Authors: Scarlet Hyacinth
Tags: #Romance
He tasted bile in his throat as a flash of those final moments passed through his mind’s eye once more. He barely managed to reach the bathroom before it got too much. Karein dropped to his knees and threw up. As he heaved over the toilet, he tried to exorcise the guilt and death of another man and focus on his own priorities. He couldn’t do this. He hadn’t had such a bad reaction to a nightmare since they’d first started, nearly two centuries ago. At the time, Karein had only been a hatchling. It was unforgivable for him to act like this now. For fuck’s sake, he was a general, the most feared shifter on Earth. What would his foes say if they saw him weak and on his knees because of a dream? What would his mate think?
The thought snapped him out of his trance. He began to recover, and the dry heaves stopped. He struggled to his feet and washed his face, grimacing when he noticed his reflection in the mirror. He looked like he’d been through a battle with twenty-five werewolves and lost. Just when he thought it couldn’t get any worse, the image of his own face vanished, melting into the one painted in so many portraits Karein himself had commissioned. Kaelezrin’s face.
With an angry roar, Karein punched the mirror, sending shards of glass flying all over the place. Fortunately for Karein, his skin was quite tough even in human form, so he wouldn’t be cut, not that Karein would have cared either way. He was angry and frustrated, sick of having his happiness shattered like the mirror he himself had broken, sick of asking himself what it all meant and of the darkness encroaching on his mind at the worst possible times. Damn it, he had a little time left. He hadn’t hit his two hundredth birthday yet. Why was he being plagued by the memories and pain of someone else?
All right. He had to stop it. He needed to focus. This wasn’t anything new, and he could handle it. Nodding to himself, Karein gathered the glass and threw it in the trash. He caught a glimpse of his reflection in one of the shards. Kaelezrin was gone. Karein was just himself, the son of Kavehquader and Rowenasheb Tersain, general of the Chrysalidian Wyverns and Sareltae Norrenddare’s mate. He was also Hareematek Tersain’s brother, and as all those things, he had a thousand and one things to do. He couldn’t afford to fall apart.
Already feeling a little better, Karein returned to his room and dressed for his day. For the moment, Hareem refused to consider returning Taryn to his people, so that matter would have to wait. But Sari couldn’t. Karein desperately wanted to see the fae, to make sure Sari was all right. After finishing his preparations, Karein stalked out of the room and headed directly for the guest wing.
He changed his mind at the last moment. What was he going to do, just knock at Sari’s door? Would that even be appropriate? Of course it would, his dragon replied. Sari belonged to him. By rights, they shouldn’t have slept apart in the first place. Karein frowned at his own thoughts. Once he got married, he and Sari would have to share a bed. What would happen if he had one of those horrible nightmares while Sari was next to him? Overlords, Karein didn’t even want to imagine it.
And what if the voices from his childhood returned? Karein was studiously ignoring their possible cause, but that didn’t change the fact that it had been there. More importantly, it didn’t wash the blood off Karein’s hands.
It was all so very confusing. Karein had never figured out the true connection between his episodes of near schizophrenia as a child and his nightmares, if there was one. Did it even have any link to his steady advance toward his two hundredth birthday, or was it something different? Karein didn’t know anything anymore, except for the fact that he was a complete mess. Sari deserved much better. He might not be safe at Karein’s side.
Karein was so lost in his horror that he didn’t even realize his steps had carried him to one of the numerous dining rooms until he was already walking inside. There, his eyes fell on his mate, sitting at the table with Prince Misael and Princess Charlize, as well as with Karein’s own siblings.
Hareem greeted him cheerfully. “Good morning, brother. We didn’t expect to see you at breakfast since you never eat with us.”
“I decided to make an exception,” Karein replied. He sat down next to Sari, ignoring the puzzled looks the rest of the fae threw his way. Obviously, the aftereffects of his bad morning were still showing.
“Are you all right?” Sari murmured in his ear. His dragon started to settle down at Sari’s mere presence, forgetting about the shadows of the past.
