Page 142 of I Dream of Dragons

No weakness, I repeat to myself as I stagger backward. Funny how everything that happened hits me now, all at once—my almost death, Jai’s revelations, the lashing and my fear for his life, the discussion between Phaethon and the king.

Gods, I can’t breathe. Dark is eating at my vision. The past, old and new, is pressing down on my shoulders and chest like a beast, crushing me.

The dark engulfs me, leaving only a tunnel through which I see him. Seated on the bed. Staring at me.

Up and down is no more, I lose all sense of space. My knee buckles and I gasp as I go down, as I lose grip on my body.

And he’s on his feet, swaying, reaching for me. “Rae!” Somehow he makes it beside me in time to grab me, haul me against him before I hit the floor. “Are you all right?”

I blink away the dark and gaze up into his eyes. They are wide, fathomless. Stark. The black on his cheekbones seems to unfurl and bloom into stars and blossoms. Black hair falls against his brow and I itch to twirl my fingers in it. Pull him down and kiss him.

But shock keeps me still because…

Because if I didn’t know any better, I’d think that there’s more to what he feels about me than just respect. Or that respect is for him another word for something more.

This alien, powerful creature sure acts like he cares…

CHAPTER THIRTY-SEVEN

RAE

Extricating myself from his arms, I make my escape as fast as I can, leaving him on his knees on the floor. I should be worried; I should make sure he goes back to bed. His back is a mess and he has lost a lot of blood but… I can’t.

I’m still dizzy and weak, but I need to get my bearings. I need a moment alone.

What now? I need to speak to the queen of the sea, but she never even gave any sign of hearing me every time I begged her to remove the spell from me. Why would she answer me now?

It doesn’t matter. I’ll try again. Send a message through Alys.

Time is slipping through my fingers. Today I’m expected to be at the king’s side, the thought sending sweat rolling down my back. Tomorrow already we have the second ball, and after that, the third trial.

I still haven’t managed to find out everything I need to know. I still haven’t killed the king… Meanwhile, Phaethon is occupying Jai’s body and mind, not letting me talk to him and acting as if he cares for me.

Mars. Marsyas.

During his verbal sparring with the king, I had the impression Phaethon was as confused by the king’s insinuations as I am.

Marsyas was the king in the story of Persephona and the Underworld the telchin told me. He had fought in the dragon war. He’d been… a dragon? A dragonking.

Maybe I can find the book with the original story. Somewhere. The king has a library.

And you think he will help you find the book you’re looking for? Ha.

But I can’t trust the stories the king tells me. Who says they haven’t been doctored to suit his needs and affect me in specific ways?

And what about this?“Remember that he caused your family’s demise. Your parents. Your little brother. Your people.”

No, Jai wouldn’t do this to me. Never.

Stumbling through the palace, down endless corridors, the passages swimming in my eyes, I miraculously find my way to my room. If I had taken another wrong fork in the maze, I’d have broken down and cried, I’m sure.

With trembling hands, I turn the knob and push the door open, stepping into my precarious, temporary sanctuary, a space of quiet and privacy, where I can sit down and put the pieces of this puzzle together before?—

I stop in my tracks, barely one step into the room.

I’m not alone.

Someone is sitting on my bed. A woman, I realize after a few blinks to clear the haze from my vision. A familiar woman.