Page 53 of The Flame King's Queen

It rains all day, and continues long into the night. It’s common for rain to fall in spring in Maledin, but I hope that the weather will clear for Isavelle’s coronation in six days’ time, and the Dragon Games that will follow.

Isavelle has been quiet all evening, and now she paces up and down our room at bedtime.

“Sha’lenla, what is the matter?”

My mate gives me a long, tense look. “I don’t wish for you to worry about me, or to imagine that I have upset myself for no reason. I was reading necromancy books at Master Gaun’s archive today, and some of the details are difficult to stop thinking about.”

She rubs her belly absentmindedly, and I wonder if some of what she read had to do with children.

I sit down on the bed, pull her into my lap, and cradle her under my chin. “My sweet little witch. How sorry I am that you are feeling this way. Did you make yourself read it all because you believed it would help us fight Emmeric?”

I feel her nod. “I thought I could discover a weakness we could use to our advantage, but the magic is so cruel and despicable. I wonder how many people became excited and inspired reading those words.” She shudders at the memory. “At least it is kept locked up at the archive. That is some comfort.”

I kiss the top of her head. “Until there is some new sighting of Emmeric or he makes his next move, let’s put him out of our minds. There are many good things for us to focus on right now.”

“I will try, though I wonder how I will sleep tonight.”

“Shall I tell you something good?”

“Please.”

“Tomorrow the schedule for the Dragon Games will be posted, and all the riders will start to plan for their strongest events.”

Isavelle sits up in my lap, and a smile touches her lips. “Tomorrow? That is exciting news. I will probably have a thousand questions about each event. How soon will the games begin?”

“In six days, on the afternoon of your coronation.”

“Wonderful,” she says, her eyes sparkling. “I have my mate, my baby, and my dragon. The ceremony is important, but I long for a celebration and to witness all the beautiful dragons of Maledin. I want to feel like a dragonrider.”

I rub the tip of my nose against hers. “You are already a dragonrider, but I promise that the games will make you feel even more like one.” I press my lips to hers. “And the coronation will make you into the queen you are.”

Every dragonrider,wingrunner, resident of the castle, and what feels like half the city is crowded into the Great Hall the following morning. Enormous boards are carried in by the women of the Flame Temple, who are coordinating the event on behalf of myself, Stesha, and all the dragonriders. The Temple Crone and her two most senior Temple Mothers will referee and manage the scoring.

As soon as the boards are placed, dragonriders and avid fans of the forthcoming games cluster around them, exclaiming the schedule of events.

I smile when I see the first event, as it’s ideal for Scourge and myself. I already know what the events will be, but the order has been decided by theHratha’len.

The smile is wiped from my face when over the sound of the happy crowd, I hear the screams of angry and distressed dragons. All the riders in the hall look around in confusion. Pavel, the rider of a charcoal gray Alpha dragon with violet eyes, pushes through the crowd in the Great Hall toward me, waving his hand and calling out to me. When he reaches me, he’s out of breath. “The dragonmaster sent me,Ma’len. There are three feral dragons and their riders at the dragongrounds. Two of them are yellow females that resemble Auryn. The flare is in an uproar.”

On the other side of the Great Hall, I see Kane leaning against the wall, grinning to himself. Yellow dragons. Dragons from his flare, and he’s found riders for them. Yet again, he hasn’t given me the courtesy of a warning.

I stride through the crowd, and people fall right and left to get out of my way. As I bear down on him, the grin fades from Kane’s face. I grasp him by the back of his cloak and drag him from the Great Hall. He fights me every step of the way, twisting in my grip, and punching and kicking me. He viciously attacks my side where I was injured by Emmeric, but I keep him off-balance by jerking him off his feet every few steps.

“What the fuck are you doing? Let me go.”

We cross a courtyard, and I pull him up a set of stone stairs as he stumbles and swears. Out on the ramparts we have a good view of the dragongrounds. Three Alpha dragons have landed at the eastern end of the dragongrounds. Two are yellow, and I recognize them as Auryn’s sisters. The third is scarlet.

I release Kane with a shove. “You were warned not to bring dragons from your flare into the city.”

Kane adjusts his black cloak, glaring at me through his stringy hair. “You spoke of Auryn, not of the other dragons of my flare. Are they not allowed to compete, Your Highness?Ma’len. Whatever you’re called.” He gives a sarcastic little bow. A crowd is gathering below us to witness our disagreement.

I have given this man every chance to prove that he can be reasonable and responsible, and yet everything he does is calculated to annoy someone. Especially me.

I seize his jacket with both hands, yank him to me, and say in a low and deadly voice, “You wish your riders to compete against mine? Every rule that I have given you applies to them, and I’m making you responsible for their behavior. Do not continue to test my patience. We outnumber you. We are better trained than you. Your mate will not weep over your broken and bloody corpse. Get these dragons out of my city before I rip you from the face of this earth.”

I release him, and he doesn’t move. Either he attacks the King of Maledin in front of hundreds of loyal onlookers, or he walks away with his tail tucked between his legs. In this moment, I’m so angry with him that I’m almost wishing for him to reach for his sword. This man causes my mate and Ravenna nothing but pain, and he’s a constant aggravation for me.

“Prepare for humiliation,” Kane says, his eyes filled with hate. “You will be utterly destroyed by our dragons.”

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