Karein nodded. He’d have liked to tell Sari so much. No, what he wanted was to take Sari in his arms, hold him close, and never let go. But that wasn’t possible, so Karein just remained silent as servants swept in to provide him with plates and silverware. Karein snacked on the quiche and scones, enjoying Sari’s nearness while taking note of the conversation between his brother and Princess Charlize. It seemed that Hareem was still stubbornly clinging to the idea of sheltering Taryn with the fae, so much so that Akara was beginning to look suspicious.
He might have intervened had the doors not suddenly opened, interrupting all discussions. Much to Karein’s surprise, his mother walked in. All those present got up, bowing. “Good morning,” the empress said. “Prince Misael, Princess Charlize, Prince Sareltae, I trust you all slept well.”
“Very well, Your Majesty,” Misael replied politely.
“Excellent.” Rowenasheb smiled, obviously not caring one way or another as to how the fae had fared on their first day in Draechenburg. “We’ve just received word from Rose Noire. King Selbrian has agreed to our terms. The wedding will be held at the end of the week.”
There were cheers all around, although likely, none of them were genuine. Sari’s hand brushed against Karein, a slight touch that could have seemed accidental but clearly wasn’t. The simple affection in that gesture was like a balm for Karein’s heart. At last, his dragon truly began to settle, and he managed to throw a brief smile in his mate’s direction. Since he couldn’t allow his mother to notice any closeness between him and Sari, he couldn’t say or do anything else. Instead, he turned toward the empress. “I believe that’s great news,” he said neutrally.
“It is, indeed,” she answered. “And on this note, I must applaud your initiative, Shtamakarein. It’s very good that you’re taking advantage of this time to get to know Prince Sareltae better.”
Hoping that he was interpreting her words correctly, Karein allowed himself to do what he’d wanted in the first place. He took Sari’s hand and kissed it. “Every moment spent in Prince Sareltae’s presence is an honor and a privilege.”
“Sadly, I must rob you of that privilege after breakfast. Come see your father and me. We have much to discuss.” Turning toward the group of fae, she added, “Have an excellent meal. I’m afraid my husband is waiting and I cannot stay. Good day.”
She turned on her heel and stalked out without another word. Karein wondered what exactly she wanted to tell him. Had he been too obvious in his affections toward Sari? No, that couldn’t be it. He knew his parents well, and he could read their cues. They wanted him and Sari to become close. They couldn’t have learned about his visit to Sari’s bedroom. The only one who knew was Sage, and if Sage betrayed him, Karein had no doubt that his mother wouldn’t be bothering with smiles and polite platitudes at breakfast. No, they were going through with the original plan. Karein just had to continue to pretend, like he’d done for three-quarters of his life.
Everyone sat back down, and they finished the meal, this time remaining mostly quiet. Once the servants removed the plates, Karein excused himself. His mother’s intervention had given him the opportunity to stop being so wary, so before he left, he said to Sari, “Perhaps I’ll see you later in the library.”
“I’d be honored,” Sari murmured back. He still looked puzzled and a little concerned, but Karein couldn’t explain things, not just yet.
With a simple nod as a good-bye, Karein left the room. He was disinclined to allow Sari to just wander around in the palace without someone to assist him. Fortunately, Sage almost seemed to guess his thoughts as he made his appearance at the most opportune moment. “Good morning, Highness,” the other draechen said. “I heard you were having breakfast and wanted to check if you have any special dispositions for today.”
“Actually, yes,” Karein replied. “I want you to help Sari get to the library after he leaves here. Don’t lose sight of him. I want him to be safe, no matter what.”
Sage saluted. “Understood, Your Highness. I will protect him with my life.”
Karein truly hoped no such dire measurements would be necessary, but anything was possible in Draechenburg. Thanking Sage, he headed toward the throne room. His parents were waiting. Even if he had no desire to see them, he kept a brisk step, wanting to get this over with. Besides, the information they provided could clear things up a little.
The soldiers guarding the throne room let him pass without the usual process of announcing him, which was somewhat of a surprise. He half expected it to be a trap of sorts, but when he entered the room, his mother just greeted him with her normal coldness. “Ah, Shtamakarein. Excellent. Your father and I were just discussing your approach in the Ivenian matter.”
From his position on the pile of jewelry, the emperor said,
“Your mother tells me that you have been taking steps to seduce Sareltae. That’s very good, but I want to see faster progress. Do you think that as the situation is right now, he will allow you to claim him during your wedding night?”
