‘Then she’ll regret it more than she’s ever regretted anything,’ he said darkly, his voice low from exhaustion.
My mind raced. ‘River, please think about this. She won’t stop.’
‘Hold on.’ His fists clenched until his knuckles whitened. ‘Are you asking me to let you go back?’
A humourless laugh escaped him as he raked a hand through his dark hair.
‘You don’t know her like I do,’ I tried to talk sense into him.
The amber of his eyes sharpened, increasingly predatory, reminding me of the night he nearly killed me. Something flickered there, recognition. He remembered it too.
‘I can’t believe after everything, after all the time I’ve spent showing you what Fogoya could be for you, you still want to go back,’ he said, looking away.
Though his tone steadied, the disappointment in his eyes was raw and unguarded.
‘River, it’s not like that,’ I tried, but the words failed.
He turned away, jaw tight, tension rolling through his shoulders. But he didn’t leave immediately; he paused at the door, bracing a hand against the frame as if the weight of the moment held him there.
‘You said you trusted me.’
Chapter Twenty-Four
Avari
River was nowhere to be found. I checked his office, the library, the courtyard, and even the kitchen where he sometimes made cocoa. Every room was empty. The air had turned colder, the summer warmth fading into an early autumn gloom that suited his absence too well.
He hadn’t shown up to breakfast either. No message, no explanation. Just an empty chair and the silence that confirmed what I already knew: I’d hurt him.
I spent most of the night going over every part of our discussion, from his words to the way his expression hardened. By morning, I hoped we could talk. I never meant to offend him, and though I expected him to be upset, I hadn’t expected him to shut me out completely.
The problem wasn’t my request; it was his lack of perspective. This wasn’t a whim. It was about facing something I couldn’t ignore—a threat to Fogoya.
After three decades under my mother’s shadow, I’d learned to read the signs. Retaliation was coming. Herscheming vibrated through my bones, chipping away at their structure, and yet part of me didn’t want it to stop. That was when the real crisis would begin.
After hours of searching for someone who clearly didn’t want to be found, I gave up. I would wait and let him come to me once the storm in his head had settled. When the fire burned itself out, reason would return, and with it, maybe, the will to talk.
‘Meet me in the courtyard?’ I reached out to my beast.
The dragon sounded ominous as she asked, ‘Flying or chit-chatting again?’
‘Why? Won’t you come?’ I whined.
‘Of course I will. I’ll just grab a horse on the way there as payment for my sacrifice.’
By the time I reached the courtyard, Anya was already there, her massive form drinking from the fountain.
‘They have lakes, you know,’ I said, watching her grow still.
‘Do you want to be dropped into one?’
She lowered herself, walls of muscle rippling beneath golden scales that shimmered like molten metal. I climbed her front leg and settled between her shoulders, gripping the warm ridges. Then, with a single powerful motion, she launched skyward.
Soon, everything below looked tiny. We were flying high, high enough that if I jumped, there would be nothing left of me but a splash of blood. I focused on balance, letting thewind rush through my hair until the noise in my head began to fade. For a little while, I could almost forget everything.
It was undoubtedly what I needed. I didn't understand why River’s disappointment lingered the way it did. He wanted me to grow to appreciate Fogoya, yet there had been bitterness in his tone, as though I hadn’t. But I had, and it frightened me how much.
I loved the land’s serenity, its forests and rivers, the way peace settled between the mountains. I valued Michael’s loyalty, Emily’s steady kindness, and little Isla’s bright, exhausting enthusiasm.
