25. Chapter Twenty-Six

Amara stirred in bed the next morning but didn't wake. She'd slept rather well considering the day we'd had, and her memory hitting her like a bag of rocks.

I'd spent the entire night scared she'd have a nightmare or sprout some new ability. Leaving her to sleep, I walked into the den of the cabin and found a map of the kingdom tucked away in a desk drawer.

Spreading it out, I looked at all of the places nearby with forest. There were plenty of forests, but not ones with big trees like those that she spoke about, and none close enough to be considered nearby.

I started a pot of coffee and nibbled on my bottom lip. Where had she lived before living in the kingdom, and better yet, why didn't she know about it?

Had the pills kept her from remembering? Was that why her stepmother was adamant about her taking them?

I'd been surprised more than not since the beginning of our relationship. Pouring myself a cup of coffee, I drank it outside on the balcony where Toby stood guard.

"Do you know of any forests that have giant trees in them?"

Toby tossed me an are you kidding look. "Most forests have giant trees, Dorran."

"No, like something out of a fairytale."

"Are you okay?" he asked.

"I'm not sure. I need you to watch over Amara because I need to do some digging on Amara's birth."

Toby chuckled.

I lifted a brow and stared at him. "What's so funny?" I asked.

"You," Toby chuckled. "I never thought I'd see you so wrapped around a woman's finger."

"She's my mate. What am I supposed to do? Let her deal with this alone?"

Toby put his palms out in surrender. "My grandmother lives in The South Kingdom, and she talked about a forest her mother took her to when she was a child, but I can't remember the name. I'm not sure I would trust what she says though, because she's human, and has early onset dementia."

The South Kingdom was ostracized from the other kingdoms. They wanted nothing to do with any of us for over a decade. I wasn't sure the dynamics of why, but none of us had been there in ages. "I'm going to grab my things. Come on inside and keep an eye on her for me."

Toby followed me inside, while I slipped into my room and dressed. Amara hadn't moved from her spot.

Toby rummaged through the cabinets when I walked toward the front door. "I'll be back. If she wakes before I get back tell her I'll bring back breakfast."

Toby saluted me while pulling down a box of cookies. I left the cabin in a rush, sliding to a halt when I heard the sound of dragon wings in the sky. For a brief moment, I thought it was my mother.

Then Zerk's shadow loomed over and landed harshly in front of me. It hadn't been 24 hours just yet, but by the look on his face, I guessed he had figured something out.

"Where is she?" he asked, glancing around the mountain.

"Sleeping—,"

He tried to step around me, but I blocked him with my arm. "What's going on? What did you find out?"

Zerk huffed in annoyance and folded his arm. "You forgot your cane today," I pointed out.

"I think I forgot my sanity today, too, son. The results are inconclusive."

"Inconclusive. What does that mean?"

Zerk sighed. "I don't know. It's never happened before. Her blood made my bowl explode."

I lifted a brow. "Explode?"

"Explode," he said slowly.

Looking over my shoulder, I imagined her pretty face, and I couldn't understand how anything inside of her would be that vicious. "I'm assuming that has never happened before either?"

"Never in all my years. I think tracking her heritage is your best bet."

"That is what I'm on my way to do now—,"

A loud crash came from inside the cabin and it shot fear down my spine. Turning, I barreled through the door, finding Toby sitting on the floor against the dining table, a decorative vase shattered around him, and Amara standing in the corner of the living room.

"Dorran, I say this with all due respect, but you need to get a handle on your little mate. She just flung me across the room—," he stood up, his voice growing louder.

"Hey," I said, my voice slicing through his. "Out. Now."

Toby stormed out of the house, leaving Amara a shivering mess in the corner. Zerk shut the door behind Toby, and I walked over, bracing my palms on her shoulders. "Are you okay?"

Tears coated her cheeks, and my dragon mourned at the sight of her tears. "Little Mouse," I whispered, bringing her to my chest. "What happened?"

