The Phoenix Born (A Dance of Dragons #3) Read online

  Janu had been through so much pain. She could only imagine the horrors the shadow forced him to relive, the terrifying memories he'd endured over the years, the mental drain of living in isolation, aware that everyone you knew continued living without you. And yet, Jinji hadn't been strong enough to give him a few hours of peace, of solace, of happy memories to hold on to.

  No.

  The shadow had crept into their time, had tainted it. She could not erase him from her mind, could not erase the corner he had backed her into. And the voice of the spirit echoed in the background of her thoughts.

  There is only one way to end it.

  One way to save the world.

  Kill the shadow.

  Kill it.

  Kill him.

  Jinji closed her eyes, dropping her head back against the stone. Tomorrow would be another day. Rhen was right. Who knew what the morning would bring? Only a little over a day ago, they had been on the run from the Ourthuri war ships. Rhen was certain his family and his people would die. And yet, here they were now. Two dragons with riders. A new peace about to be finalized between the kingdoms. A lot could happen in a day. Her world had been flipped utterly upside down in a day, who was to say it couldn't be righted in another one?

  The panic began to subside.

  Her heartbeat slowed as her breath lengthened.

  Her vision came slowly back into focus.

  Her thoughts smoothed into manageable snippets.

  Jinji stood, wiping the dust from her pants, swallowing deeply and clearing her throat. Janu hadn't deserved such a rushed exit. She would find him, she would apologize to him, and she would spend the rest of the night learning about his life no matter how sleepy it would make her in the morning.

  He deserved it.

  They both did.

  But a moment later, Jinji quickly realized the world had other plans for her.

  "Jin!" a very slurred, very loud voice shouted down the hall.

  Jinji spun with brows raised, trying hard to cover the smile on her lips as Rhen appeared at the other end of the hall. His lids were drooped, his lips were parted in a goofy grin, and his blazing red hair was in complete disarray.

  "Are you drunk?" she asked with disbelief. But he didn't need to mutter a word to prove her accusation true. The precarious steps he took closer, shifting from side to side as though a straight line were completely beyond him, were proof enough. "You are drunk," she charged mirthfully.

  "Blasphemy!" he shouted playfully. "I demand you take that back at once."

  She crossed her arms, staring at him. "I leave you alone for a few hours with your brother and this is what happens?"

  "You and your brother didn't do the same?" he asked. "Damn shame."

  And then he smiled ruefully.

  Jinji stepped back, narrowing her gaze.

  It only spurred him on.

  A moment later, he was charging at her full speed, gait unbelievably nimble considering the breadth of his shoulders. Though she turned to run, Jinji knew she had no hope of escape. Not even three seconds later, an arm came around her waist, scooping her up by the midsection and tossing her over a considerably muscular shoulder.

  "Rhen! Put me down," she cried, knocking her fists against his back.

  "I rather like this view," he said nonchalantly, shrugging as his hand crept a little farther up her thigh, sending a wave of heat over her skin.

  "Rhen," she murmured, halfheartedly protesting just to continue the game a little longer. "I could force you to put me down. My muscles might not be very impressive, but you and I both know I have other tricks at my disposal."

  "I am at your mercy, my lady," he sighed, "for I would pursue you to the ends of the earth if I had to."

  "Rhen," she whispered. And even in his drunken state, he heard the subtle shift in her tone, the passionate lilt to his name as it rolled off her tongue.

  In one quick motion, Rhen shifted his hold, no longer throwing Jinji over his shoulder but cradling her in his arms. His piercing eyes transformed from the emerald of a grassy field to the evergreen of a forest at dusk, sparkling with moonlight as the thoughts behind those irises shifted. Her arms came around his neck, and Jinji pressed her forehead to his chest, realizing there was no place that she fit quite so well as when she was cradled against his side, snuggled into the nook at the base of his neck. There was no place she liked better.

