Page 24 of Taloned Heart

She blinked. “I thought we weren’t using magic?”

“Knowing Borovoi, he has the whole place shielded. I think, of anywhere in this kingdom, this might be the safest place to use your magic as you wish.”

Beauty turned toward them with a bright grin. “You’ve gotten it under control?”

She’d done more than that. Abraxas felt his chest swell with pride, knowing that Lore was more than just the person everyone thought she would be. The magic inside of her was almost impossible to explain to anyone who hadn’t seen it before. She’d come back from the brink of death more times than he could count, and because of that, he thought perhaps she had seen so much more than any of them could imagine.

Lore nodded, her cheeks burning bright red. “I’ve gotten it under control. Now please, allow me.”

She lifted her hands and light glimmered at her fingertips. The glowing orbs pulled off her skin and illuminated the corners of the room, gathering together to hang from the center like a chandelier. Each light solidified as he watched, popping into existence like glass.

“They’ll stay that way now,” Lore added in explanation. “Whenever it’s dark, they’ll light up for you. And if you’re done with them, just tap on them. They’ll go dark again.”

Beauty’s eyes widened, and she stared at the magical lights with her mouth slightly ajar. “Beautiful.”

“They are useful,” Lore corrected, though her cheeks were still bright after the compliment. “But I suppose useful things can be beautiful as well.”

He glanced around the room and noted the root cellar they all stood inside. Beauty and her father had done their best to make it seem more like a home. There were curtains hanging from the ceilings to mark off different rooms, and furniture that must have come from their house before it had burned to the ground. There were small parts of his friend all around him. Paintings, little drawings that might have been sketches of her father, and so much energy put into making a root cellar a house.

It was a shame their lives had come to this. Abraxas rubbed his chest to banish the ache that grew. Beauty should have been able to live in a home of her own, or stay in the castle with Zephyr. She deserved so much more than this.

“Come on,” Beauty said, gesturing with her hand for them to follow her. “When was the last time you ate?”

His stomach growled at the thought.

Both women laughed at him, their eyes sparkling with joy. And though he knew he was the butt of their joke right now, he couldn’t help but find it pleasant to see them like this. They were so happy with each other, as if no time had passed at all.

He’d be a joke if they kept smiling like that.

Beauty brought them to a makeshift kitchen. There was no stove, nor were there any ovens, but there was food on the shelves that would keep, potatoes mostly, it seemed. The long table in the middle had six chairs around it, clearly more than she or her father needed.

“Sit,” Beauty said as she bustled about. “We don’t have anything fresh, nothing to cook it with, but Da has gotten very good at smoking meat.”

“As much as I’d love food,” Abraxas said while gently sitting down on a chair. “I think it would be wise for you to keep yours. I’ll hunt later.”

“I can feed you, Abraxas.”

He glanced at the meager wall of food and arched a brow. “You have forgotten how much a dragon eats, I see.”

“I haven’t forgotten a thing about either of you.” Beauty turned around, hip pressed against a shelf, her arms crossed over her chest.

And he realized how tired she looked. How the dark bags under her eyes were deeper than ever, and how her clothing hung off her body. She was exhausted, and they didn’t need her helping them. They were both well fed, well rested, even though the emotional turmoil of being here wore on them.

They were fine. She was not.

He stood and walked up to her. With brisk hands, he rubbed them up and down her cold arms, and then turned her toward the seat he’d just vacated. “Sit down.”

“It’s my home, Abraxas. I can welcome you into it.”

“But it’s not your home, now is it?” He bent his knees so he could look her in the eyes. “Sit down with Lore and let me get you something to eat. You are about to fall over, and you have clearly not been taking care of yourself. We’re here now, Beauty. You are not alone anymore.”

Tears turned her eyes glassy, but she didn’t let them fall. Instead, she sniffed hard and nodded before walking over to sit beside Lore.

Abraxas eyed the shelves, not quite sure what to make of the jars he saw before him. He’d never been a good cook, so at least he wasn’t expected to pull everything together so they could eat something tasty. He was much more suited to roasting an animal with flames and calling it good at that.

A jar of peaches would do. And there was cheese there. A memory flashed in his mind, one of Zander’s snacks that he’d have the maids bring him. Fruit, cheese, bread, an easy and safe combination.

Gathering up all his ingredients in his arms, he turned toward the ladies to see them both watching him with strange expressions on their faces.

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