Page 42 of Dragon Revealed (Dragon Kings 1)
Varek shook his head. “It’s a verra long story, and we doona have time now. Dragons have been captured, and I’m going to free them. I could use some help.”
At the request, the woman quirked a brow. “I’m not averse to giving you aid, but I would ask why.”
Varek glanced in Jeyra’s direction before he said, “Inside the walls of the city, I’m unable to do magic. I can no’ shift either.”
“Bloody hell,” the man ground out.
Jeyra looked between the three. Obviously, the couple knew Varek, and she was unsure how they had gotten to her realm—or what they might do to her when they learned of her hand in Varek’s kidnapping.
“This is Jeyra,” Varek told them and held out his hand, motioning for her to join him.
Jeyra moved closer.
He wrapped an arm around her and said, “Jeyra, these are my friends. Erith, also known as Death. And her mate, Cael.”
Jeyra’s breath locked in her lungs. Death? This was Death? She wasn’t sure what to think or how to act.
“Are you sure the dragons are there?” Erith asked.
Varek nodded. “When we escaped yesterday, I heard them the minute I stepped beyond the gates.”
“Escaped?” Cael repeated, his gaze narrowed.
“Part of the long story,” Varek told them. “Right now, we need to free the dragons.”
Erith glanced at Cael. “How can we help?”
“I’m no’ sure. I need to be there to free them, but I willna be able to. I’d planned to send Jeyra in and use my magic to disguise her so she could go undetected.”
Jeyra’s head snapped to him. He wanted her to face the dragons?
Varek smiled at her. “They would be able to understand you. You just wouldn’t be able to understand them.”
Jeyra forced a smile she didn’t feel.
“What’s keeping you from having magic within the city?” Cael asked.
Varek shrugged and shook his head. “I doona know.”
All three turned their attention to her. Jeyra looked helplessly at them. “I don’t know either. I thought it was the chains Varek wore, but the council removed them, and he still wasn’t able to use magic.”
“These are your people?” Death asked.
Her voice was soft, but her gaze was hard. Jeyra lifted her chin. “They are.”
“And you don’t know the answer?”
“It isna her fault,” Varek replied. “Much is being kept from the residents.”
Cael ran his hand over his chin and blew out a breath. “I could attempt to enter the city and see if my magic works.”
“We both will,” Erith stated.
Jeyra held up her hand to stop them. “You’ll need attire that won’t make you stand out.”
“Like yours and Varek’s?” Cael asked.
Jeyra nodded. Almost instantly, Erith snapped her fingers and replaced their clothing with garments similar to hers, down to the armbands.
“Who do we avoid? What do we look for? Is there anything we need to do to get inside the city?” Cael asked.
Erith met his gaze. “Or out of it if our magic is bound?”
“The gates are open to all,” Jeyra told them. “Guards watch everything, but the only enemies anyone cares about are the dragons.”
Cael snorted. “Imagine that.”
Jeyra didn’t reply because there was nothing to say. She found a clear part near the river that had the least number of rocks and drew a map of the city in the sand as she had done for Varek. She explained the council, the warriors, and the difficulty they would have getting into the dungeon.
“If we’re unable to do magic, we won’t attempt anything,” Erith said.
Cael’s forehead furrowed. “Dungeon? Is that where the dragons are being held?”
“Aye. I was there, no’ far above them, and I couldna hear them.” Varek lowered his gaze to the ground, still upset about that.
Erith’s lavender eyes met Jeyra’s. “I think she should come with us. We might only get one shot at this. Varek, remain behind as you originally planned.”
“These are dragons,” he said.
Death bowed her head. “I understand that.”
Suddenly, Varek crossed the brook to stand on the other side of the border. Jeyra watched him, trying to figure out what he was doing. He then turned and smiled at her as he held out his hand and a rose appeared.
“I don’t understand,” Jeyra said. “How is that possible? You crossed the border.”
Varek shook his head, smiling. “I was so intent on crossing the brook yesterday that I didna pay attention to what I felt as I did. It’s an invisible barrier, verra similar to what we use at Dreagan.”
“Dreagan?” she asked with a frown.
Cael glanced her way. “The magic is something used by the Dragon Kings on Earth to keep humans and Dark Fae off their land. Dreagan.”
“It encompasses the land of the dragons?” Erith asked.
Varek’s smile grew. “I think it’s the other way around here. I think it surrounds the mortals’ land.”
“In other words, you can do magic everywhere but the city,” Jeyra said.
