Chapter 1
My heart thudded in my chest as I searched the Forbidden Wood for the beast, the same ground-bound dragon I’d once run from in terror. My animal roiled inside me, stalking him with me. I’d left home hours ago, in late morning, and there was still no sign of Nyfain. Granted, he had a substantial head start, since he’d left my family cottage last night after feeding us sleeping herbs to keep me from following, but I couldn’t shake the fear that I’d stumble upon his broken and bloodied form.
His duty might be to guard the wood, to protect our kingdom’s villages from the creatures the demon king unleashed on us each night, but he was in no shape to play Mr. Hero. It didn’t matter that he was our prince, our only hope of escaping the curse. The tracks I was following only proved he needed time to recover, curse the goddess. They zigzagged on the trail, bumping into a tree here, stomping through thorn bushes over there.
Everlass made for a potent cure, and I’d learned that the leaves of a crowded plant, which could be lethal if used incorrectly, were capable of reversing the effects of poison. Still, it was obvious the elixir I’d given him hadn’t fully restored him. The effects had worn off, and he was in pain.
But he’d refused my request—my order—for him to rest.
The dappled light highlighted a huge splotch of deep red on the ground. My gut twisted as I slowed, panning my gaze over the area. I spotted the extra set of tracks mingled with those of the dragon. These were slender and long, with three toes and an imprint in the dirt that suggested claws. The creature, whatever it was, walked on four feet. It must’ve lunged out from the trees, because its tracks seemed to come from nowhere.
The bark of the closest tree had been abraded by a tough hide. Branches lay on the ground, ripped from the trunk.
This was the third battle scene I’d come across since leaving home. Evidence suggested Nyfain had won the others, but panic still skittered through me as I followed it away right. A large hole had been chopped through dense bushes, Nyfain’s huge dragon form forcing the foliage to make room. Blood smeared the green and streaked the ground. On the other side, I heaved a shuddering sigh.
A strange creature with oily, grayish scales lay twisted, its back broken and its head torn off. Nyfain’s tracks led away, heavy and clumsy. Blood splattered the ground. He’d taken damage.
I could feel my animal holding her breath. Pain and sadness radiated from her, the effect of Nyfain’s dragon ripping away our connection to them. Nyfain hadn’t said why, other than that he wished to grant us freedom. She was just as terrified to find a broken dragon at the end of this trail as I was.
Nyfain’s mouth-watering smell of pine and lilac tinged with honeysuckle dusted some bushes. His tracks led left now, not going toward the castle. Stubborn man that he was, he’d been looking for more creatures to dispatch.
After another hour and more blood splatter, I saw that he’d found one. A large biped with small arms and a large jaw. It had its stomach ripped out. Even more blood led away from this battle.
I don’t like this, my animal said as we took in the scents and followed the tracks. He lost too much blood.
As a man, yes. But his dragon is big. Maybe if he just stays in beast form until he heals it’ll be okay?
She didn’t answer. She probably didn’t know, since I’d never shifted. The same curse that haunted these woods had sickened the villagers throughout the kingdom, paused time at the royal castle, and, perhaps worst of all, prevented our people from shifting as nature intended. As far as I knew, only one person still could—Nyfain—although it had cost him dearly. His dragon’s wings had been shorn off.
I could hear my animal’s thoughts, feel her emotions, and use her primal senses, but that was where it stopped.
We wound deep into the wood, the gnarled trees bent and twisted, much like the dead bodies of the demon creatures that had been set loose last night. Scraggly bushes reached across the path, some of them stomped and broken from Nyfain coming through. I didn’t even need to follow his tracks now, just had to watch for the crimson droplets that announced his passage.
A bird chittered in the treetops, answered by another. A small rodent scrabbled out of the way. My connection with my animal had also increased my sense of hearing. Not much farther and I heard voices, a man and a woman talking.
I hefted the dagger I held, content to keep the pocketknife stowed, and crept closer, staying behind a wall of browning and crackled greenery. My animal plucked smells out of the air, analyzing them as we made our way. Clean smells, like laundry and lavender soap, layered over the more pungent scents of sweat and blood.
I stopped behind the large trunk of a hollowed-out tree and peered around. Two people stood in a clearing beside what looked like a station for field dressings—a table stacked with gauze, a box with a red plus sign, and various instruments I hadn’t seen before. A stretcher sat at their feet, the white material stretched between the two poles stained crimson.
