The Raven and the Dove (The Raven and the Dove #1) - Kaitlyn Davis Page 0,1
on the king’s arm. His breath came fast. His pulse pounded faster. He blinked the spots from his vision, pushed the pain from his mind, and held on with all his power.
“Bring it down!”
Another metal arrow sliced through the fog and landed true.
Then another.
And another.
Until finally, the dragon dropped and crashed into the water, suspended for a moment on the surface with its wings spread as steam erupted from every fiery scale that kissed the sea. Tail first, it sank, disappearing within the dark, liquid folds.
The king landed with a thud against the deck of his ship. Shadows hovered at the edge of consciousness, closing in. Hands gripped his shoulders. Muddled voices whispered. Reality slipped further and further away, but he couldn’t go. Not yet. Not until…
“Bring me the boy,” he rasped to whoever was listening.
Something cold was pressed to his forehead.
Something hot burned his chest.
Energy exploded beneath his skin, both foreign and familiar, popping and sizzling and crackling—frantically wielded, he knew, by the young prince who now said, "Stay with me."
The boy's voice was one breath from a cry.
Stay with me, the magic whispered, not letting the king sink away, not letting him die, not yet. Youth and vigor and life flooded his veins, a river of gold, a rush of pure potent might.
The king blinked, opened his eyes, and found the deep blue gaze of his son—not by blood, but by something more important. Magic. Fate. Destiny.
“Your queen is here,” he murmured through wheezing breaths. The prince shook his head as though he didn’t care. The king snatched the boy’s cheeks and held them tightly, using the last of his remaining energy to force the prince to listen, to hear, to understand. “You must find her, Malek, whatever it takes. You must always remember who you are, who she is, and what the two of you mean. No matter how hard it is, you must find her.”
“I will,” the prince promised. “I will.”
It was all the king needed to hear.
He closed his eyes.
He let death take him.
And in that split second before thought faded completely, he wondered if maybe, after all these years, his spirit would finally see the sky. The sun. The stars. The moon. Yes. But most of all, the isles floating high above the fog, the winged people who lived there, and the queen of prophecy, who together with his son, would one day save them all.
18 YEARS LATER…
1
Lyana
“I feel you hovering.”
“I’m not—” Lyana stopped and rolled her eyes as she stared down at her best friend, releasing a heavy sigh. Because, of course, she was hovering. Standing at the end of Cassi’s bed, bouncing from one foot to another, biting her lip, staring—all right, hovering. Although, technically…
Lyana snapped her wings, freeing them from their snug position against her back, and stretched them to their full ivory glory. She pumped them once, twice, three times to float above the bed. “Now I’m hovering.”
Cassi rolled dramatically onto her back, a black-and-white speckled wing falling over the edge of her bed as she moved, and offered Lyana a sleepy, though still effective, glare. “What could you possibly want so early in the morning?”
Lyana shifted her head to the left, staring through the crystal wall of the palace at a sky tinged lavender by the rising dawn, then turned back to her friend. “Come on,” she grumbled. “Don’t tell me you forgot what day it is.”
“How could I possibly forget when it’s all I’ve been hearing about for weeks?” Cassi paused for effect. “But waking me up with the sun won’t make the day come any faster.”
At that, Lyana put her hands on her hips, unperturbed, and smiled—a wicked sort of smile her best friend undoubtedly recognized. “It will if we sneak out to the sky bridge.”
Cassi blinked twice, expression not changing. “Are you serious?”
“Am I ever not serious?” Lyana asked innocently. Cassi opened her mouth to respond but was cut off. “On second thought, don’t answer that. I mean it. I can’t sit here and twiddle my thumbs all day while the other houses make their way to the palace. I’ll go crazy. Crazier. And you have to come with me. You have to. Even if just to keep me out of trouble… Well, more trouble.”
Shaking her head, Cassi winced. “I should have seen this coming.”
Lyana nodded. “Yes, you should have.”
“Ana…” her friend whined.
But the use of her nickname would not change Lyana's mind, not today of all days. “Just get up, all right? I brought our