  Jinji didn't have to ask where they were going, she knew. And not one little bit of her could mutter even a sigh of protest. Thoughts of Janu were flung from her mind, replaced with a need she had never known she'd had until she'd met Rhen, until their lips had touched at the top of that seaside cliff, awakening desires that still made her blush.

  "It's been too long since I've had you to myself," he whispered, lips brushing her forehead while he spoke, sending shivers down her spine.

  She giggled nervously. "It's only been a day since I left you on that boat."

  "It feels longer."

  "It does," she agreed, closing her eyes, listening to the rhythm of his heart in his chest. Slightly fast, getting quicker.

  They stopped for a moment outside his door. Rhen placed her gently on her feet, reaching for the torch on the wall. Jinji followed him inside, standing still as he lit the candles around his room, focusing on how the fire flickered against his skin. When he was done, he closed the door, leaving them alone.

  Suddenly, her nerves prickled, raising the hairs on her arms. Jinji shuffled to the window, looking out at the sleeping town below, at the half-full moon overhead. Hands came around her waist as Rhen slipped behind her, pulling her close to his chest. She hugged his arms tight, letting her head fall back against his sturdy torso, sighing, content. But inside, her heart raced. For the first time since that first kiss, they weren't on the run. She wasn't injured. He wasn't afraid to touch her. And the air around them sizzled with unspoken promises.

  But there was something else too, something holding her back. Other unspoken words, but these were questions. Questions they both needed answered before anything further could happen.

  "Rhen?" she asked.

  "Mmm?" he murmured.

  She spun in his arms, needing to look into his eyes. "First thing tomorrow, we need to search for the riders. We need to leave Rayfort. There is no one here who can help."

  "Where do you want to go?" he asked, eyes sharp and focused, no longer fuzzy with drink.

  "Where do you think? We need the earth rider and the air rider. You know this kingdom better than I do."

  He glanced to the side, thinking, but his hands tightened around her waist, not letting go even as his mind wandered. "Fayfall might prove promising, with the intricate cave systems. I would imagine someone with an earth affinity might find themselves at home underground."

  She nodded. "Fayfall it is."

  They fell silent. But she could read the questions in Rhen's mind, waiting unsaid. And they needed to be asked before either of them could move forward, could move on. Though the words almost caught in her throat, she spoke them quickly with trepidation. "You can ask me anything, Rhen."

  He only said one word, but it was enough. "Janu?"

  Jinji chewed her lip. She wanted more than anything to tell him the truth, but she couldn't—not yet. Instead she whispered a lie, a half-truth. Something close enough to fact that he would stop asking questions, but far enough away that he would never realize what Jinji was trying to hide. "He's just a victim, same as us," she started carefully. But meeting Rhen's earnest gaze, she forced herself to continue, knowing there was no going back. "The shadow has been possessing his body since he was a boy, same as the other men we've seen the shadow take control over. He faked Janu's death, led him away from home, and nearly killed him on the journey to the Gates. The shadow has been hiding him there ever since, keeping him from me. Even when I was a little girl, the shadow was thinking of ways to terrorize me. Stealing Janu away, keeping him alive, it was just one of those devices, one of many that I don't
fully understand."

  She didn't mention the shadow's true body.

  Didn't mention that killing Janu would end the shadow too.

  Didn't mention that Janu and the shadow were one in the same, connected in life and death, inseparable.

  Rhen believed the lie. He did even pause as he moved on to the next question, not doubting her words as truth for even a moment. "And your magic?" He asked. "It's so strong, far stronger than I remember."

  "I've told you of the spirit that lives inside my mind?" Jinji questioned. Rhen nodded, visibly thinking back to their conversation deep in the depths of that underground fortress where they had discovered the painting of the dragon. It’s where Jinji confessed to hearing a voice in her mind, confessed to sharing her body with another soul. "I opened my mind to her, and she has taught me a lot about the powers we wield. She's shown me visions of the past, of the dragons and riders who once rode them, and visions of what is to come if we cannot find a way to defeat the shadow."

