Total pages in book: 113
Estimated words: 105164 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 526(@200wpm)___ 421(@250wpm)___ 351(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 105164 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 526(@200wpm)___ 421(@250wpm)___ 351(@300wpm)
A wide grin spread across Drayce’s lips and he chuckled. No. Rayne Laurent was no fool.
“But an advisor?” Eno interjected softly. “Are you sure I have what it takes to be an advisor to the King of Erya? I don’t want to let Caelan down, and I don’t have the kind of training those men have.”
“That might be true, but you have more on-the-ground experience than any of them,” Rayne countered. The confidence in his words was unshakable. “Not one of Caelan’s advisors—or even Queen Amara’s for that matter—could ever claim to have visited Caspagir, Zastrad, the Isle of Stone, and Ilon. Your real-life experiences are invaluable to the king.”
Caelan hummed softly. “Trust Rayne. This isn’t a case of preferential treatment. He would never recommend someone for an advisor role he didn’t believe in completely. Erya always comes first.”
“I like it,” Drayce declared. “You’re King of Erya. Rayne is the Dauphin. Eno is one of your military advisors. I want a new title, too.”
Caelan arched one eyebrow at him. “You said you wanted to be my High Priest like a week ago! Besides, isn’t King’s Consort good enough for you?”
“I think Court Jester is more than adequate,” Rayne muttered under his breath.
Drayce only grinned broadly at Caelan, and his lover smiled at him. That was more like the old Rayne. Everything was getting back to normal. Or at least, their version of normal.
They continued through the dense forest, their conversation lighter than it had been. In the middle of the afternoon, they stopped for a long break to eat, rest, and try to guess at where they were on the map. They’d brought one from Brightspire that didn’t possess a large number of details. Eno had been making adjustments to it as they traveled. More changes were made after they’d spoken to the leaders of Hidden Falls. By their best guess, they were still more than a day away from Green Spring.
“I’m sure this might be a little on the late side of things,” Drayce started as he repacked his bag from their break, “but should we be leaving behind markers or some signs for Adrian as to which way we went?”
Eno snorted. “That is definitely late thinking considering how far we’ve come already.”
“Markers wouldn’t be helpful considering he’ll be coming from the north through Erya rather than from the west through Ilon,” Rayne added. “There’s no telling where our paths would finally cross.”
Caelan laid his hand on Drayce’s arm and squeezed. “Adrian will be fine. He entered the Ordas yesterday. I can feel him gaining ground on us far faster than I was expecting. He’ll be able to find us.”
“Can you read his mind? Or talk to him telepathically?” Eno asked. Their friend was still pale, but he didn’t look that bad for a man who’d nearly died two days ago. As it was, Drayce was pretty sure Eno was in better shape than him. Dragon or not, he was ready for a freaking nap.
Caelan shook his head. “If I can, I haven’t figured it out yet. Right now, I can catch snippets of your thoughts, and that seems to be when you’re thinking hard about something. Adrian is too far away. But…” He paused, a strange smile forming on his lips. “I have a feeling it’s only a matter of time before I can read his thoughts.”
“What?” Rayne demanded.
“I’m catching these flickers of emotions from him, through the bond. It’s…interesting.”
Drayce snickered and bumped Caelan with his elbow. “You perv. Does Adrian have a significant other? Did he get in some special time while he was in Stormbreak?”
Caelan shoved Drayce hard while he made a choking noise. “Not funny! I don’t want to hear that kind of stuff from anyone.”
With a cackle, Drayce tilted back toward Caelan and leaned his head on his shoulder. “Then what? What’s got you making that expression?”
“I was thinking that at least Haru has joined the fight.”
Drayce’s head snapped up to pin Caelan with an intense stare. “Seriously? The Isle of Stone has joined the fight?”
Caelan held up both hands as if to ward him off. “I don’t know. I’m just saying Omari Haru. I don’t know about any other dragons or even if Haru was officially sent.”
“You don’t think Adrian disobeyed your command and contacted Haru, do you?” Rayne asked, sounding absolutely scandalized by the very idea.
To Drayce’s surprise, Caelan’s grin grew even wider as he turned his head to his advisor. “Oh, I’m damn sure he did. He was adamant about the dragons joining the fight.”
“He’s fucking right! We have a right to protect Thia just as much as Erya or Caspagir,” Drayce snapped. The idea that the dragons would stay out of this war was ridiculous. He knew without a doubt that the dragons of the Isle of Stone could make a huge difference. So many lives could be saved.