Page 63 of A Kingdom of Fire and Fury (House of Embers #1)

Mael hummed. “She’s doing her duty perfectly at the dragonsguard. I’m aware of her service and her sacrifice. If the world were different, she would be my heir. But it isn’t, so Aelius is.”

Anger popped under my skin. “There have been plenty of female lords.”

He arched a brow. “But are there right now? Since the civil war and Lady Markos’ unfortunate betrayal, there haven’t been.”

Just another thing I needed to ask Gareth. Surely that couldn’t be right. “Whatever you need to say to Nimue, you can tell me. I’ll pass on your complaints to the king, if you have any.”

“My daughter is capable of relaying my concerns to the king, far more than someone who has just stumbled into politics.”

I raised my chin. “She doesn’t want to talk to you, because you’re an ass. Consider it a consequence of your attitude and beliefs.” I flashed a smile. “You get to deal with me.”

Mael exhaled. “This stubbornness—”

“Stop with the lecture. You’re all here to complain, aren’t you? Well start talking before I move onto House Benson.”

“The last gryphon sighting was just two hours by horseback from my castle. It is far too close for comfort.” His shrewd gaze pinned me in place.

“I hope the king wasn’t exaggerating, and your ability can help lower these attacks.

While we don’t have as many attacks as House Caddel, the incidents have been increasing.

Not only do the attacks cause fear, but they’ve interrupted our trade.

Our last food shipment went rotten as our merchants were killed in one of the attacks. ”

My mouth dried. “What do you want us to do? ”

“Patrols need to be more frequent. Too often the dragonsguard is reactive instead of proactive.”

It wasn’t too bad of a request, all things considered.

“All right. I’ll let the king know.” I wouldn’t mind doing this.

The realization surprised me. While the gryphons terrified me to my core, this wasn’t just lining some rich lord’s pockets.

Yes, he benefited, but it was the common people who suffered the most if this problem went unchecked.

Mael nodded. “You should consider visiting. There are still whispers of your treason. Many of the upper echelon are unhappy. Seeing you in person would alleviate their fears.”

I clenched my jaw. And I was wrong. He’s just like Luther. He doesn’t want the commoners to get any ideas. I was sure he only wanted me to visit so he could control the narrative.

“I need to talk with Selena.” Nimue appeared out of nowhere and grabbed my arm to pull me back.

“I would like to have a word with you.” Now that Nimue was here, Mael went back to ignoring my existence. I fought a scowl. It was hard to believe these two were related.

“And I said she’s not going to talk to you.

Not until you apologize for screwing her over.

Come on, Nimue.” I grabbed her hand and tugged her through the crowd, ignoring Mael’s offended retort.

Nimue’s surprised laugh brought a smile to my lips.

“So I’m not in trouble?” I asked when we were toward the edge of the dancers.

Nimue grinned and motioned for me to dance with her, joining both our hands. “No. I’ve wanted to tell him that for years.”

“Why haven’t you?”

Her smile fell. “Because… because I was raised not to.”

“Nimue…”

She exhaled. “I want to hate him. A part of me always will, but a part of me understands. Ever since Andova broke away and Gareth’s grandmother, Lord of House Markos, rebelled, male heirs have been preferred.

Naming me his heir when he had sons would’ve been making a political move, and my father’s never been one to stand against the grain.

That’s why I’m here. We’ve had woman riders before, but we haven’t had riders directly from the family line in a while.

I’m going to make sure that the next lord in one of these Houses is a woman. Aurelia’s already on board with it.”

“It’s such bullshit.” But now that she mentioned it, it had been a while since there was a female lord to any of the Houses. “Don’t try and make me like Aurelia, Nimue. I won’t be able to stomach it.”

Nimue laughed. “I won’t. She’s awful on every other front.”

“Does every House suck because it certainly seems like it?”

She huffed a laugh. “House Caddel and House Andros are more forward thinking. But, well, ever since the civil war, House Benson has controlled Gareth’s lands.

At least now with his mark absolved, Gareth can take over, so there’s some hope there.

And Wes might have a stick up his ass, but he’s not sexist. So, two out of six isn’t so bad. ”

“If it’s in the minority, it’s bad.” I shook my head. “Do you think I have to talk to every lord? I don’t know how much of this I can stand. Sorry again for slipping out. It’s just… a lot.”

