Page 111 of Wild Bond

Rake stood next to the bed with Naasir sitting vigilantly at his feet, the two of them having refused to leave my side since I was wounded. Rake and his formidable dragon’s assessing glares had nearly frightened the life out of the few healers who had been brave enough to see to me. They closely monitored everything they were doing, as if the males suspected the healers intended to hurt me further.

Currently, Princess Helene stood near the foot of the bed, her dragon perched on her shoulder. The two Zehvitian princes completed the last of our impromptu huddle on my left side across from Rake, both of their dragons at their feet. All the leaders looked exhausted and sported small cuts or fading bruises. None of them had been injured as badly as me, however.

It had been utter chaos after the rogue riders had been subdued. Only twenty of the nearly fifty initial combatants that made up Mercedes’ ramshackle force had survived, including their dragons. Once the real dragon riders had realized their opponents weren’t what they thought and pulled back, no one else had been killed. None of our riders were killed during the struggle, though there were some severe injuries, including Warran’s dragon, who had nearly had a wing torn off, and a Zehvitian rider who was suffering from a broken back due to a fall.

The remaining rogue riders were being held in the makeshift cells below us along with their sedated dragons. I had explained to Rake what Mercedes had done to them, and that most of the riders and dragons were victims in their own right. He had made sure that they were treated well, and their needs seen to until we could sort this all out and decide what to do with them.

Hence the unplanned meeting with the present company. It had taken some quick talking on Rake’s part to assure the royals that this had not been a sanctioned or planned attack by Baldor, that Princess Mercedes had acted alone, and this shouldn’t be seen as an act of war. So, for the last half hour, I had been relaying to all of them what had happened with Mercedes; what she had done, and the events that led to her death. Thankfully, Prince Pierce wasn’t here, having left to take her body back to the queen and explain to her about his sister’s treachery. I was glad of it. I didn’t think I could have spoken about it all if he were present. Rake had been the one to speak with him.

I had just gotten settled in my bed in the infirmary last night when Prince Pierce came storming in, his dragon in its minor form on his heels.

“Rakim!” he hollered as he approached. Several people turned to stare and made way for the prince as he crossed the busy space and stopped at my bedside.

Rake stepped in front of me, with Naasir standing ready at his feet. Skye moved over me; her small body watchful as she regarded Pierce.

The prince’s blonde hair was disheveled, and his expression was murderous. “Would you care to explain to me what in the Nine Realms just happened? I had to learn from one of my men that my sister’s body is among the dead and that she was somehow part of the attack.”

Rake’s voice was calm as he replied, “Princess Mercedes wasn’t just caught up in the attack. She led the attack. She was behind the whole thing.”

“That’s impossible,” Pierce scoffed. “Mercedes is harmless. She’s not capable of something like this.”

“It’s true,” Rake argued. “We’ve suspected for months that something was going on . . .” He quickly explained about everything that had been happening and what we now knew Mercedes to be guilty of.

Genuine shock, remorse, and sadness passed over Pierce’s face before he masked them, and I actually felt a twinge of sympathy for him. “Why wasn’t I informed?” he demanded. “You’re the spymaster. Why didn’t you report any of this?”

Rake paused a beat. “I did. I reported my findings to the queen.”

Confusion, then anger suffused Pierce’s expression. “You thought it was me,” he realized. “You thought I was behind it.”

Rake said nothing, but it was answer enough.

Something ticked in his jaw before Pierce informed Rake, “I’m taking my sister’s body back to Dessin. I’ll inform my mother of what’s transpired here.” He glanced at me, then met Rake’s stare again. “Handle this. Try to keep another war from breaking out while I’m gone.” Then the prince turned on his heel and strode away.

I forced myself not to dwell on thoughts of the prince’s reaction while I finished explaining my suspicions about the potion the rogue riders had been given, and its effects.

“How could you possibly know of the potion’s long-term effects or the resulting symptoms?” Princess Helene asked. “Have you seen it before?” Her expression was suspicious as she watched me closely before looking to Rake and back to me. “Explain.”

Obviously seeing no reason to keep secrets any longer, Rake briefly summarized what had been happening in Baldor over the past several months, and our findings in regard to the kidnappings and supposed illness that had been affecting humans and dragons alike.

Prince Malik’s face was like a block of ice by the time Rake finished. “So, all those who survived the battle . . . those that were given this potion . . . will die? There is no saving them?”

“Surely there is something that can be done,” Princess Helene said. “Is it possible to create some kind of antidote?”

Rake’s face was grim. “Not that we’ve seen. Though who knows what exactly was done to them or whether they were given the same potion. Mercedes told Rin there were several. It’s hard to know what the side-effects will be or if there will be any at all. It’s possible they perfected the potion if Mercedes herself took it.”

Just then, Dembe and Zade strode up to our group, both of their dragons walking beside them. A Zehvitian rider I didn’t recognize with the Fangdar dragon insignia on his chest approached with them.

The Zehvitian bowed slightly to his princes while Dembe and Zade moved to Rake’s side. Zade shot me a wink before Dembe spoke. “One of the rogue riders was coherent enough to lead us back to where they and the dragons were being held. It was less than an hour flight from here. There were several hatchlings in cages, as well as mature dragons. Moonstone was used on all of them to keep them from shifting. We also found at least a dozen children, along with some of the men and women that had gone missing.” Dembe then looked at me. “We found Lessa among them, as well as the seamstress she was boarding with.”

I sat up straighter. Rake had told his second about Lessa before they left on the mission with the rogue rider, in hopes that she would be found. “Is she all right?” I asked.

“She’s fine,” he assured me. “A little banged up, but nothing that won’t heal. I told her she could come and visit you once you were finished here.”

I relaxed slightly back into the pillows. Skye nuzzled my hand, and I absently stroked down her spine, relieved beyond belief that Lessa was fine and that she wasn’t one of the ones the bonding potion had been administered to. I couldn’t wait to see her.

Then something he had said registered. “Wait, Lessa ishere?”

Dembe nodded. “We brought her and the other survivors back with us for medical attention. There are no towns or villages near enough for us to take them to, Three Points is too remote. Some of them aren’t coherent enough to remember our location anyway, but they were all blindfolded before traveling here.”

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