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Do what? Azar’s head whips around, his left eye studying me.
“Never mind.”
Have you considered letting your mother have her wish?
It takes me a moment to realize, with the wind whipping past my head and all, what he’s asking. “Do you mean, have I considered letting her die?” I can barely even say the words.
She’s miserable, and she wants it—it’s probably her only way out.
“That we know of,” I say. “She hasn’t even seen my siblings yet. I haven’t told her they’re alive. My mom should’ve asked about them first thing. She should be fighting tooth and nail for us, but she’s not. The worst thing about it is that Mom looks like she’s just given up.”
That’s why I’m asking.
Oh. “She’s not herself, that’s for sure. But I’m not ready to throw in the towel on freeing her, and?—”
You’ll torture her until you’re ready?
“You’re in a bad mood.” I think about that. Sure, our attempt there wasn’t what Azar wanted, and it didn’t go well, but it’s not like that was unexpected. “Even if they can’t transfer her bond, it’s not like people won’t believe that you shifted yours. You’re a fire dragon, and?—”
That’s when it hits me.
He’s been in a bad mood since before our idea. He was in a bad mood when I was talking to Asteria earlier, but I was too distracted to realize that. “What did Hyperion tell you? What were you arguing about?”
He drops just a hair in our flight path, and my butt lifts up off the seat. That’s not uncommon, but it felt like a reaction to my question.
My question that he still hasn’t answered.
“What is it, Azar?” I lean closer and grip his back ridge. “What are you hiding?”
Hyperion didn’t want to broadcast it when he landed, because he didn’t want to undermine my authority with the others, but our father told Hyperion that if I don’t go back to see him in the next week to provide an accounting, he’s coming here to retrieve me.
Hyperion and Azar’s much larger, much scarier, and much less reasonable father is coming here, to earth? That threat’s a good reason to be in a bad mood.
“But that’s an easy fix, right?” I ask. “Just go see him. You’ve done nothing wrong.”
My bond flares bright red. I’d have to take you with me, and I don’t trust my father not to kill you. He’s not a fan of humans.
Which makes him angry, or nervous, or worried. . .but it shouldn’t really be a big deal to him. If I die, then what? He’ll be sick for a few days. It would be an inconvenience. But for me, his protection’s the only thing that would stand between his father’s wrath and my life.
It also seems like he’s not very confident he can keep me safe.
The stakes we’re playing for are very different, and this puts things into perspective. I’ve been an idiot, getting jealous about Asteria and worrying about our future together. We aren’t partners. We aren’t even on the same side. It’s not news to me, but somehow, I’ve let myself get lost, living with the enemy.
It’s time for me to find my way out of this mess, just like my mother, or like he suggested I do for my mother, I’ll wind up dead.
Or worse, I’ll become a monster myself.
2
Axel
As a hatchling, I was alternately adored and despised, depending on the color of my scales. When they were red, everyone was kind, solicitous, and polite. When they were gold, half the blessed looked at me like they wanted to eat me, and half looked like they wanted to kick me.
It was confusing and frustrating and unfair—I was the same either way.
But I always had Euphrasia by my side. Sometimes I caught her staring longingly at the waves on the shore, so I know it was hard for her to stay with me for so many years, but she did. Without her, the other blessed would surely have known what an abomination I truly was and tried to destroy me from the start. She kept me safe until I was large enough and smart enough to keep my secret on my own.
Had I not been raised by Euphrasia, I’d never have understood the way that Liz feels about her mother, her brother, and her sisters. She’s practically trembling when I land, after explaining that in a week, we’ll either need to visit my father, or risk him coming to Earth. I’m not sure which would be worse, but I worry that either way, Liz will be in danger.
