30. Lira

30

LIRA

E very cell in my body sizzled.

We were still twenty-five yards from Tìr na Dràgon. Tavish was struggling for control, and I started sweating.

I was thankful that my emotions didn't alarm him more because if he knew why I felt uneasy, he would've already grabbed me and whisked me away.

The burnt-orange dragon roared once more, causing four more in their person forms at the edge of the village closest to us to turn in our direction. Luckily, the dragon guards didn't seem extremely alarmed, probably because they saw only the five of us approaching.

Shouts from the castle could be heard as the dragon circled behind us, the stench of brimstone filling my nose as another gust of smoke billowed from the top of the volcano.

A shiver ran down my spine as my chest seized. Mom and Dad glanced at me, and I could sense their concern. I needed to calm down, or I would do something foolish and wind up getting Eiric harmed. I had made the decision to do this, and I had to deal with the consequences.

The double doors to the front of the castle opened, and two men armed with swords came out, followed by a man and woman I'd never seen before. There was no doubt who they were since they both wore a crown. The dragon king and queen.

Pyralis strolled out right behind his parents.

The royals stood at the bottom of the stairs, and King Ignathor lifted a hand, beckoning us toward them.

Sprite, if he so much as touches you, I will slit his throat in front of everyone, Tavish connected, his rage so hot that it blazed uncomfortably through our bond.

All I need is for Eiric to be free, then I won't even try to stop you. I understood how hard this situation was for him, but it would all be in vain if we weren't able to free Eiric. And there was no way in hell I'd leave here without her in tow.

Mom and Dad waited for me to make the first move, so I inhaled deeply and flew toward the royals. As I passed over the land, a dry heat hit my face, no doubt from dragon magic.

Mother and Father remained about ten feet behind us, and the whooshing of the dragon's wings informed me it was flying directly behind us.

Though we passed by many trees, we were flying so high that the villagers could keep their gazes on us. I tried to ignore the way my skin crawled.

With every flap of my wings, the strain from Tavish increased.

Do you know how blasting hard this is for me? he linked.

I'm sorry. I didn't care if this meant I owed him because this whole situation wasn't fair. Eiric should've never been taken in the first place. But the fact that you understand why I have to do this means more to me than you'll ever know.

Be glad you're already far away, or I'd be carrying you away right now, no matter that you'd wind up resenting me.

I flew closer to the ground, the breeze picking up. Maybe Fate was trying to issue me another warning. King Ignathor's shoulder-length, mocha-brown hair, the same color as that of Pyralis, blew into his face, and he pushed it behind his ears. Queen Sintara stood next to him, tendrils of her almost-white hair falling from her braid. She wore a white dress trimmed with golden lace and a jade gemstone pendant.

As I landed before them, King Ignathor arched a brow and gestured for Pyralis to stand on his other side. His beady brown eyes homed in on me. "Princess Lira, you've grown far more enchanting than we could have hoped for. This bodes well for your and my son's future children."

Bile inched up my throat, but I remained silent, not trusting myself to speak.

Lira, please open our bond. I want to see if I can hear what's going on because all I want to do is fly next to you and protect you.

I didn't want to consider how I'd feel right now if I were in his wings. Doing what he asked, I tugged at our connection. Rage blasted into me, but underneath the heat, cold tendrils of fear nearly froze me in place. He was an even mixture of emotions that compounded each other, increasing in strength.

Knowing I had to keep it together, I absorbed them and pushed away the extreme sensations, focusing on my task.

Father cleared his throat. "I want to be clear that I don't appreciate what you've done. Your attempt to kidnap our daughter was not part of our agreement. She's not yet twenty-five, the age upon which we decided she would come to this land."

I glanced at Pyralis, prepared for him to rant about why I had to come here. But I didn't see the arrogant man who'd been at Gleann Solas. Instead, he kept his amber eyes on the yellowing grass at his feet.

"And Pyralis wouldn't have been forced to take such extreme actions if you hadn't allowed the nightfiend to locate her on Earth and bring her back here." The king straightened and smoothed down his jade shirt with golden lace accents that matched his wife's dress. "Not only did you fail to inform us of her return, but you initiated an offensive to retrieve her without informing us that she was in danger."

