Page 49 of Curse of the Midnight Dragon (The Moonlight Dragon #2)

Celestina

After I’d made sure Amaya was resting comfortably—which is to say Cullen shoved me out of his tent—Soren and I made the rounds of the camp. It felt like old times. Everyone in his army still loved him. Everyone still looked to him for advice and leadership. But none of the captains and the warriors we encountered cracked jokes or smiled as they had before.

Soren was right. His warriors were exhausted and beaten down. It felt as if they had already accepted the inevitable. They were going to lose—and likely die—in these mountains.

“Queen Beatrice has started to reanimate our dead,” Driscoll reported after one of Soren’s captains had provided a brutal description of troop losses. “One of my men discovered that three of our mass gravesites are empty. And when he followed the tracks from the last gravesite, he recognized the dead men from our camp regrouping under Earst’s battle banner and wearing the queen’s purple uniform.”

I pressed my hand to my mouth.

Soren pinched his lips together. After a stunned moment, he thanked Driscoll for the information and dismissed Cullen’s favorite spy.

“What are you going to do?” I whispered once we’d started walking again.

“Burn our dead.”

“Are you worried about what will happen with morale when your warriors start recognizing the warriors they’re fighting against?”

“Honestly, I don’t believe morale can get any worse than it is already.”

“He’s wrong ,” a voice whispered in my mind. A foreign voice…but also a familiar one. “ Today will be remembered as a happy day for his army when compared to what I’m going to do to Soren and his precious kingdom. And you’re going to be the one tearing his world apart from the inside.”

No. I would never help Queen Beatrice, for that was clearly the voice I was hearing. Was this real? Or was the stress of the battle making me hear threatening voices that weren’t there?

“Oh, you’ll help me. You have no choice but to do what I say.”

Even if she still had some level of control over me, I wouldn’t let her win. “Soren.” I gripped his arm so hard, he stopped midstride. “Soren, Queen Beatrice—”

Soren raised his eyebrows when I didn’t finish. “Talk to me. What’s wrong?”

A smile that wasn’t of my own making curled my lips. Words that weren’t mine were spoken by my mouth. “Nothing’s wrong. I simply wanted to say that Queen Beatrice isn’t all bad. She has always been a fair ruler. The Fein will like living under her power.”

“I…see…” he said slowly, carefully.

Relief washed over me. He did see . And now he knew I couldn’t be trusted.

What would he do about it? Would he lock me in shackles? If she were to force me to take my dragon form, shackles wouldn’t hold me. Would he knock me out? If she were in control of my body, leaving me unconscious wouldn’t stop her from using my muscles.

“I should—” leave .

Soren kissed me before I could get that last part out. His fingers twined with mine while his lips made me feel all the deep feelings that I didn’t want to feel for him right now. Not when I needed to get away from him, away from this camp.

“I know what’s happening,” Soren said when our lips finally parted. “I’ve known for quite some time that Queen Beatrice could use one of Queen Freida’s binding spells to control you. Cullen saw all the various bindings when he first met you. That’s one of his talents. He sees threats when others can’t. That’s why he can see Amaya when she’s in her air form.”

“You should have…you should have… I need to get away from here.” I tried to put space between us.

His fingers tightened. “Don’t run from this.”

“We have a plan to help her, don’t we?” Gray asked as he walked up to join us. Gray and Raya had been attending to other matters in the camp while Soren had taken reports.

“Of course, Soren has a plan, Nimrod.” Raya nudged Gray’s arm as she joined us as well. “He came up with a way to handle the binding spell weeks ago.”

I appreciated Raya’s attempts to calm me. But this was yet another vital piece of information that Soren had kept from me. “I thought we were going to trust each other!”

“We are! At first, I didn’t tell you because it didn’t matter. The slave collar held essentially the same amount of power over you. And then after the collar came off, we really haven’t had much time together to discuss everything, have we? It’s been one disaster after another.” The steady way he looked at me helped slow my racing heart. “And we don’t have a solid plan, yet. But Cullen is researching ways to break the bindings. Not just him. He has all the librarians at the Palladian Library looking for answers.”

“You still should have told me. I don’t feel comfortable putting you or anyone at risk.”

“Even if giving you up would help, I’m not going to do it, Sky Girl. Not again. The continent wouldn’t survive my losing you a third time. I wouldn’t survive it.” He drew a long breath. “And besides, running from here won’t solve anything. If Queen Beatrice can control you, she can always force you to return.”

He was right. I suddenly had trouble catching my breath.

When was this horror ever going to end?

