“Only Kings? No Queens?”
Varek bit back a smile because he knew she assumed there were no Queens because they deemed it that way. “As I said, the strongest of us is chosen, the one with the most power. While I knew plenty of females who had the power, they didna have the strength. Male dragons are bigger than the females, which already puts them at a disadvantage.”
“Still doesn’t seem fair, but go on.”
He could’ve responded to her comment, but he decided not to. It wouldn’t matter how he replied. She wouldn’t agree with him. She was ill at ease talking with him, but she couldn’t hide her intrigue.
“The magic of the realm looks into each of the dragon’s hearts to determine who is the purest of the clan. When one with the heart the magic searches for comes along, mixed with the magic and the power, the magic calls to them, urging them to challenge the current Dragon King. They fight to the death, and the winner becomes King. If a King dies in battle, then a similar occurrence happens. Although there have been instances where no one challenged a King who stepped into the role when one was killed.”
Varek decided not to tell her about Constantine, the King of Dragon Kings, mainly because he wanted to see how much Jeyra knew about the Kings. He hoped it wasn’t much because the less she knew about Con and the others, the more likely they’d be able to find him.
“How did you become King? Did you step into the role easily?” she asked, leaning forward to prop her elbows on her knees.
“Hardly.” He could spout some lies. It wasn’t as if she would know the difference, but Varek found himself telling her the truth. “I was an orphan, raised with other orphans and unwanted hatchlings. It wasna a good place.”
“I was an orphan.”
His head turned towards her, shocked by her revelation. By the faraway look in her eyes, she probably didn’t even realize she had spoken. Then she blinked and focused on him once more. He hadn’t thought they’d find common ground on anything, and yet there it was. Varek waffled between testing the waters to see if they could share anything else, and keeping things secret. If he wanted to win her to his side, he had to open up more than he might like.
“Did you have a good place?” he asked.
She lifted one shoulder in a shrug. “For a bit. I lost that family. Then I was taken in by one of the warriors. Though he wasn’t married and had no children of his own, he took it upon himself to give me a home.”
“Sounds like you were lucky. Every day was a battle of life and death for me. I learned early on that if I wanted to eat, I had to fight for my food. I had to fight for everything. There were times I didna sleep because to close my eyes meant I let my guard down. I saw other dragons killed that way, and I didna want my life taken in such a manner. Over the years, I managed to hold my own, winning when I could, and always strategizing for the next battle. I got away as soon as I was able. I thought it was the smart move, but I soon discovered that being out in the world alone was infinitely worse than where I had been. But I was used to fighting, so that’s what I kept doing.”
Jeyra’s face was lined with confusion. “Did no one step up to help you? Did no one see what was going on?”
“I’m sure they did. Our clan was large with many moving parts, just like in your city. Things happened. It’s the way of life. I didna hold anyone responsible for what became of me. It was my lot in life, and I used it to my advantage. My thought was to become one of the fighters for my clan. I knew I was skilled enough, but many vied for the position. The King at the time saw me and chose me himself. He was a good King. I respected him greatly.”
“But you had to challenge him?”
Varek sat up with a sigh. “I did. The feeling of the magic pushing me was unavoidable. Some want the position so desperately, they challenge the King and end up dying. Kings are challenged more often than no’. I had just watched the King the week before come out the winner of a challenge.”
“Were you afraid?” she asked.
Varek shook his head. “I approached him, but before I could say anything, he told me he was expecting me.”
“What?” Jeyra asked, eyes rounded in surprise.
He chuckled as he nodded at her. “Aye. I was shocked, as well. He said he had a feeling I would be coming for his position. He told me he was tired, and that the magic must have known that.”
“Did he know you would be King?”
“I doona think so. I think he knew someone would best him, but he wasna sure who that would be.”
“Was the battle fierce?”
“Aye,” Varek said, his thoughts drifting back to that day. “For a King who said he was tired, he fought like a dragon who wasna ready to give up. But that’s one of the reasons he was such a good King. I didna like taking his life. Before I delivered the killing strike, his eyes met mine, and he gave me a nod, letting me know that he realized what was coming.”
Silence filled the dungeon. Varek was stuck in his memories, recalling how savage the battle had been, how brutal the King’s attack was.
“You make it sound as if none of the Kings are evil,” Jeyra said.
Varek pulled his knees up to his chest and wrapped his arms around them. “It happens. Just as good people turn bad. The magic of the realm constantly watches us. The moment it senses that a King’s soul is no longer good, a new one is chosen. I’m no’ saying there aren’t dragons who do bad things. Dragons are like any species. There are good and bad and every shade of gray in between.”
“I see.”
He studied her, watching as Jeyra picked at a chipped nail. “Will you tell me why you hate Dragon Kings so much?”
“I’m not sure you want to hear that story.”
“I do, actually. I know every Dragon King there is.”
Her amber eyes snapped to his. “Do you now?”
“Aye. All of them are in my realm.” The minute the words were out of his mouth, he thought of the twins. Con, and his mate, Rhi, had twins who were, in fact, on another realm. Presumably with the rest of the dragons.
Jeyra didn’t hide the contempt in her expression or in her voice. “I thought you said we would be honest with each other.”
“I am being honest with you.”
A brow quirked at his words. “You’re really going to tell me that you don’t know there are not only dragons here, but Dragon Kings, as well?”
Varek blinked at her, trying to decipher if she was telling the truth or not. His next thought was that he might be on the twins’ realm, the one that Con and Rhi had been trying to get to for months but couldn’t because the twins had blocked the doorways.
He rose onto his knees once more and clasped the bars of his cell that separated him from Jeyra. “How many? Who are they?”
“You really didn’t know,” she whispered, her brow furrowed deeply in confusion.
“I didna.” Varek swallowed and caught her gaze. “Tell me what you know of them. Please.”
Instead of answering, Jeyra jumped to her feet and began to pace. He watched her closely, his mind sorting through everything she had told him to see if she had let something slip that he hadn’t realized when she first said it. He waited with bated breath for her to give him something, anything. Because if there was even the slightest chance that there were other dragons—or even the twins—on this realm, then he might be able to contact them through the mental link so they could help him.