Page 81 of Once the Skies Fade (Immortal Reveries #2)

Chapter 81

Calla

T he last time I traveled to Dolobare, I had taken a ship with my parents. The war had barely concluded, and our kingdom was newly established. My parents insisted on reaching out to the nightwalkers, who had fled to the island at the first threat of war, wanting nothing to do with a conflict between human and fae. At the time of my first and only visit, the nightwalkers—or vampires, as the humans called them—and humans had found a way to coexist, working together to ensure both survived. The humans provided sustenance while the nightwalkers’ blood healed a myriad of ailments for the mortals.

At some point in the last two decades, though, something had changed, dividing the two races, leaving the island reeling. With the humans going underground, masking their scent somehow, the nightwalkers were forced to adapt to animal blood—which Arenysen helped provide as part of our trade agreement.

I had planned to visit the ruling nightwalkers—the Vrani?s—sometime after my parents’ death, but the thought of crossing the same sea that had claimed their bodies had been too much to handle. Now it stared up at me, a dark abyss peppered with white-capped waves hundreds of meters below where I sat nestled in my harness and saddle strapped to Asher’s broad back. While it was mid-morning, thick, dark clouds hung low in the sky, hovering just over our heads and blocking out much of the sunlight.

Conversation was impossible as we flew through the gloominess, but thankfully the brothers were navigational experts—perfected through their years of mercenary work—and once I’d explained where we needed to go, they simply required us to hold on and not fall into the sea.

I glanced over at Isa strapped onto Dax’s back, but she was dozing contentedly. Perhaps I should have done the same, especially since sleep might have connected me to Matthias again so I could let him know we were on our way—assuming I could find my voice quicker—but he had been in none of my dreams since.

For all I knew, Graham had already killed him.

No, surely I would feel something if that had happened.

If only the bond could have helped me find him, but so far it seemed to do nothing more than complicate life. Thankfully neither Isa nor Asher hounded me about whether I was accepting the bond or how I felt about Matthias. Fact was, I didn’t know myself. All I knew was I couldn’t let his death make that decision for me. I hadn’t wanted to choose my next husband before, but everything had changed with this tournament and that kiss—a kiss I couldn’t even remember.

Snorting, Asher swung his head around to look back at me, catching my attention before he gestured ahead with his snout. Black mountains loomed in front of us, the white spray of the gray sea crashing against them. As if they were of one mind, the three dragons angled to the left in unison, swooping down toward the northern mountains. My breath caught as the cold air rushed past us and we soared between the massive peaks, flying so close I swore I could have touched them if I dared reach an arm out.

A dull ache pulsed through my fingers as I clutched the edge of the saddle. I had taken the last of my tonic this morning before we departed. Of all places to lose control of my shadows, the Vrani?s’ court was one of the least desirable. Trade agreement or no, they wouldn’t tolerate my powers being unleashed in their walls.

My stomach lurched and heaved and rolled as Asher glided around the twists and turns toward their lair nestled among these dark mountains. As sick as this journey was making me, it was decidedly better than traveling by sea which brought the same gut-churning movement but for much longer. Then, from their port village of Novibel, the road inland to visit the royal family was difficult to traverse with its narrow passages and regular cuts through dark tunnels carved into the stone, not as easily navigated by those of us lacking the nightwalkers’ keen eyesight.

I tried to close my eyes against Asher’s neck, but that only made the nausea worse. I was about to tap him and request he slow down so I wouldn’t vomit all over him when he swept around one final turn and landed lithely on the large terrace that jutted out from the mountain. When Isa had sent the falcon to the three Starck brothers, she had sent a second across the sea to the Vrani?s, two of whom now stood before towering gilded doors set in the mountainside, watching us as we landed.

Isa—likely roused from her sleep when we started our descent—unharnessed quickly, accepting Dax’s raised front leg to help her down. Nodding to him, she waited for me to do the same so we could approach the intimidating pair together. A male and female, their pale skin shining against the obsidian backdrop of their home as if lit from within, lifted their chins. I nearly stopped short when I recognized them as Master and Madame Vrani? themselves.

“Queen Vael,” Niko Vrani? greeted me in a voice that reminded me of the spiced brandy his family made—smooth and oddly warm, given his cold surroundings, but with a hint of bite. Though, his tone was as impossible to read as his expression.

Bowing my head slowly, I looked from Niko to his wife, Sasha. “Master Vrani?. Madame. You have my deepest gratitude for agreeing to meet with us.”

Sasha eyed me coldly and spoke in a matter-of-fact manner. “We did not agree to anything…but, as your parents died while traveling home from our island, we will at least hear your plight.”

“However,” Niko said. “We do not guarantee our approval or aid.”

They did not wait for us to answer but rather pivoted on their heels to march through the doors, which swung open for them as they neared. Asher nudged me, nearly toppling me over. He gestured to the buckle for the saddle, and I quickly released it. I’d barely slipped it free from his back when he shifted back into his human form.

“Should your brothers shift too?” I asked him quietly, but he was already shaking his head.

“They’re not a fan of nightwalkers. Or meetings,” he said around a smirk. “Plus, it’ll be better to have them here ready to leave in a hurry if needed.”

Niko and Sasha had paused inside the door. Half-turned toward us, they waited with those same bored expressions on their faces. The three of us hurried across the terrace, leaving Dax and Kai to stand guard outside. The doors shut ominously, throwing us into near total darkness.

“Come,” Sasha said from somewhere in front of us.

