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“Or if they leak audio and footage of Coven meetings. Something that should be impossible.“

Axel’s sharp gaze was on their two dragon escorts, reading every reaction to her words. Rowan recognized her sister’s not-so-subtle method of digging for information for what it was; Axel wanted to know how they’d done it.

“It’s helped not only with the anger towards us but also in digging up some leads of Barros.” Stone shrugged, unabashed.

Rowan felt a flush of frustration course through her. “The arm didn’t help?”

“No. He seems to be behind a protective barrier, and even with our work around in trying to track the magic signature before he disappeared behind it, we can’t lock on. Still, it was an excellent cut. Your father’s prestige on the battlefield translates into your combat skill, Princess.” Terra’s eyes roved the grounds as they got deeper and deeper into the Estate, her guard up.

Rowan wondered how much of that uneasiness was because outsiders were stepping into the more private side of the estate, and how much of it resulted because of the magic running amok on the grounds of Draconis.

There were several houses, many more than Rowan had ever imagined. They were mostly white stone work with terracotta roofs, each personalized in only a way that made sense to dragons.

Precious gems glittered from accent points along the clay trims. Gold and gem doors were a popular choice.

Dragons loved their treasures and nothing could point this out more than the sometimes gaudy collections that occurred in the bigger houses.

Rowan observed with a tad bit of jealousy as Terra wrangled the magic back into proper order. As they passed overgrown vines and small fires other dragons were failing to deal with, Terra’s precise use of earth magic was as graceful as the woman.

Terra woman was powerful. As one of Alessandro’s generals, it was a given. But there was an underlying aspect of leadership that she had. Stone, the true heir, lacked it.

Could it be that she was older and therefore more experienced than Stone? Or was it that Rowan had known him in his youth and had once helped hold him up for a keg stand?

“What are the chances you killed him during your fight? You always leave your opponents worse than what you look like, and you look terrible.” Axel didn’t pull her punches, emotional or physical.

Rowan threw out an elbow to her side that Axel easily dodged. “Unless we see a body, I’m not making any assumptions. But I think he was a Cursed.”

“Cursed? Like Elaine?” Stone asked.

Rowan felt the bottom of her stomach drop. What had Alessandro revealed? Did his dragons know of her involvement? Had she trusted someone she shouldn’t have with her secret?

But Stone’s question wasn’t for her. It was for Terra, who looked conflicted by whatever crossed her mind. Alessandro had said she was like his sister. Did she know?

“I didn’t ask about specifics, but he said the curse had completely overtaken Elaine, half transformed into her beast form. How did Barros seem?”

Rowan chose her words carefully. “He was lucid. I could feel his emotions range.” Yet, her sword, which could only bring harm to the Cursed, had chopped his arm off.

She’d summoned it purely based on the fact he’d had the stench of rotting meat, the stench that followed any of the other Cursed that came to her. If she was incorrect, she wouldn’t have that arm. Yet, she couldn’t just say this is how she knew. She didn’t just go around spilling the secret her godfather had always pressed was imperative she kept.

That Alessandro had caught her in action as a Blessed was the only reason she ever let him know—then again, she’d never made the right call with that man.

“Then what makes you think he’s a Cursed?” Terra asked softly.

“He smelled…rotten, and when he gave into the violence, I could almost swear darkness shrouded him.”

“If he’s a Cursed, we can tweak the tracking spell with the new information. Maybe he won’t need to be connected to magic for us to find him.” Terra’s hazel eyes shone with new ideas.

“What exactly is the plan when you locate him?” Rowan asked as they turned the corner and caught sight of their goal.

Her cabin looked humble next to the massive manor that was Alessandro’s home. Three times the size of the other houses, Alessandro’s had a white stone floating fountain in the front, four detailed dragons spewing all four elements from their mouths to fall into four separate basins as they spun in a lazy circle. The exterior of the home used the same white stone, which contrasted with the dark shingles of the roof and up to the giant tower she’d seen as far as three blocks away from the steps of the medical ward.

Even though her cabin should’ve looked awkward next to the disparate architecture, Rowan couldn’t help but admire the sight.

Somehow it fit.

“We want to call Judgment.” Terra’s answer made sense.

As the species of both magical and non magical descent built their new world of near inseparability, it quickly became apparent that cultures and sense of justice differed from species to species. Spells like phasing created a jurisdiction issue solved only by Judgement.