Page 51 of The Kingdom of Flames and Ash

The pearl scales are a sign of a higher-caste dragon.He crossed his arms and stepped backward to Nightbane’s side.But they came onto my land, demanding that my mate hand herself over, threatening her sister, and then flaunting all the heirs the prince wants to have with you in my face. Killing just one was me showing restraint, so I decided I would eliminate the one that would mean the most to them. It’s common sense.

I placed a hand on my chest, trying to keep it from aching more.I hope that they don’t take their anger out on E.

They won’t,he assured me and took my hand.They know if they don’t hand Eiric over, the Seelie will declare war. They want Eiric here, so both sets of your parents acknowledge that they had to give you up in order to get her back. It would be a daily reminder that they lost control to the dragons.

I should’ve known it would come down to that.

Control. Power. Two things the dragons cherished most. It must have driven them crazy when we’d told them I wouldn’t be going home with Pyralis as soon as he demanded it.

My entire future had just been stolen because the choice before me had been made perfectly clear.

Father cursed. “Blasted abyss. I can’t fathom how their timing was so perfect. Have they been watching our kingdom, waiting for us to return?”

“Not possible, Your Majesty.” Dad kept his sword in his hand, searching the horizon. “The guards we left behind kept watch. They would’ve noticed if dragons had been lurking, and there isn’t anywhere for them to land and rest between our kingdom and theirs.”

“Then how did this happen?” Mother hung her head. “It seems too coincidental.”

Finnian pursed his lips. “I’d say someone alerted them, but we took a head count of everyone before we left. All were accounted for.”

“Even though we need to have this discussion, right now, we should prioritize helping the Unseelie return to their homes.” Caelan pushed a stray lock of hair out of his face. “And we probably want to discuss this inside the palace.”

Despite him being right, two things kept running through my mind. In three days, I had to hand myself over to the dragons, or Eiric would die. A war with the dragons wasn’t far off if I didn’t go willingly.

“You two handle the housing situation and establish shifts with the guards so that someone is always watching the perimeter,” Tavish said stiffly, tugging me to his side.

Nightbane huffed and moved out from between us. He hovered in front of me like he was waiting for another attack.

“I’ll leave some Seelie guards to assist in covering the area since it’s so large. The others will return home to alert the restof our forces of what happened.” Dad flew over to a group of guards, leaving the five of us alone.

I turned to see Mom looking paler than I ever remembered seeing her. My heart lurched in my chest, and even though the one place I wanted to be was at Tavish’s side, I needed to comfort her. I could only imagine how she felt. I risked losing a sister, but she risked a daughter.

I untangled myself from Tavish and hurried to Mom. As I hugged her, her body shook, and she returned the embrace even tighter.

My lungs screamed, but I refused to move or complain.

“Don’t worry. It’s all going to be okay.” A sob began in my chest, but I tried to hold it back. I hated how hopeless I felt right now. I couldn’t allow Eiric to die because of my selfishness.

“Sprite,” Tavish growled menacingly. “I can feel what you’re thinking, and I won’t allow it.” His anger hadn’t ebbed, and now determination fueled it.

He had no intention of letting me go, even if it meant Eiric’s life.

“You don’t get to make that call, Tavish.” I ran my fingers through Mom’s hair, trying not to snag any curls. “If it’s between me being a captive or E being killed, I know which one I’m going to pick. Look at what this is doing to everyone.”

Hestia jerked upright, tears trailing down her cheeks. “This isn’t just about Eiric. You should know better than that. This is about you too. Either way, I lose a daughter. Yes, Eiric could die, but a life with the dragons might be a harsher fate than death.”

“Unfortunately, Lira’s biological parents didn’t agree with you since they’re the ones who got everyone into this situation.” Tavish turned his steely eyes on my parents and continued, “They promised their daughter to someone more vile and power-hungry than my father ever was.”

“I resent that accusation, and your father was going to allow the rest of us to die by killing our crops.” Father brandished his finger like a sword and jabbed it at Tavish as he continued, “So the Unseelie are the real reason we are in this mess. King Dunach disrespected the balance of power.”

“Which is impossible.” Tavish chopped the air with his hand. “He wasn’t capable of that sort of strength!”

Dad rejoined us, eyes widening at the obvious tension.

Fighting among ourselves wouldn’t accomplish anything. “We’re wasting time. We need to deal with this situation; what happened before is irrelevant. The Unseelie king blanketing the sky in darkness and me being promised to the dragon prince are in the past. We can’t undo any of that.”

Mother nodded. “We need to channel all this turmoil into determining a solution.”

“Yes, and right now, I can think of only one.” I bit the inside of my cheek, wondering if I had the strength to do what was necessary. I would lose a piece of myself, and I could only hope that the end would be worth the sacrifice.

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