I let out a long sigh, not bothering to respond.
“I’ll get Aria and keep you informed on how it goes,” Dedra said, leaning off the wall and turning away with a determined stride down the hall. She flicked her hand in the air in farewell and turned, disappearing around the corner.
I stayed outside the door, listening to Zara’s laughter—my mates' laughter.
I had sensed something when she had fallen into my tent, though I wasn’t quite sure what the feeling had been at the time. But when she and Jaxon had appeared in that ballroom, and Ihad caught her scent on him…I had known instantly. Something primal roaring in the very essence of who I was.
My mate.
I doubted she knew what a mate was or understood what she was feeling, especially given the entanglement of my soul with Jaxon’s and their now-shared history.
Just the thought of it twisted something dark and violent inside me, and I let out a growl of frustration. The power he now wielded must be clouding his senses. It was the only explanation for this and his inability to detect Morgana, who had been right under his nose the entire time. He should have been able to sense her.
I growled low in my throat again at the knowledge and shook my head. One problem at a time.
I swung open the door to find Zara surrounded by Julian and Theo. They were still chuckling at whatever they were talking about, but they all seemed to fall silent as I entered the room.
Zara's gaze dropped to her hands, which were nervously wringing in her lap.
“I’ll be back later to check your injuries,” Julian said with a smirk, grabbing Theo by the arm and towing him toward the door.
“Let go of me, you ass; I know how to walk,” Theo retorted, yanking his arm free. He flashed me a playful grin. “Your Majesty,” he said, bowing dramatically.
I responded with a swift kick to his shin. Theo yelped, clutching his leg and hopping on one foot, his face a mask of exaggerated pain. Zara’s muffled laughter filled the room, and Theo winked at her before exiting with Julian, who struggled to suppress a grin of his own.
“You’re in better spirits,” I said, approaching her bed and taking a seat in the chair beside it.
Zara’s lips curled into a small, fleeting smile. “I like your friends,” she murmured. But her smile vanished as she met my gaze, causing a pang of disappointment in my chest.
“I want to see Jaxon,” she said, her voice steady but firm.
I looked away from her. There was no avoiding it, but I didn’t want her to see him, not like that, not after what I had just revealed to him. Her gaze sharpened, and it did something to my heart. It twisted in my chest, and she scrunched her brows as if she could feel it, too.
“I want to see Jaxon,” she repeated, swinging her legs over the edge of the bed. I reached out, gently guiding her legs back under the blankets.
“Not tonight. He needs his rest,” I said lamely, but her eyes softened at whatever truth she was reading on my face. “Now that we know Morgana is alive, we need to arrange a meeting with her to try to broker peace between our people.”
Zara’s eyebrows shot up in alarm. “You’re inviting her here?!” Her voice nearly broke into a shout, panic flickering across her face.
“No, not here,” I clarified quickly. “It would be somewhere neutralandinvolve a magical bargain between all parties. If accepted, no one will be able to harm the other. This ensures that neither side is at risk during our discussions. The bargain would only end once each party returned to their territories. If someone were to break the bargain, the magic would ensure their death.”
Zara stared at me, her disbelief and awe evident. “And how are you going to reach out to my mother…” She winced at her own words. “I mean Morgana.”
“I was hoping you would be able to help with that,” I said, but her face started to drain of color. I quickly rushed to clarify. “Not in the way you’re thinking. You can shadow across longdistances, which means you can also send objects, like a letter, with your magic. I can teach you.”
Her panic spiked, and she bit out, “I can't control it. If I take off the charm, I might vanish. I might end up back with her.”
I could hear the rapid thudding of her heart. And I cursed myself for causing her this much fear. “That won't happen,” I reassured her.
“How can you be so sure? I couldn’t control it before. What makes you think I can now?” Frustration edged her voice.
“Because your magic was—” I started, then hesitated, the words catching in my throat. Admitting what I knew felt too raw. Coward, I thought bitterly. “Because, Zara,” I continued, forcing my voice to remain calm, “I wouldn’t let anything happen to you. You have to trust me. Jaxon will tell you the same—”
“Trust you?” She cut me off with a bitter laugh. “The person who threatens me, drugs me, and imprisons me? How can I trust you?!” she shouted, slamming her fists onto the bed.
Her anger was palpable, and I stood from my chair, unable to stop myself. “But you can trust Jaxon?” I retorted, my voice edged with dark humor. “The man who hid his true identity from you? Who put your realm and your people at risk?” I shouted back, the tension between us crackling in the air. “You fell into my life, not the other way around,” I growled, the annoyance and hurt in my voice raw and unrestrained.
She swung out of the bed and stood in front of me, her face inches from mine. Her finger jabbed into my chest, and her eyes blazed fiercely. “At least he did something about it.” She bit out. “At least Jaxon sought the truth instead of ignoring it!” She let out another bitter laugh. “If he hadn’t opened the door and done all this, what would have happened to me? To my people? Morgana would still have been a threat, but one you wouldn’t have seen coming.”
