Page 154 of A Court of Wings and Shadows

“But I am a rider,” I said, voice tight. “And I know the truth now.”

She bent to lift a splintered beam. “Will you answer my question… if I answer yours?”

I paused. Then I used the formal phrasing we’d been taught as Order interns, the words we only used when striking a serious deal. “I agree to an exchange.”

Her lip twitched. “Agreed.”

She looked me straight in the eye. “Remy told Cyran the truth when he joined us. His parents were murdered by an Order assassin, and he wanted the killer. Cyran told him the hit had been arranged anonymously. But… if Remy could kill his parents’ assassin in fair combat, he could have his job.”

I felt the wind go out of me. “And of course, Remy killed him.”

Solei nodded. “But he killed himhard.Even Cyran had to look away, from what I’m told.”

I huffed. “He’s ruthless. I know better than anyone.”

Solei flinched at that.

“I believed he loved you,” she admitted quietly. “I never saw him returning to the court.”

“Did you know he was a dragon rider?”

She nodded slowly. “Yes.”

“Then he never had a choice.”

“A dragon could make him do that?” she asked, brows furrowing.

“Yes,” I said. “And to answer your question—Katama attacked the tavern because Remy got cut. He feared for his rider’s life. That’s all. The attack wasn’t political.”

Solei was quiet for a long beat. “We were led to believe dragons were like… well-trained dogs. Loyal to their bloodline and obedient to command.”

I let out a bitter laugh. “Dragons don’t obey. They choose. And when they do, they protect what’s theirs, even if that means burning down a tavern.”

We stood together in the wreckage, two women shaped by the same blade, each carrying our own scars from the Order. But right now, we weren’t on opposite sides.

At least… not yet.

Kaelith’s voice slipped into my mind like a blade wrapped in silk, sharp, smooth, and impossible to ignore.

Did your sister refer to dragons as dogs?

I winced internally.She has no concept of the connection between a rider and their dragon. Obviously, Remy didn’t enlighten them.

Kaelith growled, a sound that rumbled not in my ears but in the bones of my soul.

He is a traitor, but not to his dragon. Tell your sister this—if she makes such a reference again, I will snatch her from this village, fly her to the nearest volcano, and drop her from a height so great she’ll believe the wind will save her. But the heat will boil her blood before she reaches the lava. Her skin will peel like wet parchment. Her eyes will explode from their sockets.

Kaelith—

And then the fire will consume whatever is left.

I choked, almost audibly, my breath catching on the soot-thickened air.

Solei glanced at me warily. “What?”

I swallowed and forced the words from my lips with a dry tongue. “Kaelith wanted me to pass along a warning. About comparing dragons to dogs.”

Solei raised a brow, trying to stay unfazed.