Chapter Thirty-Five

Rhyse

I watched from the window of Darius' shop, staring at the seas until long after the dot that was Emma's ship had faded off the horizon.

Letting her go sucked . It was a horrible feeling.

"It's for the best, right?" I asked the old shopkeeper, desperate for any source of confirmation I'd made the correct decision.

"You won't tell me what's going on," Darius said from where he puttered around at a table, rearranging his trinkets. "You came in here an hour ago and stood at the window, watching the docks. Is being a creepy watcher for the best?"

Darius was feigning ignorance, but he was no fool.

"It's for the best," I said quietly, willing myself away from the window.

"The best for whom?" Darius echoed.

The best for Emma. This keeps her safe. Out of harm's way. I was damn lucky nothing happened to her while I was gone.

In my haste to get back to her after Calan had informed me Killian was paying my house a visit, I hadn't connected the dots of logic far enough. Things were happening too fast. It was only after giving Emma some space I realized things were not calming down.

They were about to ramp the fuck up. When Calan got back and told Killian I was onto them, that I knew they were the ones sinking the human ships, there would be no other option but for Killian to silence me.

And the easiest way to do that would be to get a hold of Emma.

That was why I'd sent her away. To put her out of his reach.

My dragon was sad and lonely. The plaintive honks echoing in the corner of my mind were more than enough to indicate that. The only thing that made it happy was when Emma and I had been together.

That was in the past, though, and I needed to move on. My focus now had to be stopping Killian from hurting anyone else. Including myself. I'd sent word to the palace to let them know, but that would be slow. Until then, I would be on my own.

"Darius," I said, clapping the shopkeeper on the shoulder. "Thank you for your time. I'll be back soon, I'm sure."

The older dragon smiled up at me. "Of course, you will, Rhyse. Why wouldn't you be?"

I laughed then left the shop and took a slow, meandering route through the marketplace and the buildings beyond, trying to come up with a plan on how to draw Killian out and get him to confess where others could hear.

This needed to come to an end before he exposed our home to the humans.

My wanderings took me out of town and along the beach. I skirted the fire pits, filled with half-burned logs but empty of the vibrancy they'd bring come nightfall. I lingered near one for some time, sitting on a log nearby and staring into the pit of ashes and blackened logs.

How was I going to do this? Going at it alone just didn't make any sense. I was outnumbered three to one. While I would take myself over any of the three in a one-on-one fight, numbers told a story all their own.

I needed some help.

"Rhyse?"

Looking up, I blinked in surprise. "Dillon? What are you doing here?"

Dillon smiled, the motion pulling back the tanned, weather-beaten skin of his face. Just another dragon who spent most of his time in the outdoors. Unlike most dragons, however, Dillon always kept his thick black hair short, less than a finger's length, whereas mine fell to my shoulders.

"Just out and about," he said with a wave of his hand. "A beautiful day, isn't it?"

"It is," I agreed, nodding at Isaac, who'd also made his way down to the beach but kept walking on past, heading up the shore away from town. "Lovely morning after all that rain last night."

"So, then, why are you sitting way out here, hunched over a dead fire, looking like the surf just stole your prized possession?"

I looked at Dillon sharply. Could he know about what Killian and the others had done to my house?

"Hey, don't get angry at the messenger." Dillon tossed his hands up, proclaiming his innocence.

"I'm not," I said, shaking my head. "I just hadn't realized it was so obvious. I just needed to clear my head."

"Clear your head?" he stroked his chin while repeating my words. "That sounds … are you telling me this is all over that girl?" He laughed.

I glared, but that just made him laugh even harder.

"Emma," I said. "Her name is Emma. And no, it's not all over that."

I had Killian and his activities on my mind as well, so I was technically telling the truth, even if most of my thoughts continued to dwell on Emma.

They shouldn't. She's safe now. Away from me. Away from here. I need to stop thinking about her.

"Of course, Rhyse. Whatever you say. Emma. I wasn't trying to be insulting. Damn, man, I've never seen you get this bent out of shape over something, let alone someone. You need to be careful."

"Careful?"

"Yeah, cause if you keep going down this path, you're going to end up falling in love with that human woman—Sorry, with Emma."

I rocked backward as the words landed like lightning bolts, rocking me to my core. Behind Dillon, Sven appeared at last, trudging up the beach, carrying some heavy bags on his shoulder.

But I barely noticed.

"Holy shit," I muttered to nobody but myself as I shot to my feet, startling Dillon, sending him back a step in surprise. "Holy shit. How could I have not seen it?"

"Seen what?" Dillon asked suspiciously, glancing over his shoulder.

"It was right in front of my face," I muttered, shaking my head. "Clear as fucking daylight, but I was too stubborn to see it."

"What are you saying you see, Rhyse?" Dillon asked, taking another half-step back.

Sven came up to stand nearby, dropping the bags he was carrying.

"Emma," I said, shaking my head. "I was so busy trying to deny it, to say it wasn't possible, but then I went and did it anyway. Don't you see, Dillon? You're right."

"I am?" He blinked, relaxing. "About what?"

" I'm in love with her ," I said in awe over just saying the words. They didn't feel real. After all, I wasn't the type to fall in love.

Which is probably exactly how it happened. She snuck up behind you and hit you over the head with a metaphorical frying pan.

"Thank you," I said, clapping Dillon on the shoulder as I dashed down the beach toward the breakers.

"Where the hell do you think you're going?" Dillon called.

"To tell a girl I love her!" I hollered over my shoulder.