Page 18 of The Dragon Queen (Ember: Queen Of Dragons #6)

EMBER

We end up in the same wing of the castle where we've been staying, but on a level of the complex that I've never visited before. Unlike the rest of the place, which is brimming with Unity refugees and all the others who've come to join our fight, the marble hallways are eerily silent.

I try my best to be patient, but eventually, my curiosity wins out. "Where are we?"

Malik draws me close against his side, and the cool calm of his touch seeps into me. "The royal quarters."

I glance around with fresh eyes. On the surface, this section of the castle isn't that different from the rest, but now that he mentions it, there's a higher level of refinement and elegance.

"I hope you'll forgive me--I've hesitated to settle our guests here."

I shake my head. "Of course."

For both sentimental and logistical reasons, that would be complicated.

"If we exceed capacity in the other wings..." he offers.

I squeeze his arm in understanding. "I know."

I'm still confused about precisely what it is we're doing here now, though. I glance around. Rafe rolls his eyes dramatically, as if to make fun of all the fuss, but he's otherwise uncharacteristically serious. Storm shoots me a small smile, and Jianyu meets my gaze with an encouraging nod.

At long last, we arrive at an unassuming door at the end of an echoing hall. Malik grasps the handle, and it glows with the familiar shine of a magical lock. My brows draw together. Security here is high, but this is next level.

But the moment I follow him inside, it's clear why.

"This is..." I trail off, taking in the pastel-colored walls and the soft carpeting, the rocking chairs and plush couches and carefully arranged shelves full of pristine toys.

A line of curtains separates the room in two, and on the far end are a crib and a small bed and another rocker. The aesthetic of everything is uniquely Water Dragon Kingdom, with flowing lines and natural wood. But you don't have to be an expert in early childhood education to recognize what this is.

"The nursery," Malik confirms, coming up behind me and wrapping his arms around me in a gentle embrace.

A well of feeling opens up within, my vision blurring around the edges. I take in the space again, and before my eyes, it transforms.

I imagine Malik, exhausted but happy in the rocker, Rafe splayed out on the couch. Jianyu sitting cross-legged before one of the shelves of toys, and Storm standing over the crib, quietly singing.

I imagine myself, holding our baby here.

Waves of warmth wash over my mate-bond connections, the exact tenor of feeling different in each man, but an overwhelming sense of love and hope pervades them all.

But there's an almost imperceptible undercurrent, too. A sadness.

I glance back at Malik, and he holds me more tightly, pressing a soft kiss to my temple.

"This is where my brothers and I were raised." The bittersweet note rises higher to the surface, and of course.

His brothers, who died in the Great Dragon War. His father who was his hero, and his mother who's betrayed both him and their Kingdom.

"We had nannies, naturally," Malik continues, "but my parents spent as much time with us here as they could."

I place my hand over his, empathy welling up in me at the faint tendrils of grief in his voice.

"It was not well-publicized, but right before the war hit its crisis point, my eldest brother was courting a woman. They were to be married, and he saw to it that the nursery was updated." Malik swallows, the sound loud against my ear. "If he and his betrothed had survived, they would have raised the future king or queen of the Water Kingdom here. My nephew or niece."

"I'm so sorry..."

"We'll raise our daughter here." He says it with such conviction.

The vision I had a moment ago comes into even sharper focus, the image of me and my mates lovingly caring for a beautiful little girl so close, I can almost reach out and touch it.

"There's a room just like this in the Palace in Shitou," Jianyu says quietly.

Rafe nods. "And in the Crimson City."

"We'll build a home," Storm promises. "Right outside of Wynrath Crest."

I swallow a chuckle, reaching out for him, and he takes me by the hand. Of course he'd know I wouldn't want to live in the mansion where Zephyr and Fury ruled the Air Kingdom with an iron fist.

But there are parts of that beautiful, sun-drenched, high desert landscape I long to show our daughter.

My entire childhood, my family floated from place to place. At the time, I thought we were touring the globe because we loved exploring--and we did. Our life was a magical, infinite journey.

But in hindsight, we were on the run. Hiding from the Shadow King and his forces, who saw my father's decision to leave as a betrayal.

Who saw my very existence as a threat.

