Page 39 of Shattered Galaxies (Tears of the Siren #6)

LORCAN

Two months after the war…

Saqat was beautiful.

There were countless words I could have used to describe the mountainous Demonic realm sector, but none of them truly captured the perfection of Draven’s kingdom. The few visions he’d shown me hadn’t done it justice.

The landscape was cold, winter clinging to the land despite the arrival of spring, and powerful winds off the demonic sea carried the bite of an oncoming storm. But as we sailed from Desmond’s port toward Draven’s kingdom, I was utterly captivated by the silhouette of Saqat rising in the distance.

A frost-covered stone castle built into the sheer cliffs of the mountainside stood stark and regal beneath the midday sky.

It loomed above a city glowing with warm lights, their soft flicker visible even from afar.

The black sand beaches welcomed us, and from the moment we arrived in port, I saw fallen angels soaring above the snow-covered pines, moving with an elegance that left me in awe.

As we slowly made our way toward the castle, I noted every twist and turn of the path. Torchlight illuminated our route, casting an enchanted icy blue glow that melted the snow in small halos of light.

Hours later, after the transfer of power ceremony Draven underwent to hand over the reins as king, I felt comfortable and cozy despite the chill.

My arms were wrapped around my angel mate’s neck as we sat at an elevated table beside the new king, Tomas.

His mate, Brianna, sat on his other side, both of them wearing black crowns that glinted with jewels as they watched the events of the ballroom unfold.

The celebration was something to behold, made even brighter by their shared excitement for what was to come.

The ballroom itself looked hand-crafted from dark volcanic stone, silver inlay dancing across the floors and walls before reaching the vaulted ceiling.

Diamond chandeliers suspended by chains cast a glowing blue light throughout the room—light that reminded me of waves breaking beneath moonlight.

Soft silver-lit particles, almost like snowflakes, floated from the ceiling as stringed instruments played a haunting melody that contrasted the laughter and celebratory nature of everyone present.

Everything in this room, in this realm, radiated a cold, elegant power that held me utterly captive.

Although nothing was more fascinating than the people.

Draven and Tomas had invited every member of the kingdom to the celebration, both to show that my mate was truly alive and well and to assure everyone that this was a voluntary transfer of power.

Because of that, everyone from nobles to commoners was here, all dressed in their best formal wear—tailored in shades of black and silver, with floor-length capes to keep them warm.

Even children ran through the ballroom, narrowly avoiding the soldiers stationed throughout. The most captivating part? The wings.

Gorgeous wings of every shade, color, and size were on display, and I couldn’t help but wonder what it would be like to have wings…although I imagine someone would feel the same way about growing a literal mermaid tail.

“I’m surprised they showed up,” Draven admitted against my ear.

I nodded, my gaze tracking to the far left of the ballroom.

My other men were nearby, standing right to the side of the elevated table, relaxing and enjoying the night while drinking from their black stone goblets.

Something I may or may not try to bring back to our house…

But to the other side of them, closer to the center, was a table of the other leadership from the demonic realm—outside of Desmond—that had come to witness the ceremony.

King Doylerion of the Eazam Kingdom and King Surchardson of the Nar Kingdom sat together, looking entertained by their own conversation—although I had no doubt they were listening to the rest of the table.

While all the rulers had been informed of what had happened in the war against the dark ones, they’d also been told of my heritage, and I’d surprisingly been given a somewhat apology from both for their suspicion of me the last time we were in the Demonic realm.

I didn’t believe for a minute, though, that they didn’t have eyes on everything.

Queen Red, on the other hand—the monarch of the Almawt Kingdom—was absolutely not paying attention to anything or anyone but the group of angelic suitors surrounding her.

I watched in amusement as she brushed them off, clearly entertained by their despondent expressions.

I truly hadn’t known what to think of her at first, but the longer I was around her, the more she grew on me.

It was also helped by the fact that I knew she had a good heart.