The middle-aged woman stood with perfect posture, her shoulders thrown back and head held high. A blue dress made of fine fabric hugged her trim frame, and a white apron was cinched around her middle. Her bearing suggested someone highborn, and the delicate way she gestured when speaking screamed of cultivation. The man opposite her was a bit younger, with smooth gray trousers, a white button-up shirt, and hair with a perfect part down the side. Like her, he had an air of refinement.
I remembered hearing that Nyfain met with villagers within the wood. The butler, Hadriel, had thought they were all men, but Hadriel openly admitted he was terrible at his job.
The bloody stretcher was empty, its occupant gone, and although Nyfain’s scent lingered, it wasn’t fresh.
Taking a deep breath, hands tight around the hilt of the dagger, I stepped out from my hiding place and into clear view.
The couple didn’t notice me at first, their voices low and still indistinguishable. It was like they expected creatures with expert hearing to be passing by. I made it halfway to them before the woman finally glanced over.
She startled, her mouth forming an O and her fingertips dusting across her chest. The man snapped his head toward me, very slow on the uptake. A demonic creature would’ve made short work of this pair.
I stopped where I was as the woman recovered from her surprise. Her gaze slipped down my front, taking in my pants, my dirty top, and finally the dagger in my hand.
“My goodness,” she murmured, glancing at her companion. “She looks positively wild.”
The man did the same sweep, but his conclusions were clearly different. His eyes lit up, and a little grin played on his lips. He stepped forward, his gaze dipping to my chest before roaming my face.
“You must be Finley,” the man said. “Quite the beauty. He said you would come.”
My heart lurched. “Nyfain?” I asked. “Is he okay?”
The woman’s brows knitted in disapproval. “You are to address him as—”
“Not now, Claryssa.” The man waved her away, continuing to close the space between him and me. “Yes. He followed a warbler to the edge of our village. Just…” He turned and pointed west. “Just beyond those trees and down a ways. We rushed out to help, but he’d downed the creature by the time we made it to him. He was in bad shape. We brought him here, away from demon eyes, to patch him up.”
“And you did?” I asked. “He’s okay?”
“What village are you from, girl?” Claryssa asked, walking closer. Her pinched expression said she expected me to smell.
I ignored her, my gaze rooted to the man.
“As best we could,” he said. “We carried him to the edge of the Royal Wood nearest the castle.” He turned and glanced down at the stretcher. “He’ll make it. He’s made of sturdy stuff. You have no need to worry.” He paused for a moment. “But you are, though, right? You are worried about him?”
I frowned at the eagerness in his question. This meeting was starting to get weird.
“Did you tell him to stay in tonight?” I took a step away. “He needs rest.”
“How presumptuous,” the woman scoffed. “He is the prince. You will remember his station and address him as such, girl.”
The man shot a look of annoyance at Claryssa. A placating smile took its place as his attention returned to me. “He has a duty to this wood. To his people. He’ll insist on clearing the wood again tonight. No one can make him do something he doesn’t want to. But have no fear—the first couple of nights after a full moon are the worst. The number of demon creatures loosed in the wood will diminish until after the next full moon.”
“You’re sure you got him safely to the castle?”
“Yes. He’ll be quite safe. I have seen him worse, and yet he trudges on. Ever our courageous protector.”
I blew out a breath and stepped farther away. The man continued to watch me, a strange gleam to his eyes, like a starving man looking at a plate of dinner. The woman analyzed me as well, disapproval in every line on her face.
“Great, thanks.” I attempted a half-smile, didn’t even remotely pull it off, and about-faced. They wouldn’t be pointing me toward Nyfain, it seemed. At least they’d seen to his wounds. Granted, if he could just take a night or two off, he wouldn’t need to be patched up in the first place.
I slipped through the bushes and behind the trees, out of sight. Once I knew I was alone, I paused for a moment.
Could I trust those people? They could’ve been anyone. They didn’t smell like demons, but that didn’t mean they weren’t working for them. Who knew what the demon king was capable of? He could easily have the villagers on his payroll. If my village was any indication, the people in our kingdom were hungry and scared—they’d take a helping hand wherever they could get it.
However, Nyfain had clearly allowed himself to be doctored. He must’ve trusted them somewhat.
Still…
I started jogging in the direction of the castle, cutting over a bit after passing the location of those people. It didn’t take me long to hook up with his scent, leading through the trees. Three sets of boot prints lined the way, two people carrying a stretcher, and someone moving alongside them to tend the patient. And then, exactly where I’d expect based on their information, I found a little bloody patch next to a few tracks of bare feet in the earth, followed by dragon tracks leading toward the castle.