I want my child to see the globe, too--and she will. But she'll rest in soft beds in cozy, thoughtfully planned nurseries. She'll be a citizen of each of the four great Dragon Nations, and of the Shadow Kingdom as well. She'll have a home wherever she goes.

I glance from one mate to the next, feeling the strength of their love. They're showing me, right here and now, their commitment to that kind of future for our family.

"Thank you," I whisper, turning in Malik's arms.

He shakes his head slightly, his eyes carrying a soft hint of a gleam. "Thank you."

With one hand, he brushes the side of my abdomen, and then he folds me in. Our lips meet sweetly before he releases me to kiss each of my other mates in turn. The embraces remain gentle--even Rafe doesn't try to turn it into anything passionate or dirty.

As I pull back, the far corner of the room catches my eye.

"Wow." I wander over and drop to sit on the plush carpeting in front of a tastefully but generously stocked bookshelf. Running my fingertip along the colorful spines of pristine children's books, I shake my head in wonder. "What baby me would have given for a reading nook like this."

It's perfectly laid out, with tons of titles to choose from, a little table and chairs, as well as soft floor pillows and bean bag style chairs to lounge on. Soft sun pours in from a nearby window, and there are a few shaded lamps set up, too.

As I take it all in, my mates come to join me, but they don't sit. After a moment of silence, I look up from the books to find them all staring at me.

I crinkle my brows. "What?"

"Nothing," Rafe says, his voice surprisingly rough.

Jianyu moves to kneel beside me, reaching out to rub my leg. "Do not mistake us--you look perfectly at home on a battlefield. But seeing you here? Like this?" His dark eyes are heart-stoppingly soft. "It feels right."

My mouth wavers, and I direct my gaze to the bookshelf once more. "My parents and I used to read together all the time."

My mother especially. My mind drifts back to those days, cuddled up beside her as she indulged me time and time again, re-reading the same stories of magic and adventure.

My memories of that part of my life were tainted for so long, ruined by her absence. There was an aching hole in my heart.

But now that I know she's really gone... That she didn't abandon me... That she died trying to rescue my father--her true, Fated Mate--from a life of eternal Shadow...

The empty place inside of me is finally beginning to heal.

The veil of grief and resentment and outright abandonment lifts from my memories.

My chest squeezes. Gods, I wish my mom were here. I wish she could read to her grandchild.

My eyes stinging, I study the spines again, trying to get my emotions under control. Not that it matters--my mates can feel the power with which they're welling up inside me.

For a moment, my feelings of loss and joy and fear for the future threaten to overwhelm me.

But then my vision focuses.

I stop, my finger catching on the edge of one of the books.

A lilting, dizzying sense of deja vu suddenly has me spinning.

It seems like a lifetime ago, but I'm transported back to that fateful morning. Right before I found out about the upcoming Emergence in the Air Dragon Kingdom.

The last "normal" day of my old life.

I was working in Maude's second-hand shop in Wynrath Crest, straightening the shelves, and I found this book. I blink--it couldn't be the same copy. It couldn't.

Even if it were--it doesn't matter. The book was a collection of fairy tales. Myths and legends. Stories of powerful dragons and handsome knights on horseback rescuing helpless maidens. I saw it, and it sent a sharp pang of longing through me. I thought of my mother and my father. I could smell my mom's wood fire and orange blossom scent. Hear her voice.

My throat catches.

The oldest, tritest stories become legends because they are built around a kernel of truth.

"Ember?" Storm's voice comes to me from a long, long way away.

Ignoring him, I pull the book from the shelf, and static roars in my ears. I'm still spinning out in my mind, the world tilting on its axis.

There was an ancient myth, buried in these pages. One I scoffed at as absurd, while also devouring as a lover of stories.

About a dragon descended from all of the Dragon Kingdoms.

One who would bring light to Shadow.

I open the book, flipping through the pages. Black and white illustrations leap out at me, as vivid as if they were in full color. My mates are trying to get my attention, but my focus is undivided. Almost of its own volition, the book opens to the final story in the volume.

And there it is.

My heart thunders. My dragon recoils.

Barely able to hear even myself, I whisper, "I know where the Crown Of Cinders is."