But all of that paled in comparison to the big question.
“Can you break Drayce free?”
Adrian’s cocky smile slipped, and he seemed to seriously consider Caelan’s question. “I will do my very best, Your Majesty. Drayce is my friend, and there is no way I’m leaving him to die here. I don’t give a damn about starting wars. Drayce doesn’t deserve to die here.”
For the first time in too long, Caelan felt like he could breathe. He nodded, unable to say anything for several minutes. It was still a treacherous undertaking, and the odds were against Adrian’s success. Eno had visited where Drayce was being held. He’d be able to give Adrian some key information about its defenses, but he’d still be alone among dragons. But knowing they were at least doing something to get Drayce free helped him to think.
“Then my focus needs to be on the godstone,” Caelan murmured. “Masaru isn’t going to let me near it.”
“We never thought he would,” Rayne grumbled under his breath. He gave a shake of his head as if he were brushing aside some disgruntled thoughts and straightened his shoulders. “I think our best bet is going to be with the Omari, but it might be best if we get in contact with them before they discover Drayce has gone missing. We can’t know if freeing Drayce is going to burn the last bridge we might have on the Isle of Stone.”
There was a very good chance that bridge was going to go up in smoke the second the head of the Omari clan discovered that Caelan was the son of Hagen, making him a half-breed. But there was nothing they could do about it now. They had to move forward and pray that Omari Nori was a more tolerant dragon than Masaru.
Otherwise, they were very much on their own in some very dangerous territory.
FIFTEEN
Adrian Westergren
Adrian stretched out on the thick support beam, careful not to disturb the years of dirt, dust, and general debris that had accumulated. Beneath him, a guard in the black uniform of Clan Takahashi trudged up the stairs to Adrian’s right and walked down the wide hall with a soft scuff of his shoes on the stone floor. That was his second pass in twenty minutes. This one had taken a little longer than the first on the basement level. Maybe he’d stopped to talk with the other guards?
Adrian settled his chin on his wrist and set his mental timer for the guard while carefully stretching out various muscles. Rayne might have brought him along for his stealth and sneaking skills, but—and he hated to break it to the advisor—he was out of practice. Life as a member of the Royal Guard meant using an entirely different set of muscles, and Adrian didn’t want to think about exactly how rusty he was. Not when it was Drayce’s life that was on the line.
His youth had been spent breaking into all manner of places he had no business being in. He’d sneaked into the royal treasury…twice. Not to mention half the offices of the ministers, the Royal Towers, and countless pubs he’d been far too young to be in. The more off-limits the place had been, the more he’d wanted to get inside. It had never been so much about the stealing, and it was rare that he’d ever taken anything of value. The breaking and entering had been more about being able to boast that he could do the impossible.
If his younger self had known he’d be sneaking into a dragon prison one day, he would have been positively giddy at the prospect.
Right now, all Adrian could think about was not getting roasted or eaten.
The fight in the street outside of Mio’s had proved to be an excellent reminder of exactly how dangerous their enemy was.
And maybe even shown exactly how dangerous their king was now.
Caelan hadn’t even flinched when the dragon dropped to the middle of the road and roared at them. The king had confidently summoned up the glowing green shield, keeping the dragon’s fire from touching them.
The only time he’d shown the slightest hint of emotion was when the dragon had turned its attention from him to Rayne and Eno. Adrian’s entire body had locked up. What was he supposed to do against a dragon? He might not give a shit about Rayne. The guy gave off a somewhat sneaky vibe that Adrian didn’t quite know what to do with. However, he respected Eno. The man was true and loyal all the way through. He hadn’t wanted to see Eno hurt.
But Caelan had killed the dragon with little more than a wave of his hand.
Hands down, the scariest thing Adrian had ever seen.
It definitely left him wondering what was keeping Caelan from doing that to every dragon that stood between him and Drayce.