On her way back to the cells, Jeyra stopped in the tavern for some food. She then carried it to the dungeon. On her approach, the gate opened, but no guard walked her inside this time. She preferred it this way, if she were honest.
As she made her way into the cave and began her descent, her stomach started to churn anxiously. She took several steadying breaths to dispel the nervousness, but nothing helped. The temptation to turn around and return tomorrow was great, but Jeyra made herself continue. When she finally reached Varek’s cell, she couldn’t see him. Yet she knew he was there.
“I brought food,” she said. She lifted the bag in one hand and the jug in the other. “And ale.”
He didn’t answer. Not that she expected him to. Why should he? If she were to get him to talk, she needed to do her part and give him some of the information he wanted.
Jeyra squatted down and took out one of the wrapped packages for herself. She glanced within the darkened cell before tossing the bag between two bars and then repeated the action with the jug of ale.
She then sat down and crossed her legs while she unwrapped her food. The minute the smell of freshly baked bread and roasted pork filled her nostrils, her stomach growled. She took a few bites and simply enjoyed the delicious taste of her favorite meal without looking up. When she finally lifted her eyes, the bag and jug were no longer in sight.
“A sandwich?” Varek’s voice asked from the darkness.
She frowned as she looked at her food. “Call it whatever you want. It’s amazing.”
“Is this your attempt to poison me?”
Jeyra stopped chewing to look in the direction his voice had come from. “If I wanted you dead, you wouldn’t have made it to the cell. I’ve no need to poison you.”
A moment later, she heard the rustling of the wrapper around the sandwich—as he’d called it. Neither spoke as they ate. It allowed her to not only enjoy her food but also get accustomed to being near a Dragon King. For all her bluster, she was terrified of him. She knew how powerful a being he was.
After she’d finished her meal and wadded up the paper, the jug of ale came sailing through the bars, somehow missing them entirely to land right in front of her. Without hesitation, she uncorked the bottle and took a long drink.
“The meal was verra good,” Varek admitted. “Thank you.”
His words so surprised her that she began choking on the ale. She coughed as she corked the jug and tossed it back toward him. Once she’d finished coughing, she cleared her throat so she could speak.
“You’re welcome.” Jeyra cleared her throat again. “You’re right. You aren’t on your realm anymore. You’re on Zora in the city of Orgate.”
“How did I get here?”
His soft voice didn’t fool her, and she wasn’t ready to tell him the whole truth. If he learned that she was responsible for bringing him here, he might refuse to speak to her at all. Then how would she carry out the council’s demand? It wasn’t as if she could tell them the truth either.
“A portal opened between our worlds. You were captured that way.”
He paused briefly before he asked, “There is magic on this realm?”
“Yes. Though not within our city or even any of the cities where my kind reside.”
“What’s that supposed to mean?”
“A border keeps us away from…others.”
“And these others have magic?” he asked.
Jeyra swallowed. “They do.”
“Are you telling me that one of those others came to your city and just happened to open a portal directly to me?”
His voice was filled with suspicion and doubt, telling her that he was smarter than she gave him credit for. She needed to remember that. “Not exactly.”
“Then how, exactly?” he asked as his face suddenly came out of the darkness.
A shiver went through Jeyra when she stared into his magnetic brown eyes. She hesitated, unsure what to say that wouldn’t incriminate her.
Varek crawled to the bars before he rose on his knees and wrapped his fingers around the metal. “Someone from here crossed the border.”
It wasn’t a question, and she didn’t treat it as such. Jeyra nodded since her voice wouldn’t work.
“You speak of those who do magic with fear. The border you speak of is to keep your kind separate from those with magic, aye?”
“Yes,” she said, hating that her voice squeaked.
He held her gaze, refusing to let her look away. “Why me?”
“My people searched for a Dragon King.”
“Why?” he pressed.
She licked her lips. “To answer for the crimes committed.”
“No’ by me. As you just stated, I wasna on this realm.”
“You have magic. You could’ve crossed into our realm.”
Varek snorted and sat on the ground. “But I didna.”
“We only have your word.”
“Yet you doona have any evidence that proves it was me either.”
She stiffened. “You don’t know that.”
“Why are you here?” he asked. “You said you want information. Is it perhaps so I’ll incriminate myself? Or give you something to use against me?”
“I don’t know why the council wants you questioned. I’m merely doing as told.”
He made a sound in the back of his throat. “You doona seem the type to blindly follow directions.”
“What’s that supposed to mean?” she asked, offended that he would think she had some kind of fault.
Varek shrugged and lay back, lacing his hands behind his head. “Just what I said. You’ve the look of someone who decides what rules to follow and which to break. Reminds me of Merrill.”
“Who’s Merrill?” She didn’t want to be intrigued by him, but she was. And she hated it.
Varek blinked up at the ceiling above him. “I suppose you’d call him my best friend. We were sort of drawn to each other. We have a lot in common, but we also differ in several ways. I suppose that’s what makes our friendship so special. He always does what’s right, even if that means breaking the rules.”
“How do you get to be a Dragon King?” she blurted out.
He lifted his head slightly and met her gaze. “I wondered when you would get to that.”
Chapter Six
She wanted to know what made him a Dragon King. Varek had expected that question, so he wasn’t surprised by it.
“I’m trying to understand you,” Jeyra said.
Varek rolled his eyes as he lay his head on the earth. “It’ll go better between us if you doona lie.”
“Fine,” she stated in a clipped tone. “I honestly don’t care how you became a King, but I’m sure it’s something the council will ask.”
“And you’d rather have the answer than have to return to ask me,” he finished for her. “The short answer is that the magic of our realm chooses us.”
Jeyra shifted her legs. “And the long answer?”
“We’re comprised of clans. Each one is a different color, and each is led by a Dragon King. He’ll be the strongest of that clan, the one with the most power.”