Page 28 of The Kingdom's Reckoning
"A drakonis?"
Myra hummed in response, and the captain nodded.
"She looks different from…" Myra gulped. Images of her brother surfaced again: Mynhos flying across the room, the skin of his back scarlet, the pitch-black wings protruding from the raw skin between his shoulder blades.
"Breathe," Laurince commanded softly.
Myra inhaled a slow breath. Once, twice. Until the nerve-endings finally settled and her brain recognized she was not in immediate danger. Mynhos was dead. He was no longer in pain, no longer Domitius’ pawn.
Once Myra calmed down, Rian said, "I believe Nyrri was one of the first successful experiments Sebastian conducted before he and Domitius had partnered and started experimenting on humans." The king’s warm brown complexion turned a shade of green. He had been too close to being another victim, to becoming the same monster Mynhos had been turned into.
Several yards away, the drakonis settled back down and began licking her paws, from which ivory talons gleamed in the sunlight. Myra’s gaze slipped over the animal’s form, over the fur coating her legs, the small spikes adorning her tail, and the delicate wings tucked against her sides.
"She’s kind of…" Myra hesitated.
"Beautiful?" Rian suggested, staring at the creature with a look of awe.
Myra nodded, though it wasn’t the first word she would have used to describe Nyrri. The drakonis was terrifying, but she wasalso a sight to behold. It was strange thinking that something beautiful came from the atrocious experiments Sebastian had conducted.
"I think you dropped this," Laurince said, holding out the book.
"Oh, thank you," Myra mumbled. She took the book from the captain. Their fingers accidentally brushed, and Laurince quickly took a step back, stuffing his hands into his front pockets. Myra’s cheeks reddened.
"Doing some light reading?" Rian jested, pointing to the large tome.
Myra turned her attention away from the captain, thankful for the question.
"I was actually researching dragons to see if I could find anything noteworthy in the library’s collection in case it was useful. I recall Kallie mentioning you enjoyed researching, Your Majesty. Would you be interested in joining me?"
Rian and Laurince exchanged glances.
Myra hugged the book tighter to her chest, the pressure a much-needed comfort in the awkwardness. Before the obvious rejection could come, Myra quickly back-stepped. "It’s fine if you can’t or do not wish to. I don’t even know whether the research will help. But I figured I wasn’t doing anything else and wanted to help. I’m sure you both have better things to do than spend your days in the library with me."
Laurince sighed. "Myra?—"
"No, really. Time alone would do me some good, I think. Don’t you? My whole life I’ve been under Domitius' rule. Some alone time could be beneficial. It could help me get my bearings, help me figure out what I want to do next. It was a silly thing to?—"
One of them said something, but she didn’t hear him.
Realizing she was rambling, Myra grimaced. "I’m sorry. What was that?"
Laurince nudged Rian in the side, but Rian stared at the captain, dumbfounded.
"It wasn’t silly," Laurince said, clearing his throat. "It’s a good idea. Right, Rian?"
"Sure, but?—"
Laurince threw his arm around Rian’s shoulders, tugging him against him. "We have nothing better to do."
Rian, hunched over, side-eyed the captain. "Do you even read?"
Laurince jabbed the king in the side again. "Of course I fucking read. I’m not an absolute buffoon."
"At least you know you’re a partial one."
Laurince shoved Rian away, causing him to stumble over his feet. But before the king could hit the ground, Nyrri was there, nudging him upright with her snout. And for once, Myra’s laughter wasn’t forced. Not even a little.
Chapter 11
