Page 13 of The Uncrowned King (The Bastard Duology #2)

CHAPTER THIRTEEN

Kora’s eyes snapped open. She lay quietly, listening for what had woken her. At first, she didn’t hear anything. Then came the rush of footsteps running down the hallway. She pushed into a seated position, then ran to the door barefoot, pulling it open to look outside. She caught sight of someone’s backside before they turned the corner.

Now that she was in the corridor, she could hear others. Something was happening. She ran after the person she saw, hoping she remembered how to get back to the main area. By the time she reached the stairs, a crowd was already gathered. She scanned the faces, looking for someone she knew.

She saw Tamlyn and Sian, but both were herding the children through a door. Con stood at the front of the group with a blonde whose hair was the same color as his. On Con’s other side was a man with the same dark eyes as Con.

“Kora.”

She spun at the voice coming up beside her. A sigh went through her at the sight of Rhi. “Is it Merrill and the others? Have they found Derek?”

“It isn’t Merrill.”

Three words, but they sucked all the hope from her. That was when she noticed that Rhi was watching her carefully. “What is it? What aren’t you telling me?”

“There was an attack on a King patrolling the border.”

They thought it was Derek. Maybe they even had confirmation. And that hung in the air between them. Kora wanted to ask, but the words were locked in her throat. She wanted it to be Derek. Didn’t she? At least she would know where he was.

“We’re still sorting out the details. Hector hasn’t woken.”

It took her two tries to find her voice. “It was Derek, wasn’t it?”

Rhi pressed her lips together and glanced at Con. “Maybe.”

“I don’t understand. What do you mean, maybe ?”

“There is an entity here that only Star People can see. It targets dragons.”

Kora blinked a couple of times to digest that information. “If the Star People can see it, why doesn’t Lotti kill it?”

“She tried. She thought she had succeeded, too.”

“So, that’s what attacked Hector this morning?”

Rhi dropped her gaze to the floor for a heartbeat. “There were indentations in the ground to suggest that two dragons had been hit. When we were alerted, we only found Hector. He had injuries that appeared to come from a battle with another dragon.”

Kora swallowed. The up-and-down emotions were making her nauseous. “All right. What does this mean?”

“Others are looking for any sign of Derek. He has distinctive markings that will make him easier to find. Con healed Hector, and we’re waiting for him to wake so he can tell us if it was Derek.”

Kora heard Con talking but wasn’t paying attention to his words. “I can’t just sit here. Let me go out and look for Derek.”

“It isn’t that simple,” Rhi said. “The dragons are getting irritated by the number of mortals on their land. They don’t care that we’re with the Kings. They don’t care if we have magic. They even consider me human. Tensions are high. It’s why the Kings with mates live at Iron Hall.”

“The dragons hate us that much?”

Rhi’s lips twisted. “If you knew the history, you’d understand. And I’ll be happy to tell you the story one day. For now, come with me.”

“Where are we going?” Kora asked as she trailed behind the Fae.

“To Hector.”

Kora was shocked they would bring her to him, but she was delighted at the prospect of getting to hear Hector’s account firsthand. She couldn’t decide if she wanted him to have been attacked by Derek or not. On one hand, it would let them know where Derek was. On the other, it would prove that Miena had indeed turned him into what she wanted.

But there was more to be concerned about.

Kora hurried to fall into step with Rhi. “This other entity you spoke of, you’re telling me it’s invisible?”

“Unfortunately,” Rhi said. “It took down fifty dragons and then went after my children. The twins were hit separately, but it was close for them. Con reached them in time.”

“Everything can be killed. We just need to figure out how.”

Rhi turned her head to her and smiled. “We?”

Kora shrugged. “Aye.”

“It’s good to have you join us.”

“I’ve always hated dragons. It’s been a change to see them as anything but my enemies.”

Rhi slowed her steps and came to a halt. “There are good and bad people. Maybe I’ll tell you about the horror that was my biological mother someday. My point is that it’s easy to lump everyone into a single group. I’m not saying you didn’t have a good reason, though.”

“I understand. If Derek had told me early on what he was, I likely wouldn’t have gotten to know him. And I would’ve missed out on…” She swallowed around the lump in her throat.

Rhi touched her arm. “I understand. More than you realize. Come. Let’s see if Hector has woken.”

Kora followed Rhi into the room. A man lay on a table in the center of the space. Along the walls were shelves containing books and jars of various sizes. There were more shelves with glass containers with small markings she couldn’t read. Dried herbs were hanging from pegs. There was also a chart labeled The Alchemists Table of Symbols on the wall.

“This is one of Sian’s workrooms,” Rhi explained.

Kora turned her attention to the table once more. Hector lay unmoving on his back, a blanket covering him up to his shoulders. His wavy, light brown hair was tangled, and there was dried blood on his face and some on his shoulder that disappeared beneath the blanket.

“The Kings are all but immortal,” Rhi said in a soft voice as she walked to the table. “On Earth, only another King can kill a King. We’ve only recently learned that Star People can kill them, too. This entity is getting close. Too close,” she added in a whisper.

Footsteps sounded behind her. Kora moved from the doorway as Con entered, followed by the man and woman she had seen earlier.