They hadn’t been lying after all.
I sagged and leaned against a tree while looking up at that majestic castle. What must it have been like in its heyday, when the grounds were alive and tended, nobles walked around in their finery, and dragons glided through the air? That must’ve been a real sight.
Go to him, my animal pleaded, relishing in his scent. Desperate to keep following it. He’ll be happy to see us. You heard that man. He expected us to follow.
He’ll be mad as hell. He wanted to cut ties, or what do you think it means when someone drugs you to sleep, severs your connection, and leaves the equivalent of a breakup note?
He’ll be in a rage at first, sure, but it’ll turn to passion, just you watch.
Sure, passion immediately followed by regret and gruff barks not to touch him again. We’d been down that road. There was nothing for us there. Nyfain and his animal might want us, but they didn’t want to want us.
Time to go home.
This was for the best.
As I turned, my animal fought for control. Fire blistered through my body, boiling my blood, and a shock wave of power blasted out of her, out of me. It was her cry for him. Her misery at them severing the connection.
This is not the way to act in a pseudo-breakup, I said, wrestling her. This is the way crazy girls act. Ask me how I know!
How do you know?
Because I’ve taken this road before, and it just makes a person look like a fool. Let it go! It’s for the best.
It doesn’t feel like it’s for the best, she cried.
It was never going to work. Now it’s over. We move on. We have things to do.
She kept grumbling, but once I regained control, I pushed her away. I needed to maintain a hard grip on logic. Because yes, I did want to flail and cry and run to him. I wanted us to fight and argue and fuck. I wanted to bask in his strength and power, and quake in fear and excitement from his imposing presence. The prince was like a crowded everlass plant, lethal and potent and unbearable in almost all situations…except for the one that would save your life.
But it wasn’t my life that needed saving—it was his. It was this kingdom’s. He needed to focus on that, not on this strange push-pull he felt with a foul-mouthed commoner.
A hollow feeling permeated my middle, but I ignored that, too.
I walked home, thinking about Nyfain and crowded everlass plants. Thinking of ways to cure the villages of the plague, thus giving Nyfain more time to break the curse. We didn’t have to be together to work together. Just like we didn’t have to get along to feel the rush of each other’s kiss…which I probably shouldn’t be thinking about either.
Letting go of him might be a little trickier than I’d thought…
Chapter 2
Later that day, I stood beside Father’s bed, feeling more hopeful than I had in years.
“This is going to work, Hannon, I know it.”
I combined the ingredients of my new nulling elixir, which I’d dubbed the crowded nulling elixir to set it apart from the less powerful version, and added hot water. Father lay beside me, his mouth open and his cheeks sunken. How he’d held on so long I wasn’t sure, but I was grateful. This would do it; I felt it in my bones.
“But he’s not poisoned like Nyfain was,” Hannon said, as anxious as I’d ever seen him.
“The sickness is a kind of poison. It’s just not as potent as the venom that almost killed Nyfain. So the elixir’s not as strong, either. And given Father is about as bad as you can get, and the normal everlass elixir won’t work…”
“We’ve got nothing to lose.”
“Sadly, no.” I reached out and took his hand. “It’s going to work, though, Hannon. I can feel it.”
“Did you sing to the leaves?”
“Sable did. I think she was saying gibberish words, but that probably doesn’t matter.”
His brow knitted with a thoughtful look. “That plant is like a child.”
“Yeah, it is.” I mixed the brew, took a deep breath, and handed it over to my brother.
I dropped my hand to Father’s forehead, his skin clammy and too hot. I could very well kill him with this new elixir. His early death would be on my hands. But if I didn’t take a chance, he’d only have a few days to a week left anyway. The kids had said their goodbyes already, and now it was my turn. Hannon had said he’d be the one to administer the medicine, because I couldn’t bear to see Father die if I was the one who’d killed him. There was no antidote I could offer. There was no way out. If this elixir was too potent, there was nothing I could do to fix my error.
I took a moment to think back on the good times, when he’d been happy. We’d never truly gotten along, Father and I, always quarreling about something, but we loved each other as a family ought to. This house needed its leader. Its parent.
“It’s going to work,” I told Hannon again, feeling it in every fiber of my being. “That plant is of the dragons, and a cornered dragon is more powerful than a demon, any day. It will save the day, just you wait.”
