Page 68 of The Dragon King's Curse
The princess turned to me, confusion written on her face. “What did she mean by that, Noxx? You’ve claimed me as your mate.”
“No time for that right now. We’ve got a fight to win.” Inwardly I cursed Elora for her big mouth. I wished I could kill her all over again myself.
Feryn had no choice but to hold her questions for later. We’d both had a lot thrown at us. Information we would have to sift through after we survived this fight.
The traitors were greatly outnumbered. Soon we were able to cut them down entirely. One of my guards reported that two of them had escaped the castle and were on the run.
To Flynn, I said, “Stay here and keep an eye on the castle. We’re going after the two that got away.”
I motioned for Cain and Pyke to join me. Catching Feryn up in my arms, I kissed her before striding from the blood soaked ballroom. I felt her eyes upon me as I went.
The truth had come out, and it hadn’t come from me. I sincerely hoped she would forgive me for what I was about to do.
CHAPTER THIRTY-NINE
FERYN
I stared after Noxx, wishing he didn’t have to go. I understood that it was his duty. He needed to do this. The many questions that bombarded me would have to wait.
Cleo and I busied ourselves by tending to those who’d been injured. Some of the men carried the bodies out for disposal. Cleo told me they would be taken to an area outside the castle grounds and burned on a pyre.
She seemed to be holding herself together quite well for someone who just lost their sister. Going through the motions of helping others likely helped her focus on something else. I worried that she would hate me for being the one to kill Elora. It happened so fast. Hearing that she had been helping Nika in her efforts to kill Noxx while working with the fae. It had all angered me so much.
Once we’d tended to the wounded, there was nothing left for us to do other than wait for Noxx to return. Cleo went to the buffet and poured herself a large glass of wine, drinking back the entire thing at once.
“Cleo? Are you all right?” I watched as she refilled her glass. “Obviously, you’re not all right. I’m sorry this happened.”
She drank down the second glass as promptly as the first. Reaching for the wine pitcher, she shook her head. “No needto worry, Feryn. I don’t blame you for anything. Elora made her choice. Honestly, I blame myself for not knowing sooner. If I’d realized that she’d been working for Nika, maybe I could’ve stopped this from happening.”
“None of this is your fault, Cleo. Nobody knew. I’m sorry for your loss. I’m sorry that I was the one.” There was nothing else I could say. No way to ease her pain. My heart hurt for her.
“I’d have killed her myself if I’d been in the position to do so.” Cleo shrugged, glancing down at her ruined, bloodstained dress. “What did she tell you? When the king questioned her.”
Cleo had been busy blocking attacks and introducing her magickal dagger to anyone unfortunate enough to get in her way. I decided then that I could use a tall glass of wine myself.
After drinking enough to make my head a little fuzzy, I said, “She told us that Nika is working with the Fae King against Noxx. They planned to kill him and take over this realm before making a move on my realm.”
That’s not all she had said though. Elora had looked upon the scar on my neck with disgust. She said that Noxx had claimed me as his mate. I didn’t know enough about dragon kind to understand entirely what that meant. I knew that animals of all kinds had mates. Some were for a season and some were for life. I was afraid to ask but needed to know.
“No wonder the fae imprisoned Noxx.” Cleo nodded in understanding. “It all makes so much more sense now. I imagine that means there are more battles to come.”
“There was something else that she said,” I began hesitantly. “She said that Nika knows that Noxx has claimed me as his mate. What does that mean?”
Cleo did a double take. As if she couldn’t stop herself, she stared at the scar on my neck. “You mean you don’t know? Oh gods. That fool of a man.”
Her reaction instilled me with fear. I touched the mark on my neck, feeling the ridges where Noxx’s fangs had pierced my flesh.
“I don’t know anything,” I said. “Please tell me.”
Cleo’s brows knit together. She shook her head, glancing about as if searching for the right words. “There is a mate bond among our kind. A bite that forms a magickal connection. It binds two dragons together for all eternity. Linking their souls and their hearts. I’ve never known it to be done outside of our kind before. When I saw you with his mark, I thought you knew what it meant. I was surprised to see it but thought it was not my place to say anything.”
It took me a few tries to say, “He never told me.”
I felt like my world had been flipped upside down. Already I’d struggled with my feelings for Noxx. Knowing that I would have to leave him and how much it would hurt. How could he do something like this without telling me? How could he do something like this at all?
The sudden need to flee gripped me. As much as I wanted to run from this sudden revelation, I knew that I needed to speak with Noxx.
“I’m sorry, I need to go. I need to be alone.” I left the ballroom and it’s madness behind. Unable to bring myself to return to the garden where Noxx and I had created a beautiful memory, I wandered the castle halls instead.