“Any change?” Con asked. Rhi shook her head in answer. Con sighed before his dark gaze slid to her. “Kora, these are our children. Eurwen and Brandr. They rule the dragons here.”

Kora offered them a nod of greeting. Eurwen had Con’s blond hair and Rhi’s silver eyes, while Brandr had Rhi’s black hair and Con’s dark eyes.

“I’m sorry we weren’t here yesterday to greet you,” Eurwen said. “We were out on patrol.”

Brandr glanced at his sister and nodded. “If Derek is within the borders, we’ll find him.”

“That might be exactly what he wants. Especially if he was the one who attacked Hector,” Kora said.

Con crossed his arms over his chest as he stood at Hector’s head. “I explained the situation to the twins.”

“When we locate Derek, we’ll subdue him,” Brandr explained.

Rhi’s brows furrowed. “Will that work?”

“It will have to,” Eurwen replied.

Con nodded once. “It will.”

“How bad were Hector’s injuries?” Brandr asked.

Con said nothing as Rhi grimaced. “Worse than yours.”

“That thing is what we should be going after,” Brandr said. “Fuck Villette. It willna stop until it kills one of us.”

A groan came from the table before Hector said, “I do believe that’s the intent.”

“Doona move,” Con said as he rested a hand on Hector’s shoulder. “Rest.”

The tension went out of Hector’s limbs. His throat bobbed as he swallowed, then he opened his eyes. Rhi was the first to go to him. She took his hand and squeezed. Hector gave her a lopsided grin, then nodded to Brandr and Eurwen. His eyes locked with Con’s. No words were spoken aloud, but something passed between them. Kora tried not to fidget when Hector’s dark eyes turned to her.

“This is Kora,” Rhi told him.

Hector pushed into a seated position, the blanket falling away to reveal a muscular body. “The hellhound.” Hector flashed her a smile. “Good to meet you. Though I doona think you’re here for an introduction.”

“We saw evidence of another dragon when we reached you,” Con said. “What happened?”

Hector swung his legs over the side of the table. As he did, clothes covered him, but it was no attire Kora had ever seen. The pants were a thick, dark blue color, the white shirt was plain with a round neck and short sleeves that contoured to his torso, and his boots were nothing like the ones she knew.

“I spotted him on patrol,” Hector said.

Kora forgot about his clothes as she refocused. Words leaped from her. “Derek? You saw Derek?”

“I did,” he told her. “He dove into the trees, so I kept my distance to see what he might do. It wasna long before he returned. I let him think I didna know he was behind me. He attacked, and I feinted to the side before I went after him.” Hector paused and looked at the others. “The entity came at us almost immediately. It struck me first, but I think Derek got hit harder. We fell. I expected to get struck again, but then we slammed into the ground. I doona remember anything after that.”

Brandr fisted his hands at his sides. “Fuck.”

“The being hasn’t been seen since the encounter with Lotti and the others,” Eurwen said. “I really believed it had gone off to die.”

Brandr cut his eyes to her. “We wouldna be so lucky.”

“When we reached you, Derek was gone,” Con told Hector. “The creature has never taken anyone before.”

Kora’s confusion must have shown on her face because Rhi said, “Hector alerted us that he might have found Derek. Con and a few other Kings went to investigate.”

Without telling her. Kora shouldn’t be upset, but she was. She wanted to see Derek. Maybe seeing her would be all it took for his memories to return. Then, this nightmare could be over.

She knew it was a foolish dream, but it was all she had.

“If the entity didn’t take Derek, then where is he?” Eurwen asked.

Brandr ran a hand over his jaw. “The dragons will tell us if they see him.”

Hector stood, tossed the blanket aside, and shrugged, his lips twisting. “All I know is there was murder in his eyes.” Hector looked at Con. “The kind of vengeance we fought for too many years.”

“Then we know what to do,” Con replied.

Hector gathered his shoulder-length hair behind his head and tied it. “I’m no’ sure he’ll listen to reason.”

“Then we make him,” Eurwen said. “He’ll have to calm down eventually.”

Brandr grunted. “No’ necessarily.”

“Use me,” Kora offered.

Everyone in the room turned to her.

“Let him get my scent. He’ll come straight for me,” she told them.

Rhi’s face fell. “Only as a last resort.”

“Do we have that kind of time?” Kora looked around the room. “I’ve known from the moment Miena took him that the only way I would find him again was to offer myself as bait.”

Con stared at her with his black eyes. “He’s a King, but he’s a creation of a Star Person. We doona know the extent of his powers.”

“He’s saying we might no’ be able to keep you alive,” Hector explained.

Kora had wanted to die once. Now, she wanted to live, but she wanted that life with Derek. It wouldn’t be much of one without him. “I understand and am prepared for whatever happens. Miena must be stopped. And Derek…” She blinked back tears. “He deserves to get his life back.”

The mood in the room shifted to one of urgency and determination.

“We need Merrill,” Con said and looked at Rhi. “We need to know every detail of what he knows about Derek’s battle skills and magic.” Con swung his head to Kora. “Until Merrill gets here, tell us what you know. Everything you can remember.”