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Page 18 of Shattered Galaxies (Tears of the Siren #6)

Draven

“I’ve been to France before, but never this region,” Lorcan said from her place tucked against my side in the SUV.

Our landing had been uneventful, and I’d been satisfied with the speed in which we were able to get Lorcan into the darkened SUV and out of the public eye.

Considering we were in the South of France, there was no lack of prying eyes at the private airport.

“It’s a small coastal region that had a series of abandoned villages.

I believe they bought them out, and the phoenix queen decided to establish her kingdom there.

” Adriel’s explanation tracked, and I found myself searching my memory for the last time I’d heard about a phoenix. Maybe the Cosmos Wars?

“I can smell the ocean. I love it,” Lorcan murmured, leaning over me to unroll my window a little bit more before settling back into my side.

We were driving along the jagged coastline, the sun glinting off the waves in spectacular fashion and the scent of sea salt carrying on the wind.

My attention could only stray for so long before it returned to Lorcan, my ethereal star goddess.

Her power had been altered on the jet when it interacted and fused the two violins together. I didn’t understand it completely, but I knew that everyone felt the shift through our bond with her.

Despite being cautious over the change, worried it would negatively affect her, I could see one benefit—she appeared to be rejuvenated.

I had noticed sometime between our trip to Dubai and then the Druid realm that Lorcan was exhausted.

She’d been silent about it, but I couldn’t ignore it, which is why I’d insisted that she sleep on the jet.

Whatever had happened with her instruments had given her a second wind.

“Is that it?” Rhett called out.

The Incendie Kingdom, home to the phoenix queen and her dragon mates. I’d heard there had been a shift within the Dreki realm, but apparently it had spilled outward. I leaned forward between where Dean and Cash were sitting in the driver and passenger seat to see what he was pointing to.

It had been thousands of years since I’d been to the place now known as France, so the thing that immediately struck me was the oddity of what had been preserved. The kingdom we approached was modern but carried a charm that dated back to the Roman Empire’s rule of the region.

“I would pull over before we reach the entrance,” Desmond suggested. “We don’t want to make anyone defensive.”

“I don’t like how out in the open that puts Lorcan.” Dean’s argument was valid.

“I think we’ll be okay here, Deanie.” Lorcan reached out to squeeze his arm. “I have a good feeling about it.”

I trusted her gut, but I still felt uneasy not knowing what we were walking into.

As we parked on the shoulder of the road, twenty feet from the entrance of the restored village-like kingdom, Lorcan bounced on her toes with excitement.

The scent of bonfire drifted through the air, making me curious and putting me on alert.

“Stay by my side,” I requested in what I’m sure sounded like a demand. Luckily, Lorcan had no issue with that, melding against me as we walked to the entrance of the bustling kingdom.

“So they’re separate from the Dreki realm? But dragons are from the Dreki realm…and they have a phoenix queen?” Lorcan asked in confusion. My gaze tracked the shops that littered the stone-paved streets, olive trees and lush plant life flourishing in between.

“My understanding is that it’s an outpost of the Dreki realm and that this phoenix queen is somehow related to the one there,” Desmond offered.

“There’s more than one phoenix here,” Zander pointed out as we made our way past a fountain, a dragon of stone sitting on top. “I don’t know how that’s possible when they were nearly extinct.”

Lorcan flashed a smile. “Well, we sort of do know how that story goes.”

Yes, because sirens were still thought to be extinct by most within the realms. My gaze moved over the curious faces that looked at us, the sense of happiness and peace permeating the air.

Everyone seemed very content to be here, and every age range, from old to young, created a space with a vibrant sense of energy.

“Where do we think they’ll be?” I asked, looking for a castle and finding none. The most I could see was a collection of houses that faced the coast, in almost a villa or apartment-like complex. Those appeared to be newly built, but it didn’t strike me as the type of place a monarch would live in.

“Hi there!” A young man stepped into the street to greet us. “Haven’t seen any of you around here before. Are you seeking refuge?”

“Refuge?” I asked. I noticed that Zander was using his magic to keep Lorcan’s influence wrapped up, and I could practically feel her relax at his ability to do so.

