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3
BRAXTON
Jealousy. What a fugly feeling…
I never thought of myself as a jealous man. Of course, I’d never actually had a girlfriend before Evie. It didn’t help that I couldn’t tell anyone about us yet, and that she had an asshole fluttering around her skirts, who definitely wanted to get into far more than her good graces.
Asher told me they had been the best of friends before the incident, but I didn’t care, I could practically smell his intentions and I didn’t like them one bit.
The strangest thing was nothing about him jumped at me... yet. He didn’t seem treacherous, disloyal, or fake. Reading people had always been my one gift—well, the one I knew about in the Mirror World anyway. The point was, I was never wrong about someone. It took one look for me to see through them, to discover the essence of them, and it was something I trusted more than anything.
My instincts had never failed me before, and they didn’t want him anyway near her… but why? I couldn’t pinpoint a single trait against him that told me Lachlan couldn’t be trusted, and yet, here I was. Enraged. Fuming. Wanting to punch his face in for simply looking at Evanna the way he had. The affection shining through his eyes was unmistakable, and so was the longing that hid behind it.
Which brought me back to jealousy. Was I really that guy?
Apparently, I was, because I was practically a minute away from peeing all around her to mark my territory—like some possessive brute or a wild animal.
Sigh.
My chest sunk with the frustrated breath, and I marched into my room, only to throw my sword on the bed and go straight to the window. Poking my head out, my eyes urgently searched for Vyper everywhere. It was late, and the hollow mountains that housed the hidden kingdom were engulfed in darkness—only a soft gleam of moonlight seeping in, but I didn’t need light to see.
A golden glow slowly began to spread over the city below, illuminating every inch as my night vision took over, and a feeling of awe spread through me, diminishing the anger I felt. The beauty of this place never seemed to stop humbling me.
Nothing. Vyper was nowhere to be found.
Eyes falling close, I stepped back and searched for our connection instead. He could be invisible and trying to prank me yet again. The inexplicable link between us had strengthened in the past weeks—thanks to my daily interaction with the Dragons, guided by Kingston’s command. It helped to visualize, so I imagined it like a spiderweb, of which I was the center.
Silver threads glimmered with a blue hue, stretching in every direction. Most of them were dim, fading into the shadows, dormant, but a few others glowed brightly. The strongest one of them, thick and sturdy like an iron cable, tugged at me, sensing me too.
Tharion.
A small smile curved my lips. “I’m okay. I’ll be with you later…”
Draco’s thread followed. It was much thinner and dimmer than the one I shared with Fire Fury, but brighter than the rest, and present, nonetheless. Another thin one extended to Luna, and one a bit stronger to my bronze baby—which reminded me, I had yet to give him a name. Weaker threads connected me to Athina, Spartan, and every other Dragon that had ever interacted with me. Even though they weren’t my soul mates, they all hummed in the background.
Pulsing with a different kind of strength, Vyper’s thread instantly became visible in my mind’s eye, and my smile widened. However, ache suddenly spread through my being, capturing my limbs and chest, until my breathing became slower. Exhaustion slammed into me, and my eyes opened with worry.
Yes, I had spent the entire morning with Kingston and the Dragons, trained the better part of my afternoon sparring with the Elevated Warriors, and then went to roast the coffee. Focusing what was left of my day into making enough for half the city to drink, I even taught them how to make it at home. There was no question I was tired beyond belief, but the pain seizing my being wasn’t mine. It was Vyper’s.
Climbing onto the windowsill, I glanced up just as Vyper descended, lowering his wing for me to mount him. Concern grew in my chest as I sat on his neck. His usually tough, scaly skin seemed soft and wrinkly, the shiny, moss green hue it normally held was now dull and grayish.
“What happened to you, buddy? Are you sick?”
I patted his neck caringly, shivering at the way his skin felt under my touch. It reminded me of an elderly person’s skin, thin and weakened by age. Was he preparing to shed it? Probably, but why did it hurt him? Was that normal? The feeling augmented, rolling over his muscles and seeping into mine. He yawned, a low moan escaping him.
Carefully laying on him, I closed my eyes and took a deep and steady breath, splaying both hands over his neck. A tingling sensation rushed through me when the exchange of energy began, and I infused it into him, hoping it would help him. Instantly, the pain diminished, but it never truly disappeared. Guilt slammed into me when I sat up again, watching him.
Was I the thing hurting him? I had never even stopped to think that my nightly trips to see Evanna might interfere with his sleeping cycle, or prevent him from getting the rest he needed. Maybe I was the cause of his exhaustion, and unknowingly, I was doing this to him. He was a kid after all, not as strong or developed as the other adults.
His wing extended again when we reached Evie’s window, and I realized that he had taken me there while I was distracted by his condition. Vyper turned his head towards me when I began to climb off him, his eyes glancing at me with an emotion I hadn’t seen before from him. He was grateful I had taken some of his pain away, and love shone in his eyes. Landing inside Evie’s room, I lifted my hands to him through the window, calling him closer.
My touch reached his cheek, seeing his right eye close with my caress. “Go straight to the cave and rest, okay? I can get to my room through the stairs.”
Vyper blinked, brow wrinkling with concern, and he shook his head.
“It’s okay to leave me here. Kingston won’t see me, I promise. Go get as much rest as you need to feel better, buddy. I’ll be fine.” Pressing my forehead to his cheek, I shared a moment with him. The strong aching that throbbed through his muscles became visible in his eyes the second he gave in to my plea and flew away, becoming invisible while he soared towards the honeycombs.
In that moment, I truly wished I could see him even if he was invisible. I was deeply worried now, so I wanted to make sure he got there safe.
