I tore my eyes away from Dair as he downed a glass of liquor, and I looked down at where Torin and Belinda were standing, only to find that Torin’s focus wasn’t on Belinda.
It was on me.
Torin’s pale blue eyes seemed to glitter as he stepped down the line, bypassing Riv, and stood right before me.
Oh no. No, no.
I couldn’t marry him. What was he doing?
Torin smirked down at me. “We’ll have to get you a dress made exactly like this, only in red.”
Riv sucked in a sharp breath beside me as my jaw dropped.
“Miss Evie,” he purred.
Ringing started in my ears and my mind felt as though it was melting, the vision of Torin before me seeming to fade in and out. I couldn’t… where was Alasdair?
A loud echoing boom exploded in the room, taking all the attention away from me. A few girls screamed at the noise, and guards were already heading to the back of the room, where the huge double doors had been thrown open.
“What is the meaning of this?!” King Ero bellowed, enraged. “This is a sacred ceremony!”
“Forgive me, Your Majesty! I couldn’t stop him!”
Stop who? I stepped around Torin just in time to see the crowd separate and reveal a man I thought I would never see again.
“Kael?”I choked.
He was wearing only a torn and charred pair of pants, the ones he’d been wearing out in the woods. His chest was bare, marred with some bruises and dried blood.But no burns.
“Hey, Eves,” he replied, using the last of his strength to flash one of his signature smirks, and then he collapsed.
“KAEL!” I shrieked, propelling myself past Torin and down the steps. Isla and Riv met me at the spot where he’d fallen.
“Who the Goddess is this man?!” King Faolan demanded.
“A guard, I think.”
“Oh my stars, Kael. How are you here? How are you alive?” I rambled, rolling him over onto his back. Suddenly, Dair was at my side, assessing my friend.
Kael laughed weakly. “Takes more than dragon fire to take me down. Who knew?”
“I never thought I’d be so happy to see your boyish, cute, infuriating face,” Riv confessed, wiping away a rogue tear.
“You saved me out there, Kael,” Isla cried openly.
“Eh, you would’ve done it for me,” he replied before coughing harshly.
“Water!” I shouted. “He needs water!”
I saw the fancy shoes and the crimson cape, and I didn’t need to look up to confirm that King Ero was now standing directly over Kael. “Here, son. Drink this.” He plucked a mug from someone and offered it to him. “Did I hear you correctly? You suffered from dragon fire burns?”
“Don’t act like you don’t know!” I snapped without thought, tears blurring my vision. “He was engulfed in them!” My hands shook as I wanted to touch my friend, to prove to myself that he was actually here, lying before me, but there wasn’t any spot on his skin that wasn’t injured or bloody.
Silence fell as Ero glanced over to where the other kings stood. I blinked, and my tears escaped me, giving me a clearer view of the shocked expressions on all of their faces.
“That’s impossible,” Taj piped up. “Dragon fire runs hotter than anything in the realm, and a man can burn himself badly on something as simple as hot tea.”
“It’s true.” Dair stood and positioned himself behind Kael, putting both of his arms beneath my weak friend and hauling him up to his feet. “I saw the entire thing happen. This man should not be alive.”
