Chapter 29

CHAPTER 29

" W e lost the damn trail." Zaire's neck muscles were taut.

We were in the war room, Amory leading the meeting since Esta was still recovering. She hadn't stirred yet.

"It was like she just disappeared into thin air," he continued. "The felines were closing in quickly on her scent, and it altogether just dropped off."

Otis commented, "If I didn't know any better, I would say she'd been healed and could still fly."

"But we do know better," I said from my normal seat next to Whit. "And because we do, that means someone else is working with her. Someone with wings."

"Dammit," Zaire growled. "We were so close."

To give Zaire credit, based on all Dex told me, Zaire had been relentless on his hunt, and Dex had also not left him alone. If I didn't trust Dex, I would have been concerned that Zaire was the one working with Morana. That his wings had helped.

Patrols were decided upon by Malachi and Whit, but there was something about the previous day which kept bothering me .

"The burnt spot where we first spotted Enoch and Morana, what was burned?" I asked.

Nyx, who had come just for this meeting to give his perspective, chimed in, "It was a device to shoot the spears. A makeshift one. They anchored it to the ground and were able to send the spear that much farther and faster." Our eyes met as he added. "I made sure to destroy every inch of it."

My magic burned, ready to kill Enoch all over again.

"It could've been over," Zaire continued stewing. "We could have ended this yesterday."

"But then we would not know about this other shifter working with her. And Enoch has been dealt with," Zaccai said wisely. "A clear threat to anyone else who dares to work with her."

"So where does this leave us?" Amory asked. "We know she's running. We finally know it's her, and we know someone else is working with her."

Nana Mallick let out a sigh. "I have spoken to her father, in only a way that a mother can. He was lucid enough when I did, but he says he had no part in it."

"She has worked with us for years," Otis said. "What made her snap?"

"The mortality of her own father?" Malachi asked. "The tension of knowing that her family would always be next-to but never truly on the throne?"

Nana added, "Jealousy is a rather compelling beast. She has always imitated our Estalena. I naively thought it was out of adoration. But she allowed that beast to fester, until she became it."

I thought of Morana and Zaire having their moment; whether it was once or lasted a while, I didn't know. But I also knew if the disease would not have happened, there wouldn't have been such a ripe setting for Morana's deceptions to work. "The disease my father thrust upon the realm did not help matters."

Amory flashed me a quick smile. "About that. "

"My team will heal another batch of shifters today," I told her. The half which hadn't been actively healing shifters yesterday would take their turn today. "We are not worried about Morana. I'll of course go with them, and Malachi has been kind enough to send his unit to help again. If we stop healing Dra Skor, then Morana wins. We will not cower."

Amory's eyes went to Malachi's before landing back on mine. "It is not that, though thank you both for your efforts in keeping to the lottery."

She and Malachi looked at each other for two beats too long.

I pressed my lips together and gestured for her to continue.

"It's Corsha."

"Have you news?" I knew Amory wrote letters and spoke to the other countries on behalf of Dra Skor much like I had for my father for Wylan.

She shook her head. "No. And no one has. What the Agrian spy told us seems correct."

Where could an entire country of people have gone? They couldn't just vanish. And they couldn't have just all gone somewhere else. Unless they split up equally and went to the other countries? Even then, that was a lot of people to just show up and infiltrate another land.

"I think we need to consider a trip," she finished.

"To Corsha?" Zaire asked. "Are you mad?"

"Not at all," Amory responded, unbothered. "I think something is off about the whole thing. I know we have our hands full with Morana. But while most of us plant whispers about a bonding between Keir and Esta, we could send a few of us and sail there to at least check things out. And if we find Corsha in ruins, then we keep looking for them. If we find them still there, we tread carefully."

I didn't need to think long about it. "I'll go. "

She gave me a smile. "It is not your responsibility to fix all four countries, Keir."

"Of course it is," I snapped.

"Not anymore," Zaire argued. "You are soul bound to Esta. You will be king consort of Dra Skor." A pause settled over all of us while Zaire, of all people, pointed out the obvious. "I can understand why you feel the need to help Wylan heal the other countries, but you also have to know that you are needed here. Your greatest responsibility is here."

Malachi spoke up, "He can go to Corsha to see what's there, it doesn't mean he's going to stay there."