I straightened up and ran my fingers through my hair. I hoped it worked, at any rate. I was running out of answers.
“I’ll be in the living room,” I said softly.
I closed the door behind me and gathered what I’d need to do the shopping. After that, I might go set some traps, anything to stay busy. I couldn’t let my mind wander. If it didn’t drift toward the aching hollow of Nyfain’s absence, it dwelled on my father and the others who were dying of the sickness.
Sable and Dash sat on the couch, their faces long, not speaking.
“It’ll be okay,” I said, tears stinging my eyes. “It’s going to work.”
The more I said it, the less I believed it.
Guilt tore at me. Maybe I shouldn’t have tried this. Maybe I should have chased Nyfain into the castle and demanded more information on the crowded everlass before attempting such a rash experiment.
Regardless, it was done now.
Hannon came out of the room with a drawn face. He held out the empty tin mug, showing us. He’d gotten Father to drink all of it, so there was nothing left to do but wait.
I nodded and slipped out the front door. I wouldn’t be waiting at home.
The afternoon sun was bright and warm, winter’s chill starting to recede. Villagers traveled the lane, one laden with a sack of bread and another pushing a small cart of grain for her goats. I smiled in hello and received confused frowns in return.
At the market, I looked over my shopping list before deciding which stall to visit first. In front of the stand of lettuce, I caught sight of a familiar face. His orange-red hair glowed brilliantly in the sun, like a firestorm around his freckled face. James, my first boyfriend. My first love.
Or so I’d thought.
He glanced my way, and his pale blue eyes widened. He turned, and it was the first I’d noticed his lanky frame and lack of grace. His black T-shirt hung off his narrow, bony shoulders, a brown belt cinched his trousers around his waist, and his skinny arms swung at his sides. He kind of flopped his feet out when he walked.
“Hey, James,” I said when he neared, expecting the punch to the gut that I usually felt in his presence. This guy had torn my heart out and thrown it in my face, right before asking for a goodbye bang. I was still pissed I’d given it to him, crying the whole time. Begging him to please reconsider.
But now…nothing.
Is this your doing? I asked my animal, having opened myself to her—just a crack—upon returning home. She hadn’t communicated with me at all. I got the feeling she was giving me the cold shoulder.
Leaving the dragon so we can carry on with this hollow, meaningless life? she replied. No, it is not. That was your doing, you goat-faced cumsplat. Just wait until you can shift. Then we’ll see who wears the pants in this relationship.
She was clearly still quite angry…and colorful.
I don’t feel anything for James anymore. Is that because of you?
James who? That red-headed git stopping in front of us? Why would you feel anything for him? I can’t even feel his animal. He’s subpar, at best. He couldn’t protect us if his life depended on it.
There are more important considerations than whether a man can protect us. Besides, when we work together, we don’t need anyone’s protection.
She huffed. When we are with child, or protecting our young, or attacked by demonic creatures in the wood—like you were two days ago—we need a strong mate to protect us. We need a defender. There is none stronger than that alpha dragon. None. Everyone else is a waste of time. End of story. There is no one else we can mate who will make us happy. Now stop being a wench and go back to him!
Except he was the one who left us, not the other way around…
They’re males. They get confused which head is for thinking and do stupid shit. As females, we need to set them right.
I rolled my eyes.
Okay then, nice talking to you, I thought, and pushed her out of my head. She needed some time to cool down, clearly. Maybe a lot of time.
“Hi, Finley.” James gave me a toothy smile. That smile used to make my heart pitter-patter. But now I felt…absolutely nothing. Literally zero. “I haven’t seen you in a while. Pulson and Mary across the street from you said you’d left for a couple days. Is everything okay?”
“I’ve been busy hunting and working on a new elixir for the sickness.”
He nodded, taking in my clothing. “Still dressing like a man, huh?”
“Have you ever tried hunting in a bushy dress?”
He snickered and rolled his eyes. “Always the rule breaker. You think you can get away with anything because you’re pretty. Someday you’ll finally settle down, though. You’ll have to give up your pants and craziness then.”
“Or maybe I’ll just stay single forever and fuck demons in the pub, hmm?”
His jaw dropped in surprise. His face turned red.
I grinned and pushed past him. Apparently the trip to the castle, however brief, had made me just that little bit sexually coarser. The good news was that his putdown didn’t hurt in the slightest. Nyfain’s sweet words about liking me down to my soul had soaked under my skin. They’d changed me. They’d made me feel like it was okay to be myself, even if I was an outcast.
