Page 94 of A Thieving Curse

Jasper looked up from setting the table. “Ah, you found—” The plate slipped out of his hands and clattered to the floor.

Lucas twisted around on his seat and went bug-eyed, his mouth hanging so far open his jaw appeared unhinged. Peter toppled backward in his chair, dangerously close to the fireplace.

Raelyn blushed as Alexander pulled out her seat. Maybe telling them all at once had been a bad idea. Alexander moved to his seat as she sat down, his tail flicking back and forth and a bounce in his step. She had never seen him so exuberant.

She hated she was going to ruin it.

“Ah—ah—ah…” Lucas gawked at her, his mouth still hanging open.

“Wow, Rae, you even rendered Lucas speechless.” Alexander laughed.

“How did you get here?” Jasper asked as he lowered into his chair. “What happened?”

“Whendid you get here?” Meredith set a plate in front of Raelyn.

Raelyn shifted. “Um, late last night… I—”

“I found her,” Alex said as he piled fried potatoes and seared venison onto his plate. “I couldn’t sleep, so I went flying. I thought I was losing my mind, because I heard Raelyn shouting my name in the distance. But then I heard her screaming. I followed the sound and found her in the top of a tree.” He looked at her. “I have all kinds of questions, but I also don’t care. Because you came back.”

“What about your brother?” Peter scooted his righted chair closer to the table. “Is he…?”

Shame and sorrow intertwined. There wasn’t a good way to say this. Raelyn sighed. “He’s on his way with Prince Tristan and a hunting party. To kill Alexander.”

Everyone stilled. Raelyn propped her elbows on the table and covered her face with her hands.

“What?” Alex’s voice sounded choked.

“Gareth and Tristan want to slay the dragon who held me captive. I couldn’t talk them out of it, so I went along to point out anything familiar. In truth, I’d hoped to misdirect them, but they’re coming to Mount Klainar, anyway. I tried to convince them to stop, but now…” Raelyn’s stomach twisted. “They think I’m enchanted. They were sending me back to the palace, so I ran. To warn you.” She dropped her hands and looked at Alexander. “You have to flee.”

Alexander’s joy evaporated, replaced with a stunned expression that cut straight through her. His wings rustled as he slumped back, staring vacantly at the center of the table.

“I’m sorry,” Raelyn choked out. “I tried everything. I even told Gareth the truth.” Her heart panged. “He didn’t believe me.”

“I guess Gareth wasn’t exaggerating about killing me.” Alex stared at the table like he was seeing right through it. Raelyn bit her tongue and shrank down in her chair.

“When will they be here?” Meredith asked quietly.

“I don’t know.” Numbness spread through Raelyn’s chest. “Today? Tomorrow?”

Lucas pushed his food around his plate. “Can we fight them?”

“No!” Raelyn gripped the arms of her chair, starting to sweat as her nerves rose. “They have thirty trained warriors and hunters. You all have to run; get far away from here. You have to go now.”

Alex met her eyes across the table. “Come with us.”

“I…can’t.” Raelyn ran her fingers down her braid. “I have a duty.”

“Then I’m not leaving.” Alex crossed his arms, and his eyes glowed.

He couldn’t be serious. But the determined set of his jaw said otherwise. “Are you insane?” She shook her head. “They’ll kill you.”

“So come with me,” he begged. “Or I won’t leave.”

She rubbed the sides of her neck. Why did he have to be so stubborn and make this hurt even more? “You’d throw your life away because I won’t run away with you? Don’t be foolish.”

Alex growled, then leaned on the table. “But…you came back.” He sounded like a confused child. “I thought…”

Her throat caught, but she needed to convince him to leave. “I owed you for saving my life.”

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