Page 30 of Storm of Blood and Shadow

Kyreagan turns to the Princess, who’s frowning at us with her arms crossed. “This is my brother, Varex. He and I are leaving now. Eat, rest, and speak to your people. I will return later.”

“Don’t hurry back,” she snaps.

He looks as if he’s about to snarl at her, but instead he leaps aloft, his great wings pounding the air. I rise with him.

Whatever he said to Jessiva, I am determined not to hold it against him. But we need to talk, he and I, so I begin the conversation with a simple question. “What was that about?”

“The Princess hates me,” Kyreagan rumbles. “She would rather not be around me.”

“Jessiva hates me too… sometimes.”

“And sometimes not?”

I think of what she and I did in my cave last night… the sounds she made, the blissful expression on her face. “It’s difficult to say.”

Kyreagan glances my way. “You can tell me anything.”

His tone is gentle, reassuring, almost probing. As if he, too, wishes to discuss sensitive topics, and he isn’t sure how to begin.

I can’t confess everything to him. But perhaps I can gain some perspective on what I’ve been feeling and doing with my captive.

“Do you ever feel anything strange when you’re with your female?” I ask him.

“Explain.”

“I thought the mating heat did not begin until the Rib Moon,” I say cautiously. “But I have been experiencing symptoms like Father described when he told us what to expect. Pleasurable sensations in my body, and certain reactions thatare difficult to conceal. Is there something wrong with me? Is this because I was hatched late?”

Kyreagan beats his wings a little faster and tosses his head restlessly. “If there is something wrong with you, there is something wrong with me as well.”

“Then you’ve felt it too? With the Princess?”

“I wish I did not. Those are sensations I was only supposed to feel for Mordessa during our coupling.”

I growl softly, sympathetically. “I had no Promised, so I cannot imagine the grief you are enduring—not only the loss of Grimmaw and Vylar, but Mordessa as well. She was a magnificent creature. I would have been proud to call her my second sister.”

Kyreagan doesn’t answer, but his eyes glimmer with grief. It eases my heart a little, sharing this moment with him. Sharing our pain.

“Mordessa was kind and generous,” I say. “She would have wanted you to feel pleasure and find love with someone else.”

What I witnessed between my brother and the Princess was anything but love, so perhaps I should not be encouraging a love match—but I do not want his attention turning to Jessiva again.

“On the other hand, plenty of successful matches are formed without love,” I continue. “It is not essential. I have always hoped to feel it, but many of our kind never experience that sort of romantic passion with their life-mate.”

“I am aware.”

We have no chance to speak further on the matter, as we’re entering Ashvelon’s cave. It’s cluttered with bundles and bags. Both Ashvelon and Fortunix are present, crowding the space with their large bodies. I pin my wings against my back, glad for once that my form is slender.

“The supplies you ordered, my Prince.” Fortunix indicates the bags and bundles. “I may not be much good for battle any longer, but I can still carry a heavy load.”

“And the enchantress?” Kyreagan asks.

Ashvelon moves to the side, revealing the woman I saw riding on his back. Somehow, in the time that it took me to fetch Kyreagan, he altered part of his nest into a sort of throne for her. She’s lounging on it, sipping from a cup, smirking as though her capture is an amusing joke at everyone else’s expense.

Kyreagan wastes no time in telling her exactly what he requires—a spell that will transform all the human women we have kidnapped into female dragons. In return, he promises to set the sorceress free. He’s a dragon of honor. I have no doubt he will keep his word, provided she does as she’s told.

To me, she doesn’t seem like the type of woman who complies, but rather one who likes to be obeyed. And judging by the way she and Ashvelon look at each other, he has already found pleasure in submitting to her. Now that I’ve been sexual with my captive, I can spot the signs in others. I’m not sure how far Kyreagan went with the Princess, but I’m convinced the sorceress has made Ashvelon come for her at least once. He’s staring at her with wretched devotion and abject hunger.

“I think I can provide the magic you need,” Thelise says, and Kyreagan growls, “Youthinkyou can? That’s not good enough.”

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