Page 83 of Kingdom Of Veil And Vow

“She’s been— Gods.” That’s all Rhea can muster before she’s pushing her healing magic through Aria, the siren’s dark skin glowing from within.

“What did it feel like?” It takes me a moment to register that the question is coming from Nox.

“What did what feel like?”

“When she healed you to cross through the Spell.”

My fingers flex around the sword’s hilt. “It was warm. Like standing directly beneath a beam of sunlight that somehow penetrated down to your bones.” Rhea leans down to whisper something over Aria, her voice too quiet for me to make out what she is saying.

Nox huffs a breath, drawing my gaze to him as he shakes his head. “Sunshine,” he murmurs, almost subconsciously, his severe expression softening.

Rhea stands, bravely giving the dragon her back as she returns to us. “They are both healed and alive,” she says, her voice cracking on the last word. The dragon nudges its rider with the end of its snout, a keening sound vibrating in its throat. “But it might take them a while to wake up. I didn’t see any wounds on the fae, but Aria was hurt viciously.” Her gaze darkens, growing unfocused before she blinks and shakes her head. “She got the ring off of me. Saved me from King Dolian’s commands. I have to make sure she is as comfortable as possible.”

Nox’s pause is weighted, his hands finding the outside of her arms as if he can’t help but touch her. “We can bring her to the palace to heal, but I must make sure there are no more sirens at the beach waiting to cross. If you want to take Aria to the palace with Daje and Xander”—he looks to me, his gray eyes swirling with something that doesn’t seem at all mortal—“I’m sure they will do everything possible to get you there safely.” Though his voice is soft, a tone I observe he only uses for Rhea, the threat in his words is clear. If anything happens to her, our lives are forfeit. It’s a fine enough trade for me, something I hope he understands as I harden my gaze.

“No. I will go with you to the beach and make sure there isn’t anyone else who needs to be healed.” Turning back to the dragon, Rhea’s shoulders rise with a deep breath before she addresses it. “They are going to bring them to the healers at the palace. To make sure they can rest safely.” Stepping back, she points to Daje and then me, the dragon’s eyes following suit. “These are my friends. We can trust them.” The absurdity of her talking to a dragon doesn’t have time to settle before she is motioning Daje and I forward to follow her as she squats down to cover Aria once more with the cloak.

“Didn’t realize you could add dragon to the list of languages you know,” I say, my steps loud over the ruined street as stone crunches beneath my boots.

“I figure if it can talk with its rider, perhaps it can understand what I’m saying.”

Daje shakes his hands out at his sides, his magic disappearing as we stop in front of Rhea. “The fae are so secretive with how their bonds work. It’s impossible to predict what we can expect from them.” There is a shakiness to his voice that I note, but with sweat sliding down my own back from being this close to a dragon, there’s no way in the Five fucking Realms I’m going to fault him for it.

“Put your sword away,” Rhea whispers in my direction.

Jaw clenched, I fight against my instincts and sheathe it at my hip as I focus on slowing the beat of my heart. When I’m near enough to observe Aria and the fae, I take in the way they rest as if they’ve fallen asleep in the safety of their homes instead of out here, in the middle of a battlefield. Daje reaches down to pick Aria up, leaving me to walk closer to the fae female. But when the tips of my boots brush against the bottoms of her black ones, the dragon’s wings snap out wide as it stands to its full height and releases a skull-shattering roar.

“I don’t think it wants me to touch her,” I shout over the pounding in my head.

The dragon snarls as it curls its tail closer to us, prompting Rhea to lift her hands up again.

“We won’t touch her,” she says, to which the dragon lets out a huff, sliding its foot closer to its rider. “They will show you how to get to the palace, but you can carry her there.”

Hefting Aria up into his arms, Daje immediately retreats to Nox, the latter ensuring she is secure and covered appropriately before returning his attention to us.

Rhea’s chest heaves as she gives a broad sweep of her hand. “This is my family. I trust them to take care of my sister, Aria. To bring her somewhere safe. You can trust them to take care of your rider.”

A low growl, as if in answer. Stars above, she really is talking to this dragon. With some sort of plan made, Rhea shoos me back towards Nox, following behind until she is close enough to him that he pulls her into his arms.

“Daje, lead them to the palace. Keep your ears covered once you enter the forest just in case there are sirens still hunting.”

Daje nods, adjusting Aria in his grasp. “What about your father? Do you want me to inform Bahira or—”

“No,” Nox interrupts. “It should be me who does. Get them to the healers and wait for us there. Once we can confirm that the beach is clear, we’ll make our way back.”

Goodbyes seem pointless, considering we will see them both soon enough, but Rhea still says the words, prompting a quirk of my lips. Turning to follow Daje towards the edge of the forest, I watch as the dragon takes note of what we are doing and, despite the impossibility of it all, seems to understand that it’s time to leave. Carefully, it scoops its rider up with one of its front feet, its claws curling precariously around the fae. Then it launches into the air, stirring up debris in the city center as the harsh thumping of its powerful wings bring it higher into the sky.

Once we cross into the trees, Daje maneuvers his magic over my ears, the sensation similar to Nox’s as he draws Aria in closer to his chest. There are no other words spoken as I follow him through the thickly wooded forest, occasionally catching a glimpse of the dragon through small gaps in the treetops. How it can see us, I have no clue.

The trees here are the widest I’ve ever seen, and though I had read about how the mages utilized them to build homes and businesses, it’s still jarring to see windows carved into the trunks, warm light glowing from within them. Daje’s steps quicken as the path we are on grows wider, and before long, we come upon a collection of guards clad in leather armor with their weapons drawn and magic floating in their hands. Standing in front of a beautiful multi-level structure anchored between two extraordinarily large trees, the guards look less than happy about our approach. The warmth around my ears dissipates, and I again cringe as the noises surrounding us abruptly rush in. Including that of pumping dragon wings.

“Stop!” one of the guards shouts, holding a hand with green magic glowing from it out in front of him while the other clutches a silver sword, the blade gleaming even in the dim light trickling in from above.

“I need to get her to the healers,” Daje says, attempting to push past the guards only to be stopped. My hand goes to my sword as more surround us. “Markian, you know I am trustworthy.”

“What I know is that earlier today we were ambushed by sirens.” His gray eyes drop to where Aria is still limp in Daje’s arms. “And I’m no expert, but it appears you have a siren you’re attempting to bring into the royal home.”

“She is a siren, but she wasn’t with the group that attacked.” The guards look unconvinced, not that I blame them. I’m not sure I’d let us pass either. “Please, it’s on the orders of King Nox that—”