Page 62 of Moon Raven Rising
The thumping wing beats of the dragon shift my attention skyward as she tucks her wings in tight and lands in the tight space we occupy. Getting as close as she can so we can mount. Osiris is the first on the dragon’s back and Cano crawls up next. I shift, letting my wings unfurl and launch into the sky.
With no other choice, I put Raelle into Osiris’s arms and glare at him with a promise of death and worse if he does anything to cross the line, but right now I trust him as a bond with her more than I trust Cano. I drop from the dragon’s back, and with a snap of my wings, I drift down and land at Declan’s side.
“I miss my wings.” Declan mumbles, and my brows pull to the center of my forehead.
“What do you mean?”
“He took them, but seeing yours… it doesn’t matter; in due time I’ll have no use for such a thing anyway.” He lifts his hand, reaching for me as I approach, and I help him to his feet.
“Can you climb to the dragon’s back?” I ask, unsure if I am to just throw him over my shoulder and take him up or allow him to try. He lets out a dry laugh, draping his arm over my shoulder.
“I think it best to leave the heavy lifting to the king. I wouldn’t want you to turn soft on your throne.” Shaking my head, I wrap my arm around his waist, and with a heavy downstroke of my wings, we are airborne.
It doesn’t take but a few minutes to reach the cave they scouted out. It is the perfect place. The sparse space in the trees around the mouth of the cave is large enough to place the dragon out of sight but also hidden enough to allow her to keep watch over us as we get some rest.
Everyone hurries to get out of the weather as a winter storm continues to worsen and now threatens to bury us in snow. The flurries beginning to accumulate will make it a little less easy to hide a huge black dragon, but at least at night, she blends into the terrain well enough.
Cano and Osiris already gathered wood for a fire, and while Cano prepares the rabbit, I lay Raelle down and get to work on creating a small pyre for roasting the meat. Once built, with a flick of my finger, I let my fire light the kindling.
“Do you think she will wake up soon?” Osiris comes to stand by my side.
“I think she requires more rest because of everything that she’s been through.” I bark out a little too quickly.
“I know that this alliance started out anything but conventional, but I give you my word; my intentions have neverchanged. I came here with one goal in mind, Dax, and stealing your mate or your kingdom is far from that.” I take in a deep breath as I think over what the prince is telling me. He told me of the plan that he and Raelle crafted. The stones that he thinks will help them both in the long run. The centuries-long deal that his family has carried with hers. It all makes sense in a way, but I still have questions as to how this came about in the first place. And what about the prophecy? What part does he play in the plans of the gods?
For as long as I can remember, it has been one question answered and two more formed. A never-ending cycle of why? I will still be searching for those answers, but for now, the only thing that matters is that we all get rest, and in the morning, when my queen wakes up, we will begin our search for the chamber he speaks of.
“Dax?” Her small voice cuts through any sound, any thought, and I run to her side.
“I’m here, love,” I whisper, lifting her head to cradle it in my lap.
“The moon,” she says softly, and my brows drop as I try to understand what she is trying to tell me. She lifts her hand, her delicate fingers wrapping around the collar of my shirt and pulling me down, but an inch from her lips. “Take me to the moon.” I kiss her forehead where it wrinkles.
“Of course, go back to sleep.” Lifting her into my arms, I walk past both of the men who look more concerned than I normally would like when it’s about my wife, but I ignore them. Finding a halo of light in between the tall canopies of trees, I sit down with her in my lap. Creatures of the night seem to hold their breath as the magic from the moon penetrates her skin, lighting it from within; she glows with healing. I feel it radiate from her and into my own body. The injury on my abdomen, already in the beginning stages of healing, starts to knit together further.
The deep soreness in my muscles washed away as though the moonlight was the world’s most precious balm. Raelle’s chest rises on a deep inhale, and she lets it out on a heavy release. “Thank you,” she breathes as she nestles further into me.
I allow her to bathe in the moon’s embrace as long as the night will allow, but when the clouds roll in and the snow becomes too thick, I have to make the decision to return to the cave where it is warm.
I’m not sure who prepared it, but off to the side of the fire there lies a bed of cloaks for us to sleep upon, and with Bracarva keeping watch and no other way into the cave, I curl myself around my mate and we sleep.
Chapter forty-nine
I wake to thebeat of a war drum. The steady rhythm is fierce yet oddly calming, causing my body to stretch and latch onto the warmth it’s bringing on reflex.
“Careful, love. You keep rubbing on me like that, we will have an audience when I take you.” My eyes snap open at the rumbling voice, and I scoot up, burying my face into the crook of his neck.
“Would you be mad if I said I didn’t care?” I whisper into his ear, and he growls in response. His hand coming up and threading through my hair at the nape of my neck.
“Furious.”
“I missed you,” I say simply in response. He growls low in his throat and tilts my head so he can see my face.
“There will never be a moment too short to not miss when you aren’t at my side.” Butterflies erupt into flight in my stomach,and he drops his lips to hover over mine. “My love,” he kisses me soft and slow, and I relish the taste of him. The smoky flavor that has always been Dax.
“Are the others here?” I ask moving to turn to look around, but he stops my advance with his thumb. My lips part, and I smile at the devilish look on his face.
“How are you feeling? Better?” His hand drifts from my face along my shoulder and down my spine. He traces small circles along my hip; the tickle and tightening of my muscles there causes a fire to begin at my core.
