Page 87 of Exquisite Monster
Thedepthof it struck me.
It matched my own. Every echo of sadness and madness that had drowned me through the dark nights in Gleym’s cave. They’d felt all of it and more, because they had been tortured for merely being who they were. Possibly worse. Andaros would have made them pay extra for being with me.
“Show me the market,” I finally said, needing to release both of us from this cycle of pain spinning back and forth. It was the perfect illustration of why I couldn’t quite grasp hope. What was there to grasp onto?
We walked around the edges more, and I took in the small beauties. Artisans with sculptures that defied both reason and logic. Every kind of art, all lovely, and far from anything I’d ever seen in the human realm.
Even the things that seemed like everyday tools were somehow smoother and more refined. There was no doubt in my mind that most of the dragon’s world—and their culture—was beautiful. Ididn’t even blame them for their hatred of humans. It was entirely our doing.
“Would you like to see closer?”
We still hovered on the edges, not quite close enough to touch anything, or to mingle with the rest of the dragons weaving through the rows of the market. They were wide enough that some roamed in their dragon forms, the glimmering light of the lanterns reflecting off their scales.
“I think?—”
A deep inhale nearby drew both our attention, the dragon standing at the booth nearest us turning with a feral gaze.
Fear turned me to stone, but Zovai was already there. He growled so low I could barely hear it, just feel it, and the dragon turned away. “I want to see it,” I whispered. “I do. But…”
Zovai steered me down a side street into the darkness. It wasn’t irritation or anger that drove him, but concern and that same fear. “It’s all right, Princess. I’m with you. We’ll come back when we are safe. At the very least, we accomplished the one thing we needed.”
“I’m sorry.”
He said nothing until we slipped out one of the gates to the city, fading into the darkness of nearby trees. Zovai threw off his cloak before gathering me close. “Do not apologize. We knew it was a risk, and there’s every chance he was merely curious, as Someny was.” I felt his faint smile against my neck. “But I perhaps overestimated my own ability to keep calm.”
A laugh bubbled up at that. “You?”
He growled playfully. “Just because I cannot show you everythingSythal Iturhas to offer doesn’t mean I’m finished with you, mate.”
“Oh? And where are we going?”
He stepped away, far enough to shift into his true form.
Climb on and find out.
CHAPTER FORTY
________
KATALENA
Zovai flew us back to Syrsi, but not to the tower. He swooped low into the forested portion of the island. Moonlight fell through the trees, pale spears lighting up little facets for us to fly through. We landed in a small clearing. Not the same one I’d explored with Endre.
This clearing was open to the sky. The branches of the trees leaned away as if they wanted to form a perfect circle above. Z’s scales were silver-gilded rubies before he shifted, not bothering with the clothes I held for him.
Instead, he swept the cloak from my shoulders and spread it on the grass, in the middle of the wide puddle of moonlight. I couldn’t quite interpret the franticrushingof his thoughts and feelings. Only that he was wholly focused.
And that focus was suddenly on me.
“When I told you I wanted to take you to the market, I promise this wasn’t the plan.”
I raised a single eyebrow. “So you weren’t planning on taking me to bed after?”
“Well…” His mouth slid into a smirk. “This wasn’texactlythe plan. I did plan to take you. To an actual bed.”
He loomed over me, my breath going short as he spun me around and began to undo the ties at the back of my dress. “Then why are we here? When there are beds nearby?”
Instead of answering, he opened his bond fully. There was no way to explain how I knew he’d expanded our connection, I justdid, sinking into his mind like submerging myself in water. The drive to keep me safe from every threat. The need to spread out his mate beneath the sky and be one with all of it. But in a place where it was safe to do so and neither of us had to worry about being discovered by those who meant us harm.