Ignoring the people staring, I walked to the next stall and picked out my items. That done, I worked my way through the market, grabbing what Hannon had said he needed, and then stopped by the booth with the furs and skins, seeing what sort of quality was in vogue right now.
“See anything you like?”
A cold trickle ran down my spine. Here we go.
I straightened and turned, finding Jedrek just behind me. I used to think him tall and broad, but now…he looked almost petite for a man. I was used to Nyfain’s size and girth. His imposing presence. Jedrek standing there was just…anticlimactic.
“No, actually. I can do better.” I walked around him, to the daggers in the next stand over. One of them caught my eye—a new weapon with a red jewel in the hilt and silver lining. It was an absolute treasure. I picked it up and hefted it, enjoying the balance and fit within my hand.
“That would suit you perfectly,” Phyl said from behind the stand, shifting his girth with his thumbs tucked in his belt loops. He was the only guy in the village who’d retained his size after the curse. It was a staple of pride that he could keep his family well fed even when everything was falling down around us. “You’d get many a kill with that one, Miss Finley.”
“Nonsense—she doesn’t need a blade.” Jedrek stopped beside me again, reaching for the dagger.
I pulled up my animal, who was happy to lend power to my fighting words. Especially since I was sending away a man who was not Nyfain.
“Back off,” I said.
Jedrek jerked ramrod straight. He staggered backward as though someone had shoved him. Phyl’s eyes widened, and he reached for his chest. When his fingers touched down, he clutched and closed his eyes.
Taking my time, I touched the blade with my thumb, testing its edge. I held it a little higher, analyzing the dagger. “This is a work of art, Phyl. You’ve really outdone yourself.”
His eyes fluttered open, and he looked at me like he’d never seen me before. He put one of those big hands on the tabletop in his stall and braced himself.
I probably shouldn’t use my animal’s power around the other villagers. Hadriel had warned me about giving off too much sparkle. I didn’t need people talking, or word would get around to the demons.
With a grimace, I set the dagger back down. Jedrek stood a few paces away, staring at me with shock and unease written clearly on his face. My animal glowed with pride.
“I…uh…” Phyl shook himself and cleared his throat. “Yes, I…uhm…” He ran his fingers through his hair. “I made a sword like that once. Let me see…” He ducked down and started rummaging through the bowels of his stall.
A firm hand gripped my arm and swung me around. Jedrek leaned into me, his face a mask of rage.
“What do you think you’re playing at?” he seethed, spittle flying from his mouth. “You dare command me?”
I’d commanded him plenty of times in the past. He’d always ignored it or assumed I was joking.
It looked like I’d learned more than crassness at the castle.
My animal seeped fire into me.
“Get your hand off me,” I said in a low, calm voice.
His eyes flicked back and forth, looking at each of my eyes in turn. My mind jumped to something my sister, Sable, had told me this morning. She’d said my eyes were glowing. Nyfain’s glowed, too, when his animal was pumping power into him. His dragon’s eyes glowed all the time.
“You’ve been gone a few days, haven’t you?” Jedrek said softly, peeling his fingers from around my arm. “You’ve found him, then.”
I furrowed my brow, not daring to say anything. Could he know about Nyfain?
“What did you ask for?” he asked. “To get out? No, you’re a slave to your family—you wouldn’t have forsaken them. You asked to save your dad, I’ll bet, right?”
“What are you talking about?” I finally spat.
He smirked. “Just remember, anyone can barter with the demon king. Even me. But I won’t ask him to save a waste of a parent. I told you I would be marrying you. I’m a man of my word. You will strip off those ridiculous pants, and you’ll put away your silly little weapons, and you will serve your man with a smile and open legs, do I make myself clear?”
My animal thrashed, trying to take control and attack, but I held her back. I needed only words to handle this ape.
“You would enter into a bargain with the demon king, the slyest, most cunning bastard in all the world, in order to make me marry you? Of all the things you could ask for—freedom, riches, two coherent thoughts to rub together—you would choose instead to force someone to pretend to love you? How fucking sad are you, Jedrek? How small, insignificant, and…desperate are you?”
He gave me a smug grin. “You won’t be pretending anything. The demon king is all-powerful. He can make you love me. He can make you salivate for me.”