My eyes went to Malachi in thanks. I didn't know what to do with Zaire anymore. First, he was questioning my every move and trying to get rid of me, now he didn't want me to leave for even a trip?

"Do we really need to do this now though?" Zaire asked. "I think our focus needs to singularly be on Morana. We were so close yesterday. So damn close."

Amory said, "I think we have over forty shifters back to full health thanks to the Wylan team. We should be able to spare a quarter of that to head to Corsha."

"If Keir goes, Esta will want to go as well," Zaccai offered before turning to me. "I do not know how soul bound pairings work in Wylan, but here in Dra Skor, they are normally inseparable."

I knew Krew and Jorah didn't like to be separated either, but for me they had both done so. Now that I knew what this felt like, I loved them all the more for it. "I will speak with my queen about it. If it will cause her too much pain for me to leave, then I will not. It's as simple as that."

That seemed to appease everyone.

"I do think we need to wait a week or so before planning any trips," Amory admitted. "But those things take time. And of course, there will be another celebration ball for Nyx, Dex, Zaire, and Prince Keir."

"Because of Enoch?" I asked, a bit taken back.

She nodded. "It will also send a clear message to all of Dra Skor. We are united in taking Morana down."

I groaned.

Nana reached under the table to smack my foot with her cane. "It is my job to hate the parties, not yours."

I smirked. "It is not that I do not want Dra Skor to celebrate the healings happening. I just feel like having to end the life of one of our own doesn't seem like something to celebrate."

"We took out a threat," Zaire stated, eyes on mine. "That will always be celebrated here."

Was he actually trying to make me feel better?

Nana looked at me for a moment before adding, "You are not your father, Prince Keir. We are not celebrating a death nor are we becoming used to them. We are simply coming together to celebrate a victory."

How did she always see right through me to the heart of the issue? Or was she that acclimated to my father's way of things? I still remembered the game of five-card draw with Jorah which ended in a bloodied mess, a death. And by that point, that sort of thing was so normal, none of us really thought anything of it. I had slept soundly that night, too exhausted to dwell on it.

"Fine," I told Nana. "I will wear my suit and crown like a good little prince."

"Not so little," she smirked, then gestured to the Wylan crown upon my head. "And not that crown."

Amory sucked in a breath.

"It is time you wore one of ours, I think," Nana continued. "And I know just the one."

I cocked my head. "You could let me propose first, you know. "

Amory again gasped, this time laced with excitement. "You have a ring? Or do you need help? Because I volunte?—"

My glare was sharp enough she cut off. "I've had it for a while." I'd commissioned it from the royal jewelers when we formed the treaty, at the same time I had asked for her necklace set. I'd had it in my possession since we came back from our bonding. I'd been wise enough to hide it away before the bonding ceremony and then block out thinking about it entirely, that way Esta wouldn't sense anything going on.

I was stuck between wanting to propose tomorrow and waiting until things settled down. Esta had asked for more time, yet just yesterday had told this very room that we would be married.

"Take your time," Nana said, contradicting the very thing she had just said about crowns. "The two of you are soul bound. We all know it's inevitable."

"I don't think things are going to slow down anytime soon. We have a hunt for Morana underway. More healings. And Corsha to figure out."

"Love waits for nothing." Nana's cane hit the floor sharply as if the punctuation to her statement before she stood. "Now come along. Let's get your crown."

"Is Esta going to like this?" The weight of the crown was in my hands. Esta's grandfather's crown.

"Eventually," Nana said with a shrug. "This wasn't my Hanish's formal crown, just his casual one."

I looked at it, the black gems on the black frame. If this was the casual one, I didn't want to see the formal one. It looked heavy but was actually far lighter than I thought.

"She wouldn't use our bond until yesterday," I found myself admitting as I took in the crown, though I had no idea why .

"I know," she muttered. "Foolish girl."

"And she told me part of the reason why she didn't was because she remembered what his death did to you."

"I would feel that pain ten times over rather than have never found him." There were no catches or dips to her voice with her admission, only pure honesty. "Esta also knows that, she just forgot it. We will help her to remember it. This exact crown will help her remember it." She squinted at the crown. "Dra Skor crowns are traditionally black and gold, but in this case, I think we might even add a few blue gems."

