The War of Two Queens (Blood and Ash 4)

I stared at the draken. “Care to elaborate on this thought process?”

“I can’t believe I have to explain this out loud,” the draken muttered. “You’re Joined, right? Both of your lives are tied to hers—to her very long, like nearly unending lifespan. Unless she goes down, neither of you two should.”

I heard Poppy’s sharp inhale.

“But again,” the draken went on, “that was a Primal curse, so…”

The draken was still talking, but I wasn’t listening. Poppy’s nails dug into my wrist as she stared down at Kieran. He’d slowed, only because our horse had. Under the thick, fawn-colored fur, I saw that the muscles of his shoulders were tense.

“Hell,” Malik muttered and then laughed roughly. The lines of his face relaxed. “I hadn’t even thought of that.”

I tightened my arm around Poppy’s waist. Her grip on my wrist eased, and her fingers moved, mimicking the circles I made on her hip. She relaxed.

And so did I.

Poppy

My mind drifted from what I’d learned and all that had happened as we stopped for the night, eating our dinner of cured meat and cherries amid the black walnut trees.

Everything was hard to take in.

But Casteel was here.

He was free. So was his brother—whether he liked it or not. They were both free. That was almost all that mattered right now.

Almost.

Unfortunately, the curse that Callum had placed on Kieran ground all other thoughts to a halt. It also mattered now. My chest clenched as, in my mind, I saw that shadowy smoke seeping into his skin. Heard what Reaver had said—had suggested could be an answer in case we couldn’t find Malec, or Isbeth sought to betray us just as we plotted to do the same to her.

It also wasn’t the first time I’d thought of the Joining being—

A dull flare of pain spread across my upper jaw, causing me to inhale sharply. Wincing, I rubbed at my cheek. The ache sank into the very roots of my teeth and then faded as quickly as it had appeared.

“Your head hurting?” Kieran asked from where he sat beside me, having shifted into his mortal form a bit ago.

“Just a little, but not anymore.” I glanced down at his arm. The shallow cut was still there. My touch had done nothing. “How are you feeling?”

“The same as the last time you asked. I feel fine.” Kieran studied me closely. “You’ve been quiet today.”

I lifted a shoulder. “There’s a lot to think about.”

“There is,” he agreed. “But I know what one of those things is. What you did in Stonehill.”

I opened my mouth then closed it. My mind kept getting stuck on a lot of things, but that…I couldn’t stop thinking about that cold spot spreading through my body when Isbeth had ordered the mortal couple slaughtered. “I lost control,” I whispered.

“But you didn’t.”

“Only because Casteel stopped me.”

Kieran leaned in, his head low. “Is that what you really think? That Cas or any of us could really stop you?” When I said nothing, he curled his fingers around my chin, lifting my gaze to his. “You stopped yourself. Don’t forget that.”

I wanted that to be true. So did he. That didn’t make it true. “And don’t forget what you promised.”

“I wish I could, Poppy.” He dropped his hand. “But I can’t.”

My throat burned. “I’m sorry.”

“I know.” He lifted his chin. “Cas comes.”

I turned as Casteel prowled out from the mass of trees. He’d been scouting the surrounding area to see if there were any signs of Craven nearby.

“Are we good here?” I asked.

“As good as we can be anywhere,” he answered as Kieran rose, stopping long enough to tug gently on a strand of my hair. I didn’t even want to think about the mess my hair had to be in. Casteel extended his hand. “Come. I want to show you something.”

I arched a brow but took his hand. As I stood, I saw that Kieran had stopped by Malik, who was being watched over by Reaver.

“Careful,” Casteel advised as he led me through the trees. “There was no sign of Craven activity, but there are a lot of unripe walnuts scattered about.”

Looking down, I wondered exactly how I was supposed to avoid them since the floor of the woods was nothing but shadows of grass and rocks. “What are you showing me?”

“It’s a surprise.”

We walked deeper into the woods where the last rays of sun barely penetrated the heavy limbs. Cas lifted a low-hanging branch out of the way. “Here.” He tugged me forward. “Look.”

I eased past him and the tightly packed trees, dipping under a limb. What I saw left me speechless. I straightened, my eyes wide. Casteel had brought me to the edge of the walnut tree grove, to where the earth sloped sharply down into a valley full of stunning shades of blue and purple soaking up what remained of the sun. A river snaked among the vivid trees, its water so clear, I knew immediately that it was the River of Rhain.