Although she would probably be pissed if I ever told her my thoughts on that.

And then there was Hellsen, the King of the Alfaragh Kingdom.

“Yeah, he’s going to get kicked out,” I mused, watching as he used his magic—a thick dark fog—to knock someone’s drink over from across the room. I smirked at the individual’s reaction, watching them look around, baffled, as Hellsen chuckled and continued to spread mischief throughout the room.

“I suppose it could be worse,” Draven murmured, shaking his head before lifting me from his lap and standing. “Come with me.”

The sudden change in pace had my brows shooting up as I let him lead me to the end of the table.

Desmond and Draven exchanged looks in some sort of silent communication before Draven all but whisked me off to a set of doors to the side of the room.

I curled further into my cloak as we stepped out onto a massive stone balcony, my breath catching.

Stunning.

“Needed a break from the celebrating?” I teased.

“That, and I wanted a moment alone with my mate,” he admitted easily, catching me against him. I melted into his chest, both of us looking out at the ocean.

Draven had never shied away from touch after leaving Broken House, but all of my men had been especially touchy since I’d woken from my unconscious state following the war.

The war that we’d won.

In the three months since, there had been a lot of change throughout the realms, but Earth had stayed relatively untouched.

I’d heard rumors that Nova’s allies Hecate and Isis were renewing efforts to change the witch community, but outside of that, life had returned to normal.

Everything was boring for us in the best way possible.

I also felt more powerful than ever, my star and water elf abilities growing quickly, as if filling in for the place my siren magic had left open.

My siren magic . I nearly smiled at that.

While no longer together, I could still hear whispers of others’ desires if I tried—almost like an instinctual reflex that allowed for a level of intuition that could be extremely helpful but never overwhelming.

More so, there was one place where my siren hadn’t fully left—my ability to play music.

It didn’t cause my mates to shift violently or put everyone under a spell, but the music I produced was some of the best I’d ever played.

Cormac and I had already crafted an entire album within a month—composed ourselves—after long nights collaborating with the help of some delicious food.

It felt almost unfair that I was getting the best of both worlds, removing the hardship of being a siren while still experiencing so many of the things that made it enjoyable.

I’d expressed as much to my mates…who had looked at me like I was crazy.

Apparently, after everything I’d been through, I wasn’t very good at just relaxing into life and letting ‘good’ things happen for me. Who would have thought.

“Lorcan.” Draven’s voice against my ear caused me to look up as I offered him a smile, feeling concern through our bond.

“Sorry,” I murmured. “Thinking about how much has changed…and not really changed since the war. I almost feel bad that we aren’t doing more.

” Draven looked confused so I explained, “Nova is in the God realm fixing shit and handling politics, and except for this trip, we’ve been swimming in our pool in Arizona, having fantastic sex, and relaxing. ”

Draven stared at me for a long moment before breaking into a smile and barking out a laugh. It was so unexpected that I just stared at him in wonder, melting like the obsessed fool that I clearly was.

“Lorcan, you just saved the entire universe.” He inhaled sharply, bringing a more serious note to the moment. “You deserve eons of time to relax, if not more. What anyone else does or doesn’t do does not reflect on you. You’ve done your part. Let others handle the rest.”

“You’re right,” I said, staring up into his handsome face, moving my hand to his chest and the solid heartbeat underneath it. “Plus, I think me being unconscious for nearly a month may have made all of you a bit too crazy to be in normal society right now.”

Draven flashed an almost feral smile. “What makes you say that?”

“Well, considering this is our first successful public outing in two months?” I teased. “And because the last time we tried, one of you nearly broke someone’s neck for being too close to me… I mean, I’m just saying.”

“The waiter tried to touch your shoulder,” he rumbled. “That’s our shoulder—not his.”

“I know, honey,” I said, burying my head in his chest to stifle my laugh. There was no avoiding them being like this until they felt sure I wasn’t going to be unconscious again…and that was completely okay with me. I loved this.

