Page 85 of Dragon Blood

“Heidi and Charmaine.”

“Char—? Okay, this is serious.” She blew out her breath, pacing toward the windows, turning her gaze up to Jori, then back to Odson. “Why go to Charmaine?”

“Astred went to the Nexus because she had a vision.”

Kymri blanched. “You were there?”

Odson nodded. “I was a witness to the ritual. Afterwards, she and Kai went to Bayn’s place.”

Kymri pinched the bridge of her nose with one hand while she rubbed the top of her extended belly with the other. “Why go to Bayn?”

“So that Aaron Connor could meet them there to set up a secured meeting with Kane. They both live in Toronto.”

“That still doesn’t explain why they would pull Bayn into this? Aside from recent events, as an air dragon, their mandate is neutrality. This just pulls him deeper into the mess.”

Jori remained silent beside her, Stenlen, ever his shadow, maintained his post nearby.

Elora’s soft voice hung in the vast room. “For the star stone.”

Fear streaked down Odson’s back. He flexed his suddenly clammy hands as he studied Elora’s face. “That…” his gaze darted back to Kymri, dropped to her belly before bouncing back up to her face. “Holy shit.” He raked a hand through his greying hair.

“What? What is the star stone?” Jori demanded, turning to Elora.

“Do you remember the story about the Dragon Star, Jori?”

He shook his head, “Not clearly, I was very young when you told it to me.”

“It’s just a myth.” Kymri said. “That story is just a myth.”

Odson’s head shook. “It’s not.”

“The Dragon Star was our greatest hero in the wars following the divide. She was the strongest of us, aside from the queen,” Elora said. “She saved so many of our guardians when the males overran us outside our boundaries.”

“What happened?”

“She couldn’t be everywhere all the time. Despite her efforts, we still lost many dragonesses.” Elora’s gaze landed on Stenlen. “Your previous king was relentless in those days, as was his father before him. First, Queen Rayna fell. It was unthinkable, but she did, and the Dragon Star bore the responsibility like a lead weight. Regina ascended in Rayna’s place.” Elora fell silent.

Odson took it from there. “But then Zalina fell too, after a raid, and the Dragon Star lost her way. Her endless raiding and assassination attempts on the mountain males brought them out again and again, making matters worse for Aeleftheria. She nearly died in a narrow escape. I found her in really bad shape and brought her back to Regina.”

“She wasn’t the same after that.” the sadness in Elora’s tone mirrored the memory of Odson’s experiences during those days so long ago.

“Zalina?” Kymri said, eyes wide. “My aunt Zalina? Zayli’s mother? She died shortly before I was born.”

“Regina forced the Dragon Star to give up her power.”

“The star stone?” Jori said.

“It’s the Steelscale legacy,” Elora said to Kymri. “Your grandmother was the Dragon Star until she grew too power hungry. She didn’t like the direction things were going, so she decided she’d press her own will on the queen.”

“Wait, back up. What?” Kymri rubbed her temples, looking at Jori, who was at just as much of a loss as she was. “Why does no one know this? Why don’tIknow this?”

“Regina compromised. Zadora handed over the star stone and formed the Council, which would ‘guide’ Regina’s rein. The Dragon Star was left to the legends after that.” Odson shot Elora a glance. “Regina told me what happened when I saw her next.”

Elora nodded, a smile tugging at her lips. “I remember. You came to pay homage to the new princess. Astred.”

Odson averted his gaze and changed the subject. “The Star Stone. If Astred is retrieving it, something is very wrong.”

“But she can’t use it. She isn’t a Steelscale. She doesn’t have the starmetal in her blood.” Elora frowned.

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