“Maybe you were right when you were fighting us. My time has passed.”
Ulrik took two steps closer to him and sliced his hand through the air furiously. “Stop this nonsense right now. You’ve held everything together for millennia, and you’ll continue to do so because you were chosen as the King of Kings. Look at everything you’ve done for us.”
“And look what I did to us.”
“If you’re referring to the mortals, we all agreed to protect them when they first came.”
Con glanced at the ground. “I knew you were right in wanting to rid our realm of them, but I stood against you.”
“Which was the right thing to do. My anger clouded my judgment.”
“Maybe,” Con said and turned back to look out the window once more.
Ulrik started to walk around the desk when he saw the red journal beneath the stack of files. Con had tried to hide it, but Ulrik knew what it was. Con only brought them out when he wrote about his mate and the love he still held for her.
No matter what idiocy came out of Con’s mouth, Ulrik now understood the root of it. His friend was lonely—and hurting. He needed his mate.
If only there was a way to bring her back.
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
Fae Realm
Cain couldn’t remember the last time he’d spent the day naked. Neither he nor Noreen bothered to put their clothes back on as they walked along the lake and even swam in the waters while she went into detail about the Others.
“Moreann’s counterpart is the most powerful drough on their realm. In fact, he and Moreann clashed several times when he believed he had what it took to become emperor.”
Cain took her hand as they exited the water so the sun could dry them as they lay on the blanket. “She rules the entire planet?”
“Yep. She has something akin to sheriffs who oversee portions of land and report to her, but she is the one everyone answers to,” Noreen explained.
“Tell me about Brian.”
Her lips twisted in distaste. “He’s a nincompoop. I honestly don’t know why Moreann chose him.”
“She alone decides who comes onto the Others? There isna a vote?”
Noreen laughed at his question. “She’s used to making decisions for an entire planet, she’s not about to let a group of six dictate anything.”
“Hmm. What do you think led her to accept Brian? And when did he come on?”
“He’s been with the Others for about two hundred years longer than I have. He’s a follower, which she likes. But Brian is also a true believer. He detests the Dragon Kings and wants Earth for the Fae.”
Cain gave her a flat look. “He does realize that Moreann isna going to share the realm with the Fae, right?”
“One of the promises she made to Usaeil was that the Druids and Fae would share the realm. It was said during the magic that bound them, so Moreann can’t get out of it.”
“Oh, I bet she’s found a way.”
Noreen’s red eyes grew troubled as her brow furrowed. “There’s no way to get out of such a bond.”
“Someone like her doesna remain empress for so long without knowing her way around things such as that. She went to a lot of trouble to have Earth, and she doesna seem like the kind who shares anything.”
“I have to admit, you have a point there.” Noreen lay on her back and linked her hands beneath her wet hair as she looked at the sky.
His body heated for her, but he didn’t act on it, not while they were still talking. There was much he had yet to learn about the Others. The tiniest detail could be the thing that gave the Kings an advantage that led to a win over the group.
Cain turned on his side and rested on his forearm while staring at Noreen’s gorgeous body. “And the Druids from Earth?”
“Both women. They have a decent amount of magic, but nothing I’d consider powerful. Compared to the Druids who have already served in the group, these females have just a smidgen of power.”
“Who are they?”
“One is from some island near South America. Another is a mie from Turkey. She’s very self-righteous in wanting her people to have the realm.”
He made a sound in the back of his throat. “That was my next question. How does Moreann convince the Druids from Earth to join her?”
“She shows them what happened between the Kings and the humans.”
Cain stilled, ire coiling through him. “Does she now? And does she show the entire truth?”
Noreen’s head turned to him as her brows drew together. “What does that mean? I, myself, have seen what happened, but you make it sound as if she left something out.”
Instead of telling the story, Cain said, “Tell me what you saw.”
“Well,” the Dark said as she rolled onto her side and propped her head up with her hand, “Moreann was there. She paid regular visits to your realm once she put the mortals there to see how things progressed.”
“Like she was waiting for something to happen?”
Noreen’s face lined with remorse. “Now that you say it like that, that’s probably exactly what she did.”
“Go on,” he urged.
“As best as I can explain it, the way Moreann shows it is very much like a movie. It shows the mortals arrival, and the Kings shifting into human form.”
“Which, by the way, was the first time we ever did that. It was a way to communicate with the humans.”
“Oh,” she murmured. “I didn’t know that.”
There was probably a lot more she didn’t know, but Cain once more bit his tongue to remain quiet.
“The imagery moved quickly to show the Kings accepting the humans and giving them land. It seemed as if you did so willingly. Did you?”
“Aye. We all agreed as one that because the humans didna have magic, we would allow them to remain and protect them. Each King gave up land from their clan and gave it to the mortals so they could have a place to stay. Did you also see us helping them build their shelters?”
“Actually, I did,” she said with a smile. “I was surprised by that. The images once more moved fast through several years.”
“Decades, actually,” he corrected.
She gave a nod, her red eyes holding his. “Some Kings took mortals as lovers.”
“Many did.”
“Did you?”
He didn’t hesitate to tell her the truth. “Aye.”
Noreen’s gaze darted away as she plucked at the blanket. “Then, the images focused on one Dragon King—Ulrik. He also took a human as his lover, but when she wanted to end it, he wouldn’t let her. Ulrik’s uncle then stepped in and helped her.”
Cain sat up. Hearing the lies was almost too much. He wanted to interrupt Noreen and tell her the truth, but he remained quiet.
Noreen paused as her gaze returned to him. She slowly sat up and crossed her legs as she faced him. “The next set of images were of the Dragon Kings hunting down the female and killing her. Then Ulrik began attacking the mortals and killing them, starting the war between your species. The only part I didn’t believe was where it showed the humans beating the Kings and the dragons being sent away.”
“Is that all? Did she show you any more?”