“Jeyra,” he said with a frown.
“I wasn’t caught.”
Rankin ran a hand down his face and walked a few paces away. Then he halted and turned back to her. “Tell me what happened. All of it. In exacting detail.”
“It’s better if you don’t know—” she began.
He slashed a hand through the air, fury contorting his face. “I’m tryin’ to save your life. You know what they’ll do if they discover you’ve crossed the border.”
She wasn’t sure if he meant the Dragon Kings or the council. Not that it mattered. She had done what had to be done. Whatever the consequences, she’d deal with them.
Rankin growled and let out a string of curse words. “I know that look. I know you’re tough enough to handle whatever punishment comes to you—or at least you think you are. You won’t be if they take your life. Now, tell me,” he barked.
“I’d rather not.”
“Jeyra,” he said, the word more snarl than anything.
She shifted from one foot to the other and glanced at the Dragon King. She hated that her gaze was drawn to him over and over again. She knew how heinous the Kings were, how cruel and vicious. That should be enough to remind her that his looks were just a pretty shell to hide the horrors within. She drew in a deep breath and met Rankin’s hard stare.
“You’re not going to like what I have to say.”
He didn’t move, didn’t so much as flinch.
Jeyra licked her lips. “I crossed the border into their territory.”
“For fuck’s sake,” Rankin said and turned away. His fists were clenched, anger vibrating his body. Several long moments passed before he faced her once more.
The last thing she wanted to do was finish the story. If her first sentence got him so riled, he certainly wouldn’t like the rest of it. But she also knew that Rankin wouldn’t give up until he had every minute detail from her. It would be more painful if she dragged things out. So, she took a deep breath and let the words tumble hurriedly from her lips.
When she finished, Rankin’s face was no longer lined with anger. Instead, it was pale, and for the first time in her life, she saw panic in his gaze.
“Ah, girl,” he murmured sadly and slowly closed his eyes as his chin fell to his chest.
Jeyra had expected him to shout, to tell her how reckless and idiotic she’d been. She hadn’t anticipated his quiet words or the alarm on his face. It caused her heart to race and her chest to feel as if someone were squeezing her—or as if a dragon stood on her.
She didn’t know how many minutes passed. She was too lost in thought, too wrapped up in Rankin’s reaction to think about it. But the moment the Dragon King groaned, both she and Rankin stilled, their eyes darting to the prisoner. Rankin was the first to move. He strode to the Dragon King and punched him hard in the face, knocking him out once more.
Jeyra breathed a sigh of relief. There was no telling how long that emotion would stay with her, though she had a feeling that once it was gone, it would never return again. But no matter how many laws she had broken, regardless of the consequences of her actions, she had to do this. Not just for herself, but for everyone living in fear of the Dragon Kings. It was time her people got justice for the numerous deaths the dragons had caused. It was time the Kings realized they couldn’t dominate everyone. Maybe then the killings would stop.
When Rankin’s gaze swung to her, she saw that he had come to a decision. “I’m going to carry him. If anyone asks, you’re going to tell them you found him on our side of the border. The two of you fought, and you got the upper hand before he could shift into his real form. I trained you, so that won’t seem too farfetched. And our people know of your skill, so that works to your advantage.”
“Thank you.”
“Don’t,” he spat. “I’m not doing this for you. I’m doing this for our people. Because if it’s ever discovered what you’ve done, then whatever truce we have will be shattered, and the killings will start up once more. I can’t live through that again. We’ve had peace for decades now, and you might very well have ruined all of that.”
Jeyra’s heart clutched because she realized that whatever kinship she and Rankin had developed throughout the years had just been smashed, destroyed. Shattered beyond any hope of reconciliation. She had seen Rankin react like this one other time. He’d never forgiven his once best friend for the transgression.
And he wouldn’t forgive her.
Rankin was the only family she had, and she had ripped that into a million pieces for the justice she needed. She already ached for the loss because she loved Rankin like a father. But her path had taken her to this point. She’d always known this was exactly where she was headed. If Rankin couldn’t see and understand that, then he didn’t know her at all.
She blinked back tears as Rankin grabbed the Dragon King by his hands to sit him up. Then the warrior squatted and let the King slump over his shoulder before Rankin straightened and adjusted the body. Without a word, he started walking. Jeyra had no choice but to follow.
With one last look over her shoulder to the border she’d crossed, the line she had ignored, she squared her shoulders and prepared for whatever came next.
Chapter Two
The sound of cheers pulled Varek from the darkness. He winced at the pain in his body then realized that his ankles and wrists were bound to a pole as he hung, swaying side to side as someone carried him through a throng of people.
He opened his eyes but couldn’t make out much because some dark cloth covered his head. He saw pinpricks of light and the shapes of bodies but couldn’t make out anything other than that. Varek was more concerned with the pain, however. It wasn’t that he’d never felt any, because he had. But this was different. Something was wrong.
Very, very wrong.
As the panic rose, he made himself remain still. He wanted whoever had him to think he was still unconscious. There was a chance they would talk freely as long as they believed he was asleep. And at the moment, that’s all he had. He needed information before he released his magic and shifted. It wouldn’t do him or the other Dragon Kings any good if he escaped without information on who had taken him and why.
Varek couldn’t believe that after all the Dragon Kings had endured at the hands of their foes—and after they’d won—that someone else had risen up. The fact that so many continued coming after the Kings shouldn’t surprise Varek, but it did. They were the most powerful beings on Earth. He’d thought that would be understood by now. Besides, he and his brethren deserved some downtime to rest and relax and enjoy life.
He might not have a mate, but that didn’t mean there weren’t things he wanted to do and see. He was tired of war, tired of fighting foes and killing. He yearned to see his dragons. It was the only thing he thought about once they discovered that the dragons were safe and alive. He’d gone back to his rooms at Dreagan and simply sat in the dark, thinking about his clan and the last time he’d seen them.
Something slammed into Varek’s side. He couldn’t stop the grunt of agony, but he didn’t tense. He couldn’t tell if anyone around him noticed with all the cheers, but those carrying him didn’t stop. It wasn’t long before the sunshine gave way to darkness as they entered a building. The loud cheers melted away to unnatural quiet, broken only by the steps of those carrying him.