from Seren, hoping to make her more comfortable.
Under clean sheets, she lay still. Hands trembling, he
tucked the edges against her. So pale, fragile, she had not
wanted a child. Once more, guilt slapped against his
conscience.
Calis returned, carrying a chair to the side of the bed.
“Here ye go, Sire, sit. Rest. Ye deserve it.”
Paladin suppressed an urge to laugh. Deserve a rest? No,
not he. He deserved to suffer the same way Seren had for
what he’d done. He sat in the chair and turned to look at
Calis. “Head for Dene. I want this ship there in one day. Use
all of the dragonstones if you must.”
A quick nod and Calis was gone. Paladin shouted to his
first mate as his footsteps faded, “And rest. That’s an order.”
Seren frowned, stirring, her eyelids fluttering. He
straightened in the chair, regretting the shout. Her eyes
opened, and she looked at him. Without saying a word, she
shifted onto her side with a groan, curling into a fetal
position. He remained silent, motionless. She drifted off. He
sighed in relief. Now, he would wait to see if her mind
survived the ordeal with the dragon’s fire. He rested his head
against the back of the chair and closed his eyes.
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Chapter Six
Quiet footsteps approached the bed. Seren opened her
eyes. Paladin stood over her, blocking the rest of room. The
beauty of his face took her breath away. She stretched.
Sensitive muscles screamed silent messages throughout her
entire body, forcing a gasp to escape.
“Careful. You have been sore ill,” he said, taking her
hand.
She stared at him while she tried to bring the pain under
control. “What happened to me?”
Before he could answer, memories of the drac at the
window rushed forward—the burning agony, her flight from
the room, her need to find him. He would help her. Only
him.
“The babe,” he murmured.
At his soft comment, a sharp flash of fear shot across her
chest followed by a wave of grief. She frowned, her hands
moving to cover her abdomen. “I lost it?”
“No, our son lives. He helped save your life.”
She studied him for several moments, trying to
understand what he meant. A slow dull pounding set up
behind her eyes, against the back of her head and radiated
down her neck. Right now, she didn’t want to hear an in
depth discussion on the baby’s abilities. She wanted to find
out what put her flat on her back with so many aches she was
afraid to move. “That beast—the dragon—did something to
me when it came to the window. It cried out. I felt like a fire
was cooking me from the inside out.”
Paladin nodded and eased onto the bed next to her. “He
called out to our son. In turn, the babe responded.”
“By trying to kill his mother?”
“That was not his intention. If you die then he dies. No,
instinct caused him to answer the drac’s call.” He leaned
toward her, and his hand brushed across her brow. “I am
thankful you are whole.”
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She stared at him for a long time. “Me too. I want to go
home”
“I’ll not have your death on my conscience.”
She grunted and shook her head. “If carrying your child is
going to cause me this much pain, then why did you touch
me?”
A sad, mischievous smile flittered over his lips.
“Uncontrollable passion?”
Another grunt and shake of her head. “I’m to blame too.”
He brushed a finger over her lower lip. “You came to me
so I might help you. Why? That is the reason you went above
when the pain began. To find me. You knew I would help
you?” His eyes held a spark of wonder. The light dwindled
after a moment. He continued, a gentle smile returning to his
lips. “You do need me.”
His soft words evoked a rush of heat up her neck to her
face. How dare he insinuate she needed him? The constant
agony in her head increased. She clenched her hands into
fists to keep from slapping his cheek. She narrowed her eyes
and glared at him. “I don’t need anyone.”
“If this is so, why did you seek me out?”
Seren sighed, unable to remain furious with his quietly
asked question. She lifted a hand to her pounding head. Even
that small motion caused her pain. Every muscle in her body
ached fiercely. She couldn’t think. Her brain refused to come
up with any other reason for her action other than the truth
which she blurted out with her last bit of defiance. “You’re
my stability here. There, are you happy?”
Paladin didn’t crack a smile. He didn’t even look pleased
“Is this all I am to you?”
She gritted her teeth, determined not to reveal how much
she wanted him. Never again. The pain was too fresh in her
mind. When she didn’t answer him, he shifted away and
stood.
“We dock in Dene in an hour. Your clothes are there,” he
said, pointing to the foot of the bed. “Once we arrive, I will
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come for you.”
After he closed the door, she laid there for a long time,
her body refusing to relax. This wasn’t her world. Her life.
Why was this happening to her?
