Page 110 of Crown of Slumber

If I couldn’t go to Marek, then I would find a way to speak with him through magic. If he or his wife knew anything about the Dream Mage, I had to try.

It wasn’t just Aurelia’s kingdom at stake anymore. The Winter assassin had told us the Dream Mage had already seized the Lunar Court. It was only a matter of time before she reached our court as well.

“Did you hear me?” Mother barked.

I blinked, realizing she had asked me a question. “I’m sorry, what did you say?”

She sighed, casting her gaze toward the vaulted ceiling as if praying for strength. “You are impossible, Fennick. I was asking if you know what breed of dragon she has promised.”

I frowned. “What does that matter?”

“Not every dragon can produce Dragonfire.”

My eyes narrowed as I scrutinized her. The pinch of her lipswas a telltale sign she was hiding something. “How do you know this?”

She sighed. “We have a dragon in custody. But it is unable to produce any fire, whether from injuries or some other ailment, I do not know.”

I blinked, uncomprehending. “You have a—What?”

“We captured a dragon,” Mother said, her words slow and measured, as if I were daft. “We procured it a few weeks ago. It’s in the dungeon now.”

I felt the blood drain from my face.Oh, gods…“Mother, what have you done?” I breathed. I remembered the rumors I’d heard of how we had captured a dragon. When I had asked Mother, she’d dismissed it. But she hadn’t outright said the rumors weren’t true.

I covered my face with one hand, my heart seizing in my chest. Gods, Aurelia would befurious.How could I tell her?

“I did what was necessary for our people,” Mother said in a clipped tone. “But it was all for nothing, as the beast is useless.”

“You cannot do things like this!” I bellowed, dropping my hands and glaring at her. “I am trying to forge alliances and foster trusting relationships with other kingdoms, but when you send soldiers into other kingdoms to steal from them, it undermines everything I’ve been working toward!”

“Well perhaps if you had told me of your plan to strike a bargain with the Summer Court, I could have acted appropriately,” Mother said with a sniff.

Gods, she was impossible! I wanted to keep shouting at her, but I knew it wouldn’t do any good. My blood boiled with anger at what she’d done. And now…

“After everything that’s happened, I don’t think we can smooth things over with our people if you are to announce your engagement to their enemy,” Mother said, as if the matter of her stealing a dragon had been settled. “Perhaps it would be best to wait until we have received a dragon with proper Dragonfire first.”

I was shaking my head, prepared to argue, when shouts echoed from the other side of the closed doors. I stiffened, turning toward the commotion. The muffled voices rose in volume, and I made out Aurelia’s loud voice.

“I said let me through!” she cried.

Oh, shit. I hastened to the doors and threw them open, ignoring my mother’s protests. There stood Aurelia, dressed in a glittering silver gown, her body adorned with diamonds that made her whole figure sparkle. Beside her were the two soldiers tasked with guarding the throne room. Aurelia’s cheeks were pink, her eyes flashing with anger and irritation.

For a moment, all thoughts fled from my mind as I was wholly and completely consumed by her stunning appearance.

“Beloved,” I said softly, unable to keep myself from looking over her beautiful figure once more. “I didn’t realize you were awake.”

“These imbeciles are trying to keep me from you.” Her chin lifted, and I bit back a smile at the haughty royal mask she wore. Oh, she would be a formidable presence in our court, that was for sure. I couldn’t wait to see how she fared against my mother.

My good spirits faltered when I remembered what my mother had just confessed to me. Our people had snuck into the Summer Court and stolen a dragon. Stars, how could I tell Aurelia? It would have to wait until we were in private; if I told her now, it would shatter her carefully crafted mask.

“Let her through,” I told the guards, waving my hand at them. “She may enter.”

The men nodded, though one of them shot Aurelia a glare before they returned to their station. I took Aurelia’s elbow and guided her forward, leaning close to whisper in her ear, “You look radiant.”

She shivered slightly, and judging by the way her cheeks reddened, it wasn’t from the cold, but from the way my breath tickled her ear. I offered a crooked smile.

“Aurelia, I’d like you to meet my mother, Queen Sonara of the Midnight Court,” I said loudly, still clasping Aurelia’s arm as I presented her to my mother. The queen had made her way to the throne on the dais and was now perched on it, her chin high and her eyes sharp as steel as she surveyed us both.

Aurelia sank into a low curtsy, her head bowed. “It is an honor to meet you, Your Highness.”

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