Page 41 of Wild Bond (Wild Bond #1)

A round mid-morning the day after the battle, I sat propped up on a cot in the Three Points infirmary, my side wrapped snuggly in bandages, my still-healing leg resting comfortably on some pillows, and Skye nestled protectively in my lap. The room was bustling with Hollow Ones seeing to the wounded riders. The banquet hall had been turned into an infirmary for any wounded dragons, since it was one of the only places large enough. Thankfully, Skye’s injuries had healed, and she had already been cleared.

Where I rested was somewhat secluded and set apart from the others. My cot was in the far corner of the large space, with several empty cots around me. This was due to the fact that I currently had about half a dozen very important visitors surrounding said cot.

Rake stood next to the bed with Naasir sitting vigilantly at his feet, the two of them having refused to leave my side since I was wounded. Rake and his formidable dragon’s assessing glares had nearly frightened the life out of the few healers who had been brave enough to see to me. They closely monitored everything they were doing, as if the males suspected the healers intended to hurt me further.

Currently, Princess Helene stood near the foot of the bed, her dragon perched on her shoulder. The two Zehvitian princes completed the last of our impromptu huddle on my left side across from Rake, both of their dragons at their feet. All the leaders looked exhausted and sported small cuts or fading bruises. None of them had been injured as badly as me, however.

It had been utter chaos after the rogue riders had been subdued. Only twenty of the nearly fifty initial combatants that made up Mercedes’ ramshackle force had survived, including their dragons. Once the real dragon riders had realized their opponents weren’t what they thought and pulled back, no one else had been killed. None of our riders were killed during the struggle, though there were some severe injuries, including Warran’s dragon, who had nearly had a wing torn off, and a Zehvitian rider who was suffering from a broken back due to a fall.

The remaining rogue riders were being held in the makeshift cells below us along with their sedated dragons. I had explained to Rake what Mercedes had done to them, and that most of the riders and dragons were victims in their own right. He had made sure that they were treated well, and their needs seen to until we could sort this all out and decide what to do with them.

Hence the unplanned meeting with the present company. It had taken some quick talking on Rake’s part to assure the royals that this had not been a sanctioned or planned attack by Baldor, that Princess Mercedes had acted alone, and this shouldn’t be seen as an act of war. So, for the last half hour, I had been relaying to all of them what had happened with Mercedes; what she had done, and the events that led to her death. Thankfully, Prince Pierce wasn’t here, having left to take her body back to the queen and explain to her about his sister’s treachery. I was glad of it. I didn’t think I could have spoken about it all if he were present. Rake had been the one to speak with him.

I had just gotten settled in my bed in the infirmary last night when Prince Pierce came storming in, his dragon in its minor form on his heels.

“Rakim!” he hollered as he approached. Several people turned to stare and made way for the prince as he crossed the busy space and stopped at my bedside.

Rake stepped in front of me, with Naasir standing ready at his feet. Skye moved over me; her small body watchful as she regarded Pierce.

The prince’s blonde hair was disheveled, and his expression was murderous. “Would you care to explain to me what in the Nine Realms just happened? I had to learn from one of my men that my sister’s body is among the dead and that she was somehow part of the attack.”

Rake’s voice was calm as he replied, “Princess Mercedes wasn’t just caught up in the attack. She led the attack. She was behind the whole thing.”

“That’s impossible,” Pierce scoffed. “Mercedes is harmless. She’s not capable of something like this.”

“It’s true,” Rake argued. “We’ve suspected for months that something was going on . . .” He quickly explained about everything that had been happening and what we now knew Mercedes to be guilty of.

Genuine shock, remorse, and sadness passed over Pierce’s face before he masked them, and I actually felt a twinge of sympathy for him. “Why wasn’t I informed?” he demanded. “You’re the spymaster. Why didn’t you report any of this?”

Rake paused a beat. “I did. I reported my findings to the queen.”

Confusion, then anger suffused Pierce’s expression. “You thought it was me,” he realized. “You thought I was behind it.”

Rake said nothing, but it was answer enough.

Something ticked in his jaw before Pierce informed Rake, “I’m taking my sister’s body back to Dessin. I’ll inform my mother of what’s transpired here.” He glanced at me, then met Rake’s stare again. “Handle this. Try to keep another war from breaking out while I’m gone.” Then the prince turned on his heel and strode away.

I forced myself not to dwell on thoughts of the prince’s reaction while I finished explaining my suspicions about the potion the rogue riders had been given, and its effects.

“How could you possibly know of the potion’s long-term effects or the resulting symptoms?” Princess Helene asked. “Have you seen it before?” Her expression was suspicious as she watched me closely before looking to Rake and back to me. “Explain.”

Obviously seeing no reason to keep secrets any longer, Rake briefly summarized what had been happening in Baldor over the past several months, and our findings in regard to the kidnappings and supposed illness that had been affecting humans and dragons alike.

Prince Malik’s face was like a block of ice by the time Rake finished. “So, all those who survived the battle . . . those that were given this potion . . . will die? There is no saving them?”

“Surely there is something that can be done,” Princess Helene said. “Is it possible to create some kind of antidote?”

Rake’s face was grim. “Not that we’ve seen. Though who knows what exactly was done to them or whether they were given the same potion. Mercedes told Rin there were several. It’s hard to know what the side-effects will be or if there will be any at all. It’s possible they perfected the potion if Mercedes herself took it.”

Just then, Dembe and Zade strode up to our group, both of their dragons walking beside them. A Zehvitian rider I didn’t recognize with the Fangdar dragon insignia on his chest approached with them.