“Yes,” the young man said happily. “We have an open-door—or gate—policy. If you need direction on how to get set up, the queen and her mates should be coming down to the plaza closer to dinnertime.”

“We need to see them now,” Zander said easily. The young man’s gaze turned hazy for a moment. “Could you point us in the right direction?”

“Further up the coast, follow the stone road to the estate,” he answered immediately before seeming to shake himself. Offering a confused look, he added “Like I said, let me know if you need anything.”

And then he wandered off. I wasn’t sure I would ever fully get used to how powerful Zander was. It presented far too intensely for me to be comfortable.

Without further discussion, we all began walking in the direction he had pointed us, Lorcan humming under her breath.

The sound was faint, but it immediately had my attention.

Her violin was in the new case strapped over her shoulder, and the wind from the sea brushed over her, making my chest ache with how fucking beautiful she was.

I would claim it was unfair, but I was simply grateful she was tucked into my side, giving me an excuse to focus solely on her.

The others remained alert to our surroundings.

Cash walked ahead and to our left, scanning rooftops, a tension to his frame.

Zander’s magic was expanded out over our group, and Desmond was tailing Lorcan closely, wanting to keep her within reach.

Adriel and Rhett were walking ahead and to our right, talking in low tones, and I got the feeling that Adriel had more information about this kingdom than he let on.

The elven king seemed to be a well of knowledge when it came to the many realms.

“Hey, Dean?” Lorcan said. The man strode from behind us to appear by her side, offering her a questioning look. “Just wanted you nearby. I can feel you stressing.”

Dean offered a nod before kissing her temple and hanging back just slightly, within Lorcan’s reach but hovering protectively. I had a feeling that being in dragon territory would be particularly difficult for our shifters.

“I hope they can help us,” Lorcan said. “Zander, you haven’t gotten a read on any massive magical signature, right? I know my mother said we would have to meet with the phoenix queen, but if she doesn’t want to share her knowledge…”

“She will,” Zander offered supportively. “But no. Unfortunately, I can’t sense anything yet. The minute I do, I’ll let you know, starlight.”

That was the last thing that Lorcan said until we approached the massive estate that sat hidden behind a line of trees, overlooking the Mediterranean. It was close enough to the village that it was maybe a five-minute walk, but far enough that it allowed for privacy.

As we approached the driveway, which led to a circular roundabout in front of the property, I instantly picked up the magical signature of two dragons. Each man possessed a significant amount of magic and watched us with a cautious but curious expression.

“Hi there!” Lorcan called out, her voice smooth and relaxed.

“Hello,” the first man offered in greeting as the other one smiled. I didn’t get any animosity off of them, so I relaxed slightly at the lack of blatant threat.

“You’re not surprised to see us,” Desmond noted.

“When we heard that the King of Nightmares and King of Smoke landed at our airport, we figured you’d find our way here.”

“You have us at a loss. You know who we are, but we don’t know you.” Adriel’s tone was tense, unhappy with our situation.

“Atlas,” the first answered.

“Anani,” the second offered.

That didn’t really answer who they were.

“Husbands to the phoenix queen.” Lorcan’s voice was clear and filled with surprise.

“How can you tell?” Atlas seemed amused by her analysis.

“Because my powers don’t affect either of you. I’m guessing it’s the mate bond,” Lorcan said happily. “I’m glad then that you’re the ones to greet us. We’re actually here to talk to her about something fairly serious.”

“Let’s show you inside and introduce you to everyone,” Anani offered, following behind us as we passed through the gate that Atlas held open.

As we stepped through the doors of the estate, we were met by another man, this one a wolf shifter.

“Our guests are here. That was quick,” he drawled with an accent I couldn’t quite place.

“We interrupted your day,” Rhett said, the polite nature of his next statement almost making me smile. “We didn’t consider that—our apologies.”

“No worries. Croy, by the way,” the man offered before going toward the stairs. “The others are in the office. I’ll let her know.”

We were led down the hall into a large office.

Not a throne room—nothing so regal—but warm and sunlit, filled with books.

I could instantly tell that Lorcan was drawn to the picture window with a view of the coast, but there were five bodies standing in the way of her getting to appreciate the view.

