Page 85 of The Dragon King
She studied me for a while, absorbing my words with a pause. “You already knew the contents of her heart long before she said it. You can see love well before you hear it.”
I continued to stare at the camp, wondering if General Ezra watched us or if he spoke with Calista inside the tent.
“What did you tell her?”
“That I didn’t want more than what we have.”
A sad smile crossed her lips. “Love is possessive. It wants all of you—not just a piece.”
Calista had cornered me, and I had nowhere to run. I had to face the damage I’d caused. “What have I done…” I looked at the open valley and felt my mind burn in regret. “It’ll kill her.” I didn’t know how it would happen. If she would be in my arms when Bahamut appeared with an evil smile and yanked me away.
Eldinar’s eyes softened in pity.
“I knew this from the beginning, and I still did it.” I knew my life wasn’t my own, and neither was my soul. But I still grabbed on to Calista and didn’t let go. I said things I should have kept to myself. I slept beside her when I should have been alone. Every time I told myself to walk away, I just walked into her arms instead.
“You can control your mind. You can control your body. But you can never control your heart. It beats for whomever it chooses. Don’t punish yourself for what you can’t control, Talon.”
I looked at her again, the self-loathing crippling.
“What you feared most has already come to pass. There’s no going back now.”
“I almost told her.” I wanted her to understand. Needed her to understand that I didn’t push her away because I wanted to. Because I didn’t want to hurt the person I cared for most. “But I couldn’t do it. I couldn’t give her that burden to carry. I’d rather her think less of me.”
“Your time left together is limited. If you can’t change what’s to come, then you should enjoy what you have while there’s still time to enjoy it. Whether you reciprocate her feelings or not, she’ll still be devastated when you pass. There’s nothing you can do, Talon.”
I bowed my head in misery. “I also worry for myself.”
“Meaning?”
Her presence would haunt me for all eternity. Her features would fade from my memory, and I would change beyond recognition. I would watch a monster eat my soul. But I would always remember how happy I was with her. “It’ll just make it that much harder to die.”
I spotted them over the ocean before Khazmuda announced their arrival. It was a sight to behold, dozens of powerful dragonssoaring through the blue sky, their figures clear on a beautiful day. It was a sight I’d dreamed of so many times I assumed it would never come true.
We’ve arrived.
I’ll never forget this moment.I wanted to freeze it in my mind to keep forever. We’d searched for these dragons for decades, scoured the countryside in search of the allies we needed to win an impossible war. And finally, it had happened.
How do our scales look in the sunlight?
Their bellies were cast in shadow so their scales were impossible to see, but I would never tell him such a thing.Breathtaking.
The dragons approached and landed past the campsite in the open field. It was hard to count them all, but I suspected there were at least forty, including Khazmuda and Inferno. Khazmuda was the most distinct of them all because he was the only one who was completely black, dark like midnight.
I approached him, feeling a lightness in my heart at our reunion.How was the journey?
Much easier than the first one. Where’s Calista?He looked around near his claws, like he’d somehow missed her.
My heart gave a twinge of pain.I’m sure she’ll come by soon.
Khazmuda continued to glance around like she was hidden in plain sight before he turned back to me.How did so much change in the blink of an eye? I can feel the pain in your chest. It’s like a bloody wound that won’t heal.
It was a moment of triumph, all these dragons gathered together to usurp my uncle from the throne, but it felt empty.
Why won’t you answer me, Talon?
Because I don’t want to talk about it.
What did you do?