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Chapter Forty-Seven

A elia

My mind spun with the images as I slumped back into the chair, a torrent of emotions like a battering ram in my ribcage. My parents… I’d seen them as clearly as if they’d stood right there in that moonlit chamber with me. My mother, Sable of Inferna, stood tall and proud with hair like spilled ink, unlike the shadowy specter I’d seen in the trials, and yet their voices were one in the same. How was it possible? How had she appeared to me?

But my father… I never in a million seasons had imagined recognizing him. Not from my memories, but from a history book, from the images portrayed in our scant Kin educational system. Gods, no wonder Aidan had balked when I told him my veins held no Light blood. My father was the great King Alaric, Elian’s brother, the one felled in the Two Hundred Years’ War.

Which meant I was a princess of two courts.

My heart tapped out a manic beat, the assault of revelations simply too much to bear all at once. And the ramifications of the truth? My father, the King of the Court of Ethereal Light, had wed a Night Fae princess in secret—worse, she was of mixed origins, with Shadow blood also coursing through her veins. How had any of this happened? How had it been allowed to happen?

No wonder I had been kept a secret.

And Aidan, my father’s general and faithful second in command, had sworn an oath to keep me safe long before the king died. My parents had handed me over to him well before, according to the memories I’d stolen. His loyal friend had gone to tremendous lengths to follow through on his word.

And Sol…

“Aelia.” Reign’s steadying voice drew me from the turmoil of my jumbled thoughts. “I’m right here when you’re ready.”

Oh, right. I had to tell him. He had no idea who I really was. Would he still love me when he discovered the truth?

“We both are.” Aidan’s face coalesced across the table, the depth of emotion carved into his face siphoning the remaining air from my lungs.

He’d known everything all along. Had kept it from me for twenty long years. I wanted to resent him for it, but after catching glimpses of all he’d endured, I simply couldn’t. He had loved my parents deeply, both of them, that much had been clear. He had made so many sacrifices for me, changing the very essence of who he was to keep me safe.

Hidden from Helroth, from the other bloodthirsty royals, from all the Fae.

Then why had Raysa in her infinite wisdom marked me, thereby setting everything else in motion?

Fate weaves her own plans for us, little Kin. Sol’s words flitted across my mind from months ago.

He had been right. We had always been powerless to stop it. It didn’t matter what we did, fate was a fickle bitch and would always have her way. Had my dragon known all my secrets too? Was that what he’d been about to tell me before Aidan arrived? I resolved to ask him as soon as I had a moment to process it all.

“Aelia, you must know that everything we did was out of love.” Aidan slid his chair closer to mine, reaching to cup my cheek. The touch was gentle, kind, everything that made my guardian who he was. Still, a tiny hint of resentment surged to the surface. I fully realized none of this was his fault, but I simply couldn’t stop the influx of emotions.

“Did you know the Night King was alive?”

“No, I swear it. Had I known, I would have doubled my efforts in keeping you hidden. I never would have allowed Reign to cart you off to Luce unprotected.”

My gaze slid to my cuoré’s, and the shame of regret spread through our bond like wildfire. None of this was his fault either. Reign was as much a pawn in this as I was. I attempted to convey the thought with a reassuring smile in his direction, but I only received a tight grin in return.

Aidan followed my line of sight, then turned those pale gray eyes on me. His jaw trembled, as if opening it caused extreme effort. Finally, his lips moved, and the words dribbled out. “Your parents were cuoré.”

“They were ?”

How was it possible if they hailed from different courts? Their cuorem bond had been even more rare than ours…

Reign watched our exchange, his eager gaze bouncing between us. Realms, I had to tell him. He stood by quietly, patiently observing our veiled conversation. He didn’t demand answers, only stood there resolutely beside me, instilling his strength and steadfastness with an occasional reassuring touch.

“It was highly unusual, considering their situation.”

