Page 83 of Galadon
“In all these years as a slayer, you’ve never bought anything unnecessary?” I asked, horrified at how sparse her life had been before. Even I hadn’t been that frugal.
She shrugged. “It was easy enough to pilfer books, but that was the only luxury I allowed myself since I could leave them for others once I finished. People don’t exactly pay slayers to kill dragons—aside from the coalition—so the most I got from locals was food sometimes. Plus, there’s only so much Onyx and I can carry. It was pointless to pack anything we didn’t need.”
Though I still didn’t care for her profession, it saddened me that she risked her life without compensation or a reward. She couldn’t call a place home because she had to keep moving. Even the jakhal guards and border security were given a decent wage for their duties. For me, I had my land as a resource and trade dealings with others to acquire what I wanted.
Sometimes, when she spoke of her years roaming the land, I could see the deep loneliness that had occupied her during that time. I hoped she never had to feel that way again and that we could make up for what we lacked before joining together. Making her happy drove me in a way I never imagined.
I took her hand and began guiding her down the street. “If you don’t choose at least one or two things for yourself, I will be deeply upset.”
A gleam entered her eyes. “You won’t get an argument out of me because I seriously need to brighten that mancave where you keep your bed.”
“Mancave?” I asked, confused by the unfamiliar term.
“There’s hardly anything feminine in there, Galadon.”
I supposed she was right, though I’d always liked my sleeping quarters well enough. But with her wearing that dress, it wouldn’t have mattered what excuse she gave. She could ask for anything big or small, and I would find a way to get it for her—and transport it.
As Rayna stopped frequently to peek inside shop windows, her features showed such light-hearted happiness that it took my breath away. It reminded me of the photos I saw when she was younger, and her whole future was ahead of her. The ones from a time before she was forced into a life of solitude and killing. Until recently, I hadn’t realized how much it weighed her down. Her brazen behavior and sarcasm had been a way to hide her pain and loneliness. How couldn’t I have seen it when I donned my own mask to hide similar hardships?
For this moment, at least, the weight had been lifted. Her slayer urges were curbed, we’d overcome our fears, become fully mated, and even developed genuine friendships. The smile shesent my way as she pointed at something inside a shop struck me like a boulder. I’d burn the world down for her if that’s what it took to keep her happy. She was everything I hadn’t realized I needed.
“Let’s go in there,” she said.
I pulled the door open for her, and we stepped inside a shop filled with hand-carved wooden boxes of various sizes. Some were only suitable for small items like jewelry, others large enough to hold a small wardrobe. Rayna ran her hand over several of them, carefully tracing the carvings. She moved through the room gracefully as I followed behind, entranced by her.
“Do you have any that are flame-proof?” she asked the proprietor.
The middle-aged man glanced between us, clearly nervous about my presence. I gave him a pointed look to focus on Rayna.
He obliged by giving her a friendly smile. “A few of the small chests are pre-treated, but we take commissions and have an arrangement with one of the shifters at the fortress for larger items. Is there something in particular?”
She turned to look at me with a shyness I’d never seen on her face, but I could also see she desired something badly. “Whatever you want, najeema.”
There was gratitude in her hazel eyes as she turned back to the man. “A larger one.” She paused and pointed at a box that appeared to have interesting brass locks and would easily hold all the garments she currently owned, plus a few more we’d add soon. “Similar to this, but I’d like to create my own design if it’s possible for you to carve it on the lid?”
“Depending on what you’re thinking, it’s certainly possible. Would you like a pencil and paper?” he asked.
She nodded. “Yes, please.”
The man reached beneath the counter and pulled out the requested items. Rayna’s hair fell over her face as she bent to sketch out her design with extreme focus. I tucked it behind her ears for her.
At first, I couldn’t tell what she intended to draw, but slowly, the scene came to life. She was an artist—an incredible one. Her pencil flew across the page as she worked to put the finishing touches that were clearly a dragon and a woman who suspiciously looked like us. Another thing I hadn’t known about her until now.
“Why have I never seen you draw or any of your work?” I asked, moving closer to her.
She framed the design with artistic flourishes. “I always burn them after I’m done, and I haven’t drawn since we…well, there hasn’t been time or opportunity lately. Plus, the Kandoran stole my sketch pads and pencils.”
“You didn’t mention them before.”
“Technically, they aren’t a necessity, but when I was on the road, they helped pass the time between hunts. I just didn’t have a place to store them, so sometimes I gave them away if I thought someone might appreciate them. Usually, though, I burned them.”
I gave her an incredulous look and noted the proprietor doing the same.
“You could sell these,” he said.
She shook her head. “They’re just a hobby, nothing special.”
I turned her to face me. “They’re a lot more than that, and if there is anything you wish to do with your art, I will support you.”