My life had never been my own to live. And after Queen Beatrice completed her goal of destroying the Fein, which kingdom would she use me to attack next? I wasn’t a warrior. I didn’t have the heart of a killer. I didn’t want to be a tool to bring any of the kingdoms to their knees.

“Do you need to borrow my spoon?” Mary, the wizened old cook, held out her oversized spoon for me to take. She might have been small, but she used her oversized spoon to keep the Fein’s highly trained warriors in line. Even Gray and Raya took several steps back as she approached.

“Mary!” I threw my arms around her. When I’d first been brought to Soren’s camp as a slave, she’d taken me under her wing, taught me how to help prepare the meals, and had treated me like I was part of her family.

“Ugh! Don’t get all mushy on me.” She pushed me off her. But I could tell by the way the corners of her eyes crinkled that she didn’t mind that I was hugging her. “Are you here to work?”

“I would love that! Is Patty here to help as well?”

Mary shook her head. “I sent Patty home a few days ago. Things aren’t—” She shook her head again. “It’s too dangerous for her to stay.”

The dragon fires in my chest stirred at the thought of Queen Beatrice’s undead army harming someone like Mary.

“I told you to leave as well,” Soren said to the old woman, his voice a gentle rebuke. “We can cook our own meals.”

“Your warriors are coming back to camp with barely enough energy to clean themselves up, and that’s if they manage to come back at all,” Mary growled. “If they can keep going out there to defend our border against a terrible foe, I can damn well stay here and make sure they have a hot meal ready for when they return.”

Soren cleared his throat, but even so, his voice sounded rusty when he said, “Thank you, Mary. You are a treasure.”

The dragon fires in me started to burn even hotter at the thought of Mary sacrificing herself. None of this would be happening if Queen Beatrice hadn’t used me to gain inside information about the Fein. If not for me, she wouldn’t have known that the Fein were vampires. She wouldn’t have learned about the Tiburnian’s use of blood magic. All of what she was doing here was because she had been able to see things through my eyes.

“This. Should. Not. Be. Happening.” Anger flooded my heart.

“Sky Girl,” Raya moved toward me, but Gray grabbed her shoulder and hauled her back.

“What are you doing?” Soren asked. He, too, stepped away from me.

“I’m furious,” I told him.

“Your eyes and skin…they’re glowing.” He pushed Mary behind him. “That can’t be good. Take some deep breaths.”

“No.” I glanced down at my arms. They shimmered. My entire body vibrated with energy. I felt powerful. Nothing could stop me from protecting my hoard, my family. Not even a bitch of a queen who relished bloody spectacles. I shined brighter and brighter as I pulled magic from the ground and let it fill me and fill me. “You want a bloody spectacle!” I raised my arms and shouted to the sky. “I’ll give you a bloody spectacle!”

The magic exploded.

It knocked Soren, Raya, Gray, Mary, and everyone in the camp who were within sight of me flat on their backs. The magic surged across the landscape in a circular wave pattern that grew wider and weaker as it pressed out its borders.

My arms dropped to my side. They were no longer glowing. No part of me glowed anymore. Nor could I feel the stirring of my dragon fire. My power was gone, spent on an empty display of fireworks. I felt like a human again—weak and rather helpless.

“You foolish girl,” Queen Beatrice hissed in my mind. Even her voice sounded faint. Faint enough to easily ignore.

“I didn’t hurt anyone, did I?”

Soren picked himself up off the ground and brushed the dust from his battle leathers. He helped Mary to her feet. She had a cut above her eyebrow that was slowly oozing blood.

“Sky Girl, that was—” Mary grumbled.

“I’m sorry!” I said in a rush. I wanted to help her, but at the same time, I was afraid to touch anyone. “I didn’t mean to—”

“If that’s what you do when you’re not even trying, I can’t wait to see what you do when you go up against Queen Beatrice,” Mary said with an approving nod.

“I agree,” Gray said. He was clutching his right arm, but he was smiling. “That was…wow.”

Raya nudged his uninjured side. “I’ve been telling you from the beginning that she’s amazing.”

“And you’re right,” Gray agreed.

“I don’t think I can do that again.” I felt dizzy, like maybe I needed to sit down. As soon as that thought hit me, my legs collapsed, and my bottom hit the ground hard.

“Any time you use magic, it takes time to recover,” Soren said. “And the binding spells pack kickbacks that will hurt you whenever your magic tries to break through them.” He started to lift me into his arms. But I didn’t want to be carried.

I wiggled to keep him from sweeping my feet out from under me. “I can walk.”

He kept his arm across my shoulder to make sure I didn’t collapse again. “Whatever you want, Princess,” he said, “I’ll make sure it happens.”

