Chapter 8
“Princess,” Cole strolled through the palace, using his magic to trace Ariel. He kept sending out pings and waiting to see where they faded. “Ariel. Come scream at me.”
Wherever she was, she felt his magical shocks and strolled out from the library. It connected to so many rooms, and he was reminded of her power by the fact that he couldn't quite locate her. She didn't look particularly angry, but she did look annoyed.
“What do you want?” she asked.
“You want an explanation of what just happened?” he said. “Don't be mad at me. I didn't tell you to go away.”
“Sure,” she replied. “Everything else that goes on in this palace confuses me, so why not?”
“That was Rosa,” he said. He expected to give her more of explanation, but she quirked an eyebrow.
“Rosa Halloway?”
“How did you know?” he asked, and she shrugged.
“Alexander and I snooped in Nicholas' phone last night, accidentally, but on purpose. Is he having a love affair with her?”
“He is, I think,” Cole replied. “But he freaked because she's only alive because of magic. You take it away, and she's done for.”
“Isn't her magic also killing her?” Ariel asked, remembering the conversation she had with Alexander.
“Indeed,” Cole replied. “Halloway need four, so she is carrying the magic of three other witches, and that's too much. If she could just carry her own, there would be room for an actual life force in her, and it wouldn't be such a problem.”
“I don't get it,” Ariel said. “They need four, and yet she has the other three?”
“Because…there is just her?” Now it was his turn to be confused.
“But there's you,” she said.
That stopped Cole in his tracks.
“What?” he asked, increasingly confused. “What are you talking about?”
“Your magic is the same as hers,” she said. “When I absorb yours and hers, it feels the same. Aren't you of the same line?”
The words confused Cole. He realized that nothing he said would make sense. He was half-witch, yes, but he never thought of what his witch origins were. He knew how to use his magic, and it worked, so there was no reason to question it. Despite a brief straying from the palace of his royal home, he knew who his family was. At least, it was the family that mattered. He didn't have any need or want to chase after his birth parents.
Until, that is, right now.
“You think my magic feels like a Halloway strain?” he asked.
“Well, I was only in the room for two seconds,” she replied. “So, I'd have to verify again. But yeah.”
“Huh,” Cole had not expected this to come from the conversation.
“So, is three witches instead of four in her enough to take it over?” Ariel asked.
“Two would be enough,” Cole replied. Ariel paused, thinking.
“Thomas.”
“Thomas Dolcetti?” he said in surprise “Are you serious?”
“Cole, I just said it was two seconds. Let me near her for half a minute, and I might be able to tell you for sure,” she protested. “But I think so.”
“Somehow, I feel like convincing Nicholas of that is going to be very difficult,” he said. “You could kill her.”
“Not in thirty seconds,” she said. “She'll just suffer for a while. But this is sort of in the name of saving her life.”
“Right,” he paused. “God, I never even thought about mine.”
“Sorry to burst your bubble,” she said, but he shrugged.
“It doesn't matter,” he said. “My family is here in this palace, except if my so-called father shows up.”
“What happened, exactly?” she asked, confused.
“He tried to steal all of Rosa's power, probably for some sort of immortality.”
“Cole, if the magic really is fading, does that put Peter at risk? He came back from the Other, same as your father,” Ariel said.
“I don't know,” Cole replied. “You hoping for your place as queen back?”
“Not really,” she answered. “And Alexander certainty couldn't be king ever again. But I'm just wondering.”
“I have a suspicion,” Cole said, “that if the Other does reclaim those who have returned, they won't take Peter. He willingly faded away, he wasn't forced. No one has ever done that before. So, I suspect if Peter wants to, he could stay here, no matter what happens to the others.”
“Oh, a special snowflake,” she smiled. “That's good, because with the way the show is going, I really don't have time to be queen here anyway.”
“Poor princess,” he said. “Let me go talk to Nicholas. He's not going to take kindly to this suggestion.”
“Didn't you have Thomas scheduled to come here?” she asked. “We could put it off until he is here, too, and do it all at once. It's been awhile since I felt Thomas' magic.”
“I could arrange that,” Cole said. “I'll put in the call to him now. For now, just stay away from her.”
“Thanks,” Ariel rolled her eyes. “I'll be in the library, being a loner.”
“Thanks, love,” he said, and he skipped away.
Once he was gone, she did sigh. It wasn't lost on her that she was hurting those whom she had come to care about the most. Ariel didn't often speak feelings of affection, but she did care about her in-laws. They were the only real family she had ever known. The fact that Alexander had been permanently damaged, and now the fact she could kill her favorite brother-in-law's love just by standing there was reasonably painful.
She and these creatures were not made to be together. But she had spent her whole life listening to people tell her about the things she shouldn't do. She wasn't about to let this stop her from the happiest time of her life.
