The P.J. Stone Gates Trilogy (#1-3) (77 page)

Some of the funky sensations caused by me being powerless started to ebb and it allowed me to take stock of my new environment. I sucked in a shocked breath. “It’s absolutely beautiful.”

“Damn.” Lorik said from behind me, him and Zen had obviously just arrived. “This is going to take some getting used to, this whole no powers thing.”

“You said it.” Zen chimed in, sounding a bit shaky herself. She sucked in a surprised breath of her own. “Wow. I didn’t expect this in Morag’s realm.”

The three of us, to which I mean … me, Lorik, and Zen, because Khol didn’t seem fazed or impressed … stood in utter reverence of our surroundings. It looked like one of those
Home Depot
commercials with the perfect lawn and flowers everywhere. It was as if someone had painted a perfect landscape and brought it to life. Even the sky was a flawless tint of blue with happy little puffy clouds floating by. I’m not sure why but with a name like Morag the Ancient I had been expecting a desert wasteland or something. It was all so stunning.

“Remember, it’s often the most beautiful flower that’s the poisonous one.” Khol said as a warning to the three of us that were entranced.

Icy fear raced up my spine. Khol was right. Here we were, in Morag’s realm, where we were completely vulnerable without our powers and we were standing out in the open gawking at the scenery. Maybe that was the whole point of the landscape … to lull its visitors into a false sense of security. Beauty really is dangerous.  I cleared my throat, “Yeah, maybe we should get going then.” I glanced around nervously half expecting to see someone appear out of nowhere to attack us.

“Do we know where we’re going?” Zen asked distractedly. “Or is our plan to stumble around Morag’s realm in hopes that we bump into her, or perhaps until she notices us?”

“She has a point, brother. We never did really discuss how we would find Morag once we got here. What is your plan exactly?”

“We head due north.” Khol snapped.

I whirled around to face Khol, my mouth dropping open with astonishment. “Oh my God, we’re just going to wonder around and hope to run into her, they’re right, aren’t they?” Something I should have realized about Khol before, because it was so obvious, was that his plans ran parallel to a man asking for directions … it just didn’t happen. Khol just hoped to find his way, expected it, in fact, and wouldn’t stop to ask for anyone’s help. Even I wasn’t that careless. “Khol, answer me, is that your plan?” I had the fight the urge to give him air quotes when I said the word plan. If our lives, and the very world, weren’t at stake, I might find Khol’s actions amusing, and maybe a little bit endearing.

“Due north.” He growled under his breath and started walking.

I glanced over at Lorik and Zen who both shrugged their shoulders and began to trail after him. I guess they didn’t have any better ideas. I rolled my eyes and began to trudge after Khol—because what else was I going to do? It wasn’t like I had any bright ideas on how to find Morag myself.

“I need to take a break.” I huffed, wiping at the sweat on my forehead. “I’m hot, hungry and pregnant lady tired.” When I heard Khol chuckle under his breathe I shot a death glare at his back. “Don’t laugh Khol, it’s a real thing.”

“I could take a break.” Zen agreed. “We’ve been traveling for hours and I’m getting hungry. Plus, who knows how long it’s going to take us to find Morag, if at all.”

“Yeah, maybe why no one has ever returned from seeking her out is because no one has ever found her. Maybe they’re still wondering around looking for her. I’m surprised we haven’t run into anyone else on the same mission yet.” Lorik sounded annoyed despite his obvious attempt at humor.

“We’ll look for a place to make camp for the night.” Khol responded. “We’ll rest, and re-energize before starting out again.”

I stared at the horizon and blinked back stinging tears caused from the sun. “Is it just me or does if seem like the sun should have already set by now? How long have we been traveling?”

“Time distortion is easy magic to maintain in a realm such as this. It’s hard to say how long we’ve really been traveling.” Lorik grumbled.

“Great.” I tried to fight the pout from forming on my face, very unsuccessfully. “What if we’ve been in here for what equals years in the world outside of here?” Khol turned to frown at me over his shoulder. “What?” I huffed. “Like I’m the only one that’s considered that.” When I was met by complete silence, my eyes widened as far as they could go. “Seriously, none of you centuries old dragons had considered that, not even for a second? Don’t any of you read?”

Ignoring me completely, Khol slowed up and motioned to a circle of trees that provided decent shade from the burning sun. “This looks like a good place.”

Still reeling from my dragon companions’ lack of foresight, and from being ignored I stumbled into the shade the trees provided and eased myself down to the ground. The bigger my belly grew, the more my lower back protested. I watched as Khol, Lorik, and Zen sat up camp for us, complete with tents and everything. I marveled at how they just seemed to pop out of the backpacks Khol and Lorik had been toting around with them. Yep … I’d never been camping before so it was all new to me.

Zen was building a fire pit, probably to cook on and keep us warm, if the sun ever went down that is. I would have offered to help her, feeling a little bit guilty that everyone was doing something but me, but I was utterly exhausted and couldn’t seem to muster the energy to stand up. It actually wasn’t a surprise to me that after a few minutes of watching our camp grow around me I began to drift off to sleep.

I had a dreamless sleep … thankfully … and I woke up slowly to hear the low murmurs of a male and female voice.

“I know she’s the Queen, but are you sure you want her?” I bristled when I realized the female voice was Zen and that she was talking about me. “Or is it just her power that attracts you?”

