He took a step closer to me. I inhaled the calming scent of sandalwood. It reminded me of wild forests and campfires. Nerves made my stomach flutter, though I wasn’t sure why. Something about this man made me totally lose my head. His gaze fixated on me—those glacial-blue eyes that had held me spellbound since I’d first met him.
“Olive,” he said, his voice deep and husky. My heart pounded as he cupped my face. “May I kiss you?” he asked quietly.
I held my breath, not sure how to answer him. Since my encounter with Theht in the cave on Dragon Spine’s peak, my mind hadn’t been my own. On Earth, the goddess didn’t seem to have as much control over me, but being here made things different. I feared getting close to Kull with the goddess screwing up my head. Even so, some compulsion had come over me, and I couldn’t push him away any longer.
I ran my fingers over his lips. “It’s okay,” I whispered.
“You’re sure?”
I only nodded. When his lips touched mine, my thoughts evaporated, as if the past four months never existed. His lips were warm and soft, making my heart flutter. Blood rushed to my face. He pulled me closer, holding his hand firmly against my back.
It had been way too long. I wanted him so badly that the need was painful. Wrapping my hands around his waist, I felt his warmth and the calmness of his presence.
When he pulled away, his eyes sparkled. “I’ve been waiting a long time to do that.”
“Me too.”
Footsteps echoed from the forest below us as several elven men approached through the underbrush.
“What are they doing here?” I asked.
Kull kept me close as they climbed the stairs outside the chamber. “They’re helping me.”
I eyed him. “Helping you? I thought you didn’t want the elves anywhere near this place.”
“Not all elves support the queen. The Delestrians have declared they no longer owe allegiance to the queen. We’ve been working together to build the library. One day, I hope this can be a place where all races visit, elves included. So long as they don’t start meddling.”
“You really trust them to be here?”
He nodded. “I do.”
“What does your mom think about this?”
“She hates it, of course.”
Two elven men approached us. They were dressed in typical elven fashion—ornate clothing, long hair, silver buckles, and golden-stitched doublets. Both men fisted their hands over their hearts.
“Welcome,” Kull said before he turned to me. “Olive, this is Enolli and Chalaman of Delestria. They’ve been helping me oversee the construction of the library.”
“It’s a pleasure to meet you both,” I said.
The two men nodded. Kull and the elves started talking architecture and construction, and my mind wandered. Kull wasn’t a person to trust anyone unless he had full confidence in them. I was glad he’d found allies in the Delestrians, but I hoped he would still be cautious around them. Although I was half-elven, I’d never trusted elves.
As the conversation continued, I wandered back over to the T-Rex. Circling the skeleton, I lightly brushed my fingers over the bones, feeling the prehistoric magic contained within. It made me wonder what sort of magic could have existed at the time of the dinosaurs. It wasn’t Faythander or Earth magic, but perhaps a blend of both, or maybe something we weren’t familiar with at all.
I’d been trying for so long to discover a way to get my Earth and Faythander magics to cooperate, and here, right in front of my face, that feat had been accomplished.
“Olive,” Kull said as he approached from behind me. I rounded to find both elves descending the stairs, leaving me alone with Kull. “Shall we return to the keep? We have a long journey ahead of us. I, for one, would like some rest before we set off.”
“Yes, of course.” I cast one last glance back at the prehistoric dragon before following him to the keep.
Chapter 4
The next morning, I stood in the field near the light-rails accompanied by a small group of Kull’s most trusted warriors. Rolf and Brodnik waited with us, as did Rolf’s new bride. Heidel and Maveryck’s dog Grace also stood with us near the rails.
I’d hardly slept last night. When I had, I’d had nightmares—the same one over and over—of Theht using me to destroy the world. There were different variations, but they all ended with Kull dead.
This is your future. To be alone. To be loved by no one, for that is our way.
Theht’s voice was getting stronger the more time I spent in Faythander. I tried shrugging away the fear as the sun rose over the Wult mountains. I fidgeted with the ring I wore on my finger—my engagement ring—a silver band with three jewels in shades of lavender, blue, and pink. Kull had gotten the stones from a magical plant that grew in the wild lands. As I twisted the ring around my finger, I felt its gentle magic calming me.
Kull squeezed my shoulder, and I turned toward him.
“You’re unusually quiet this morning,” he said.
“Yeah, I guess so. I’m nervous about this quest.”
“We all are. Traveling through Faythander is one thing, but crossing into another world entirely, a place no one knows anything about, is not something we can prepare for. Plus, we’ve got a wedding to plan on top of everything else.”
“Don’t worry about that,” Heidel spoke up. “Mother agreed to plan it for you. I assume you’ll want to invite the entire kingdom? Minus the Northland tribe, of course. Seeing as how we wouldn’t want old exes showing up—Mother’s words. Also, Kull will be singing. Mother knows how much Kull likes to perform his vocal skills in front of the kingdom. Oh—and she’ll make sure you both have a full entourage of servants following you at all times. Wouldn’t want to spoil the wedding night.” She winked.
I groaned inwardly. I’d always pictured having a small wedding with a few close friends and family members. Well, probably not friends. I didn’t have many
