Page 32 of Dragon Revealed (Dragon Kings 1)
Chapter Seventeen
Jeyra stood in her flat, looking out the window at the rising sun. There had been no sleep for her after Rankin left. His arrival and their conversation had opened her eyes to everything she had missed for years. It broke her heart to realize that the man she considered her closest friend and ally, as well as a substitute father, had been lying to her.
But that realization also galvanized her into action. From there, it had been easy to make her decisions. Too easy, in fact. Rankin had been the only thing holding her to Orgate. As she’d told Varek the day before, she had no friends. Not the kind he spoke about, at least. She had acquaintances, but no one she would trust with her life.
She drew in a deep breath and slowly released it. No doubt she would be watched the moment she emerged from the flat, but she was prepared for that. She had worked out every detail during the long hours of the night. It would begin when she left her home for the last time.
A tremor of uncertainty ran through her, quickly followed by excitement. There was a good chance she and Varek would be caught. If that happened, they would execute her quickly. She wasn’t so certain of Varek’s outcome. The council had surprised her yesterday with the talk of marriage to a Dragon King. They were up to something, but she had yet to figure out what it was. But she would. She would expose everything they had been covering up.
She closed the shutters and took one last look around her home. She wanted to take nothing but her weapons. Since she wasn’t allowed to carry her spear with her into the dungeon, she would have to leave all her weapons behind, too. She didn’t like being without one in a fight, but she had no other choice.
Jeyra strode out the door, locking it behind her. She descended the stairs and exited the building. The streets were already filled with people. She moved her gaze around, searching for anyone who seemed out of place. It took her two paces to notice the young woman spending too much time rifling through the basket she carried. However, the quick look the woman shot in Jeyra’s direction confirmed her suspicions.
Jeyra turned and walked down the street. As expected, the woman quickly followed her. Jeyra kept to her normal routine. She didn’t stop for anything as she headed to the council building. They all arrived early, so she didn’t have long to wait before they saw her. Jeyra informed them of Varek’s decision, then told them that she thought he could be convinced to change his mind about the wedding with more time. She wasn’t surprised when they told her to return to him.
When she left, the council members were smiling. Jeyra saw the same young woman when she emerged from the building. Ignoring her again, Jeyra weaved through the streets, headed toward the market district. It was the most crowded in the early mornings when the vendors set up the freshest wares. It was also the perfect time to put the second phase of her plan into motion.
She went to her usual vendors for bread, cheese, and meat, though she bought double her usual. From there, it was easy to duck through the throngs of people, making it harder for the female to follow her. Jeyra hid behind a stall as the young woman trailing her turned in circles, searching. After the woman left, Jeyra remained still because she knew at least one more person was likely shadowing her.
Sure enough, she spotted a man searching faces. Another look uncovered a second woman. Once those two were gone, Jeyra hurried to a clothing vendor and chose items for Varek. With the clothes stuffed below the food, she casually walked to get milk. While standing in line, she saw the three tracking her out of the corner of her eye. They set up positions again. After she had a jug of milk, she headed toward the dungeon with her three followers in tow.
Every step only confirmed her decision. Worse, she wondered if Rankin was the one who’d had her followed. She was hurt and angry at him, but she was furious with herself for being duped for so long. It was because she had trusted Rankin unequivocally. Look what that had gotten her.
Jeyra stopped at the gate and waited for the prison guards to open it. She gave them a nod and walked inside the cave, going deeper into the ground. Lower, and lower she descended, passing other sections containing prisoners. They had put Varek in the lowest level to keep him away from the others. She’d originally believed it was because he would soon be on trial and then executed. How naïve she’d been. How gullible. Trusting.
When she approached Varek’s cell, he was at the bars, sitting on the stool with a smile on his face. It vanished the moment he saw her expression.
“What happened?”
She swallowed, unsure where to begin. Jeyra handed him the bag and watched as he sorted through it. When he saw the clothes, his head jerked up to her. “Do you have a plan?”
“I do,” she replied softly.
Jeyra glanced behind her to the entrance to see only darkness and the sway of light from the torches on the walls. “Does your offer for me to go with you still stand?”
Hope flared in his brown eyes. “Aye, lass. You know it does.”
“Then I’m going. But we need to do this today.”
He frowned. “What happened?”
“Rankin was at my place when I got home last night.”
“I would’ve thought you’d be pleased by that since you were searching for him.”
She shrugged and sank to the ground. When Varek reached for her hand, she eagerly and gratefully clung to him. “Maybe it was because I was followed and threatened yesterday, but his arrival felt…” She paused, searching for the right word.
“Off?” Varek offered.
Jeyra nodded. “I couldn’t pinpoint why. He acted fine, spoke as he always has, but my instincts screamed that something wasn’t right. When I questioned him about being angry at me, he blew it off.”
“Why was he upset with you?”
She froze, her mind unable to find a way to cover her mistake or find something else to say. Her lips moved, but no words came out.
“I didna mean to interrupt. Please, continue.”
Jeyra tried to swallow, but her mouth had no moisture. She had nearly blurted out that she had been the one to capture Varek. If he found out, he wouldn’t take her with him. She would tell him. Eventually. Just not now.
She managed to find her voice. “Then I told him about looking for him because I had questions about my past. That when I couldn’t find him, I went to the archives and found the missing pages.”
Varek nodded in encouragement.
“He was surprised by what I said, but not as much as I expected. The discussion turned to you. He offered to come today and help me get more information out of you. I turned the conversation back to why looking into my past would cause someone to follow and threaten me.”
“What did he say to that?” Varek asked.
“He said that someone obviously fears me uncovering something. He promised he’d get to the bottom of things for me. I didn’t reply to that. I did ask him who’d put up the border between our worlds. He claimed not to know, but I could tell he was lying.”
Varek squeezed her hand. “I’m verra sorry, lass.”
“I wonder if he’s the one responsible for having me followed.”
Varek’s lips twisted as he shook his head. “I doona believe so. He’d have considered your training and realized you would pick them out quickly.”
“Because I did.”
“Exactly. Is Rankin coming today?”
She shrugged. “I left early, but it wouldn’t surprise me if he did.”
“It’s going to be hard to get free if he’s here.”
“I don’t know how you plan to break out.”
Varek flashed her a smile. “You don’t think I’ve just been lying in the dark doing nothing, do you?”
Despite her foul mood, he made her smile. “Well, now that you mention it…”
“Have you already been to the council?”