“What a change from your normal nightly routine, then, huh? Make sure you ask him—if you can find him, because last I checked, he was in charge of his own kingdom—to make me believe you satisfied me when we both know you never could. That would be a real shock for you. A happy woman after your terrible excuse for a lay.”
Jedrek gritted his teeth and pointed at my face. “I’ll make you pay for those comments.” He turned and strutted away.
I clenched my hands into fists before releasing them again. “I hate that guy.”
You should’ve let me at him, my animal said. I would’ve rocked his world.
Then he would’ve cried foul. He’s a small, little man with a fragility issue, and he can’t stand anyone to make him look the fool.
There’s that thesaurus again. Why not a small, little, tiny man?
Oh, shut up.
I turned back toward the weapons in a rush, wrestling with my animal’s desire to run after Jedrek and attack him. How did Nyfain deal with this all the time? Why did anyone miss it? When this beast didn’t get her way—which was always, lately—she was fucking exhausting.
Phyl was staring at me with wide eyes.
“Sorry,” I said automatically, shaking my head. “He’s the second dickface that has accosted me today, and my patience is wearing thin.”
Phyl licked his lips and leaned over the stall some. “You’re an odd duck around these parts, Finley, but don’t you take that as a bad thing. You weren’t meant to fit in here. The day your mother asked me to make you your very own hunting knife—remember that?—I knew then that you were different. This village used to be a haven for the lesser-powered shifters in the kingdom. Them, and the ones that didn’t want to fight for the king and kingdom. But just because you were born in a place, doesn’t mean you belong there. Your mother didn’t have much power, but she was fierce. She came from a long line of fighters. The power gene must’ve just skipped a generation. It didn’t skip you, though, did it? She let you be tough and wild for a reason.”
He held out a sword, the color a little dull from age. A deeper red stone shone in the hilt of this one, and the silver design swirling around it was much more intricate. The leather was supple and soft against my palm, the edge of the blade sharp.
“This is gorgeous,” I said on a release of breath.
“Yes, I made that before the curse, when traveling merchants used to come through. I spared no expense. I thought maybe a noble would end up with it, or the prince himself! Could you imagine?” He smiled sheepishly. “It was always fun to dream big back then. No matter how fine I made them, those merchants always bought from me. There was always someone they could sell to. So I just made them better and better.”
“This one would’ve gone for a pretty price, Phyl. A real pretty price.”
“Yes, I had hoped so. It was the finest I’d made. But now…I don’t think I’ll get to sell another piece like that.”
I handed it back. “You will. We’ll beat this curse, and then we’ll have merchants again, just you wait. Maybe the prince will wield it yet. Or…well…walk around with it, since he’d probably fight in his dragon form. Hang it on the wall, maybe…”
“Well.” He shrugged his meaty shoulders and put the sword back under the stall. “I think the sickness is starting to take root. I figured it was bound to happen sooner or later.”
Pain struck my heart. “Does Margie know how to make the nulling elixir?”
“She does, yes. She’s made some already. It’s just that…well, she’s not so good at gardening. I’m no good at it either. I tried to trade for some leaves, but everyone is running low because of the lingering winter season.”
I put my hand flat on the table. “Don’t worry about that. I’ll get some for you. And I’m working on a stronger elixir. I’m still trying to find a cure. You’re not going anywhere, Phyl. You won’t lose any of your size, I promise.”
He laughed and patted his belly. “Well, now, we’ll see about that. Here.” He pulled the jeweled dagger from the display and held it out. “You don’t have any more plants than anyone else. I know where you aim to get them, and I don’t think I’ll be able to stop you. Take this. You’ll need it.”
“I’m hoping I won’t, actually. And no, I—”
He leaned forward and pushed it into my hands. “I’d give you the sword, but I sure would like to see the prince wear it someday. All we have left are our big dreams, you know? But this dagger was made as a companion piece. It’s solid, if not quite so fine. I couldn’t really afford any better. You’ll be great one day, Finley, and when you are, I want you to hold my dagger.”
I shook my head but let him put it into my hands. He was as nice as they came, but he had a stubborn streak. We all did.
I held it up. “Thank you. It’s too much.”
“Nah. Now I know that you’ll keep me alive as long as you can. That’s good enough for me.”
“I would’ve done that anyway.”
He winked. “I know.”
With a stupid grin, I held the dagger to my chest as I carted all the supplies back to the house. It wasn’t until I got to the front door that my smile thinned and then vanished. A crowded everlass plant took a bit to get working, but it didn’t take much time at all to kill.
