sensed it when I moved to the town close by twenty years ago, but it'd been far enough that I hadn't cared to investigate further.

All I knew was that it was an island of mages a few miles away that was hidden from human eyes and accessible only through a few portals in various towns...unless you could fly.

I broke the eggs and started in on the mix for some scrambled eggs as I waited for Cam's answer.

"Nah, not exactly. It's just the people in control who are assholes, from what I've gathered. They've locked the island up and don't allow anyone to come in. The mages there don't go out much either. 'It's frowned upon,' Cassian once told me. They've become an insular, toxic community that mistreats anyone they think is different. Whenever a mage has magic that they don't like, that doesn't fit into their idea of what it should look like, they treat them like shit. Or, if the magic is powerful enough, arrest them."

"Like Micah," I realized with a sinking feeling in my chest, and Cam nodded.

Pouring the eggs into the pan, I stirred as Cam sighed, resting forward on his elbows as he watched the pan.

"Yeah, exactly. Aeron was arrested because according to them, all necromancers are bad, and it didn't matter that all Aeron did was talk to his mom's spirit. Cassian was treated like a pariah because his fire magic was a bit out of control. Raph was treated like dirt because his healing magic was different from hisfamily's, and they couldn't get their heads out of their asses long enough to figure that out." Cam shook his head in disgust, and I started to understand why he hated these people so much. It wasn't just because of Micah and Kai, though they played a big part. The Ravenshire mages had hurt quite a few of the people Cam loved, and I was honestly surprised he'd managed to hold off from destroying them until now.

"We'll get Kai's coat back," I said, meeting Cam's eyes across the counter. "And we'll make sure those mages know not to mess with any of us ever again."

Cam's green eyes sparked with determination as he nodded, but before he could get too wound up, I added, "But first, we need to talk to Raiden. If there's even a chance the mages might retaliate, Raiden will need to know. It'll also be good to have his advice regardless."

Cam sighed but nodded without protest. I was glad he was so close to his parents, glad he could depend on them. I'd never known my parents, but I imagined I'd have liked someone like Raiden and William or Cassian and Gus as my parents. It was clear as day how much they loved their children, and I knew they'd do anything for them, including go to war with an island of mages, if it came to that.

The sound of Micah's groan interrupted the lull between us, and Cam brightened, sitting upright on the stool and turning toward the doorway just as Micah stepped inside.

"Kai's still sleeping. I didn't wanna wake him," he mumbled, glancing from me to Cam in an adorably unsure way. In the end, he settled on walking over to Cam and leaning against him. "Good morning."

"Morning, Micah. Did you sleep okay?"

Micah met my eyes, his deep brown ones bright as he nodded. "I did. We watched a movie because we couldn't sleep, and I don't think either of us finished it."

Smiling, I turned off the stove, then walked around the counter to stand before him. Cupping his cheek in my hand, I lowered my head and pressed a soft kiss to his lips.

"Hey! Why didn't I get a good morning kiss?" Cam complained, though the lightness in his voice assured me he wasn't actually complaining.

Turning to him, Micah smacked a kiss on his lips, and then I did the same, ruffling his already-messy hair. "There you go, brat. Is that better?"

"Much," he agreed with a grin, his earlier rage gone.

No, not gone, I corrected myself. Subdued, so Micah wouldn't catch onto it and start worrying again.

Kai

I woke up on the couch under a mountain of blankets, warm and utterly cozy. I could hear voices in the kitchen, though my senses were too muted to figure out what they were saying.

Fuck, I wanted my skin back. Not just because I didn't have access to much of my magic without it, but because it was mine. It was a part of me, and my chest ached from being away from it for so long. Cam and the others had promised they'd help me, but would they really?

I wanted to put my faith in them so badly, to just let go and let them take care of me, but I was afraid. No, I was terrified. I didn't think I'd be able to take it if they betrayed me too.

Struggling out of the blankets, I stumbled a little as I stood up, then righted myself, pushing my hair away from my face as I made my way to the kitchen.

Ember stood behind the counter while Cam and Micah perched on barstools, plates of half-finished breakfast in front ofall three. Ember smiled when he spotted me, and took out a plate from the microwave, placing it in front of the last empty stool.

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