Page 24 of Court of Secrets and Flames

And that’s what I intend to do. No matter what that entails.

Conversation lulls as we nibble on the food and sip on coffee. Leesa was right. Yesterday’s ordeal with the dragons drained me, and as I pop a cube of cheese in my mouth, I realize just how hungry I am.

For a few minutes, I revel in the familiar glow of sisterhood that I’ve sorely missed since Leesa left our estate for Flighthaven Academy. Even after all we’ve both been through, sharing a meal with her seems so normal.

It’s like being home.

During my brief time at Flighthaven, I searched for clues regarding Leesa’s disappearance and followed the breadcrumbs she left behind in case she vanished without a trace. Never in a million years could I have predicted our reunion happening in Tirene, and the experience is more than a little surreal.

I refill our mugs with steaming coffee. “You appear entirely too healthy and hale for a woman half the academy thought to be dead.”

Leesa pauses with her cup halfway to her lips. “People thought I was dead?”

“Some did. Others thought you ran off with your Tirenese lover. But I knew you wouldn’t just run away. Not without a damn good reason.” I put a hand on her arm. “Tell me what really happened.”

She clasps her hand on top of mine. “I’m guessing the same thing that happened to you, happened to me.”

“You weren’t snatched during your first trial in front of everyone.” I roll my eyes and sip my coffee.

“No. I was on my way back from the library close to curfew and got knocked out and snatched before I reached the dorm. Afterward, when I first woke up, I was convinced I’d been taken on King Xenon’s orders. I noticed that something was off with Flighthaven’s dragons and then caught someone hauling eyril into the dragon aerie, which made no sense. When the king came to Flighthaven, he cornered me to ask questions about you. If you’d showed any signs of a strong elemental ability, if I ever noticed you acting odd around alicorns or other magical creatures. If Mother ever mentioned you were adopted. By that time, I’d already stumbled across the gravestone.”

Silence stretches between us. One of the biggest shocks of my entire life came when I followed Leesa’s clue to a spot near Castle Axton and found a hidden gravestone with my own name etched into it.

Lark Axton

Beloved daughter and sister

Same name. Same birth year. Only, that Lark Axton died at the age of four.

Goose bumps pebble my skin. Every time I picture that white grave marker, a chill sweeps over my body.

My sister exhales a loud breath. “I’d already started researching and was trying to form theories while keeping my eyes peeled for any strange happenings around campus.” Her eyes go distant, as if she’s remembering her time at the academy. “I’d heard that the king was all about some prophecy. Then I saw a reference in a book to a prophecy about a dragoncaller, and it occurred to me that those two prophecies were one and the same and you’re the dragoncaller in question.”

I sit up straight. “Prophecy? Did the book give any specifics?” Despite Leesa’s references to a prophecy in the clues she left behind at Flighthaven, I was never able to track it down.

Disappointment piles on my shoulders when she shakes her head. “No. But someone stole that book out of my room anyway. That’s when I started to get paranoid that someone was spying on me. I worried that they might try to get rid of me, so I left hints behind in places only you’d have access to or know where to look. If I vanished, I knew you’d be summoned to Flighthaven to take my place, especially given the king’s interest in you. I needed a way to warn you something was wrong without fear that the information would fall into the wrong hands and hurt you. I was snatched before I could finish searching for answers though.”

“Kidnapped by a Tirenese soldier? I guess that means some of the rumors were half right.”

“By King Jasper’s order.” Her thin lips tighten into a grim line. “He hoped to use me to get to you. In one sense, I suppose I owe him my gratitude. Instructor Thorne…I mean, Prince Knox, seems convinced that King Xenon was days away from having one of his cronies abduct me. And if that happened, I’m not sure I would have lived to tell the tale.”

A chill runs down my spine at her words. King Jasper. King Xenon. My entire life, I’d been taught that the Tirenese were a ruthless people and their rulers even worse but apparently, they’re no different than the ones in my own kingdom.

“And you believe him? Ster…er, Prince Knox?”

Leesa shrugs. “Only because what he said makes sense to me.”

My grip tightens on the cutlery, anger pooling in my gut like molten lead. “Did they hurt you when they took you? When you got here?”

Leesa shakes her head. “They haven’t harmed me, and treat me well enough. But I’m not a guest. I’m a prisoner, just like you. We’re both pawns in whatever game King Jasper is playing.”

My heart clenches. “I’m so sorry.”

“Sorry? For what? None of this is your fault.” The way she immediately defends me reminds me so much of our childhood days, when she would speak up for me when Mother’s smothering became too much. “Now tell me about what happened after I left. How was training? Were you able to overcome your fear of alicorns? Oh! And were you able to pass the trial before Prince Knox carried you away?”

“Yes to overcoming my fear of alicorns. Oddly enough, I owe that to the prince. He devoted time gave me private lessons until I felt confident enough to fly on my own.” I leave out the part where Sterling and I sometimes hooked up during those lessons. “No to completing the trial. The dragon went rogue before we could finish.”

As we eat, I fill her in on everything that happened during my short stint at Flighthaven. Digging for clues to try to find her. The hazing, my training, befriending Olive Holte. Olive’s horrific death.

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