The Zehvitian bowed slightly to his princes while Dembe and Zade moved to Rake’s side. Zade shot me a wink before Dembe spoke. “One of the rogue riders was coherent enough to lead us back to where they and the dragons were being held. It was less than an hour flight from here. There were several hatchlings in cages, as well as mature dragons. Moonstone was used on all of them to keep them from shifting. We also found at least a dozen children, along with some of the men and women that had gone missing.” Dembe then looked at me. “We found Lessa among them, as well as the seamstress she was boarding with.”

I sat up straighter. Rake had told his second about Lessa before they left on the mission with the rogue rider, in hopes that she would be found. “Is she all right?” I asked.

“She’s fine,” he assured me. “A little banged up, but nothing that won’t heal. I told her she could come and visit you once you were finished here.”

I relaxed slightly back into the pillows. Skye nuzzled my hand, and I absently stroked down her spine, relieved beyond belief that Lessa was fine and that she wasn’t one of the ones the bonding potion had been administered to. I couldn’t wait to see her.

Then something he had said registered. “Wait, Lessa is here ?”

Dembe nodded. “We brought her and the other survivors back with us for medical attention. There are no towns or villages near enough for us to take them to, Three Points is too remote. Some of them aren’t coherent enough to remember our location anyway, but they were all blindfolded before traveling here.”

“Mordrick was there as well,” Zade said. “We have him in custody.”

“Mordrick?” Prince Amir asked in surprise. He had also remained mostly quiet until now. “Your queen’s alchemist?”

Zade nodded. “He admitted to working with Princess Mercedes. He helped her concoct the ‘elixirs’, as he called them.”

I was reminded of my accidental visit to the alchemist’s workshop and his unsettling interest in my bond with Skye. Something like this would have been right within the creepy man’s skill set. It also made me wonder if he had been the older man that ordered the chains from Borden. The princess had one of the Andor signet rings, after all. Maybe she gave it to Mordrick for some reason?

“You said the princess mentioned a male accomplice,” Princess Helene reiterated. “Could she have meant this Mordrick?”

I shrugged. “I suppose she could have. But I’m inclined to think it was someone else.”

“Why?” Prince Malik asked.

“She admitted to kidnapping me and entering me in the trial,” I explained. “She couldn’t have done that without the help of a real dragon rider—someone with knowledge of the trials and what goes on.”

After I survived the First Trial, we had discussed the likelihood of a dragon rider being involved in my kidnapping. It made sense that the same rider would have helped Mercedes find Three Points for the attack and been her accomplice for everything else. The implications of what that meant seemed to settle over everyone. To think a rider had a hand in what Mercedes had done and that we didn’t know who he was, was terrifying.

I still couldn’t help but wonder briefly about it being Prince Pierce, even though Mercedes had dismissed the suggestion outright, and his reaction to what his sister had done appeared genuine. He seemed like the perfect suspect—he was a dragon rider and her brother. Then again, maybe some of Rake’s prejudices were just rubbing off on me.

“Rest assured that our riders will be questioned thoroughly,” Helene vowed. “If this rider is among our ranks, he will be found. Traitors are dealt with harshly in Halmar.” The cold way she said this had a shiver coursing down my spine.

“I will question my riders as to whether they saw anything suspicious during the trials,” Prince Malik promised as well.

“Baldor will do the same with our riders,” Rake said.

Prince Malik eyed Rake. “Even your council?”

“Especially our council,” Rake replied.

Our little meeting broke up shortly after that, and I could tell everyone was frustrated with the number of questions that were still left unanswered.

Then a shriek of joy drew my attention to the slight figure barreling towards me.

I barely had time to register Lessa’s wide grin and long dark hair billowing out behind her before she launched herself at me, her skinny arms wrapping me in a fierce hug. I winced a little at the pain in my side, but then ignored it in favor of returning the hug and clasping her tightly to me.

“I’m so glad you’re alright,” I breathed, my worry for her melting away.

“You too, Rinny!” She pulled back. Her face was so earnest as she stared at me. “And I’m so sorry you went to prison for me!” Her eyes widened, as if just realizing what she had said. She eyed Rake warily.

I tried not to laugh, but it was hard when I could see by the curve of his mouth that Rake was fighting a smile as he observed our interaction.

“It’s all right, Lessa,” I assured her. “Rake already knows, and he won’t say anything.”

She gave him a suspicious glance, as if she didn’t quite believe me. That’s when she noticed Naasir sitting silently at his feet and did a double take, glancing back up at Rake. Her mouth gaped open. “Is that . . .?”

My smile was out in full force now. “Yep,” I replied. Her eyes widened even more, and she seemed to be at a sudden loss for words. “Lessa?” I prompted.

She finally got ahold of herself and stopped staring at Rake and Naasir long enough to look back at me. “Hmm?”

“I tried to find you once I got out,” I told her, “but you weren’t in any of the usual places.”

“I didn’t go back to Safan. I think he set us up, and after that night I ran away. I let him think I was caught, too. I found a job with Una. She’s a seamstress, and she’s teaching me how to be one, too. And she even let me stay with her above her shop.”

“That’s wonderful, Lessa,” I replied, fighting to keep the emotion from my voice. For the next hour, she caught me up on what had been happening in her life, and I did the same, introducing her to Skye—who she instantly fell in love with—and telling her all about life as a dragon rider. At first Lessa remained wary of Rake and Naasir, but eventually, when she observed how Rake was with me, she began to relax around them.

When she launched into a story about how Una had let her help sew part of a new dress she was making, I glanced over and shared a warm look with Rake. I was so relieved Lessa was safe. I loved seeing her so happy and knowing my sacrifice had been worth it.