Page 83 of Black Crown
“He is alive, daughter. Your mate still lives.”
I shuddered at the immeasurable control under the alpha Drae’s leaden voice.
“Is hewell?” I asked, stressing the last word. There was a big difference between being alive and being well.
I watched my father’s expression carefully. His gaze and the hold of his mouth remained unchanged as we stared at each other.
“He is far from here,” Draedyn said. “I’ve done nothing to harm him. There is no reason to; the extinction of our species has never been my design.”
“Well, you’re doing agreatjob of that,” I said. Despite my sarcastic reply, my bottom lip trembled, and my hands shook. Thank the moons and stars and whoever else was looking over me. My mate was alive and free.
The emperor tilted his head, and his eyes narrowed.
“What?” I asked brusquely.
“Haven’t you heard that to kill your mate would be to risk killing you?” he asked. “Why do you think I went to so much trouble to get you away from him?”
All at once I understood. He’d pulled our strings like a puppeteer. And we were as foolish and naive as children. How had we not put it together? That he was merely attempting to lure me away. As soon as we knew he was there, we should’ve run “Did you know I was watching when you cut Mily open?”
He shook his head. “I didn’t know when you’d be watching, just that eventually you’d find me when the old human male went missing.”
How did he know how important Dyter was to me? My stomach clenched as realization set in. He’d accessed my mind more than once. He likely knew how much everyone meant to me. Could that mean Draedyn had him? He’d said ‘went missing,’ so I was inclined to assume not—or maybe that was desperation talking.
“Then why didn’t you strike when you attacked my mind? Why not just take me then?” I asked.
“Because your mate could’ve broken it,” he said plainly. “Just as he did.”
As plain as his appearance. As plain as his power. As plain as his cruelty. None of them had trimmings. None were dressed up. Was that the point beside his lowly appearance?
He smiled suddenly. “Very good. There’s no need for pretence.”
I wouldn’t roll my eyes. Not when I had to live for Tyrrik; my chest ached with the thought of him. “What happened after you took me?”
Draedyn stood, slowly, at human pace. “We flew here.”
I screwed up my face, not bothering to move. Tyrrik could move faster than light, and Draedyn had to be faster. The only reason for his deliberately slow pace was because he didn’t want me to know exactly how fast he could move. “Yeah, sure.That’swhy you cut the memories out.”
He shrugged and stepped toward the bed. My chest tightened, and my heartrate picked up, an instinctive reaction to the destructive power infusing the chamber. “I wondered if we would have a chance for a fresh start, but you’ve recalled more than I anticipated. Somehow.”
Daddykins didn’t seem too happy about some of my memories filling in from the blackout of his control, so I latched onto his tidbit of displeasure like a lifeline.
“However”—he studied me like a prize piece of cattle—“to hear your thoughts is rather . . . fascinating. I’ve not shared a familial bond with another in a long time, and I find myself curious to hear your thoughts. Curious enough to permit you most of your mind and body . . . for the time being.”
Hope leaped in my chest, and my eyes widened. I clutched my sheet and leaned forward with anticipation.
His face hardened. “Your mate is far away, Draeryn. My hold on you is absolute, regardless of these little freedoms I allow you. You’re inside my empire, and not even a Drae could fight his way in.”
Part of me sincerely hoped Tyrrik didn’t attempt it, and another part of me expected him to arrive any second. I expected Draedyn to know more than I how hard a male Drae would fight to get to his mate. But maybe not. Maybe Draedyn had never had a mate. I really didn’t know. There was so much I didn’t know, and in this moment, if the news was bad, I didn’t evenwantto know. I hoped Dyter, if he was even alive and with the army, would be able to talk reason into Tyrrik. With savage force, I turned my thoughts away from Dyter and back to Daddy-Draedyn.
“I’m in your lair?” I asked, glancing away from the emperor’s intense perusal of me to take a better look at the room. My bed was the centrepiece of the space, the velvet couch with its blood-red throw and a leather-covered trunk at the end of the bed were the only adornments to the chamber. Like the emperor himself, his lair was plain, another testament to his faux-humility. Like anything material would distract from his power? How hard would it be to hang up a family portrait—ugh, no. Maybe a picture of his mother or a landscape or sunset? Black, black, black.
“I’m seeing a decorative theme here,” I muttered. A door to my right offered a break in the dark graphite rock. Did that lead out to the rest of his lair?
“This is myhome. Wild animals have lairs. My empire is all of Draeconia, from the front of the cliffs, extending out to the water on all sides, all the way down to your precious Verald. And yes, that door will lead you to the rest of my abode. Behind you is your private washroom, through the smaller doorway there.”
I didn’t even need to speak anymore to be answered. How convenient. I offered Daddy Draedyn a tight smile.
A foreboding darkness billowed out from him, the only response to my flippant thought. The creeping dark-green power crawled through the room toward me, and I had a minor freak out. He didn’t expect me to watch my thoughts, did he? That was probably impossible for anyone.