My heart rate spiked.
He marched into Alden’s office and slowed as he entered, stopping just before his desk. Alden’s gaze bounced from Rogue to me.
Rogue eyed him for a minute, his head tilted to the side.
“Alden, tell me. Do I have a brother?” Rogue asked, his voice abnormally calm. Alden went completely still. “Well?”
“I—” His eyes flashed to me and back to Rogue. He closed the tome on his desk and stood, wringing his hands in front of him. “I don’t know for sure if I’m being honest. Around fifty years ago, a rumor surfaced from a lady’s maid saying the reason behind Adrastus’ violence was because he wanted to find his mate, breed her, and pass on his dragon shift.”
Rogue flinched and for a brief moment, I wanted to comfort him, as he had for me.
But it was just a brief moment, and I remained where I was.
“She said he’d been searching for about ten years and was becoming increasingly infuriated, so he started going from village to village, forcing people to reveal their daughters and destroying homes when they wouldn’t.”
Rogue’s mouth was tight as his eyes dropped.
“This all started because he supposedly sired a child who was born without wings and when she birthed him… He exploded. Obliterating the nursery along with half of the castle and sent the mother and babe away, with no money and no place to go. She was never heard of or seen again. We were never given a name or even her description, so when the child was never spoken of again, I assumed it was false. I wish I could tell you more, but I don’t even really believe it to be true, which is why I never thought to tell you,” Alden finished, his eyes full of pity.
Rogue sighed loudly and plopped down in a chair, shoulders slouched, as he ran a hand through his hair.
“Well, if he is out there, he has nothing to fear from me. He needs to know that,” Rogue uttered, lifting his gaze back to Alden. I couldn’t pull my eyes away from him as he spoke, my lips falling slack. “At first light, I’ll send a few messengers to nearby villages to spread the word. Although, I’m sure they will think I’ve gone mad, considering no one even knew he existed.”
A small seed of respect bloomed in my chest at his words and I found myself nodding absentmindedly. The act was so unlike what Adrastus would’ve done that I almost felt bad for ever having made the comparison between the two. Having an older brother with blood ties to the throne was a threat to his claim and yet, he would rather him live his life without fear than eliminate the competition.
“I’ll also have Doran spread the word through his men when he returns. That should cover a good bit of ground in and of itself,” he added, and the mention of Doran pulled me from my thoughts.
“Shouldn’t they have returned already?” I asked.
“Yes, and I’m starting to get concerned. The trek from the Marsh shouldn’t be taking this long.” He paused, his brows furrowed before he stood to grab a paper and quill. “I’ll send a letter. Just to make sure they’re alright.”
Rogue scribbled the note and tossed it into the small fire in Alden’s study. It burned, disappearing within seconds.
“Now we wait, I guess.”
Alden nodded. “Please let me know when you hear back. In the meanwhile, do you need anything from me? Any more questions? I don’t know much I can answer, but I will do my best.”
Rogue brought his hand to his chin, resting his elbow on the armrest. “Where did he send them, do you know?”
“We just know it was south, below his old estate, closer to the border towns, but I don’t think he would still be there. Most of them have evacuated, seeking safe haven from the attacks.”
“That does make pinpointing him a lot harder. And you said fifty years ago, you’re sure?”
“Yes, from what we were told. The woman said the birth started his search, as he was unaware that it took a mated pair to pass on power like that. So it would’ve been roughly ten to eleven years before you were born if everything she said was truthful and accurate.”
Wait.
My head snapped to Rogue and I studied his face. “You’re thirty-nine?”
He paused, half smiling, before bursting out in laughter.
“You don’t look any older than me.”
“Everything you’ve heard, everything you’ve learned, and that’s what shocks you?” Rogue wiped tears from his eyes as Alden began chuckling and I gaped at them both. “Ara, do you know how old Alden is? How old Iaso is?”
I shook my head, shifting my gaze to Alden’s face.
“Well, you know Fae don’t age like humans. We age at a similar speed until puberty, and then it slows from there. I’m almost 800 years old, and I have looked like this for about a hundred years, I would say,” Alden said, suppressing a smile.