Page 22 of A World of Ruins

When Gus starts to speak, I don’t know what to make of it. ‘Darius was there when Fernah’s whelps first hatched.’

The statement doesn’t surprise me. In fact, it warms me to know Darius witnessed something so miraculous.

I move closer to Fernah and place my hand over her leathery skin as she breathes in and out. ‘What was it like?’ Even though I did not want to speak with Gus, he has quickly reeled me in by telling me this.

He chuckles, looking over at where I am standing. ‘As if I was with his mother again.’

My gaze steadies on Fernah. Her head swiftly lowers so her eye connects with mine. The vertical slit of her pupil looks as if it expands, hiding most of the gold colour. To think I once believed in ending these beautiful creatures. I still hate myself for the past me that sought out revenge on them.

‘When I first met Aurelia,’ Gus says, ‘I didn’t know she was a Rivernorth.’

I can’t help but let my eyes stray from Fernah to Gus. He is shaking his head, looking far off into the distance.

‘I used to stay away from anything royal back then,’ he continues. ‘So, when I heard that Sarilyn had ended the Rivernorth reign, it didn’t matter to me. What mattered was that the dragons were now in danger under her rule. I formed alliances with other shifters, saved as many of our kind as I could, and when the den was built, Aurelia stumbled into my path.’ As he tips his head back and smiles, all I see is Darius. ‘She was ethereal and passionate about all the dragons. Although she had quite a temper, too. She detested me bossing her around because, according to her, she could take me on quite easily and win.’

‘And did she?’ I’m overcome by my curiosity. Gus’s amused gaze drops to look at me.

His smile widens. ‘A few times, yes.’

Humour swirls in my chest, and I blow out a rushed breath through my nose, wishing I could have had the chance to meet Aurelia.

‘Why did you leave Darius?’ I ask the question that truly matters.

The smile on Gus’s face vanishes. He looks at the ground and rubs a thumb across his bearded chin. ‘I didn’t. When I found out Aurelia was who she was, all I could focus on wasprotecting her from Sarilyn. It became my sole purpose to the point she felt suffocated. She thought by being with me, she would eventually drag me down with her problems, and when she became pregnant with Darius, I was ecstatic. But I knew this meant a long life of sheltering him, too. And a month after Darius was born, I found she had left the den with the plan of handing Darius to a few witches she knew, but . . . I guess she never followed up with that idea.’

Witches . . . Could they be the same witches who removed Darius’s Rivernorth symbol on his hands?

I look at the ground and swipe my foot across the cut grass. I wonder what would have happened if Darius had stayed with the witches instead of his mother. Perhaps he would not have witnessed her death, and perhaps he would not have suffered so much at such a young age.

‘I looked for her for so long, wishing she would just come back to me, but . . .’ Gus never finishes that sentence, so I glance up at him.

‘And then you found Darius years later,’ I say, remembering when I first learned that Gus wanted Darius to join him.

A chuckle forms at the base of Gus’s throat as he smiles fondly. ‘I knew he was my son with just one look.’

‘Then why didn’t you tell him?’Why didn’t you try?

He shakes his head, a sombre expression taking hold of his features. ‘Because he already hated his father by then. He thought I abandoned him, and I guess it was easier to lie than tell the truth.’

‘So you asked him to join you instead.’ My voice sounds more accusatory than I intended it to be. I watch as he visibly swallows the guilt down his throat and nods.

‘I did, and even when he rejected my proposition each time, I didn’t care. I was just glad to have found him.’

‘But Gus, you can’t keep this from him for ever. There will come a day when he finds out, and it will only worsen things.’

He sighs understandably, but I can only say so much.Hemust be the one to break the news, not me, not Freya, not Leira, only him.

I look over at Fernah, marking her territory against other larger dragons wanting to invade her space. Sighing, I say to Gus after a minute or so, ‘Apparently, you can play the piano.’

There is a note of silence. ‘Since I was a child, I have played. Stopped when Aurelia left.’

‘I heard Darius play once.’ I glance at him. ‘He told me it was all he knew and that it belonged to his father.’

Something glimmers in his eyes, carrying a mixture of humour and melancholy. ‘That was the only piece I ever taught Aurelia. It was my love letter to her before Darius was born.’

And now Darius knows it, thanks to his mother.

I realise I’m smiling, and it is not much, but for the slightest moment, I let that anger I felt over not knowing who Gus was to Darius dissipate. We turn towards the dragons, focusing on them as I cross my arms over my chest to keep the cold from snapping at my fingers.

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