“I want to help Mary with the dinner prep.”

Soren frowned. “That wasn’t what I was expecting.”

“That’s my girl.” Mary slapped her wrinkly hands together. “She’s always been my best helper. Only slightly better than my Patty, and both are heads over heels more disciplined than your lazy louts, General Kitmun.”

And that was how I came to be standing at the worktable, peeling and dicing carrots and chopping onions. I missed Patty’s excited chattering. She’d often talk so much that I wouldn’t have a chance to utter a sound for hours. But today, I stood at the table alone. Still, the monotony of my chopping movements calmed me.

The only irritation was that the invasive green lizards seemed to be taking extra interest in my work. I kept having to stop to brush them off the table. Maybe they were hungry. I doubted they’d find much to eat this high in the snowy mountains.

Soren remained nearby. He was talking with Gray and Raya and a few of his captains. Every so often he’d glance at me. And smile.

I could live for those smiles.

So, as I worked, I pretended we had a lifetime in front of us to enjoy little pleasures like seeing the charming smiles he saved just for me, an expression where Soren lifted one corner of his mouth lifted a bit higher than the other in a look of pure delight. And for a beautiful moment, I managed to trick myself into believing it.

Amaya

I sat up with a start, shoving aside the silky blankets that had been wrapped tightly around my body. Cullen spun toward me, clearly surprised I’d wake up so suddenly after suffering such a strong power drain. But he must have felt the jolt of magic that had surged through the camp. He must have understood that not even the dead could have slept through a magical burst that strong.

I recognized the sharp sting of the power. That was Celestina’s magic.

Cullen adjusted his glasses as he leaned toward me. “Amaya? What’s happening?”

I felt energized, like I could burn twice as many undead warriors before collapsing again. And I felt clearheaded. Puzzle pieces I hadn’t realized existed suddenly fell into place.

Of course. Of course , I said to myself as I sucked in a quick breath when I realized exactly what needed to be done.

In my excitement, I grabbed Cullen’s arm and pulled his mouth to mine to kiss. “I know how to free Celestina from her binding,” I said once our lips parted.

“Bindings,” Cullen corrected as he chased after me through the camp. “There’s more than one. At least two.”

“Two.” I nodded as I hurried toward the epicenter of the power burst. “Two makes sense.” I needed to get to Celestina. If I slowed down to think things through, or if I discussed what I planned to do with someone else, I wouldn’t do it. I’d lose my nerve.

I was a force of destruction. This was why the ancients had paired me with Celestina. Because I could destroy. And sometimes destruction was the only way to blaze a path for something new to bloom. That was how gardens were created. I knew that from working in my mother’s garden. The weeds had to be torn away, and the ground churned up, before something beautiful could take root.

At the far end of the camp, I found Celestina preparing a meal for the vampires. Was this how the vampires treated her? Like a servant? We were dragons. We were superior. The vampires should be serving us.

But that was beside the point. I had a binding to break. I grabbed Celestina’s arm and spun her around to face me.

“I am sorry,” I uttered, allowing a tiny slice of remorse to slip loose before I shut down all my useless, squishy emotions. I’m sorry that I’m going to hurt you—sister of my heart .

I called forth my dragon claws—and with a quick swipe of my hand, dug my razor-sharp talons into Celestina’s perfect face, gouging out both her eyes and tearing apart her face in the process.

She screamed.

Blood sprayed everywhere.

Mary took one look at Celestina’s ruined face and started screaming as well. And I remained standing in front of her, staring. Waiting.

Cullen wrapped his arms around my chest, yanking me away from Celestina.

“What the hell—?” Soren thundered as he ran to catch his precious princess as she collapsed into his embrace. Gray and Raya followed closely behind him. Gray already had his swords drawn. What was he thinking he’d do? Strike me down? I’d like to see him try.

Everyone started shouting at once. So many voices. Too many voices, I couldn’t make sense of any of them.

“Was this your plan?” Cullen’s calm voice, spoken directly inside my head, cut through the shouting and the accusations. He didn’t sound upset, only curious. “ Is this going to free Princess Celestina? Or does something else need to happen?”

“It should be all that’s needed.” I hoped. If not, Celestina would end up permanently blinded.

“Shift,” I whispered aloud. “You need to shift.”

Shifting forms would heal her ruined face and replace her eyes.

