Page 51 of The Lost Princess

I refused to be that reason.

Against every instinct, I stayed frozen. I didn’t reach for her. I didn’t reassure her. I simply turned over and tried to sleep.

The tension between us hung thick and heavy.

The furs rustled, and she made a disgruntled sound. I didn’t move.

Kaida turned one way, then the other. She gathered more than her share of furs, tugging them around her body. I let her have them.

“You know what? This is foolish. If you have decided and I have decided, I see no reason to wait.” Kaida threw the furs off her, and started bustling around the cave. She glanced at the clothes I’d foraged for her, and sighed in dismay.

“What are you doing?” I asked, confused. It was nearly pitch black in the cave, the only source of light coming from the moon and the fire.

“I am leaving. Now. It makes more sense to travel at night when I won’t be seen.”

Alarm raced through my body.

“Now? But—” I clamped my mouth shut, unable to really articulatewhyleaving now was a bad idea. “Do you even know where you’re going?” I asked instead.

She shrugged. “It was about a two-week journey on horse, so it should only take a few days by air. I’ll find it. I’ll figure it out.”

Kaida slipped her favorite cloak over her shoulders, the one large enough to be worn over top of her wings. She stood before the cave opening, turning back to face me. Her face was twisted with emotion. “Maybe while I’m gone you can figure out where your home is and how to go back. Maybe it’s what’s best for everyone.” Her voice wasn’t much louder than a whisper, but I heard every word as if she were screaming it into my ear.

I shook my head.

“Go home, Nasi,” she pleaded. “You don’t belong here, living in a cave like a wild animal.” She paused, her lips tightening into a straight line. “Besides, you wouldn’t want to keep your potential mate waiting,” she bit out and then took off into the night sky with my water skin.

My claws cut into the flesh of my palms, but I didn’t care. I fought the urge to leap after her or to follow her and fight her one on one. My inner draken wanted to defeat her, and force her to submit.

No. She wished to return to her human home.

Frustration built in my veins, my inner draken incensed we’d let yetanotherchance to claim our mate slip away.

She’s not your mate, I argued back.She’s a human in a draken body.

I couldn’t think about what was happening. I couldn’t dwell on it. So I packed a small rucksack containing a small bowl (since I’d given Kaida my waterskin), some dried meat, and nothing else. I didn’t have the right to take much else since everything I had was stolen.

I didn’t feel guilt over it. None of it had been for me; all of it had been for Kaida. Everything would always be for Kaida.

I still felt weak from the attack but reasoned I wouldn’t be flying much until I crossed the mountains I was already in. I didn’t know exactly where I was going, but one thing was clear. My homeland (if it still existed) lay on the other side of the mountains. I would cross them and find answers.

Just like Kaida would find her answers.

A wave of nausea hit me at the thought of leaving her. I shut my eyes and breathed through it.

I had to do it.

I gave the cave one last mournful glance, my thoughts conflicted. On the one hand, I’d been a savage monster here, unaware of the passage of time, lost to myself and my most base instincts. On the other hand, I’d met Kaida here. I slept with her here, kissing her lips and feeling her scales heat under mine.

I leaped from the edge, using my wings only a fraction to help me find purchase on the large ledge directly to the left. The moon shone brightly enough to help me make my way, but I didn’t need it. I knew these rocks like my own wings. I used my legs and arms to start the perilous journey of climbing over the mountain. My wings hung off my back, folded in and protected between my shoulders. In a few days, I should try flying again. For now, climbing would have to do.

Hours later I came to a halt only because my protesting leg muscles were finally quivering too much to continue safely. I hunkered down under a large ledge, and took a few bites of dried meat. I smelled water nearby but was too tired to look for it. I’d sleep now and search for it in the morning.

The physical darkness around me mirrored my mind, which felt as though it were closing in on itself. Stubbornly, I tried to think of memories of my past to help guide me. I knew I had a mother. I knew she sang. I tried hard to remember her face, but only grew frustrated when I couldn’t. What about brothers? Sisters? Aunts or cousins twice removed?

The dark monster in my mind crept forward, whispering its poisonous thoughts to me.You’ll never make it back. Why bother? You lost the only good thing to happen to you.

I didn’t want to think about Kaida, but she was the only thing that kept the darkness at bay. The only one to pull me out of my mind.

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