The moment of truth was upon me. Had I just killed my father?
My heart sank at the sight of the empty living room. Fear lodged in the pit of my stomach.
I set everything down on the table and steeled myself. With slow, determined steps, I made my way to Father’s room. The door stood ajar, and voices murmured from inside. I didn’t hear crying, though.
Barely daring to hope, I edged into the room. Hannon leaned over the bed, blotting Father’s forehead with a towel. Dash and Sable sat in the chairs at his side, looking on.
Dash glanced my way, and a huge smile lit up his face. Sable gave me a relieved sag.
“You did it,” Hannon said softly, continuing his ministrations.
“Did what?” Father asked, his voice scratchy.
My stomach lurched and then fell out of my body. I grabbed the doorframe for support, my legs wobbling. He’d spoken! He’d said coherent words! He hadn’t done that in a while, and even then, the effort had been fraught with coughing and hacking.
“Finley created an elixir to bring you back from the brink of death.” Hannon looked up at me, his eyes shining with tears. “You always said you’d make a cure, and you did it.”
“Whoa, whoa. Let’s not…” I put out my hand to stop him.
“My Finley was always good with plants,” Father said, smiling at me with bleary eyes. “She has the divine gift from the goddess, she does. Everyone always said so. She was wild, yes, but she could work miracles if you gave her an everlass plant and some time. She would’ve stood before the queen one day if the world hadn’t ended. I was always hard on her, but I had to be! If she was going to stand before royalty, she needed to know how to act. You can’t be a foolish, silly girl when speaking to the queen. She was going to be our hope for a better life.”
Tears flooded my eyes. I’d never heard him say anything like that. I’d never heard anyone suggest that I might have a bright future. Then the queen died, and the curse had descended on us. Father had kept up the pretense of trying to calm me down, but when Nana got sick, and then Mom…
His hopes had been dashed.
“We’ll have a better life.” I went to his other side and took his hand. “We will, someday.”
I felt his forehead. Cool. The fever was down. His eyes were a bit bloodshot, but they were clearing.
He smiled at me before his lids drooped. “Yes, we will at that, Finley.”
“Can I speak to you in the living room?” Hannon asked softly.
“Yeah, of course.” I followed him out, barely able to breathe through my shock. “How can we be sure it is a cure, though?”
“Honestly…I shouldn’t have said that. It’s too early to know. But even if it’s not, it’s a huge step in the right direction. A huge step, Finley. We’ll wait to see how much of the sickness is cleared, and then we’ll have a better idea.”
“If it isn’t cured, then it gets dicey,” I said, my mind racing. I wiped the tears rolling down my cheeks. “It would mean that the first batch probably wasn’t strong enough. But I can’t just top him up. That’s not how the crowded plant works, I don’t think. Damn Nyfain for leaving so soon. I need more information.”
Hannon squeezed my shoulder. “He might’ve left sooner than you wanted, but he was ultimately responsible for your discovery. By saving his life, you were able to save Father. And eventually the other villagers.”
“And you’re suddenly A-okay with him now? Your grudge over being drugged has been dropped?”
“Forgiven, not forgotten. I don’t hold grudges quite like you do…”
I scowled at him. “Fine, whatever. Anyway, I got your stuff—”
“Our stuff. You’re not doing errands just for me—”
“Yeah, yeah, you know what I mean. Anyway, Phyl is coming down with the sickness, and they don’t have any everlass. I need to get him some and also harvest more of the crowded plant. I have to go to the Forbidden Wood again.”
“When?”
I glanced out the window. “I could either hurry now and try to get back by dark, or go later when the wood is…possibly being cleared by a limping dragon.”
“Go now. If Nyfain was as bad off as you said, I doubt he’ll be much good at clearing the wood tonight. Make him some salve and healing ointments. Leave them at the field if you don’t see him. He’s bound to stop by.”
I stood there like an idiot. “Why would he stop by?”
Hannon shrugged. “He seemed to enjoy playing games with you. I doubt he’ll give them up because of duty and honor. Men claim to be that noble, but when it comes to a woman…they rarely are.”
“Oh really, mister guru? And when did you become such an expert?”
“You’re not the only one who reads. If you see him, tell him we’d love to have him around for dinner if his schedule permits. Or a midnight snack.”
There was no way I’d see him.
Oh goddess, would I see him?
If I did, I’d have a helluva time keeping my animal off him.
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