Chapter Five
“Fuck. Fuck. Fuck,” Jeyra murmured to herself as she strolled down the streets of the city. She moved through the merchant’s district and past bookbinders, silversmiths, and the blacksmith until she turned onto South Carnation Street, which led to the residential area and her flat.
She walked past the guildhall and the guardhouse, as well as the arena where she trained, and approached one of the newer buildings of flats. Jeyra yanked open the door and strode inside the stone edifice to the stairs. Her residence, which she had gotten with Rankin’s help, was on the third floor. Being on the top floor in the newest residence building meant she was a warrior of importance.
Unfortunately, she didn’t feel that at the moment.
She unlocked the entrance and walked inside. The moment she shut herself within, she leaned back against the door and slowly slid to the floor, dropping her head into her hands. From the instant she had walked into the dungeon, she had been on edge. Talking to Varek had only made it worse.
Jeyra wasn’t sure what she had expected, but she hadn’t been prepared for…well…any of it. Varek hadn’t gotten angry until she refused to tell him why he was being held. More confusing was why she hadn’t given him the answer. The words had stuck in her throat. Whereas before, she had been ready and willing to tell him exactly why he was a prisoner.
It’s wrong. All of this.
“Stop,” she barked at her subconscious. “It doesn’t matter what Dragon King is brought to justice. They’re all to blame. If I could line them all up and end their lives, I’d do it in a heartbeat.”
You couldn’t trap one of the Kings here. You had to find another world.
“It doesn’t matter. Varek is a Dragon King.”
You didn’t even know there was more realms until you spoke with the old crone. How do you know she didn’t lie about all of it? How do you even know Varek is a Dragon King?
“He all but admitted it.”
The council will find out what you did. When they do, it’ll be you in the dungeon.
“Maybe. It’s a chance I’ll take to make a Dragon King pay for the devastation dragons have caused our people.”
Thankfully, her subconscious didn’t have a reply. Jeyra lifted her head and stretched her legs out before her. She bit her lip as she thought about Varek. It didn’t matter that she wanted no part of him. The council had spoken. They’d given her a direct order because everyone else was too afraid to be near him. And it wasn’t as if she could use that argument since she was the one who had captured him.
What a mess she had gotten herself into. If she didn’t obey the council, she would be in violation and receive punishment, which could very well be imprisonment at a minimum and banishment at worst.
She knocked her head back against the door three times. “There has to be a way for me to get out of talking to Varek. Just being around him makes me angry.”
That’s not all he makes you.
“He’s offensive, brazen. The epitome of wicked. I couldn’t hate anyone more.”
So, that’s why you couldn’t stop staring at him?
“He has a nice face.”
That’s not all that’s nice.
“A handsome face can hide a black heart.”
He isn’t what you expected. There’s nothing wrong with admitting that to yourself.
Jeyra’s throat clogged with emotion because Varek wasn’t what she’d expected. Her memories of the dragon that had ripped her life apart and the Dragon King she had managed to pull into this realm were too different. Yet she knew all dragons for the monsters they were.
Her frustration at not getting close to any dragons or Dragon Kings on her realm had her seeking other ways. At first, it had just been to see how far she could go. She hadn’t actually believed anyone had the power to open a portal from one realm to another—or that there were other realms. And then…it happened. The crone hadn’t just opened a portal. She had also brought Jeyra straight to a Dragon King.
Jeyra had been so excited about it that she hadn’t stopped to consider how the crone had done it, much less how the old woman had been able to locate a Dragon King. The more Jeyra thought about all of it, the more she began to doubt herself and how it all came to be.
But the city and their people needed to see someone brought to justice for everything that had been done. They needed closure. She had given them that. While she might not know for certain if Varek had taken part in the killings, he was a Dragon King. That meant he could stand trial for what the other Kings had done.
“He’s our one and only chance to get some payback,” she whispered.
No matter that she doubted how she had come upon him, the fact of the matter was that she had captured a Dragon King. Without him, no one would get the justice they deserved and had been waiting on for decades.
Though, it was unlikely that anyone could move on. Too much death had occurred. It didn’t matter that it happened two hundred sixty-six years ago. It had happened before that, and it would happen again. The border wouldn’t keep the dragons out or her people in. She was proof of that. How many more had to die before they forced the dragons to leave and find a new home?
Jeyra got to her feet and looked at her flat. It was modestly decorated. She didn’t really care much about having things on the walls or sitting on tables. It seemed like a waste of coin. But she did enjoy a comfortable place to relax while she tended to her weapons or read. She made her way to the dark green velvet-covered chair with its deep cushion and fat arms. She could curl up in it and let go of the day.
Skimming her hand along the back of the chair, her gaze moved to the small, ornate table currently stacked with books. The fireplace sat across from the seat. There was room for another chair and possibly even a sofa, but no one ever came to visit, so she had no need for such things.
Jeyra made her way to the kitchen that had cupboards for some basics and a narrow table with two chairs. She looked for food but found the shelves empty, which was usually the case. If there was one thing she hated, it was preparing food. It was more cost-effective to eat her meals elsewhere, especially when she was training or away on missions.
She shifted to the other doorway—her bedroom. The beautifully carved four-poster bed had been a gift from Rankin. Looking at it made her sad that he was angry with her, but she didn’t regret her actions. Everything she had done had been for him, for herself…for everyone.
Jeyra leaned her shoulder against the wall as her eyes slowly moved around her flat. She had come here to think and relax, but she couldn’t do either. Her mind kept going back to Varek and the utter fury that had blazed in his eyes when he demanded to know why he was being held.
With a long-suffering sigh, she pushed away from the wall and walked out of her residence, locking the door behind her. She needed to face Varek sooner or later, and the sooner she got information from him, the sooner he would stand trial, and she could get on with her life.
When she walked out of the building, she looked both ways before casually beginning her trek back through the city. It was one of the larger ones, but she had gotten used to it. She liked the conveniences within, but if she could choose, she would find a place more remote so she could be by herself.
Rankin thought she’d become a warrior because of him. And while he did have something to do with it, it was really because it allowed her to be on her own. She wasn’t a fan of being around others. She had little time for politics and everything it entailed. And she couldn’t stand fools of any kind.