Queen Sintara clasped her hands in front of her stomach. Tilting her head, she scanned me. "And she completed a fated-mate bond with someone else and didn't even attempt to hide it."

Between Tavish's rage and now my own, I couldn't stop the words from leaping from my mouth. "Because hiding the fated-mate markings would have made it all better?"

I'm not sure which one I'm willing to keep alive, Tavish's voice popped into my mind. I think I hate the king and queen equally.

At least, this confirmed that he could hear the conversation…. A neat little trick we might need to use again.

The queen's jade eyes widened. "Pyralis mentioned that you spoke your mind, but I'd hoped being around the Unseelie had inspired that unflattering attribute. Such disrespect won't be tolerated here."

And there's my answer. The queen it is, so you can visit her in the dungeon and disrespect her every day for the rest of her existence.

I gritted my teeth, wanting to tell her exactly what she could expect, but I had to blasting play nice until Eiric was safe. Swallowing my bitterness, I inhaled, trying to keep my voice level. "Understood. But as requested, I'm here to trade places with my—" I cut off my words, not wanting to say sister . If they realized she was family to me, there was no telling what they might do with that information. "Guard."

Queen Sintara smirked while King Ignathor steepled his fingers.

"Very well, but first, there is something we want to discuss since King Erdan and Queen Sylphia decided to join you today." Faint ruby scales spread across King Ignathor's face as if he might shift. "Why did you allow the Unseelie back in their land? Not only are they free once again, but that nightfiend killed one of our family members. Why weren't we consulted?"

Mom and Dad placed their hands on the hilts of their swords as Father moved next to me, standing tall.

"Why would I consult you when no one informed me that Pyralis planned to kidnap my daughter?" Father clenched his hands and spread his earth-brown wings behind him. "We went to the former Tìr na Dràgon to retrieve my daughter, only to find the entire kingdom in chaos. The Unseelie were fighting among themselves, and my daughter was distraught because her guard sacrificed herself to keep her from being taken. As far as the Unseelie king killing one of your family members, be thankful it was just the one. They came onto fae land uninvited and demanded my daughter go with them."

Smoke wafted from the king's nose. "If you'd allowed Pyralis to bring the princess with him as he requested, then none of this would've happened, including the spilling of dragon blood. So you see, the problems arose from you and your decisions."

Queen Sintara nodded, placing her hand on the king's arm, and added, "You sent her to Earth to protect her, yet the nightfiend found her. Now you've allowed him to not only form a connection with the princess but to reinhabit land where he can become strong once more. Have you already forgotten what happened twelve years ago?"

Mother laughed bitterly. "Believe me, we have not. But we're doing the best that we can with the information we've been given."

Even though I couldn't see Mother's face, I had no doubt she was wrinkling her nose in contempt. We needed to stop talking because nothing good could result from this. "This conversation isn't helping matters, just rehashing information both sides already know. I'm here as requested. I'd rather make the exchange and resolve some of the conflict between us."

Pyralis straightened, reminding me of the arrogant prince I'd seen in Gleann Solas. He lowered his head. "I agree with Princess Lira. This conversation is futile."

"Well." Queen Sintara placed a hand on her chest and smiled. "That just melts my heart. The two of them are already making progress in their relationship."

I wanted to puke. In fact, my stomach gurgled at the words while Tavish's rage swept through me.

Mom glanced at me, scowling. I didn't need a connection with her to know she was torn at this moment. She wanted Eiric back, but not at the risk of me.

Lira, I— Tavish sounded broken even in my mind.

It's almost over, and then we can put this whole night behind us. I felt helpless, but there wasn't any way to comfort him.

The dragon king lifted a hand and looked over my head at the dragon that had herded us in. "Get the prisoner and bring her here."

Wings flapped behind us, and a dragon banked to the left side of the castle.

That's the direction Pyralis went last night, Tavish informed me. He took food to someone.

My mouth dried. I hoped he'd taken care of Eiric. There was no telling what state she'd be in. I wanted to ask if she was well, but the dragons already knew she meant something to me. I didn't need to reveal how much.