  He nodded, satisfied for now, waiting for Jinji to take her turn. But she already had an answer to her question. Jinji knew Rhen, and one look in his eyes hours ago was all it took to see the guilt gnawing at his heart. He knew that he could not use her dragon that way again, he knew they were meant for things far greater than destruction. She didn't have to ask.

  Instead, she reached up, sliding her palms over his shirt until they touched the warm skin of his neck, holding him. Her fingers slid into his hair, caressing him. And he melted under her touch.

  "Rhen?" she whispered.

  He nodded, eyes growing hooded as they watched her, burning brighter than even his dragon's flames.

  "I want to tell you something," she murmured, glancing away from the heat in his gaze, unable to handle the smolder. Her eyes danced over his face, taking in the freckles spanning his cheeks, the strong outline of his jaw, the gentle curve of his soft lips. "I don't know what will happen tomorrow. I don't know if it will end with you by my side or with you soaring away from me." At the very idea, he opened his mouth to protest, but she stilled him by placing one finger against his lips. "Until this war is over, we'll be living day by day, never sure of what hardships the next sunrise might bring. So I want you to know something—something that will never change despite the challenges we may face. Something the shadow cannot take away. Something I promise you will be true forever."

  Jinji paused, taking a deep breath.

  Her heart raced in her chest.

  She licked her lips.

  "I love you."

  His eyes softened. His hands gripped her tighter, pulled her closer. He lowered, bending their faces together.

  In the small space between their lips, he whispered, "I love you, too."

  And then he kissed her.

  But this time, it was full of hope, full of promise, full of passion.

  6

  RHEN

  ~ RAYFORT ~

  Rhen woke alone with the memory of holding Jinji all night little more than a dream. A good dream. A great one. He stretched, not bothering to hide the grin spreading his lips. He doubted he could stop it even if he tried, and he didn't want to.

  He felt well rested.

  Too well rested.

  Rhen sat up quickly, eyes finding the window. The sun was bright overhead. The city was wide-awake.

  "The gods!" he muttered, jumping from the bed and stumbling to his closet. It must be almost noon. Why hadn't anyone woken him? He pulled a shirt over his head and nearly fell over trying to shove his boots over his feet. In little more than a minute, he pushed his door open and began racing down the halls, running faster when he heard the echo of voices coming from the throne room.

  Rhen burst through the door, greeted by multiple sets of wide eyes.

  Followed by multiple rounds of suspicious throat clearing.

  "Why did no one wake me?" he blurted, scrunching his brows, glancing from Jinji to his brother accusingly. The room was mostly empty now. Only Jinji, Janu, Whyllem, and Leena remained. But Rhen knew, he just knew, he had missed something. The mood was too jovial, too settled.

  "It's my fault," Jinji said, stepping forward, shrugging apologetically. "I thought you could use the sleep. Besides, I tried to wake you once, but you were out like the dead." He rolled his eyes. "Whyllem suggested we use a bucket of water, but I decided it was best to let you rest."

  "Can't handle your ale anymore, brother?" Whyllem teased.

  Rhen chose to ignore the bait. "What did I miss?"

  "Nothing," Jinji murmured suspiciously, body turned slightly away from him, tone far too leading.

  "What?" he grumbled.

  "We met with the traitors again this morning," Whyllem began, but then Jinji threw a stern look in his direction. He held his hands up, warding her off before the magic swirling in her gaze became a reality. "We spoke with our guests again this morning. All the cities that aided the rebellion will owe debts to the crown, and each will have royal guards and advisors placed in their castles until I am satisfied that all urge to betray our family is snuffed out. The Whylkin lords are to summon their entire surviving army, and one by one, each man will swear loyalty to the crown before the city of Rayfort. All but one—the Lord of Roninhythe, who went missing as soon as your dragon appeared over Rayfort. We have agreed that he is to be charged with high treason for the murder of the king and the plotting of the rebellion, and he has been sentenced to death."