It was clear there was more Aidan wished to say but the damned blood vow prohibited him from explaining further.

“I can only imagine,” I murmured. Had they tried to fight their attraction as Reign and I had? Another whisper of a memory dredged up from the dark recesses of my mind. Reign’s pitch orbs locked on mine, glancing up from between my legs. Everything I’d felt in that moment came rushing to the surface.

I’d tried and failed to fight this unnamable thing between us, but try as I might, we seemed inescapable. Every touch, every heated glance only tightened the grip he had on me, pulling me deeper into a web of dangerous desire and unavoidable fate. No matter how fiercely I resisted, it was clear—this connection between us was unbreakable, as undeniable as the stars in the night sky.

Oh, gods. How could I have forgotten that ?

Heat swirled from below surging upward to the tips of my pointed ears. As if Reign had felt the sudden rush, his eyes chased to mine, darkening. His nostrils flared, the familiar motion triggering more recollections. He could scent my arousal, even at the vivid memories. Oh, gods, what if Aidan could too?

This was not what I should be focused on right now.

“Aelia?” Reign’s fingertips brushed across my knuckles, need burning through those midnight orbs. Was my desire spilling through the bond spurring his own?

It didn’t matter. There were many more pressing issues at hand. Tamping down on the unwanted sensations, I squeezed my thighs together to keep the blossoming ache at bay.

“I need a moment to myself,” I blurted, leaping up from the seat, my feet moving of their own accord. A thousand questions spun in my mind, an endless volley I knew would never be satiated. Even if Aidan hadn’t been bound by the vow, he had no memories of my parents’ actual deaths. Or, at least, none that I could find. All that he knew had been recounted to him by others.

The last clear memory he had of my father was in battle. Dozens of winged creatures soared through the air, metal crashing against bone, the crack of destruction reverberating through the sky. A tangle of rais , nox and zar muddied the air, bathing the melee in their cloying scents. From across the mid-air battlefield, a regal figure with a crown nestled atop flowing golden locks sat astride a gilded dragon, whose scales shimmered with the glory of Raysa’s blessed light.

Solanthus, the Sun Chaser.

* * *

When I reached the cobblestone courtyard, I heaved in a breath of fresh, salty night air. My lungs burned, my throat too thick to swallow, and tears stung at the corners of my eyes. I streaked across the quiet pathway to the stone wall that encircled the yard, perched atop the promontory. The Shadowmere Sea churned below, white caps flecking the dark waves. Twisting my fingers, I watched the tumultuous sea, searching for a calm that would never come.

I had put off this moment for long enough. It was time.

Solanthus … I reached for the shimmering strands that wrapped around my heart, connecting me to my skyrider.

Yes, princess . His response was nearly instantaneous.

Don’t call me that .

But that is what you are, is it not ? His presence grew closer, the tether between us growing more taut.

Tipping my head back, I searched the velvety sky for his immense form. So, you did know ?

As I was attempting to explain before, I only recently remembered the details of my past life. In your absence, I spent more time with Phantom, and she helped me put together the pieces . His form finally coalesced through the darkness, a shimmering beacon against the endless night. I followed his form as he alighted in the center of the courtyard, a tremor rippling across the cliffside in his wake. Those smoldering, golden eyes lowered to mine, his pupils nothing more than dark slits.

So, you belonged to my father, King Alaric? He was the rider you spoke of during the Two Hundred Years’ War ?

First of all, little Kin, dragons do not belong to Fae …

“Sol!” I hissed.

He lowered his gaze, a motion I’d never seen the powerful beast employ, or ever even thought him capable of. Yes . His voice thundered through our bond. King Alaric was my rider. He was bound to me as I am to you. And I failed him …

Because of your mate bond with Phantom .

Yes , he ground out. I was so distracted by her, driven to the point of insanity because of the damned dragon bond, that I let my guard down for only an instant. And that was all it took for him to make his move .

“Who?”

Mordrin .