Page 46 of A Forgery of Fate

“You need my help,” I stated. “You should know, I can’t control what I see in my visions. But I’m willing to try and help you find your pearl.”

His gaze narrowed. “You offer this because you pity me.”

I leaned back against the pavilion wall. “I wouldn’t go that far. There’s the three chests of jewels too. But you’re not what I thought, Lord Elang. You may have no heart, but you aren’t without feeling.”

For the second time, he laughed.

“What’s so funny?” I asked.

“I thank you for devoting so much thought to my…affliction,” he said, finally taking off his mask. “But you are mistaken.”

His eyes met mine, and I couldn’t stop myself from recoiling. I’d seen his face before. The horns, the iron-thick scales, the ringed and hooded eye—all in stark disharmony with the human side. Yet here, under the brunt of daylight, the line splitting the two sides of his face was sharper. More visceral.

Seeing my reaction, he turned, fixing his gaze resolutely on the pond. “My pearl is what I wantothersto think you’re here for. I know precisely where it is, and you need not concern yourself on the matter. Do you think I would involve a human like you, andmarryyou, simply for the sake of an irksome curse? No. Your mission is far more important thanthat.”

I didn’t understand. “What could be more important to you than breaking your curse?”

“The future of Ai’long,” he replied. He lifted a claw to my face, and I held my breath as he traced his talon-sharp nails along my jawline, leaving only the narrowest strait of air between us. His voice fell lethally soft. “You see, Truyan Saigas, you are going to help me overthrow the Dragon King.”

All at once, my world tilted, and everything came into staggering focus.

The Dragon King.The God of the Four Supreme Seas. The ruler of the sea dragons, who controlled the monsoons and storms that devastated A’landi’s coasts.

I shot up to my feet. “Are you out of your mind? You want to overthrow the Dragon King?”

“Say it louder,” Elang urged. “His spies are everywhere. Maybe even among those fruit flies hovering above the longans.”

I tensed. Longans were called dragon eyes. But so what if the Dragon King heard me? “I didn’t agree to murder,” I whispered in a hiss. “I read through the contract three times. Nowhere did it mention killing—”

“Your conscience may rest easy,” said Elang. “No one is going to die.”

“But you just—”

“I saidoverthrow.Your imagination leapt toassassinate.”

I put my hands on my hips. “That’s how it’s done in A’landi.”

“Well, gods don’t perish as easily as mortals do,” Elang replied. “And you needn’t whisper. My grandfather’s power is weakened on land, and my estate is outside of his reach. He’ll only hear you if you decide to bellow like a whale.”

I scowled, certain Elang had enjoyed putting me on edge. “Why are you doing this?”

“A good question.” Elang rose to my side, his arms locked behind his back. “In your stories, King Nazayun is rarely kind. Imagine that cruelty multiplied a hundredfold.”

“You mean, you hold a grudge?”

“You have a gift for understatement, Truyan.”

I sighed. “What exactly would my role be?”

“You’ll need to study my grandfather’s likeness. For a portrait.”

My brows pinched. “A portrait requires a sitting, or at least a meeting. I’m guessing the Dragon King is not amenable to this.”

“He is not. Under ideal circumstances, I would take you to his palace to meet him in person, but our situation is…delicate. Regardless, I’m sure he will come to you in some form or another. My grandfather despises me, and he’ll be displeased that I’ve returned. But he’ll also be curious about you. My wife.”

My wife.Even the sun couldn’t keep me from feeling cold.

“Why the look of distress?” Elang asked. “You’ve painted dragons before.”

---