She hoped she could help this situation. Detecting magical strains wasn't an exact science. However, she was the strongest carapace in the galaxy; it shouldn't be that difficult.
If she was honest with herself, she was afraid that she was going to be wrong. It wasn't an idle task; there were lives at stake here.
If someone had told her a few years ago that she would care so much about something that wasn't her own survival, she would have laughed in their face. Dragons had a way of changing you that was for sure.
“Ahem,” she spun around to find Peter entering the library. She realized she had been standing stock still, staring at the bookshelf like she was in trance.
Peter met her eyes, and she raised an eyebrow. She knew exactly what he was waiting for, and that was for her to bow to him. He may be family and the king, but they were in private, and she wasn't going to take things that far.
“Yes, Peter, what can I do to annoy you now?” she asked. His English was strong enough now that he could understand her perfectly. But on Umora, he was strict about speaking in the dragon lore, which drove her mad.
“Why did my brother just go tearing down the hall like demons were chasing him?”
“Because I told him that he's got Halloway magic, and so does the other magical half-breed. Why?” she asked innocently.
Peter choked. “I'm sorry?”
“Why does it matter where his magic comes from?” Ariel asked. “It's not like it's a surprise that he's a magical half-breed. The origin shouldn't matter.”
“Because Nicholas just told me that Father is looking to drain Halloway magic to live forever,” Peter replied, turning on his heel. “And Cole is the last heir.”
“Is your palace so unsecured that you worry about your father breaking in here?” she asked him. He glared at her.
“If your entire reign ended because you could not keep your family safe, Ariel, how would you feel?”
“I would do everything I could,” she said. “But if I believed I was the God-granted leader, I would probably also accept that God ended my reign.”
“Huh,” he said. “But not today.”
“Not today,” she said.
It was not an easy process. Thomas was considered an enemy of the kingdom, and they would have to be careful bringing him in. In addition, Nicholas was not happy about exposing Rosa to Ariel again. However, he couldn't deny them, given what was at stake. The fact that two Halloway heirs may be hiding behind dragon blood was fascinating, and also baffling.
“What happened to them?” he asked Cole as they waited for Thomas in the antechamber. Peter, himself, had gone to retrieve the troublesome dragon. “Is that why they died out?”
“I don't know, maybe,” Cole replied. “No one knows why there suddenly weren't any more. But if they started relationships with dragons….”
“More likely, they were forced into relationships with dragons and then killed,” Nicholas said. “As much as I don't want to demonize our kind, it's more likely. Look how desperate Father was to get his hands on Halloway blood.”
“I bet you this means I'm immortal,” Cole grinned, and Nicholas rolled his eyes.
“Prince Cole, annoying the universe for all eternity.”
“I should put that on a sign,” Cole replied. “Perhaps that will be the motto on my banner.”
“In which case, I'm glad I won't be around forever,” Nicholas replied.
They felt a sudden whoosh and stepped back as Peter and Thomas materialized.
Peter had taken no chances and had Thomas shackled with his arms behind his back. He looked grim, and Cole could only imagine how awkward it was. After all, Peter had essentially stolen his wife, Yvette, from Thomas' clutches. There were many versions of the story, but none of them created good feelings between the two of them. It was only because of Yvette's pleas that Thomas lived at all.
Thomas was mostly silent, not quite impressed with the whole process.
“Stand up,” Peter pulled at him, trying to get him to not make a fuss. “You don't have to say anything.”
“He does have to say things,” Cole said. “But to me, later. For now, into the throne room you go.”
“You are not my king,” Thomas snarled at Peter. Peter raised an eyebrow.
“Really?” he said, and waved his hand. It was supposed to invoke a spell called majesty, which forced them to bow. Thomas gritted his teeth, fighting it. But then, as the doors opened and Yvette turned around, his knees weakened. “And is she not your queen?”
Silence passed as Thomas met Yvette's eyes, full of emotion. She wanted all to be well between them, but she knew that it would probably not be. Cole raised his chin as Enya joined him.
“Technically, I am his king,” Cole said, “and this is his queen. Either way, Thomas, be respectful.”
“I–”
“You tried to kill us all,” Peter pointed out, and Thomas fell silent. “Bring the girls.”
“Make it quick,” Nicholas reminded Ariel when she came in. “As fast as you can.”
“I know,” Ariel said. “But remember, this isn't an exact science. I'm not in the habit of purposely killing innocent girls, though.”
Nicholas took a deep breath and then went to get Rosa, who was waiting outside the throne room. His heart pounded in his chest. This was such a risk, especially for as long as Ariel thought she needed. If she was wrong, then it could be permanent damage. Even if she was right, he wasn't sure what it would accomplish. But they had to try because they had no other solution. It was do or die–in the worst possible way, with the highest possible stakes.
“Rosa,” he said, holding his hand out. “We're ready.”
She placed her small, cold hand in his and followed him in.