“I love her. You know what that means for a male dragon.” Khol responded softly back. Did Khol know I was awake yet? Sometimes he was so good at reading my emotions that I swore he could read my mind and then there were other times that made him seem so adorably clueless. I was hoping this time was the latter because I wanted to get in some quality eavesdropping time before they knew I was awake.

“But are you really sure you love her?” Zen pushed. “Maybe you’re just finally ready to settle down and she was the first one you felt might be good enough.” I didn’t miss the hopefulness in her voice. “Now don’t get me wrong, I’m not saying you don’t care about her, but maybe you don’t love her … or maybe you love her, but you’re not in love with her. The differences can be so subtle, maybe you can’t see it.”

“Haven’t you been having sex with my brother?” Khol asked bluntly, and I had to stifle back a gasp. I hadn’t picked on any romance vibes between Lorik and Zen. The only thing I’d been getting from Zen was that she was head over heels in love with Khol and wanted him for her
Anam Cara
.

“You know it doesn’t mean anything. We care about each other as you well know, but the sex is nothing more than a convenience for us both.” Hmmm … that would explain the no romance vibe.

Khol’s voice came out low and guarded. “I’m sorry Zen. I never meant to hurt you. What I sought from you, when we coupled, was much the same thing—an easing of my needs, and a convenience of situation. I never meant for you to love me.” A pregnant pause washed over the two of them, and I wondered in that moment where Lorik was.

“As if I had a choice.” Zen’s low emotional riddled voice broke the silence. When Khol didn’t respond Zen continued on. “She doesn’t want you for hers, not all the way as her
Anam Cara
at least. You know I would treat you better. I’ve always welcomed you into my bed, not denied you, no matter the situation.”

Then the unthinkable happened, sounds of kissing met my ears, burning them and causing bile to rise in my throat as I sat up with urgency. A strangled cry escaped my chest as I took in the site of Khol and Zen locked in a passionate embrace. Instead of the rage that I expected to feel, anguish washed over me instead. Khol had promised always, just like Bryn, and he too was betraying my trust. Granted the means were completely different but the outcome was the same. I whirled on my heel and dashed as quickly as I could manage in the opposite direction. I had to get away from him—from the second man who was breaking my heart for the last time.

“Paige!” I heard Khol call out with desperation, but I didn’t care. You don’t kiss someone else, especially when they’re in the same room, or clearing or whatever, and claim that you love them. Maybe Zen was right, maybe Khol wasn’t really in love with me after all. Maybe everything from the beginning was one huge lie, and I really didn’t understand anything like I thought I had.

As I crashed through the underbrush, branches and who knows what else clawing at my face and body, I heard Khol in hot pursuit of me. But I wouldn’t—couldn’t let him catch me. I sent up a silent prayer that I could somehow escape him just before my vision blurred and everything went dark.

I came to abruptly, the memory of Khol and Zen locked together in a passionate kiss serving as ice water to my system, and washing fresh anguish through my veins. “Khol,” I croaked, “How could you?”

“Interesting,” A feminine voice I didn’t recognize said. “Even after losing consciousness and awaking in a strange place, one that could spell your certain doom, your first thoughts still go back to your dragon.” I blinked the remaining blurriness from my eyes and focused in on the owner of the voice. With surprise I realized she resembled Rogue from X-Men with deep brown long hair and a strip of white going through the front. I internally laughed with disbelief, here I was rocking out Storm’s hair and she had Rogue’s. It made me wonder about the creator of X-Men … was he dragon maybe?

“Morag, I’m guessing.” My voice came out even and sounding a little bored even. The truth was I was too tired both physically and emotionally to be afraid.

“You were expecting … someone more ancient, I presume?” Her lips tuned up into a bemused smile. “They always do.”

“Yeah, I guess. With ‘the Ancient’ tacked onto your name like some kind of title what else is someone supposed to think?”

She studied me with her glowing golden eyes for a moment before responding. “You’re not what I expected when I made that necklace. And you’re not what I expected to find in the next Queen. You’re so very young, and still so human in many ways.”

I figured since we were being all civilized and everything that I’d just cut to the punch. “Will you help me then—I mean us?”

Morag tilted her head and studied me more closely. I felt like she was looking into my very soul somehow. “I’m not sure you have the mental fortitude to wield the kind of power needed to control the Rua Artair necklace … yet.” She chuckled to herself. “Oh yes, you possess the power, but can you handle it without falling to pieces? You’re very close to shattering right now as it is.” I said nothing, not able to deny that she spoke the truth about me. After a few more minutes of her staring at me, and me beginning to fidget under her scrutiny she spoke again. “Yes, I will help you. But first there are things that you must know. Things that might very well break you.” Morag ran her hands through her thick hair. “Bryn and you are star-crossed lovers and you must come to understand what that really means.”

“Romeo and Juliet were—”

“Fictional and dead. Why do humans romanticize them so? The story is nothing but tragic, and it should show you what it means to be a star-crossed lover in truth. It means pain and agony at best, and death at worst. That is what you and Bryn would always bring to each other, no matter the path.”

“Then why did my birth mother place him in my path? Why did she do that to me if we were destined to suffer because of each other?”

Morag smiled brilliantly at me, and nodded her head a few times. “Why yes, that is an excellent place to start. I will answer that question first. My sister did not have a weak foolish child perhaps after all.” She strode towards me and reached out to take my hand. “This may hurt a little.”