“Welcome.” The man behind the desk looked up and offered us a pleasant smile.

“Marco?” Dean’s voice was colored with a surprise I rarely heard.

Marco’s face flashed with recognition, and a smile broke onto his face. “I’ll be damned. Dean, it’s been years!”

Lorcan stared in surprise as the two met with a handshake and shoulder clap, Rhett and Cash stepping forward to greet him as well.

“You four know each other?” Lorcan clarified.

“Yeah,” Rhett said. “They were in Washington the past few years, and since we were in Arizona, our paths crossed fairly often for shifter shit.”

“It’s great to see the three of you,” Marco said before looking at the rest of us. “And Desmond, Adriel, we haven’t formally met, but your reputations precede you.” Whether that was a good or bad thing was up for debate.

“It’s good to meet you.” Desmond met his hand, followed by Adriel doing the same. I had a feeling that Marco was the one in charge here, but I couldn’t read shifter dynamics in the same way that Dean or his brothers could.

“I don’t know the rest of you,” Marco said, almost looking disappointed. “But any friends of Dean are welcome here. I’m Marco Moretti, the alpha of our dragon flight.”

“Draven.” I offered a small nod, keeping Lorcan against me.

“Zander,” the siren said in greeting as well.

“And I’m Lorcan,” Lorcan finished, her eyes flicking over to the men behind Marco. I knew soldiers, and I absolutely knew this was the queen’s guard, mates or not.

“Henry. I’m Marco’s beta,” the man closest to Marco said, adjusting his glasses. “If I’d known you were planning to land here, we would have sent a car.”

“It was a bit of an unexpected stop,” Adriel said as Henry nodded.

“Sai,” the second man said, sitting on the windowsill and flipping around a knife. “I’ve managed to figure out what most of you are, but not Lorcan and Zander. Are you water shifters?”

“Sort of?” Lorcan offered. “That’s actually part of what we need to explain…”

“Draven. It’s good to see you.” My head snapped to a man that I hadn’t paid much mind to, standing in the far corner of the room. My brows shot straight up.

“Azr—Az?” I corrected myself, knowing that he was one of a few angels whose full name invoked power when spoken.

Stepping forward, he offered a small nod and smile. “Yes. It’s been only a few thousand years, so I wouldn’t have blamed you for not recognizing me.”

“I thought you’d been imprisoned by Ry?” I said bluntly, knowing for a fact that’s what had happened.

“I was,” he said, not offering any further information.

“She’s coming down,” the last man said before flashing us all a smile. “Ledger, by the way. Please, feel free to take a seat.”

Moving further into the room, we made ourselves comfortable as Lorcan remained standing.

Her eyes were on the door, waiting for something, as Marco asked Dean a few polite questions.

I couldn’t even focus on the surprise at Azrael’s presence, if we were being honest, because Lorcan appeared suddenly anxious.

A voice filled the air as a fiery magic blew through the room, making me wince uncomfortably. “I didn’t even know we were expecting anyone. How exciting!”

The tone of the woman didn’t match my idea of what a monarch would sound like.

She frankly sounded far too young to be a queen and the lighthearted way she laughed at whatever Croy said as they entered the room held an absence of worry or stress.

Clearly, the group of them had created a situation that worked out here.

I felt envious that we couldn’t provide Lorcan with that yet.

As the young woman stepped into the room, she turned away from Croy and came to a hard stop. Lorcan was frozen next to me, my gaze darting over her face as I watched the color leech out of it.

The silence that filled the room was heavy, and when I looked toward the presumed phoenix queen, she was staring at Lorcan in utter surprise.

“Lorcan?” The woman’s voice triggered a memory that surged through our bond—grief-soaked, haze-wrapped, and aching with guilt. The two of them had met before.

In the memory, Lorcan’s hands were shaking and bruised as she offered her a lipstick. Their conversation was so minimal, but it had been an impactful moment for Lorcan. Embarrassment shuttered through our bond. Shame. Lorcan was ashamed to be facing Maya again, I just didn’t understand why.

Lorcan’s voice was barely above a whisper, but it cut through the silence like a blade.

“Maya. We meet again.”