Laura waved a dismissive hand. They needn’t have worried you. I’m fine. Just ready to have this gargantuan child out of my body.
Edmund’s chuckle wafted into the picture, and the man’s lithe figure appeared as he seated himself beside his wife and ran a hand over her enormous stomach. It really was the largest pregnant belly Heath had ever seen. It was hard to believe the physicians could be right when they all assured the family there was only one baby in there.
Not long now, love.
Edmund’s voice was tender, and Heath pulled back from the image abruptly. He felt a trickle of guilt at his spying, although there wasn’t really anything objectionable in what he’d seen.
“How do you deal with the discomfort?” Heath asked Reka.
The dragon tilted his head in apparent confusion. “Discomfort? Is it hurting you to use your farsight?”
“No, I mean the emotional discomfort,” Heath clarified. “The guilt—or if that’s too strong, at least the unease—of spying on people you care about, without them being able to stop you, or even knowing you’re doing it.”
Reka gave a rippling shrug which made his scales tinkle. “I don’t have that.”
Heath rolled his eyes. “Of course you don’t.”
It was hardly the first time he’d encountered the reality that dragons had neither tact nor sensitivity when it came to human emotions.
“Whom did you watch that prompted such emotions?” Reka asked curiously.
“My sister,” said Heath. “She’s pregnant—very pregnant—and she was having a private conversation with her—”
Heath.
The word was so crystal clear in his mind that Heath cut himself off abruptly. That was Merletta’s voice, surely. He knew it as well as his own. Her image emerged from the corner of his mind, rushing back to full clarity. But it was much more vivid than it had ever been before. His mind was suddenly flooded with awareness of her, from the tangle of her long, dark hair to the golden tips of her fins. She was upset, and lonely. And although she couldn’t possibly know that he was practicing his farsight at that moment, and that he’d unknowingly established a connection between them—for he knew with sudden certainty that was what he’d done—she’d called for him.
I really need you right now.
“What is it?” Reka asked curiously, studying Heath with the fascination of a scholar poring over a text. “What caused that flare of power?”
“Merletta,” said Heath eagerly. “It worked, Reka. The connection thing you talked about. She was hovering in the back of my mind all this time, and when she called for me just now, it somehow activated the connection.”
“Interesting,” said Reka, sounding pleased. “You are truly a rapid learner, Heath. At least for your kind. I did not expect you to successfully establish such a connection so quickly.”
“Thank you,” said Heath distractedly. “Now let’s go.”
“Go?” Reka repeated, sounding perplexed. “Go where?”
“To Vazula,” said Heath, impatient with the dragon’s unhurried manner. “She’s heading there now, and she called for me. I know you have mixed emotions about visiting the island now, Reka, but this time I’m determined. We’re going to Vazula.”
Chapter Five
By the time Merletta reached the shallows near Vazula, she’d had time to rethink her rash decision to flee to the island. She’d been there yesterday, and would be returning the following day. It was foolish to abandon her plan of spending the rest day being seen as much as possible in the triple kingdoms. It was important she throw off anyone who might suspect her of leaving the barrier in her free time. Of course, she reflected grimly, more than enough people had seen her at Andre’s celebration, unknowingly parading herself as more than his friend.
But it was that very humiliation which had driven her to the island. She didn’t really expect to see Heath, but the next best thing was to be alone, somewhere she need have no fear of interruption. The trouble was, she’d remembered too late that Vazula no longer offered that relief. There were three others living there, who would want her help and attention the moment she arrived.
Well, she was there now. Nothing would be gained by turning around. At least August would be pleased with the news that his wife was coming the following day.
When Merletta beached herself deftly on the sand, barely noticing the tingling sensation that heralded the change from tail to legs, there was no sign of anyone. She wandered over to the makeshift shelter where the three guards usually slept, and found that deserted, too. She released a long breath, pleased with her good fortune. It seemed they were out hunting, and she would be granted some solitude after all.
She decided to leave the beach, walking with sure steps to the lagoon where she’d first met Heath. It was a pleasant place to sit and think, without staring at the ocean and being reminded of all the challenges and danger and embarrassment that awaited her within it.
Merletta settled herself on one of the flat rocks near the lagoon’s edge, her arms wrapped around one knee as the other leg dangled in the cool water. She closed her eyes, trying not to think but just to be. Her leg swayed with the lapping waves, and she felt the elusive peace settle over her.
She loved this place. Straddling the line of land and sea, far away from the expectations and lies of the Center, she felt like she was her full self, every part of her combined into one state of being.
The familiar rushing sound snapped her from her thoughts, and her head jerked upward, eyes searching the sky as she hardly dared to hope. Surely not. Could he really be coming, after all this time?