  Rhen sucked in a breath, not with surprise but with concern. His eyes roamed, searching for his friend. "Cal?" he finally asked, finding no trace of him in the room.

  This time it was Leena who stepped forward, placing a hand to his shoulder. Her wide eyes pierced, shaded with the same unease that currently tightened Rhen's chest. "Cal has volunteered to lead the search for his father. He wants him brought to justice, to pay for his crimes." She swallowed, the only break in her poise. "He left this morning with a group of men on horseback, promising that he won't return until his father is found."

  "And then what?" Rhen demanded, turning to his brother, expression sharp. "He will still keep his title and his lands? Please, Whyllem, he is innocent in all of this. He is my friend."

  Whyllem nodded, understanding. "That has yet to be decided. But I do not intend to make the sins of the father the sins of the son as well. We will work out a solution that satisfies us all, even Calen, I promise."

  Rhen glanced at the princess again. He didn't know what was going on between his best friend and this woman, but he did know one thing. She was a fighter, and she would not have allowed Whyllem to do anything that would hurt Cal, even if he were the king. From what he remembered of Leena, she had little affection or respect for authority. Especially kings.

  "And what of Ourthuro?" Rhen asked. The princess blinked, turning away from him, swallowing as her gaze narrowed and focused on the opposite wall. Everything about her changed in an instant—everything about her grew hard, merciless. But it wasn't Leena who answered his question.

  "I rebuilt a ship this morning," Jinji said, pulling his attention from the princess. "All the men who survived have set sail for Da'astiku, and the nobleman we spoke with said he would do his best to relay our message to King Razzaq. It will be up to the king to decide their fate." Jinji paused, gaze shifting to the princess. And Rhen had the feeling she had said these words before. "There is nothing else we can do, not now."

  "They will be made into unmarked," Leena whispered harshly. "All but the best warriors will be turned to slaves, tortured. My father does not take failure kindly."

  Rhen nudged her with his shoulder, gaining her attention. She was tall, height almost even with his own, and her eyes met his dead on. "Once the war is over, you can undo what he's done. At least, you can try. King Razzaq will be yours to do with what you will."

  Leena smiled, lips like the curved blade of her homeland, sharp enough to slice.

  Rhen would not want to be that king.

  "So what do we do now?" he asked.
r />   "Well, we were just about to go wake you when you came barging in," Whyllem said, still laughing silently to himself at the memory. "Lady Jinji said you are bound for Fayfall and that you should leave at once."

  Rhen looked around the room, realizing that all eyes were on him. He raised his brows. "So, what are we waiting for?"

  Jinji rolled her eyes and used both of her arms to shove him toward the door. When he didn't budge beneath her touch, a very unnatural gust of wind slammed into his back, nearly blowing him over with the force as Jinji stepped calmly around him.

  Rhen grinned.

  These new powers of hers were going to be fun.

  Outside, both dragons were already waiting in the center of the courtyard. Every royal guard around the palace had stopped moving, watching the beasts with dropped jaws and cautious gazes. And, Rhen suspected, a little bit of awe.

  Before he stepped down the palace steps, following the others, Rhen turned to Whyllem. They shared an unspoken moment, a goodbye that didn't need explanation or words, one filled with mutual understanding.

  "Take care of them, Whyllem. All of them," Rhen said, stretching out his hand.

  Whyllem took it, holding on a second longer than necessary. "I will."

  Rhen tugged on his brother's arm, pulling him in for a quick embrace, slapping his back with affection, more affection than he knew how to say out loud. "I'll be back as soon as I can," he whispered.

  When they pulled apart, Rhen found Whyllem's gaze was full of worry, the kind that could only stem from love. "Be careful, brother."

  Rhen grinned, stepping away with a shrug. "Aren't I always?"

  Whyllem raised his brows. "That response is exactly what concerns me."

  Rhen turned with a laugh. There was nothing else that needed to be said. And in the courtyard below, Jinji had already woven a stone birdcage large enough for two. But he had other plans.