For my Enchantment. My breath caught. I needed to leave soon for the healings, but for some reason, talking with Nana made everything less overwhelming. More doable.

"A soul bound couple on the throne of Dra Skor is a powerful thing." Nana patted my hand which still held the crown. "I will stay and help you find Morana. And we will all fix Dra Skor together."

"Will I ever be fully accepted here?" I asked her. "Or will I always be known as the prince of Dra Skor's enemies?"

"I think in the near future you will be known as the prince who saved Dra Skor, healed her people." She gestured toward my hands. "Gave us a different sort of power." A pause. "Maybe even gave us a few heirs too?"

I couldn't help the smile that surely played on my lips. "I'll do my best."

She thunked her cane down. "Just don't allow your children to destroy each other over the throne like mine have managed." She looked toward the window. "It is partially my fault. We were busy. Always just too busy."

"Esta holds nothing but love and respect for you, Isolde. They know you did the best you could."

"Yet I'm still referred to as Nana Ice behind my back?" A smirk. "I do like hearing my actual name though. "

I laughed. Of course she knew what they called her. "It's the rather formidable cane. I see a woman who cares for them all deeply."

"Well don't tell them that," she barked. "I have a reputation to uphold. Now go on. I am sure your men are readying to leave."

"Will you allow me to heal you?" I asked. Esta had told me the hue to her scales was turquoise. I couldn't deny that I wanted to see it.

She was quiet a moment. "When all the children are healed, I'll consider it," she finally said. "Now go. My cane is feeling awfully twitchy."

I arrived back with the team from our healings late that night to find Esta sitting on my bed in her robe with her grandfather's crown in her hands. I'd left it on my nightstand before we left.

"Es?" I asked.

She looked up, tears in her eyes. "I—" she swallowed hard, "I never wanted this."

"If you don't like the crown, I won't wear it," I told her as I took off my hooded jacket. "I can wear my other one. Or send for a different one from Wylan."

"No. It's not the crown." She paused as if she did not trust her voice. Down the bond, she added, After seeing Nana destroyed when my grandfather passed, I told myself as a future ruler, I would never have that. Never become soul bound. I promised myself to never have that weakness. I wanted to be bonded to you, yes, but I preferred a heart bond over a soul bond because I witnessed what the breaking of a soul bond looked like.

I fought the urge to go to her and stilled, leaning against the door, giving her the space to speak .

I think that was part of the reason I stayed with Zaire longer than I should have. I cared for him, but I also knew we would not be soul bound. It was... comfortable. Another pause. And then you came to Dra Skor, refusing to take no for an answer. Refusing to do anything but help us, help me. And I found an ally in the most unusual of places. I found the heartbeat which matched my own. I found you.

I sent out a lone slow tendril of my power to warm her. I thought we already established that you have an affinity for pretty things and also that I am not going anywhere.

She snorted a laugh. We have. My annoying moon kept following me until he became the one thing to me I always feared to have. A person I love so much that they are woven into my very soul.

I'd follow you to the ends of the realm, Es.

I know. And I'm sorry again for yesterday, Keir. Had I listened to you, we might already have Morana.

I didn't bother to say anything to that. We'd both know when I was lying. I wasn't going to say that we'd have Morana, but yesterday would have gone much better had she listened to me. An "I told you so" also felt unnecessary.

I know Nana gave you this crown more for me than for you. To remind me of exactly how powerful they were. She placed the crown back into its box and began walking toward me slowly. I don't know how to flush Morana out. I don't know what the next step is. I don't even know what I am doing in the morning. But I know I'm going to do it all with you if you can find it in your heart to forgive me.

I reached for her hand and tugged her closer. No more punishing yourself?

No more punishing. I am stronger with you than without.

I gently brushed my hand up to her cheek and leaned in until our lips almost touched. Do you really believe for even half a moment Morana stands a chance against the two of us together? Against this ?

Our mouths moved at exactly the same time. I was a starved and dying man, not for food or water or air, but for her , more than glad to let her invade and take over my senses. One little gasp from her was my total undoing. With no warning, I moved us, lifting her and pressing her into the wall. I didn't know if it was possible to kiss Esta's fears away, but I would give my very last breath to the cause.