Page 10 of The Fire Dragon's Mate
“I beg you,” I said pitifully, a sob threatening. “Please, Cighyss.”
Now they moved. Zelig propped me up, I heaved bile onto my chest at the sudden movement, and Cighyss put the cup to my lips.
“Tell him what it is,” Zelig said.
“Declan,” Cighyss said, “you should know that?—”
But I didn’t care. Desperate and shaking, I tipped the cup up to empty whatever it contained into my mouth.
Immediately I hated the salty meat-like taste of it. But then the throbbing in my head began to fade. Not gone but lessened. From a single sip? I downed the rest of it and tapped on the base of the cup to encourage as much of the strange liquid into my mouth as possible.
In seconds, the pain and nausea that hadn’t left me for so long finally vanished.
I licked my lips and swallowed a few more times, detesting the flavor but loving what it had done for me. I didn’t want to sing its praises, but by the gods, I had to.
“Thank you,” I whispered.
“You are most welcome, Declan.”
That he wasn’t rubbing my nose in the fact I’d begged him for that stuff was a relief. Tears built behind my closed eyes as my gratitude grew because I didn’t hurt anymore. I didn’thurt.
“And might I say,” Cighyss added, “that will not be the last time you beg me for my cum.”
Five
DRAGON’S PARADISE
Healed completely after drinking a cup of that dragon’s— No, I couldn’t think of what I’d drunk to regain my health. It was too horrible to consider. Or that he’d been so sure I’d someday do it again. From the source next time? That fucking beast.
But once I healed, Zelig walked me into a small chamber off the medical area where I could finally get real sleep. The room was clearly carved right out of the mountain with veins of white crystal running through every surface. It was very simple—just another cot, a small side table with a candle, a pillow, and blanket—but considering the state I was in, I didn’t need more. It was possible I fell asleep before I fully laid down.
I’d woken the first time only to devour the hearty bread, mild cheese, and water someone had left me. I’d noticed then that the candle had burned down by several hours, but then I’d gone right back to sleep.
Now, when I opened my eyes, I saw that the candle had burned out completely. The sound of many voices reached me from beyond the walls of this little room, the flickering of morelights drawing my gaze to the doorway. Shame at what I’d done seeped in, and I hesitated to leave the room.
I shouldn’t be embarrassed by drinking that stuff. I’dneededa cure. Even if I had let him tell me what it was ahead of time, I still would’vehadto accept it. I would’ve died without it. I couldn’t stomach leeches either, but sometimes they were necessary as well. That cup of…cure had been necessary.
And it was possible that I was not the only man to have drunk such a wicked drink. If it healed anyone like it had healed me… Well, none could judge me for what I had done. Not here.
Someone had left a set of clothes for me. Just a bright white cambric shirt, a pale blue jerkin, simple gray woolen trousers, and stockings with a pair of black leather knee boots. Once dressed, I looked like any one of the sailors who’d brought me to this island. The clothing was far more comfortable than what I usually wore, so I didn’t mind the drop in status.
What was very definitely lacking were my sword and dagger. I’d need those if I was to have any hope of returning to real society. Both were bejeweled, so I might be able to sell them in order to set myself up in a new life. As what? I had no idea.
“There you are,” Phineas said with a smile as I stepped into the doorway of my small chamber. He was dressed similar to myself and held the hand of a little girl with wavy blonde hair. “Come meet Camille, your niece.”
Our siblings, Stanton and Kezia, both had children ranging in age from newborn to sixteen. I’d seen them occasionally when they—like us before them—were paraded through the parlor by their nannies. They were like a pack of strange animals that I was meant to admire from a distance for their appearances and manners. They’d always seemed like living dolls more than people.
But here stood Phineas holding the hand of a grubby toddler who eyed me suspiciously before turning to him andasking to be picked up. He didn’t hesitate to do it, her little bottom sitting on his arm as she continued to assess me from a higher vantage point. He never would’ve done any of that back home.
I went down the three steps separating us. “Hello, Camille,” I said to her.
Her blue eyes snapped to her father’s face. “Go on,” he encouraged. “Say hello to Uncle Declan.”
She looked me in the eyes and sighed. “Lo, Unc Delen.”
I had zero experience interacting with children, but she made me smile. She was smudged and tousled, but she was no less a member of the gentry. I half expected her to hold her little hand out so I might kiss it. Instead, she pushed at Phineas and wiggled around until he set her down again.
I watched her walk away and got my first real look at the inside of the cave. It was as if the entire mountain had been hollowed out. Several fire pits warmed the space and smoke drifted up to a hole in the peak. Everything was dark stone with veins of white crystal branching all through it and sparkling in the light. Doorways and windows dotted the walls, many with candlelight flickering beyond them. Some doors were higher up with steps or ladders leading to the ledges that might let one walk past several dwellings on that level.
