Page 151 of The Keeper of the Kingdoms

After long moments under the healers’ ministrations, she sniffled and sat back up.

“I’m sorry about that. I feel better now,” she said sheepishly. “I’m just so glad you’re home,” she squeezed Kiera’s hand. “Are you well now? You look marvelous.”

“I’m fully healed now,” Kiera glanced at me and grinned. “Mostly thanks to the power of our mate bond.”

Zaria gasped and smacked her hand over her mouth, her eyes shining once more with tears. “That’s amazing news!” she said with obvious joy, then her face fell. “Oh no?—“

“What is it?” Kiera asked.

“He’s going to be insufferable,” she rolled her eyes.

“Who, Nyx?”

Zaria nodded. “He told me this would happen, and I said he couldn’t possibly know.”

I laughed.

“This is so exciting, though! You have to tell me everything. But for the love of the Goddess, please tell me how you’ve come to be here,” she said to Emrys.

“It’s a very long story,” Kiera told her.

Just then, an extremely frayed-looking Nyx wandered in, ruffling his hair and rubbing sleep from his eyes.

“What is a long story?” He said sleepily.

Zaria jumped up, crossing the room to him and studying his face. “Did the draft not work tonight?” she asked, her voice full of concern.

He gave her a soft smile. “I didn’t take it yet, Sol. I just fell asleep while you were in the bathing chamber and got a little nap in, I’m good.” He kissed her forehead and then glanced around the room.

Stunned, he looked from me to Kiera, to Emrys, and then back to me. “Okay, I think I’m going to need to hear this long story!”

FIFTY-EIGHT

KIERA

The pressure was on to figure out this treatment to help Nyx. I could not watch my two friends suffer through this any longer. I had admitted to Nyx the night we returned that I had performed a test on his bonds before I left without his consent, and knew he’d had a soul-bond with Kol. He forgave me. I think it had been a relief for him to openly discuss it.

We told them of the journey that took us from Calanthe to Kerani and how we escaped. And I promised them both we would find the treatment for his severed bond.

When I arrived in my suite fresh from morning rounds, I found Emrys already pouring over the texts.

“How is Nyx this morning?” he asked.

“It was a bad night. I’m glad we were there.” We’d decided to stay with them rather than move into Jaxus’ barracks room for the time being. Not because there was nowhere else to stay butbecause it was clear from the day we got home that Zaria was hanging on by a thread. They had a grand suite of rooms as the general and his mate, so there was room. And it meant we were both on hand when Nyx woke in the night, still believing Kol was reaching for him. Last night, Nyx was especially agitated and got slightly violent when Jaxus tried to restrain him. In the end, I took Zaria back to our bed so she could rest, and Jaxus stayed with Nyx in case he woke again.

“I’m reluctant to give him a stronger sleeping draft because it will affect his days.”

“Agreed,” said Emrys. “I think we are close though, come and look at this.”

I stood over his notes and read what he’d added since I left him last night.

We had recreated the potion multiple times using the Lepid supplies Emrys had procured before we left Kerani and the herbs we had found inside the Amber Vessel. The spell itself relied on a healer’s magic and nothing more. It wasn’t a complicated incantation by any means. But nothing had had any success, and I was beginning to lose hope. Had all this been for nothing?

Then I got to grips with what Emrys’ notes were pointing to. “You think the vessels are the key?” I asked.

“How can they not be? Our legend says that the vessel itself is the Key to the Kingdom. There was never any mention of the contents. It stands to reason that the other ingredient was stored inside it, but I think the vessels are needed to make the potion work.”

I scratched my head. “But how?”