Page 152 of Three Dark Kings and the Gilded Serpent

Oh.

“Thyra?” Stellen prompts me when I stare into the distance for a long moment.

I run my fingertips along the blood bind, following the curved lines, the sharp lines, and all those that flow in between. “Maxim has too much fire.”

Could it be that simple?

“He spoke of an early death,” I whisper. “He implied to me that his fire was killing him.”

The crease in Stellen’s forehead eases and he gives a slow exhale. “Damn.”

Antony takes glances between us. “Enlighten me.”

I tug my bottom lip between my teeth, mentally churning through all of the unanswered questions. “I could be very wrong. There are so many unknowns. Too many ifs and maybes, and this theory could come unstuck for any number of reasons…”

“Thyra.” Antony’s fangs appear, and I completely understand his impatience, but at the same time, a theory like this only raises more questions.

Quietly, I say, “She did it to protect her son.”

Antony’s snarl fades and now he’s the one staring into the distance. “Draining Maxim’s power could keep him alive.” Then he grumbles, “Too fucking bad about the rest of us.” But the furrow quickly returns to his brow. “Does that mean binding the ribbon to your arm was just a coincidence?”

“Possibly,” I say. “She couldn’t have known about breaking the blade because that message in the Chronicle was revealed only to me. At least, as far as I would assume.”

Stellen is nodding. “Miriam and Aeliana were already liaising back then. Isha could have overheard something about the hammer and decided to act on that information.”

“If that’s so, why did the False Queen’s spirit take credit for the blood bind?” Antony asks.

For once, he’s the one poking holes in my reasoning, a role usually performed by Stellen.

“A valid question,” I say on a soft exhale. “So many unknowns. But if any of this could be true, then this blood bind is all about Maxim.”

As are the binds on his arms and possibly even the blood bind on his golden serpent.

Stellen reaches for the blank page and the scroll, carefully folding the page and rolling the scroll up again. “We need to speak with Miriam and Aeliana. Find out what else they know about the blade, the curse, and the blood bind. They’ve vowed to help you, Thyra. I studied the documents in my possession for years, but they could have other crucial information.”

“Pieces we need to put together,” I say.

“In the meantime, we have to make damn sure the Dragonstone Blade remains intact,” Antony says, rising to his feet and reaching for his axe.

“What about Maxim?” I ask.

My question falls into a sudden silence.

Both men are like stone, both half-turned away from me.

“I used his warmth in the Frost Kingdom,” I continue quietly. “How much harm will he experience now that I’m not draining his power?”

Still, they’re silent.

Then, Stellen says, “A question that pits our lives against his.”

Damn.

My shoulders slowly sink, but I don’t flinch away from facing this harsh truth. Antony and Stellen told me that I’m the kingdom for which they would lay down their lives. I’m the heart of their worlds. But they also promised to question and challenge me, as they should when my choices could hurt them.

At least, by choosing to stay together, they can take control of their own wellbeing and ensure the blood bind’s purpose will be thwarted. Only with their full agreement and their geographical separation could the bind start draining their power again.

That doesn’t diminish the dread rising within me, a dread of which I had rid myself for one blissful night.