Total pages in book: 141
Estimated words: 136009 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 680(@200wpm)___ 544(@250wpm)___ 453(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 136009 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 680(@200wpm)___ 544(@250wpm)___ 453(@300wpm)
Kerrigan stepped through and pulled Audria into a hug. “We can fix it.”
“Thank the gods. What happened?”
Kerrigan gave the same explanation to Audria as she had the rest of her soldiers and showed her how to make a crux bond. Audria only settled down when the bond was in place and Evien was once again in contact.
“Some forewarning might have been good,” Audria said.
“I wish I’d had some,” Kerrigan said.
“That explains why you were always so strange in dragon training.”
“Right?” Kerrigan said with a laugh. “It explains everything.”
Audria shook her head. “I can’t imagine how you were able to mask it for a whole year.”
“They put me on probation and then kicked me out, if you remember.”
“Yeah, well, that had more to do with their prejudices than your performance.”
Kerrigan shrugged. “A little bit of both?”
“Fair,” Audria said. “I did the other thing that you requested.”
“Roake?”
“Fully on Bastian’s side,” she said with a crack in her voice.
Kerrigan’s face fell. “I’m sorry.”
“You were right to ask me to do it though,” Audria said, glancing down at her cracked nails. “I thought…”
“Me too,” Kerrigan whispered.
She hadn’t been sure if Roake would change. Some part of her had hoped that he would after she’d met up with him in the mountain. If given the opportunity, would he double-cross Bastian? If the love of his life dangled it before him…
It hurt to know he was truly a lost cause.
“Thank you for trying,” Kerrigan said.
Audria nodded, choking back her tears. “His bond snapped too.”
“Yeah. It broke all of them at once.”
“Which means we’re the only ones with bonded dragons,” Audria said.
Kerrigan nodded. “That’s right.”
Audria grinned. “Excellent.”
“You get your other dragon riders bonded. Have Noda help,” Kerrigan said. “I’ll meet you in Kinkadia.”
“See you there,” Audria said.
Kerrigan headed back toward her door but turned around before crossing over. “Audria, if I see Roake in the battle…”
“I know,” Audria said with a final nod. “You’ll kill him.”
Kerrigan met her gaze. “Are you okay with that?”
“If I see him in battle, I’ll do it myself.” Then Audria walked toward the palace over the sea.
Kerrigan sighed, watching her retreating back for a moment before crossing over and letting the portal drop.
Fordham was there to catch her as she sagged forward from the magic use. “Too much, love. That’s too much.”
“Need to recover my reserves,” she said.
“It’s the crown. It still has its hooks in you.”
She wrapped her arms around him. “Just give me a minute. I’ll be all right.”
“Do you need me to say it?”
She shook her head. “Please don’t.”
He rested his chin on her head. They both knew that she wasn’t physically prepared for what was to come tomorrow. Time had run out. She couldn’t restore her magic enough to fight Bastian, but she was going to have to do it anyway.
“I still need to meet with Eira, and I promised Darby that I’d see Amond before bed.”
“Good. At least you’ll listen to Darby.”
She chuckled. “I don’t think it’s even an option to disobey. I need some healing, or tomorrow will be impossible.”
“And Eira?”
She bit her lip. “Any information helps.”
“After this, you will let me take care of you.”
She glanced up into his handsome face. “And who is going to take care of you?”
“I’m a king,” he said, hoisting her up into his arms. “All that matters is my queen.”
Chapter Fifty-Five
The Very Last Night
Kerrigan stared wide-eyed at the ceiling.
Amond’s healing had helped ease her magic drain, but it still hadn’t recovered to its usual reserves, and it didn’t normally take this long. Whatever Fairgate believed, the crown had still exacted a price. Maybe it wasn’t permanent, but it was sluggish enough to matter on the day she’d need it, making it impossible to sleep.
Fordham had been true to his word: he’d taken her out of all the remaining meetings and forced her into a long, steaming bath that he’d reheated with his magic. Then he’d tucked her into bed with a kiss while he finalized things. She’d fallen into a deep slumber, only the mattress dip from him crawling in after her hours later had woken her up.
Now she couldn’t seem to find sleep. Fordham’s naked torso was highlighted in the moonlight. His brow was devoid of his usual skepticism, his dark hair tumbling forward over his forehead. He looked like a statue.
It was easier to focus on him rather than the impending battle. She didn’t want to think about it, but she knew that they might not make it out alive. Even if they won, they could die. Her father had shown her that truth. And now she couldn’t shake the fact that it was more a probability than a possibility—a decidedly morose outlook the night before a battle.
She should have been confident, but she wasn’t.
She turned over to her side, placing her arm over Fordham’s and snuggling into him. His arm came around her, pulling her to him. She laid her head down on his shoulder. She closed her eyes and tried to sleep, but sleep wouldn’t come.