Page 106 of The Kingdom's Reckoning
End the war.
They were all passing thoughts, like a breeze sweeping by that barely rustled the fallen leaves. Kallie brushed her hand over the bandage on her upper arm. The wound was still sore.
"If Domitius is dead, is there a point? The war is over," Ellie said. "We did what we came to do."
Kallie forced her attention back to the present conversation.
"Did you not hear everything I told you?" Graeson asked, annoyed. "This is only the beginning. Sebastian was working with Domitius. While Domitius was not known for his caring personality or willingness to share, do you really think he was the only one who was given a new ability? Sebastian has an entire army of drakonises at his disposal. He might have been following Domitius originally, but do you really think he is going to stop now that Domitius is dead?"
"Fuck!" Ellie stood and started pacing again.
"Sebastian told me he wanted Rian’s throne," Kallie said after a moment. "If Domitius’ plans have given him a way to gain even more than just Frenzia, Sebastian will not shy away from the opportunity."
"Fine," Ellie bit out, tossing her hands in the air. "I’ll return to Tetria then and make sure the Queen and my people know as well."
"No, we need to rest first," Graeson countered. "My body is still recovering from the transformation. And you and Kallie are both too injured to travel on foot for long."
Ellie folded her arms over chest. "I’m fine," she argued.
Graeson raised a brow. "Show me your ribs then."
Ellie stepped back, aghast. "I willnottake my clothes off for you. Kallie, do you hear this?"
Kallie rolled her eyes. "That’s not what he means, and you know it. Your ribs are broken, and if not broken, badly bruised."
"I’m fine. I can?—"
"No. You need to rest. We all do." Graeson stood, and Kallie could see how tired he was, too. The bags under his eyes could have rivaled Terin’s.
"Come on," he said, holding out his hand to Kallie.
"I thought you said we needed to rest?" Kallie asked.
"We do, and I know just the place to do that where we can also borrow some horses."
"Oh, are you friends with the local stableman?" Ellie prodded.
Graeson smiled down at Kallie as she took his hand. "Something like that."
Chapter 43
MYRA
The embers emitteda soft glow as dusk fell outside the cave. The light from the fire bounced off the cave’s walls, humming and pushing at the shadows that crept inside. The crackling wood and the soft rustling of leaves outside were the only sounds around the fire.
Myra wrapped her arms around her legs, squeezing them against her chest. It wasn’t as cold as it had been on previous nights, but the light pressure was comforting and settled her nerves.
With a groan, Rian stood, stretching his arms to the sky. "I’m going to go take a lap."
Laurince swiftly shook his head. "I can go. You two should stay here."
"Unless you wish to help me take a leak, sit your ass back down, Lo," Rian said, waving him off.
Myra quirked her brows. "What about the bounty?"
Rian pointed to his head. "I’m unrecognizable, remember?"
"Notentirelyunrecognizable," Laurince mumbled under his breath.
