The Dragon Queen Selection Chapter 50

LIRA

Elora waited by my bedside long after Cassian left, arms crossed, her expression a blend of frustration and worry. I kept my breaths slow and even, drifting my eyelids shut until she was convinced I was fast asleep.

“Sleep, Lira,” she whispered finally, brushing a loose curl from my forehead. “And please… just stay out of trouble.”

I made a soft sound of agreement, something between a hum and a sigh and only when the door clicked shut did I open my eyes.

I counted to hundred very slowly.

Then I slid out of bed.

My limbs still trembled faintly, not from illness but from the pull. The dragon’s voice pressed at the edge of my mind, a steady, rhythmic thrum, like a heartbeat echoing from the earth itself.

Lira.

Come.

I wrapped a cloak around my shoulders, slipped my shoes back on, and padded silently to the wall. The hidden seam was barely visible, but I had memorized the exact place where the stones gave under my palm.

A soft click.

Cool air rushed out of the darkness beyond.

As I stepped into the passageway, I whispered under my breath, “Please, just stop calling me. You’re going to get me killed.”

The corridor swallowed my words whole.

The deeper I walked, the stronger the pressure in my skull became. It wasn’t painful, more like a relentless tug behind the ribs, urging me forward faster, faster, faster.

By the time I reached the hollow beneath the palace, my head was buzzing.

The chamber glowed faintly, lit by the dragon’s low, simmering breath. Its massive form lay coiled in the gloom, silver scales dimmed by centuries, wings folded like they were broken. Chains thicker than tree trunks glimmered beneath her talons.

The dragon’s eyes snapped open as I stepped closer.

“You came,” she murmured, her voice brushing through my mind like smoke.

“I didn’t have much of a choice,” I said, folding my arms. “You are calling loud enough that half the palace is noticing my reaction to your call. I could have been dragged to the infirmary today.”

If Elora and Cassian had insisted and they had dragged me to the infirmary, my lack of magic would have given my secret away.

The dragon’s pupils narrowed.

“it was urgent. Besides, your distractions are fickle.”

“Well, they’re still mine,” I shot back, louder than I intended. “If you keep pulling at me like this, someone is going to think I’m the one who poisoned Lenora. So please stop.”

She exhaled, the air hot and metallic, curling around me like steam.

“I call because time runs thin.”

My chest tightened.

“Time for what?”

Her tail scraped the stone, slow and deliberate.

“For my escape.”

I blinked at her. “How do you plan on escaping without them knowing? Your chains can’t be broken that easily.”

“My chains,” she replied, tone hardening, “have never been an obstacle. The only reason why I am still here is because they have something of mine. A dragon egg.”

A shiver ran through me, grounding me. So the dragon was a she then.

“That's impossible,” I whispered. “There hasn’t been a dragon egg in at least forty years.”

“My egg is the last,” she interrupted sharply. “And the last chance of my kind.”

My breath hitched. “It’s… yours?”

Her silence was answer enough.

“How did they…”

“Stolen,” she said, voice curling like a blade through my thoughts. “Taken long before I was chained.”

I stepped closer, heart pounding. “Where is it?”

For the first time, her voice sounded tired.

“I do not know.”

I stared at her.

“Then how am I supposed to help you find it?”

“Because you are the only one I can ask for help.”

“Me?!” My brows drew together. “I don’t have any magic. I can’t help you.”

Her lips curled into something between pity and amusement.

“You don’t have to have magic.”

I swallowed. “Well, how am I supposed to help you then?”

Her chains rattled as she leaned forward.

“All you have to do is retrieve it.”

My heart hammered. “Retrieve your egg,” I repeated slowly. “From where?”

“The Valemont vaults.”

My entire body went cold.

“You think The King and Queen have it,” I whispered. “But that’s impossible. Why would they…”

A deep rumble threaded her voice. “If you can find the Valemont vaults, you will find my egg. It is the most guarded place in the palace. I still feel its presence, so I know it’s still there.”!

The blood drained from my face.

“No,” I breathed. “I can’t help you. I don’t even know where the vault is. And you told me inside of it contains the true reason why my father was killed.”

“Your father,” the dragon said, lowering her head, “was killed for what he found out. He was the last person to step into the vaults.”

I looked at the dragon, not knowing whether or not I was hearing things.

“How?! How do you know this!” I demanded, my voice rising.

“I know because I sent him there!”