Page 40 of Magic Claimed
“Touch him,” she told me gently. “Sometimes touch helps with finding the boundaries between the two of you.”
I heard murmurs behind me, but they seemed far away as Ireached for Callum’s hand where it lay on the comforter—limp and far too pale.
I’d held this hand only a few times, but I’d already memorized the shape of it—the strength, the warmth, the roughness of his knuckles, the way my fingers slid between his…
It seemed wrong when those fingers failed to curl around mine. His skin was cool and clammy to the touch, but I set my palm to his anyway, then clasped his hand fully between my own and pressed the backs of his fingers to my cheek as I fought back tears.
Somewhere in my chest, the tense and trembling knot of feelings relaxed a little, allowing me to take a breath. And as my eyes closed, I found that Morghaine was right—it was easier to find the borders of myself and my own fears, easier to sense the miasma of emotions radiating from Callum in uncontrolled waves.
He was so controlled most of the time, it would be easy to assume that he didn’t feel deeply. That he cared less than others—experienced no fear, no worry, no concern.
But that could not be further from the truth. He cared so much about so many people. Felt the responsibility to provide and protect—to make those he loved as safe as possible. It was both his personality and his compulsion as a black dragon, and even when unconscious, a part of him was aware enough to feel helpless. Afraid, not for himself, but for everyone he claimed as his own.
And under that fear, I sensed a hint of something dark and cold—a bitter taint that coated my heart and sank its claws into my soul, whispering of never-ending pain and doubt.
The poison was affecting more than just his body.
“Hold on,” I whispered, clenching his hand so tightly he might have winced if he were awake to feel it. “Don’t give in, do you hear me? We’re all here. You’re safe. And I still won’t give you up—not for your court, not for the doubters, and definitely not for any fae poison. You’re mine.”
For an instant I thought I felt a response—a surge of lightness, a twitch of his fingers—but it was gone before I could be certain.
My fingers itched to reach out, touch his face, and smooth his hair, but I held back, and glanced over my shoulder at his family. Kira’s face was anxious, her freckles stark against her pale skin. Skye looked fierce and determined, and tears wet Morghaine’s cheeks as she stood behind me.
But it was Tairen my gaze was drawn to. She stood frozen, a half dozen paces from the bed—her frame still tall and strong, her face a granite mask. She was staring at Callum, her jaw clenched so hard it was trembling.
The former dragon queen had never been the mushy sort of mom, according to Kira. She struggled to show emotion, or to speak of family bonds with warmth. For so many of her children’s growing-up years, she’d been fighting to hold her people together and make a new home for them, so they’d rarely experienced her as a maternal presence.
But anyone who doubted that she loved her children would have been deeply, gravely wrong.
“I will find them,” she said simply.
She might not have said the words, but we knew—whoeverhad hired that assassin would pay the ultimate price. Maybe not today, maybe not tomorrow, but someday.
So I rose on unsteady legs and faced her. “You’ll have to get in line,” I said. It wasn’t a threat—it was a statement of intent. No one got to take out a hit on the man I loved without consequences. “Unless… you’re willing to workwithme to find out who did this.”
For the longest moment of my life, she looked at me as if she’d never seen me before. As if I’d been so presumptuous, she could barely even process that I’d spoken. But then…
“Agreed,” she said flatly. “And we will talk again about your mate bond when this is resolved.”
She didn’t wait for acknowledgment or share any looks of commiseration. She simply turned and walked out of the room.
But not, I realized, because she hated me. It had nothing to do with me at all. The former queen of the dragons was fighting for composure and didn’t want anyone to know.
“The medic is here,” Kira murmured. “I’m going to go let him in, and then I’m going to call Rath. I’ll see what he can tell me about the poison and hopefully get contact info for the herbalist.”
“It’s affecting his mind, too,” I blurted out, finally feeling the tears spring to my eyes in a hot, stinging flood. “The poison. I can feel it. It’s like it’s burning away his power. Intensifying his pain. I don’t know if that will help identify it, but… I think it means we need to hurry.”
Kira stared at me for a moment, then darted away. I heard the apartment door open and close.
“We’ll find answers.” Skye moved towards me, andafter a brief pause, wrapped her arms around my shoulders and pulled me in for a hug. “Don’t lose hope. Our family is stubborn, and we have connections everywhere. This isn’t the end.”
“I know.” For a few moments, I let myself lean into her and took strength from the knowledge that Callum wasn’t merely relying on me. He had so many people who cared. So many who would fight for him.
“It’s late,” Morghaine reminded me. “And you didn’t sleep last night. You need to rest. Also, who is it that smells like blood?”
“That’s me,” I admitted. “One of the fae cut me a bit, but it’s fine. Kira said I’m not bleeding anymore.”
Skye actually rolled her eyes. “Sometimes, I swear, my cousin is as bad as her brothers. Once the medic is finished with Callum, he can take a look at you, too.Thenyou can sleep.”