Nimue squeezed my hand. “Believe me, I know. I don’t blame you.

If I was able to slip away, I definitely would have.

Besides, I managed to avoid my family thanks to you, and I got to hear you telling him off.

Totally made up for the ditching.” Her eyes sparkled.

“You’ve done your time. We can sneak out now. ”

“Gods yes.” I felt like a little kid, giggling as we weaved our way through the crowds until we approached our dragons.

Umara and Thaleia were already waiting for us, the two of them standing regally.

My lips twitched. Umara had way more patience today than I expected of her.

I sent my appreciation down the bond and smiled when she sent a proud rumble back.

I let Nimue take the lead. I didn’t care where we were going, and I was just grateful to get the hell out of here.

Though after a while of flying, we ended up at the same crystal clear lake Gareth had taken me too.

I smiled at the scenery, and the tension bled from my shoulders.

It’d be nice to camp here someday. Maybe even take Clara.

Once Nimue and I dismounted our dragons, Umara and Thaleia flew toward the center of the lake. My chest bubbled with warmth at the sight. I loved seeing Umara fly free and cut loose with Thaleia. She deserved all the happiness in the world.

Two wooden chairs were still on the beach—a clear sign that the dragonsguard frequently came here.

Nimue and I grabbed them and sat down. “What are they doing?” I tilted my head toward our dragons.

They weren’t hunting, that much was obvious.

It was like.. like they were dancing. They flew around each other, circling each other in a helix spiral.

Umara roared and unleashed a massive ball of flames easily the size of Thaleia.

Instead of dodging it, Thaleia rushed through them.

Thaleia did it again, and Umara flew through her flames.

Beautiful and deadly. Just like someone else I knew.

Nimue’s eyes softened. “A mating dance.”

The two of them dipped down, both of them shooting flames and dancing through them in another spiral.

That’s when I noticed a mark on Umara’s breast scales.

The mark looked like a claw mark, like a tattoo, and was pitch black against her golden scales.

Had that always been there? “What’s that mark on her chest?

” I pointed, but Umara had already moved.

When I looked at Nimue, she had a glimmer in her eyes. “Thaleia has the same mark. We’re not one hundred percent certain about them, but sometimes, after dragons mate, they both receive the same mark. Many riders believe it’s because the dragons are fated mates.”

I blinked. “That… that can’t be real.” It sounded like something out of a fairytale .

“We don’t know for sure. The last recorded mark happened over two centuries ago, and both those dragons are long gone now. But I think it’s true.” She smiled. “Wouldn’t it be nice to have something similar? A sign that someone out there is perfect for you and you alone.”

“Nimue, are you okay?”

Nimue smiled, but it didn’t reach her eyes. “It’s not easy dating when you’re a rider. Brynn’s really sweet, but it’s not the same. Civilians don’t know what it’s like to fly or to face gryphons. You’ll see.”

I swallowed and wrapped my arms around myself. Everyone kept saying that, even Gareth. “I guess.” I closed my eyes. “You don’t need to worry. You’re awesome. You’ll find someone.”

“My only option is Aurelia, and she’s the worst.” Nimue groaned.

I snickered at the fact that her engagement to Luther wasn’t listed as a deterrent. “You’ll find someone. Don’t give up.”

“I’ll be alone forever.” Nimue exhaled. “It’s fine. I’ll live vicariously through Thaleia.” We turned and watched our dragons chase each other, well, Thaleia chasing Umara and trying to bite her tail.

My heart ached at the clear want in Nimue’s eyes. “Okay, just putting it out there. If we’re forty and neither of us have settled down with anyone—”

Nimue whipped her head toward me. “I don’t need a pity partner. Especially someone who doesn’t—”

“Brynn was my ex.” It was comical how large Nimue’s eyes got. I laughed.

“Why didn’t you—”

I waved her off. “It was never anything serious. We just hooked up mostly.”

“The Mother, I would never have—”

“It’s fine.” I laughed and took her hand, squeezing it. “Really, it’s fine. Brynn’s my friend, and you’re my best friend. I want you to be happy. And if that was with her, great. But anyway, if we’re both forty, let’s be lonely together.”

Nimue shook her head. “You’re so… okay. But I’m not giving up so soon. Let’s say fifty.”

“Deal.”