Adrian turned in the direction of the East Wall and ran, hoping to intercept Haru ahead of anyone else, but his feet slowed to a stop after a couple of yards. A tall figure dressed in white robes strode out from between the trees of the park that lined the East Wall. His clothes danced about him in the wind, and his black hair rose and fell in a graceful dance. He walked as if he belonged here.
Or maybe it was just that those dark, piercing eyes were locked on Adrian and his steps grew quicker. A wicked grin lifted the corners of his mouth, and Adrian’s heart sped up. He remembered that smile. It was the last one he’d seen before Haru disappeared from his room on the Isle of Stone.
“Adrian,” Haru said, though the sound was carried away by the wind and swallowed up by the city. It didn’t matter. He felt like he’d memorized exactly how his name looked on Haru’s lips.
Finally breaking free of his paralysis and remembering that he was being closely watched by at least a dozen members of the Royal Guard, Adrian rushed forward, closing the distance between them.
“Haru! What—”
“Adrian! I love my cousin’s city. We must go exploring,” Haru immediately gushed.
“Later. You shouldn’t have come directly here. You should have let me meet you.”
Haru tipped his head to the side, his long black hair cascading over his shoulder as he stared at the soldiers who were undoubtedly watching them very closely. That smile shifted on Haru’s mouth, becoming a bit smug. “I see you’ve called people to welcome me.”
“That wasn’t me. That’s the security for the Royal Towers. Security for the king,” Adrian reminded him. He shivered as another wind blasted across the plaza.
Haru immediately straightened, his smooth, pale brow furrowing as his eyes swept over Adrian. “You’re cold,” he stated as if he couldn’t fathom that Adrian might be fucking freezing in the middle of winter in Stormbreak. Leave it to the dragon to be completely content in the cold. Haru reached out to pull Adrian closer as if to protect him from the cold, and gods help him, for a heartbeat, he considered letting Haru do it.
Luckily, common sense kicked in with the next heartbeat.
He batted Haru’s hands away, which made the dragon smirk. “Come with me and don’t speak.”
“But Adrian—”
“I’m serious!” He pointed a finger at the dragon and scowled. “You’ll put both me and the king in trouble.”
Haru lifted a skeptical eyebrow at him but made a point of pressing his lips tightly together. Trying to tell himself that Haru could behave for a couple of minutes, Adrian grabbed his arm and pulled him forward.
Of course, that blissful silence lasted only three steps before Haru stopped. “Wait.”
Adrian opened his mouth to snap at Haru, but the sound was locked in his throat when he took in the dragon’s stark expression, his eyes lifted to where the Central Tower had been. It was now replaced by a giant tangle of thick vines that rose up to wrap around what had been the Godstone. The vines were largely in shadow, gilded here and there by the lights from the East and West Towers.
He pointed one long white finger at the vines. “Is that where my cousin was murdered?”
A deep ache echoed through Adrian’s chest, and his fingers tightened on Haru’s arm. Hagen Sigurd had died protecting the queen. At the time, they’d all thought he was the queen’s personal bodyguard. The truth was that Hagen was Omari Kei, a dragon from Clan Omari, son of Omari Nori and father of Caelan Talos.
“Yes, this is where he died protecting his queen,” Adrian replied softly. “I’m so sorry.”
Haru’s expression didn’t change as he dropped his hand to his side and looked at Adrian. “And my cousin punished those who did it?”
“He did, but I think he’d appreciate your help in finishing the job.”
The dragon’s smile returned with an evil glint in his eye. Yes, Haru seemed like he’d enjoy that task very much as well.
And Adrian needed to get the dragon somewhere fucking private before someone started asking too many questions Haru couldn’t restrain himself from answering.
Tightening his fingers on Haru, Adrian dragged him past the gawking Royal Guard while he shouted for them to send Captain Soto to his apartments if anyone had a problem with his unexpected visitor.
Haru stared at the shiny beauty of the lobby for the Royal Tower as Adrian pulled him along to the elevator.
“Oh, my!” Haru gasped as the door shut. He then stepped forward and proceeded to push several of the buttons, giggling as they lit up under his touch. Adrian moaned and smacked his hands away, but it wasn’t much of a deterrent—he laughed harder and tried to reach around Adrian.
“Come on! You’ve been in an elevator!” Adrian complained, trying to keep Haru from making them stop on every fucking floor.