Page 30 of Jay's Silence

Tyson rocked on his heels. I echoed his comfort by wrapping my arm around his waist and squeezing. Rehan took a half stepcloser, so he flanked Tyson instead of me. Whatever the future held, we supported Tyson. No matter what his father thought he knew.

A heartbeat or three of tense silence passed before I stepped back to the table and wrapped it with my knuckles. “Dessert’s what you dragons are best at, right?” I licked my lips. “Burnt caramel, ginger, rum, berries, all the best desserts.”

Ryker’s jaw dropped, and Oliviarose’s cheeks flushed. I raised an eyebrow at Rehan’s grandfather, who graced me with a soft, if angry, chuckle. It wasn’t my best transition, but it did its job.

“Now,” I said. “Accusations aside. Of their own will, the princes choose to help me because something bigger’s going on here.”

“Aye,” Tyson answered.

Rehan grunted and crossed his arms over his built, bare chest.

“Their own will or someone else’s.” The Fire King squeezed his fist. “I don’t think anyone could pry them from your side.”

I inclined my head. “Honestly, those are my sentiments exactly.”

Ryker jerked back as if looking for the flaw in his wording. I left him to it and focused on Oliviarose, who seemed to be the most organized person in the room, generally agreeing with me. “Let’s talk details. I want a closer look at one of the demons, assuming you’ve got one. We’ll need supplies, a way to communicate, and ideally, schematics of Scalehive if you have them.”

“You’re not assaulting Scalehive,” Ryker stated.

I inclined my head. “But I am approaching a building where the people inside it have stopped responding, correct?”

He begrudgingly nodded.

“Right. I’ve been alive a long time, and being prepared for anything is how I did it.” I grinned and twirled my hair as if performing for Drama Llama. “So, you got some juicy details for me?”

Oliviarose giggled and zoomed in on her map again.

I’d passed on what I’d learned on the island. It wasn’t my problem. Time to focus on what I could help with and get the fuck out of here.

CHAPTER ELEVEN

LUX

Iwanted to say I spent the last few hours getting to know Og, but the warlock had passed back out. His healing magic was the most draining thing I’d ever seen.

Alone with my thoughts, I toyed with the currents in the air and brooded. Jay might appreciate that. Brooding was a well-known pastime of giant moody reptiles… except, I didn’t really know if Jay would appreciate that.

Since I discarded my priestess robes, Jay and I had either been unconscious or separated. Now that we were back together, one of her other mates was always around. I didn’t mind their presence in concept; in fact, I welcomed it, but they’d all had days of alone time with her. All I’d managed was a few hours before the EM.

I made a little tornado on my palm and let it drift along the fate line creasing my skin.

Younger me hid from the world. Initially, it was to stay out of Leberecht’s wrath. Once I freed myself, I ended up donning the robes of a priestess, which added a physical layer of hiding to the emotional barrier I existed under. Instead of indulging in life, I’drun right back to the familiar. Hiding. Being who others wanted me to be.

But I wasn’t hiding anymore.

Jay accepted me. Mate or curse, it didn’t matter. Having her in my arms, embracing every little quirk, was a dream come true. Og and Lux’s support warmed my heart. Even Tyson, despite the shitty things he put in our group chat, had propped me up this morning.

I didn’t need to hide anymore. I didn’t want to. If I wanted to accentuate my features with make-up, I would. If I wanted to piss off Tyson and get into a fistfight, I would. No matter how many times he broke my nose.

Nothing would hold me back.

I wanted to experience everything.

My little tornado tried to jump to my lifeline, running along the meatiest part of my palm, but collapsed in on itself and vanished.

My shoulders fell and my head slumped forward. All their support felt superficial. They’d all seen me at my worst, while I’d only seen them at their best.

The door opened, and a group of water dragons came in with trays of dinner. Jay, Tyson, and Rehan followed on their heels. Soon enough, it was just the five of us seated on one side of the big EM table, like the painting of the Last Supper, but with fewer windows. An uneasy chill ran up my spine. Jay wasn’t saving our sin-filled souls from an afterlife of torment… or at least I hoped it didn’t come to that.

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