Her entire body ached worse than when she’d had the flu
a couple of years ago. He said she’d almost died. If she died,
so would the child he claimed she carried. She placed her
palm on her abdomen. The fluttering came again. She bit her
lips and squeezed her eyes shut, trying to control the sudden
rise of tears.
A surge of warmth mingling with a sense of peace raced
through her. Her eyes shot open and she clasped her belly
over the spot from where she sensed the emotions rising.
Her vision blurred, blackening along the edges. The first
physical sign of her psychic abilities. Her mind floated away,
and then, just as fast, returned with a jolt.
She glanced around at the white marble walls and
columns lining the portico. Sunlight slanted between the
columns to produce a ladder effect. Broad slants of shadows
interspersed with light on the floor and the back wall. Pulse
throbbing, she realized she stood inside a tomb. She touched
the side wall. Upon contact, she jerked away. Smooth cold
stone, solid and real, surrounded her.
Dream of a death meant news of a birth.
The old meaning appeared in her mind. But whose death?
Why was this vision so real? She actually felt the solidness of
her body. Was that wind coasting over her skin? She rubbed
her hands over her bare arms, and took a step toward the
entrance. The soft cloth of a simple white shift covered her
body, leaving her arms and calves bare. She tingled at the
gentle caress of the material against her skin.
“Why do you not want me?”
A bolt
of fear zagged up her spine. Her skin erupted with
goose bumps. She glanced over her shoulder and saw the
bottom half of a tall stool in the far corner of the tomb. Boot
heels hooked over the last rung. A man sat in the shadows,
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facing her. She saw nothing of his face except for where the
light cut across his eyes, revealing the clear, bluish-gray hue.
The shock of color in the white place surprised her. She
returned his stare, trying to comprehend who and what he
was to her.
“Oh, God,” she muttered, “I’m psycho. I just know I am.”
Light-hearted laughter came from him. She shivered. The
sound of his laughter reminded her of someone, but she
couldn’t quite place it. Years ago, Mandy’s laughter always
brought a smile to her face. This strange man’s joy made her
want to smile too. But why? What was it about him that put
her at ease when she should have been tense?
She wanted to leave this place, to return to the present,
but as with all her visions, she had to stay until the end. With
her fear lessening, curiosity sparked. Her hand slipped to her
abdomen, tightening over the spot. Unsure what to do, yet
unable to stop, she whispered. “Can you see me?”
“Yes.”
She gasped, her eyes wide, at the clear voice ringing
within the cold white walls. A touch of joy edged his answer.
Seren waited, hoping the vision would end soon. Clouds
streamed by, casting sunlight followed by lighter shadows
across the floor. After several minutes, she took a deep
breath and asked, suspecting who the man was, but not
wanting to know for sure. “Who are you?”
“Your son.”
A laugh of disbelief escaped. Oh, yes, she had lost it. More
so now than when she’d first arrived in this place. This
wasn’t possible. She had never had a vision so real before.
She had always been the observer not the participant.
Helpless and unsure, she shook her head. “No.”
“Why do you deny my existence?”
Seren balled up her fist, fury followed on the heels of
helplessness. “What am I supposed to think? It’s impossible
for me to know I’m having a baby this soon, and it’s
impossible for you to talk to me in a vision. Someone is
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playing with my mind. I don’t like it.” Her words were laced
with venom. She shook with her inability to regain control
over her emotions.
Suddenly peace coursed through her, stronger than
before. Wanting to fight against the calming influence, she
panted for a second, and then cried out. “I don’t want
another child.”
He never moved. His eyes remained calm, serene. “I am
not your lost one.”
Seren froze. His words struck a hard blow to her heart.
She relaxed her hold on her lower belly and stood straighter,
her muscles no longer tender. “I know that. There’ll never be
another like her.”
“No, never. But I am not her. I am myself.”
She tried to suppress a sob, but failed. Her mind refused
to face what this young man demanded she accept. She
didn’t want to experience the torture of her loss any longer.
“Don’t do this to me. I loved her so much. The pain I went
through when I lost her...I don’t ever want to feel that way
again.”
“Do you fear you will love me more than her?”
His question surprised her. She frowned, considering, but
failed to find an answer she wanted to admit. “I don’t know.”
“Yes. You do. You have nothing to fear. I will never leave
you. You have been chosen by the seven great dragons to be
the vessel for my creation.”
Seren frowned in confusion. “What? I don’t understand.
How do you know this? How can you appear to me like this?
