Draygon Inferno | Book 2 | ✔️

Chapter Eleven

           "Wait, say that again." Ross paced back and forth in the room, running a hand over the rough stubbles of his hair.

"Eloy is my cousin." Naylin giggled when Ross stopped, shook his head, and started pacing again.

"A princess of Ardorn . . . you . . . why didn't you say anything?" Ross stopped pacing, touching a hand to his chest. His eyes widened. "Oh Goddess, he's going to chop off my head and feed it to the camels! His cousin was one of my entertainers. Oh Goddess. No. No. No."

Naylin poured a glass of red wine, handing it to Ross. He downed the entire glass in a single gulp, spilling much of it on his shirt. She filled it again and Ross started pacing, his hand trembling as he took another big swig. Naylin chuckled, sitting on the wide red chair beside a massive desk. Elias stood beside the lattice framed window, admiring how Ross didn't care how many stains he was adding to his dust covered clothes. The impeccable, blemish free demeanor of Rosie was truly gone. Ross was a disheveled mess of grime, wine stains, and perspiration.

"I didn't know," Naylin said. "And technically I'm not a princess. Not really sure what I am."

"How could you not know! Oh Goddess." Ross swallowed the wine. "I'll be lucky if they don't torture me before they lop of my head."

Naylin covered her mouth, Elias assumed to mask her smile. "Ardorn hasn't chopped off people's heads since the Dark Years."

Ross sighed.

"They hang them instead." This time Naylin showed her smile with pride, dimples gracing her soft cheeks.

Elias snorted and shook his head. "Ross stop pacing before you wear a hole in the rug."

"You don't understand, Elias! A member of the royal bloodline of Ardorn was in my possession! Thank the Goddess I didn't take bidding on her flower . . ." Ross stopped pacing and looked to Naylin. "You do still have your flower, right? Oh please don't tell me I missed someone taking you without permission."

Naylin brushed a finger against her square jaw, looking up to the golden rugs draped down from the wide support beams. She winked to Elias and said, "Still intact."

"Oh thank the Goddess."

"So how is it that you are a Princess of Ardorn and came to be in the service of Rosie?" Elias asked.

Naylin shrugged. "I told you, I'm not a princess. In the lowlands, I guess I'd be considered the daughter of a lord, but here they're Chiefs and there's only three of them. The western islands, eastern islands, and the Krell chief. My father over see's the western islands, but they'd have to go through the entire eastern islands family bloodline before getting to our family for the right to rule all of Ardorn. According to Rufus Prime, I was kidnapped by Pirates and sold off to Rosie. The man who claimed to be my father when Rosie bought me was my kidnapper. They put a strong hex on me that erased my memories of Ardorn and made me a different person." She closed her eyes and huffed. "You two are the first familiar faces I've seen since I arrived. It's like being a stranger in my own body."

Her shoulders slumped as she leaned forward. One hand played with the fabric of her dress. She stared at the red and gold carpet. Naylin was royalty by blood, but Elias suspected that's where it ended with her. In one fell swoop, she became someone she didn't recognize. Elias had seen it before with Siobhan and how she transformed from Draygon heir, to the street hardened woman who feared little. At least Siobhan knew it was happening and invited it. Naylin clearly had no idea she became someone else.

"How did the High Mages find out if you didn't even know?" Elias asked.

"When Rosie and I arrived at Raiven they took us to meet with Rufus Prime."