Page 186 of The Fifth Heir

“They learned from Rafe.”

His mouth curved.

“I’ll be in the common room. Call if the pain returns.”

“I will.”

He closed the bathing-room door behind him.

I sank into the warm water.

My body ached, but nothing felt damaged. I traced the transparent scale with one finger. It remained solid and smooth. No others had formed around it.

A dragon existed inside me.

It had attempted to reach the surface and failed.

The thought should have frightened me.

Instead, it made me impatient.

I had waited eight years beyond the age when everyone agreed my dragon would appear. One interrupted manifestation could not erase that hope now.

For the first time, the failed shift felt less like another verdict and more like a beginning. My dragon had reached for the surface. Next time, I intended to be ready to meet her.

I washed, dried myself, and pulled on a soft gray robe from the crystal wardrobe.

Torren sat beside the common-room hearth.

The flames had become clear at the center. Red remained around their edges, reflecting against his bare forearms. He had changed into loose black trousers but kept the sleeveless shirt from earlier.

A cup waited on the table beside him.

“Water?” I asked.

“Yes.”

“I was hoping for something stronger.”

“After a magical surge?”

“Water is fine.”

He handed me the cup.

I drank half before sitting in the chair beside his.

Torren watched until I finished.

“You can stop checking whether I’m alive.”

“No.”

“I’ll tell you if anything changes.”

“You said that before the scale started burning.”

“I told you immediately.”