Now he was questioning everything. Because he'd let himself be fooled once by the people he loved most, and he wouldn't let that same dagger cut him again.
Why had she been so covered in blood on his mating day? Why had she decided to stay in his city? Why had she agreed to help him when she could have gone running to the doves with the truth? Why had she saved his life from an assassin's blade? Why had she gone with him to Rynthos? Why had she been lurking in the archivist halls? Why, oh why, had she kissed him?
The spot still burned.
As his mother bid him good night, Xander lifted his hand to his neck and rubbed at his skin as though he could wipe the sensation away. It no longer felt like a brand, but like a lie—one which had almost succeeded.
He should have gone to bed, but he didn’t. Instead, he jumped off his balcony and spread his black wings, blending into the night. He didn’t realize where they were taking him until he landed in the old rooms belonging to Rafe's mother, still smelling of smoke and ash. He hadn’t thought to question the fire that had once more burned the lowest level of the castle. Like everyone else, he'd assumed it was the dragon. But looking back, he realized the fire in these rooms weeks before had been nothing like the one responsible for killing his father years ago. It had been small, contained, and easy to tame, unlike the raging, wild flames that had nearly claimed the entire servant's quarter in his youth.
Xander stepped into the shadows, using the bright light of the full moon to guide him as he shifted charred wood and hole-ridden curtains. The room was a mess, nothing but soot and broiled bits and broken parts. Still, he searched and searched, not sure what he was looking for until he found it. Deep in the fireplace, buried beneath the ash, sat a white feather with black spots, whose edges were stained red with blood.
38
Cassi
It was late before Cassi was finally able to soar away from the war tents in the valley toward the stone castle glowing silver beneath the full moon. Luka had kept her far later than she'd wanted, going over every detail of Lyana's time in the House of Whispers and how she'd fallen for the bastard raven. Luckily, mixing the truth with carefully chosen lies was an art she'd perfected. As soon as she'd told Luka of her suspicions about Rafe's magic, he'd understood. All Lyana had ever wanted was to be free. Free of her responsibilities, yes, but mostly free of her double life as part fugitive and part princess. It was a desire Cassi understood, which was, of course, the secret to convincing falsehoods—basing them in something real. The confession in her voice was her own, but Luka heard it the way she wanted him to, as the carefully kept secrets of his sister.
Any other night, she would have enjoyed sitting with him in the privacy of his spacious royal tent, eating dinner beside a cozy fire. She would have enjoyed sharing the stories of their youth, listening to the warmth in his voice and seeing the love in his eyes, though that was all it was. They didn't touch. A respectful distance remained between them. Luka was a man of honor, and though his mate was back in the crystal city, her presence was as real as if she were sitting there beside him. Still, it was a scene in which Cassi could lose herself for a few hours and forget.
But not tonight.
Tonight, she had matters to attend.
Cassi swept through the open balcony and into her room, the curtains swaying in the breeze created by her wings. Not bothering to unclip the weapons strapped to her waist, her legs, and her arms, she fell onto the bed. As soon as her eyes closed, she sank into her magic and emerged as the dreamwalker.
Though she knew she should deal with Xander first, and Helen, and the queen, she figured she'd waited weeks to carry out that order and one more hour couldn't hurt. Elias was traveling into the mist right now, and if Malek didn’t find him, it could mean disaster. Worse, if Malek did find him, it would mean Elias's death. Cassi wasn't sure what outcome she feared more, but maybe if she pleaded for his life, Malek would spare him. If she explained what he meant to Lyana, that he was like a brother to her—well, she had to try.
Wasting no time, Cassi imagined the scent of Malek's spirit. He was the King Born in Fire, but his soul had never smelled of smoke and ash to her, nor did it contain the salty essence of the sea. Even now, despite all that had passed between them, he was all open fields and endless skies, fresh grass and crisp air, as alluring as a flower, as dangerous as a wolf, drawing up the memories of youthful intrigue and fun, their long-ago laughter echoing in her ears.
Her spirit flew out the open window and sank into the mist, the world passing in a blur of bright stars and deep shadows, then endless gray fog. In a flash, she was floating above Da'Kin. Instead of leading her to the castle, as she assumed it would, her magic pulled her sideways, past groaning wood and flowing canals, toward the outskirts of the city. She found Malek beside a towering warehouse, the sort normally used to store food. His photo'kine, Kal, chased the shadows away as the two of them marched along wet planks toward the backside of the building. As they turned the corner, she found Jacinta and Nyomi waiting by the far end, power dancing along their palms, the green and blue sparks vibrant against the fog. Cassi dropped into the space between them, her spirit hovering at eye level.
Malek spared her a glance. "Not now, Kasiandra."
With a frown on his lips, he proceeded to walk right through her. Cassi grimaced. She was nothing but air and fog, invisible to all except him, but she still felt him. For a moment, his soul, his scent, his body mixed with hers, stunning her senses. It was different from passing through rock or wood, sentient in a way that left her reeling. Her mind sank into his, almost like falling into a dream but with none of the control. His thoughts spun through her head, making her dizzy.
Rafe.
Cassi froze.
The name lingered. Though the thought wasn't her own, she couldn't shake it free. The word clawed at her, digging in like a bear burrowing for the winter and making home beneath her skin.
Rafe. Why is he thinking about Rafe?
Malek was halfway down the building. Cassi soared past him and once again dropped into the space before his eyes, begging to be seen. Malek arched a brow and said nothing, not slowing his deliberate march toward the two mages waiting at the other end. When he passed through her, Cassi reached for his mind with her power. His magic whipped out, dislodging her, but not before an image cut across her thoughts. Rafe, sitting in a plush, high-backed chair, his hands gripping the arms with uncontained fury, the muscles in his neck straining against invisible binds. On the table beside him, a set of bound and bloodied wings, black feathers crusted over and glistening in the firelight.
Rafe was in Malek's office.
When? Why?
Cassi didn't bother being polite. This time she darted after her king, forcing her spirit into him in a way that felt brutal and wrong, but no worse than his magic stealing her sky.
Dragon.
Rafe.
Dragon.
Rafe.
All she caught were two words swirling in his soul. He gripped her with his power, the touch suffocating as he jerked her from his mind. With a gasp, she let go and he flung her across the fog.
Cassi had come tonight to help Malek, to warn him about a bird within his midst, to try to protect just one of her childhood friends. But all thoughts of Elias fled as she raced through the mist, her spirit a dagger crafted to pierce her king's defenses.