“It was her eyes,” I told Cullen. “ Her mismatched eyes. A member of the clan had painted our portraits. Gwen is a stickler for details. She remembers the smallest ones. And she had painted Celestina’s eyes in the portrait indigo. Not brown and green. Indigo. She said she thought the blueish-purple color was what the painting wanted. But canvases are simply cloth pulled over a wooden frame. They don’t have color preferences. Was Gwen remembering details from a long time ago? She knew Celestina when we were both babies. If Celestina hadn’t been stolen, Gwen would have become her adoptive mother.

“When I returned Celestina to the clan, it must have triggered Gwen’s memory of Celestina’s vibrant eye color. Which would explain why she painted Celestina’s eyes a bright indigo instead of the mismatched eyes Celestina has now. And here’s the important question. What would make eyes drastically change their coloring? A spell cast upon them, perhaps?”

“That’s brilliant.”

“Only if I’m right. Otherwise, I’m the monster here.”

His arms holding me tightened, but not in a threatening way. “ You’re not a monster, my beautiful Amaya. Your heart is too big, and you care too much for others to ever allow you to become the villain of this story.”

I hoped he was right. I’d spent my entire life being feared, being told that I needed to curb my impulses, to ignore my instincts.

Turn .

I held my breath.

Turn .

Celestina had sunk in on herself as Soren held her. She was silently weeping.

Turn .

Gray and Raya had positioned themselves between Celestina and me.

Turn .

The air around us felt wrong. Had I…had I…made a mistake?

“She needs to take her dragon ”

“Does she know how?” Cullen asked. “ Is it instinct? Or is shifting forms something that needs to be taught?”

“It should be instinct, but she’s been separated from her dragon for so long that she might not know how to call it. She should have shifted by now. A serious injury should have triggered her to shift to heal it .” What if this was a mistake? What would the clan do to me when they discovered that I’d ripped out the moonlight dragon’s eyes?

Soren tore open a vein in his wrist. He was about to press the bloody wound to Celestina’s lips. Vampire blood could heal many things, but I didn’t think vampire blood could bring back lost eyes.

“Stop!” Cullen shouted, reaching out a hand. “Don’t give her your blood.”

“I need to help her. And you need to keep Amaya away from me or I will kill her. Get her out of here. Now!”

“You need to listen to me. Amaya knows what she’s doing. You must let her help Celestina.” Cullen moved me closer.

Raya brandished her sword. “I don’t think so,” she said.

“If you care for Amaya’s life, get her out of here, Cull,” Gray said softly. Dangerously.

“Amaya?” Celestina’s voice cracked. She lifted her head from Soren’s shoulder and turned her sightless face toward me. “Why?”

“Can you feel your dragon?”

She sobbed as she shook her head.

I growled in frustration. Dammit, she needs to shift .

With a burst of magic, I broke out of Cullen’s arms and pushed through Gray and Raya, blowing them out of my way. I hissed at Soren and grabbed Celestina’s hand.

“Don’t fall apart, Moonglow. Pull my magic.” I held up my other hand, blocking a sword from striking me with the flat of my palm. I could feel my magic stir, but it wasn’t enough. I needed her to force me to shift. If she did, I could pull her dragon out with me.

“Focus!” I barked at her.

Soren was yanking Celestina away from me. The others were shouting. And fighting Cullen, who’d slid through Soren’s warriors to stand beside me.

Time was running out. I needed to pull Celestina’s magic like she did with mine. But the midnight dragon was a tool for the moonlight dragon to use. I didn’t have the same powers that Celestina had. My importance came from the link I shared with Celestina.

“Didn’t you read the book I gave you?” Cullen demanded. “ That’s not what the text says. Midnight dragons are powerful all on their own. Stop telling yourself what you can’t do and help her.”

“I am powerful.” I scrunched my eyes closed and focused on tearing Celestina’s magic through her. Her magic hit me so hard, I fell to my knees.

Celestina threw her head back and screamed as her body vanished. Air was the transition point of our shift. And as the air shimmered all around us, the ground rumbled beneath our feet.

Then in a blink-and-you’ll-miss-it moment, a shimmering moonlight dragon appeared. She was the largest dragon I’d ever seen. Her scales were translucent. She spread her massive wings and held them out, so they’d fill with wind. The wings glittered with all the colors of the rainbow. She looked down at me and blinked her large indigo eyes.

“Goddess, you are beautiful,” Soren gasped as Celestina flapped her massive leathery wings. Slowly, gracefully, she rose from the ground.

“Thank you .” Celestina’s words echoed in my mind.

Tears filled my eyes. Dammit. Stupid Cullen . My vampire wrapped his arms around me and kissed my cheek. “You did it, my beautiful menace.”

“Did I? Hmm…I did. I guess I really did.”