Karein shook his head. “We’ve only just met. It’s far too soon.”
“Well, you need to put more effort into it,” the empress said. “Sweep him off his feet. Don’t go too far, because you’ll scare him away, but romance him. I understand he’s never left Rose Noire. He has no idea what a relationship even means. You can use that for your benefit.”
“So I shall,” Karein promised. On impulse, he decided to throw a riskier comment out there, hoping he wouldn’t fuck up things further while doing so. “But if I may, even if he isn’t inclined to be seduced by me, I can always force him into it. What can the fae do? Start a war?”
Of course, he had no intention to let it get to that. Once his parents got impatient, he would just tell them that it had been a mistake, that Sari had nothing to do with the ploy to free Caelyn’s mate. He could easily blame Eanera alone for it since they had no chance of proving the High Priestess had been involved.
His mother gave him a disapproving glance. “It’s not like you to be rash, Shtamakarein.”
“I’m just considering every scenario,” Karein replied. “Of course I will do my best to make him surrender to my will. But the circumstances are already highly in our favor.”
“You are correct, Shtamakarein,”
the emperor said in Karein’s mind.
“However, should we begin an unjustified war, the magical races would pile up against us. Our forces would be decimated, and we can’t afford that.”
Karein had the urge to look around for flying pigs. He couldn’t believe it. The day had come when he and his father actually agreed on something. Of course, as it seemed, the emperor had a very unpleasant motive behind his reasoning. As he left the pile of jewelry and gold that served as his secondary throne, the red dragon added,
“I have big plans for our people, Shtamakarein. The shifters have remained in the shadows for long enough. It’s time to squash these insects that call themselves humans.”
In hindsight, Karein supposed he had expected this. The emperor’s lust for power wouldn’t stop at one conquest. The fae were just the first step in his campaign for world domination, which was why he’d even decided to take things slow with Sari. “I understand,” Karein said. “As always, I live and die by your command.”
“That’s what we wanted to hear.” The empress smirked. “Now, go, Shtamakarein, and make sure that by the time you are wed, that fae will be eating out of the palm of your hand.”
Karein bowed and abandoned the throne room. A part of him was relieved as his parents clearly had no clue of the true extent of the bond between Karein and Sari. The other, however, dreaded the future. He remembered all too well the diamond-tipped bolts that Caelyn had launched at him. The emperor thought his forces were largely invulnerable, and still, he realized that the war would be difficult. What would he do should he learn of the existence of these weapons? Should Karein find a way to inform him, or would that just make things worse?
Suddenly, Karein felt very tired. He just wanted to fall into his mate’s arms and for a few moments, forget that he was even a draechen prince. At least his parents had given him that, the freedom to be with Sari at will, within reason. Hiding from his responsibilities would do him no good, but no matter what Kavehquader was plotting, Sari was still the most important thing for Karein.
A flash of his earlier nightmare passed through Karein’s mind. Talrasar had been important for Kael, too, but it hadn’t been enough. A war had forced them into making the ultimate sacrifice. What if the story was repeating itself? What if this was the message Karein was supposed to grasp? The idea filled him with terror, and he practically started to run toward the library. The memory of Talrasar’s dead eyes still lingered within him, and while it wasn’t his own recollection, he could easily replace Talrasar’s figure with Sari’s. No. He had to avoid that at all costs. He would not allow Sari to pay the price for the emperor’s greed. Before that happened, Karein would step into that throne room and use his powers on his own father. It might plunge the world of the draechen into chaos, but for Sari, he’d do that, and more.
* * * *
Sari was truly puzzled. The day before, Karein had opened up to him, if only a little, but this morning, that same shadow that had made Karein pull away seemed to have settled over Karein’s heart. It was too soon to fix whatever long-term problem ailed Karein, but still Sari ached for him.
He wondered how he was supposed to get to his meeting spot with Karein. He supposed he could ask one of Karein’s siblings, or even a soldier. As it turned out, he wasn’t forced into either of those options. The moment he stepped out of the dining room, Karein’s lieutenant intercepted him. “Good morning, Your Highness,” he said. “I’ve been instructed to accompany you to the library.”