She wiped her eyes. "I got up, and Toby scared me—I don't know what happened, I screamed, my arms went outright, and the next thing I knew he was on the floor."

She buried her face into my chest, and I glanced back at Zerk. His brows were up.

"It's okay. Toby just needs to cool off," I mumbled. "Why don't you go get dressed? Or take a shower. Whatever you want to do to calm down. We're going to run downtown to the courthouse and see if we can find some records. Why don't you invite Sasha to dinner tonight?"

She pulled back and glanced around me at Zerk. "It hasn't been 24 hours yet," she said softly. "So, I'm assuming that my results weren't good?"

Zerk's demeanor changed when he saw Amara. He didn't seem as pissed about his bowl. "They were inconclusive, Amara. That doesn't mean we can't pinpoint your heritage. I'll help in any way that I can."

Amara nodded. "Thank you."

She walked down the hallway toward the shower, and I waited until it turned on to speak. "She's been having memories of things from her past. It's as if she never realized she lived anywhere other than the kingdom. We're waiting on the results of the pills she took. Could they have repressed her memories?"

"Of course," he said.

Something slithered down my spine at the confirmation. I didn't like it. The one person I knew in her life who screamed evil was her stepmother.

When Amara finished her shower, we left the mountain to go to the courthouse. "Can we grab some breakfast first?" she asked. "Not that I'm not curious about my birthplace, but I can't focus without food."

We stopped at the food vendors on Main Street, and Amara grabbed a blueberry muffin. She seemed distant, noticing everyone staring and growing uncomfortable.

I gave a few of them a look until they turned the other way. I wasn't in the mood for nosey neighbors or anyone judging her. "Dorran," Amara whispered, touching my forearm.

"Coming."

We walked into the main office, and the lady behind the desk perked up. "Mr. Dragon Prince. It's so nice to see you. How can we help you today?"

"My mate needs to obtain her birth certificate. Can you help her?"

"Absolutely," she said, pulling out a few forms. "I need a picture ID, and you to sign this for me."

Amara pulled her driver's license out of her purse and signed the form. "I'll be right back," she said.

The lady came back several minutes later and slid the birth certificate across the table. "Here we go," she said.

Amara glanced down at the piece of paper and stalled. "I think there has been a mistake. This isn't my last name."

She checked the name and clicked on her computer. "Ah, your name was changed when you were five to Tremaine. Before that, you were Aelius."

Amara became very still. "Where was I born?"

The lady glanced at the birth certificate and stared at the space where the location should be. "Well, maybe there is a mistake, or you were born at home with a midwife. I'm not sure." She glanced up. "Can't you ask your mother?"

Amara ran her finger over her mother's signature on the birth certificate. "No, I can't. Thank you for this."

She grabbed the paper and walked past me, rushing out of the door. I sensed her distress, following it toward the alley between the buildings. She stopped and bent over. She braced her hands on her knees.

"Amara," I whispered, sliding my palm up her back. "Are you okay?"

When she stood up frustration lined her features. "I'm so confused. I don't even know who I am."

Palming her neck, I angled her face upward. "You're Amara," I whispered. "The most beautiful girl in our kingdom. The sweetest and my mate."

She closed her eyes and smiled. "What if my dad isn't my dad? Or my mom ... I have no idea who I belong to?"

I slid my thumb down the center of her bottom lip. "You belong to me," I said in a harsh whisper. "Always. We'll figure out who your parents are, but it won't change that you're mine."

"Promise?"

Leaning forward, I kissed her forehead. "I swear."

"Where do we go from here?"

"We are going to go home and spend the entire day together, have dinner with Sasha, and then I'm going to send someone into your stepmother's house to find an answer or a clue. In the meantime, we're going to keep you calm so that you don't burn any part of me with your badass powers."

The corner of her mouth lifted. "Yeah, sending Toby across the room was way better than floating. Maybe even better than shooting fire."

"Don't push it."