"I hate that things have gotten so hostile between our species of late." King Ignathor pressed his lips together, though the concern didn't reach his eyes. "I'm hoping we can move beyond that, especially since your daughter will now be living with us."

I tensed, realizing that his dead expression reminded me of Eldrin.

Father smiled, sincerity thick in his warm voice. "Oh, I'm quite certain we will move on from this."

They were goading each other, and my stomach knotted even more. I wanted this entire night to be over.

The sound of returning wings had me glancing up to see Eiric on the back of the dragon. Her long, curly hair looked frizzy, like she hadn't bathed since Gleann Solas and her bronze skin was coated in thick patches of ash that could be seen from here. When her huge emerald eyes locked on me, they widened, and she shook her head.

My heart leapt in my chest. She might be dirty, but she didn't appear to be injured. Still, it was clear that she hadn't expected to see me here.

Mom and Dad sighed softly, no doubt taking note of the same thing I had.

I see her, I linked, needing Tavish to be ready and to know that the end was truly in sight for this horrid situation.

Within seconds, the dragon landed and lay on the ground. Pyralis hurried over and helped Eiric off its back. She turned her attention to him, and I noticed that his face twisted in what could only be perceived as agony.

What was going on?

Once Eiric was settled on her feet, he removed a key from his pocket and unlocked the chains on her wrists and wings.

The same chains we used in Aetherglen.

He held her wrists tight as his gaze bored into me.

"There's another decision that my husband and I made moments before you five arrived." Queen Sintara stepped forward, regarding her son. "Something that we haven't gotten a chance to tell Pyralis, though he'll be thrilled to know what we've decided."

Pyralis's forehead wrinkled, and his jaw clenched.

His concern had my mouth drying.

"And what might that be?" Father said through gritted teeth.

"We understand that our agreement was for the two of them to wed when she turns twenty-five, but we hadn't settled on when they could have children." The queen laid her head on the king's shoulder and said, "Once the exchange is made and all of this is settled, Pyralis and the princess will consummate their relationship and produce heirs as soon as possible."

I burst out laughing. "That's absurd. We don't even know each other, and you expect me to just—"

Do not finish that sentence, or I won't be able to control myself any longer. Make the exchange so I can kill the ashbreath now.

"Lira," Father said sternly, placing his hand on my arm. "There's no reason to argue over this."

My head snapped toward him, but then I understood the look in his eyes. None of this mattered. I wouldn't be staying. Fighting them would only make the situation more volatile and drag this out longer.

"Yes, My King." I lowered my head, though it was the last thing I wanted to do. I wanted to hold my middle fingers high, but they wouldn't understand what the gesture meant.

"Ah, firebreath," King Ignathor cooed, kissing his wife on the forehead. "She does understand respect. That will make training her easier."

His condescending attitude had my own ire boiling. I want to stab the king before you kill him.

Then you shall get your wish, sprite. But Pyralis is mine.

Fine with me. I lifted my chin and spoke out loud. "Are we ready to make the exchange?"

"Of course. We're thrilled you decided to come tonight instead of pushing the deadline." King Ignathor pointed at Mom and said, "Hand the prisoner over to this woman."

Pyralis didn't move for a moment, but when his parents turned in his direction, he tugged Eiric along.

My heart raced, knowing that the battle could begin at any moment. There was only one technicality. I would be forced to hand myself over as agreed.

When Pyralis and Eiric reached us, Mom grabbed Eiric's wrist at the same time that Pyralis snagged mine. He then tugged me to his side.

The exchange was complete.

"Was that so hard?" King Ignathor placed a hand on my shoulder, the heat of his magic nearly burning me.

"Yes, it was." I made myself stand still, though I wanted to recoil. "But I won't be staying."

Mom yanked Eiric behind her, spreading her wings, as Tavish's magic slowed and dropped away. The five hundred fae soared toward us, bearing arms.

King Ignathor tossed his head back and laughed. "That's where you're wrong."

Fire shot through the sky from the village to our left, heading directly at my mate.