“One moment, please,” I requested. “Our eyes could use time to adjust. I’d hate to step on you.”

Someone chuckled in the darkness, but a snap echoed through the chamber, and flames flickered to life as torches ignited, lining the walls of the grand cavern. We stood in an antechamber of sorts, unfurnished but decorated with ornate tapestries and plush rugs that made the space warmer than expected given the location.

Several guards stepped in front of us, and from behind them Niko said, “My guards will take any weapons.”

Isa cast a wary glance my way as she complied, slipping her sword and daggers from her waist, while Asher and I each handed over a small knife. We followed the royal couple down a long, winding corridor and into a more intimate circular room dominated by a round table of rich wood that seemed to be made from a single slice of an ancient tree trunk. Wooden armchairs, upholstered in a deep red velvet, surrounded the table. Similar to the first room, rich tapestries adorned the walls with torches encased in iron and glass hanging between them.

Niko and Sasha each took their seats, motioning for us to do the same.

“What is this emergency that brings you to our isle, Your Majesty?” Niko asked.

Sasha lifted a brow as she added, “And with dragon escorts, no less.”

Clearing my throat, I folded my hands in front of me on the table to steady myself as much as my shadows. “My former advisor has betrayed me and fled to your shores. I need to find him immediately.”

“Why the urgency?” Sasha asked.

“He has my mate,” I stated, surprised that the word didn’t taste quite as bitter and wrong as it used to.

Niko and Sasha shared a knowing look, both sighing as if endeared by the news I had found my mate. “What do you need from us?”

“Permission to hunt on your island.”

“And where do you think he is?”

“I believe he is with the humans, though I cannot be sure.”

The pair stiffened, and tension rippled through their shared glance.

Niko pursed his lips before asking, “What do you intend to do?”

“Kill anyone who gets in my way,” I said, unblinking.

“We can’t allow that,” Sasha said quietly, and I snapped my attention to her. Her features softened, seeming almost sympathetic—the most emotion she’d shown during this visit.

Asher dropped his clasped hands on the table and leaned forward. “Why not? I thought there was no love lost between your kinds. Or am I mistaken?”

Another anxious look passed between the couple. Niko spread his hands in front of him as if physically offering his explanation. “You are not mistaken. We are indeed at odds with the humans here, and have been for some time, but the situation is…delicate.”

Sasha touched a hand to his forearm but kept her gaze locked on mine. “There are two individuals of importance among the humans, and we cannot risk their lives for your vendetta.”

Shrugging, Asher said, “Easy. Tell us who they are, and we’ll be sure to spare them.”

Sasha’s throat bobbed as she swallowed hard.

“You can’t, can you?” I asked.

The female offered a small shake of her head, her eyes dropping to the table.

Niko breathed out a sigh. “I’m sorry. We have spent too many years—sacrificed too much—to put it in jeopardy now.”

Isa spoke for the first time since we’d arrived. “Put what in jeopardy? What are you trying to accomplish with the humans?”

Niko nodded but avoided answering her questions. “I truly am sorry we cannot allow you to go rescue your mate.”

My shadows shifted in my palms, and I closed my hands tighter to hold them back.

“I’m not leaving without him,” I said, fixing a hard stare on him. “I will, in fact, kill anyone who stands in my way—even you.”

The pair pushed to stand, their fangs slipping out over their bottom lips as they snarled, but I was on my feet just as quickly. Opening my palms, I released my shadows, sending them across the table with a silent command. I stopped them in mid-air but left them hovering close to the nightwalkers’ faces. In my periphery, Isa and Asher remained seated, but noticeably on edge, their eyes shifting between the vampires across the table and me.

“You dare threaten us, Ms. Vael?” Niko hissed out. Snapping his fingers high above his head, six nightwalkers materialized from the dark edges of the room and took their places behind each of us. “This behavior will not earn you any favor with us. Put your shadows away before my guards snap your necks.”

Easing my shadows back into my hands, I settled into my chair, gesturing for my hosts to do the same. They didn’t move.

“Master Vrani?,” I said as respectfully as I could. “There must be a way to work together here so I’m not forced to sever our years of partnership. Yes? So, what can you do to help us?”

It took them several breaths before they finally lowered into their chairs. Their fangs slipped from view again, but they remained quiet with a wary gleam in their eyes.

Isa peered up at the two nightwalkers standing behind her as she asked the royal couple, “If you can’t name the individuals, can you describe them for us?” They remained quiet, the only sign they’d even heard her being a tightening of their features as they—hopefully—contemplated her suggestion.

“Or send someone with us,” Asher commanded, not bothering to phrase it as a request as Isa had. “We have an extra mount.”

I snapped my head around to stare at him. That third seat was to bring Matthias home, and I was about to remind Asher of that, but his confident gaze and faint smile assured me he had already considered this.

“And have them do what, Mr. Starck?” Sasha asked. Her brows fell low over her cold eyes. “Shall they point out the ones we need protected? Risk exposing them? I don’t think so.”

Niko shook his head slowly. “Agreed. We can’t send anyone with you, nor can we provide names, but”—he caught Sasha’s uneasy gaze, and they had a brief but intense, silent conversation before he snapped his attention back to Asher—“we will need time to deliberate.”

Sasha scowled, clearly over this meeting, but she added, “There is one other issue with your plan. We don’t even know where they are located. The humans are able to mask their scent, their heartbeats. It took our man years to successfully infiltrate them, and even then he had to entice them to come to him. How do you plan to succeed where we have not?”

“With this,” I said, pulling a gold coin from my pocket.