This isn’t possible on Earth. I would be declared insane if
anyone knew I was speaking with my unborn child, and he, a
full grown man, was answering me.”
His eyes crinkled at the corners with his unseen smile.
They lit with an internal joy and acceptance. “I am who I am
from the moment of creation, thus my spirit became instilled
within this form which is my body. Through the magic of the
dragons, I have been allowed to release my power sooner
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than a normal dragonseed, thus at this time, I can speak to
you through your ability to see visions.”
Seren frowned while she considered his answer. Speech
in the form of coherent language needed time to learn. Was
the magic he spoke of powerful enough that even an unborn
babe had the knowledge needed to communicate with her?
When she didn’t respond, he continued.
“I am here for a purpose, just like you. The dragon’s
magic opened the door to this place for one purpose. My
creation.”
Seren remained silent for several minutes, mulling over
this new information. “Why would the dragons want you
created? Why are you so important to them?”
“They fear the coming times. With me, all dragons will
unite. They will become one power. Without me, chaos will
reign. This world will end in a firestorm of war and plague as
in the past. History repeated.”
“And your father—me? What will happen to us?”
“My father is expendable. You are not.”
stab of regret sliced through Seren’s chest. She hadn’t
expected this reaction. Only a few days had passed since she
arrived on Avaris. Had she grown to feel more for the tall
captain than she’d realized? She shoved those thoughts away
and caught hold of the last part of his comments.
She laughed, bitterness filling her. “What makes me so
unique? My wonderful ability as a mother? I couldn’t save
my child. So why is he expendable and not me?”
“He is the White Dragon King. The one to bring the seven
great and powerful dragons together, but I will rule over
them. Their blood will be one in me, never in him.”
Relief flowed through her for a brief second. His answer
pleased her. For some reason, she didn’t want to examine
why she didn’t want anything to happen to Paladin too
closely. Not right now. “So he won’t die anytime soon?”
“I cannot say. There are other forces plotting Avaris’
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future besides the dragons. If all goes the way the seven
desire it to, my father will live to see me on my throne. I
would have it no other way.”
She nodded, satisfied. “You can talk to me, but can you
read my mind?”
“I am a part of you.”
“I don’t want to love you...please, understand.”
Silence passed between them while his eyes remained
locked on hers, and then he looked down. Sadness edged his
brow. He shook his head. “I understand many things, but
this is one I do not—you
are my mother.”
She took a deep breath, squeezed her eyes closed, but the
tears still managed to escape. “If I love you, I’ll never want to
lose you. If I do, I know it’ll be a million times worse than
with Mandy. That’s what I fear the most.”
When she finished speaking, thick blackness coated her
vision. She jerked, and Paladin’s quarters reappeared around
her.
A wave of peace washed over her. Her tense muscles
relaxed. He comforted her, sweet baby. Her son. She patted
her lower abdomen and smiled through her tears.
* * * *
The shoreline along the island of Bae stretched out from
either side of the city of Dene. The white strips showed stark
against the gray cast of the sky along with the dark green
foliage further inland. Stone buildings stood in staggered
heights along the slopes and ridges of the coast.
Paladin paced back and forth on the bow, gazing at the
land. His tension increased with the ship’s approach, coming
in low to the churning bluish-green sea, to the pale wooden
docks sticking out into the water.
Lightning illuminated the deep charcoal clouds racing
across the sky. The bolts streaked toward the trees just
beyond the city. Sparks shot out from the smoke rising from
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the spot. The wind increased, bringing a singed odor with it.
Paladin waited for the cool downpour.
Seren worried him. Not her ordeal with their son’s
dragon fire or even her strange beliefs, but how she affected
him. The memory of how she felt under him remained,
teasing, tempting him. Every time he shut his eyes, he saw
the passion on her face when she...
He clenched his jaw. No, he refused to dwell on the
matter. She made her decision. Far be it for him to argue, but
he wanted to. He wanted more from her than she seemed
willing to give. With their departure and her illness, he put
the memories of their night from his mind. Now, they rose
up to haunt him.
The sky roiled, roaring for all to hear the news of the
approaching storm. The turmoil in the air called to the baser
side of him, the part controlled by the beast—his dragon
blood. With the call, his blood warmed with the need for a
woman, but not just any woman. He wanted Seren, desired
the soft curve of her hips, the plushness of her inner thighs,
her lips and tongue driving him wild. He closed his eyes,