Hearing a cheer go up in the other room, I asked Draven more seriously, “And you’re okay with giving all of this up? Everyone else is used to the Earth realm, but I don’t want you to feel?—”

Draven’s kiss was hard and intense. My fingers bit into his arms as I let out a small whimper, and when he pulled back, his lavender eyes flashed with heat.

“Don’t ever question that. You’re my entire future, Lorcan.” He stared at me intently until I nodded, making sure I understood. I’d already known the answer but felt the need to ask just one more time. Draven continued, “Plus, this kingdom is in good hands. We can visit whenever we want.”

“I may want to,” I said, looking around. “It’s gorgeous here.”

“I could agree with that analysis.”

“Holy shit!” I squeaked, nearly jumping into Draven as Apep of all fucking people appeared five feet down the balcony from us, staring out toward the ocean. What the fuck was he doing here?

Draven let out a deep rumble of annoyance as I tried to pat his chest in comfort.

“Shit, give some warning!”

“My bad,” Apep mused, not sorry in the least. “I’m here to deliver a message, because apparently I’ve been reduced to a messenger. Nova would like you to come to the God realm for ‘funsies’ when you can.”

I nearly burst out laughing at his tone. “Wait, why didn’t she just send a text?” I arched a brow. Something wasn’t adding up here. Apep shrugged nonchalantly, his gaze going toward the ballroom with interest.

“Did you…want to join the celebration?” Draven asked.

Apep’s gaze snapped back to us, his expression baffled. “No. No I did not.”

“Lorcan! I had a quick question about—” Suddenly, Ella—Desmond’s sister, who’d managed to convince her parents to come with us last minute—appeared in the doorway. The sunny woman was dressed in a brilliant yellow gown paired with yellow diamonds, her djinn smoke curling around her like tattoos.

Ella’s words were cut off as she came to a full stop and stared, wide-eyed at…Apep? The ancient god in question stared back in stunned silence.

“Question about?” I prompted her, trying to defuse the weird tension.

“Just that…” Her gaze shifted between me and Apep. “Cormac had mentioned going on a journey to find more sirens. Do you think he’d be cool with me tagging along? I really need to get out of the kingdom more?—”

“No.”

My eyes widened, and Draven tensed at Apep’s answer. Neither understood what was going on.

You know who wasn’t confused? Ella. She put her hand on her hip and frowned. “No? Who the heck are you to say no?”

If I hadn’t loved Ella before, I loved her now.

“Doesn’t matter who I am. You don’t need to go hunting for sirens,” he growled, his magic expanding around him and making him appear bigger.

Apep was already tall, lean and muscular, and there wasn’t much human about him compared to Ella—so there was zero chance of him realizing what a psycho he seemed like right now.

I wanted to clarify that Cormac was not hunting sirens; he was looking to build a community of resources, especially now that sirens were no longer considered ‘evil.’ Something I liked to think I could take credit for…but it didn’t matter. I couldn’t get a word in edgewise.

“I think it does matter who you are,” Ella argued, shaking her head and looking back at me. “Do you mind asking him?”

“Sure,” I said immediately, happy to agree to anything to get me out of the awkward moment. She inhaled and offered me a bright smile before sliding her gaze back to Apep. The two of them shared a long look before she returned to the ballroom. Apep stood frozen, staring at her departure.

“You good?” I asked.

“Who was that?” he demanded, sparking another rumble from Draven’s chest.

“That’s Ella, Desmond’s sister and the second in line for the Dukhan Kingdom’s throne.” My words seemed to resonate for a long moment before Apep just…disappeared.

“That isn’t good,” I murmured.

“What, an Egyptian deity of chaos taking interest in a Demonic realm princess? What could go wrong?” Draven’s dry tone made me laugh.

That was a problem for tomorrow. Tonight we would celebrate.