Page 170 of The Forsaken Heir
Aurelius made achuffingsound and nodded his huge head. When Cassius stepped back, Aurelius rushed to the edge and leapt out into open space. The strength and power of his dragon body always shocked me. Even with two adult women sitting on his back, he ascended into the sky effortlessly.
Delphine squeezed my midsection and pressed her cheek into my back.
“Tell me when we get there,” she shouted against the wind. “That’s when I’ll open my eyes.”
I chuckled and pulled the hood on my head down lower to block the chill. If nothing else, I’d get to enjoy the flight there. As terrified as Delphine and Freddy were of flying on a dragon’s back, I found it exhilarating. Along with everything else Aurelius had shown me, it was one of the things I’d grown to love about him and his world. If we were able to get out of this unscathed, I’d make him take me flying at least once a week. It was something good to look forward to. Something I wanted. I wouldn’t let my brother tear it away from me.
The meeting place was indeed an hour’s flight from the dragon castle. The clearing was in a forest in the middle of neutral land. Neither the dragons, wolves, nor any other shifter had claim to it. No one would have the upper hand there. We didn’t go directly there, though. That wasn’t the plan. Instead, we landed a few miles off in a concealed cove.
After climbing off Aurelius’s back, Delphine and I stepped back to give him room to shift. When he was in his human form, he stepped forward and took my hand.
“Are you sure you’ll be alright?” he asked, gazing into my eyes.
“I will. I’ll have Rasp and Vince with me,” I said, trying to sound as confident as Aurelius had that morning.
“And Octavius,” he said.
“Right,” I muttered. “Are you sure you can’t come?”
He shook his head. “No. The fact that Bastien is being so blatant in his lies tells me he has something up his sleeve. Heknowshe doesn’t have me captive. My guess? He thinks we’ll do what we did at the gala. Reveal me as the true prince to argue against whatever he has. That’s when he’ll spring his trap.”
Sighing, I gripped his hand tighter. The last thing I wanted was to face Bastien without Aurelius at my side.
“Do you think that’sreallywhat he wants to do? Everyone will be watching. Would he truly do that with all those witnesses?”
“I wouldn’t put it past him.” Aurelius cupped my cheek, brushing his thumb over my jaw. “You don’t really know what he’s like now. He’s a maniac. All he wants is us—the dragons—gone. Once we’re out of the way, he can do whatever he wants.”
“But the fae?—”
“Aren’t strong enough. They have their own warrior class to go along with their shamans, but they don’t have the numbers. The magic helps, sure, but the sheer number of wolf shifters may still overwhelm even their best fighters.” His thumb moved to my lips, and the touch sent a hot current through me. “It’s all right. It’s overcast today. I’ll fly up above the clouds and circle the meeting point. I’ll only come low enough to keep an eye on things. Not to brag or anything, but I have pretty awesome eyesight. I can see things you wouldn’t imagine from that high. Like an eagle’s eye. Remember, I’ll be right there with you. Only a few seconds away. You won’t be able to see me, but I’ll be there.”
This was not an argument I wanted to lose, and I knew how it would end. Aurelius was dead set on this. I nodded and yanked him close, kissing him hard.
When he pulled away, he winked at me. “Don’t worry. I might have a few tricks up my sleeve if things go poorly.”
I shook my head. “What do you mean by?—”
Before the words were even out of my throat, he shifted and took off into the air, thethwap-thwapof his wings drowning out my question. Heart pounding, I watched him disappear behind the clouds.
Delphine tugged on my arm. “We have to hurry, dear.”
She took the seat behind Kaskawan on Rasp’s back, and I climbed onto Octavius behind Freddy.
My little brother looked back at me with anxiety-ridden eyes.
“This isfuckingterrifying,” he cried even as Octavius took off into the sky. “I don’t know how you act this calm.”
I put my arms around his waist as the dragon beneath us bobbed and swooped higher and higher into the sky.
“You get used to it,” I said, resting my head on his shoulder.
The last few miles of our trip went by in less than five minutes. Beneath us, the clearing became visible, as well as the people in attendance. My jaw dropped as I saw what awaited us. My family’s contingent was there, along with the wolf families allied to them, as well as dozens of others: fae tribes who weren’t part of the Hikshil; moose shifters, panthers, bears, and elk—all the native shifters from the new world. Bastien hadn’t informed us how many people would be in attendance. A sudden sick feeling twisted my stomach. Most of the people here were either ambivalent toward Cassius or actively hated him for the mistakes and poor choices he’d made in the past. We were descending into averydangerous situation.
Swallowing hard, I did my best to put on a regal and confident face as Octavius landed. The way the warrior twitched and turned his massive dragon head told me the sight of so many possible enemies made him nervous.
Before we’d even had time to get settled on the ground, a female voice rang out. “If you’d be kind enough to have your pretty little flying lizards shift to their human form?”
As I slid off Octavius’s back, I turned toward the voice. Sasha. She stood with her shoulders back, basically preening as she strode forward. It still astounded me that she was so loyal to Bastien. He’d twisted her in some way, mentally brainwashing her over the years, creating a perfect right-hand woman to help run the family home. I’d tried to help her the night of the battle in the conservatory, but she’d nearly gotten me killed. She looked at me like I was vermin fouling up the place.
