Delilah slept. She still dreamed about the dragon. It was a dream that haunted her. She was in a cave, creeping up on people and killing them while they were unaware. She saw her own vicious claws come out and swipe at a man, tearing open his side. He screamed and fell to the earth, writhing in pain. Then she hunted the next one. She was massive and they were tiny. Their swords could not pierce her hide and they had come into her lair to die.

She gasped, sitting up in bed. Moonlight filtered through the trees, casting long dark shadows over her bed. She was home. All was well. She rose and closed the shutters. Cold stone met her feet. She pulled the blankets over her again, trying to retain her body heat. The dragon was just a dream. Just a dream, she told herself over and over again as she fell back asleep.

She held a child, a beautiful little girl who blinked up at her with unseeing eyes. All the people in the room were still as if they could not move. She looked at the child and why was she sad? She felt her magic surge through her and she whispered a spell, opening her palm. A dark aura surrounded the child as she lay her back…

No, that wasn’t right. She hadn’t cast a spell on a baby. Why would she do that? She held the child, who blinked up at her. She wondered if her baby would have green eyes like her or blue ones like her father. Was it her child? It was such a confusing dream.

She held the child and someone whispered in her ear. “Do not get too attached, my love. You know you cannot keep her for her own good.” She turned to see a man who was almost as tall as she was. His hair was beginning to turn silver and he had sorrowful blue eyes.

“I am sorry for causing such pain, but you know what we must do.” She held the baby against her chest and began to cry. She would not let go of the child, could not. She was her daughter, wasn’t she?

She lingered in the dream, not wanting to let go of the feeling of the baby’s fuzzy hair against her cheek. Suddenly, the dream was shattered, and she gasped, pulling herself upright. “Isabella,” she screamed.

Hailey returned to the king’s chambers everyday to refresh the glyph. He looked better than he had in days, propped up with too many pillows, but some of the color had returned to his face. He smiled when he saw her and she curtsied.

“We’re both feeling a bit better,” he said.

“Much better, thank you.”

“Come, sit with me for a while. Old men like to talk and you have volunteered.” He cleared his throat and she came and sat in the chair beside his bed.

“You do look much better,” she told him.

“I wish Barinon had set something like this up for me years ago. All my aches and pains are lessened as long as I stay in this bed, he pointed at his silk blanket and grinned at her. Thank you.”

“Don’t thank me. I had help. I had no idea how to set this up.”

“Yes, I know about the prince’s mage. I am glad that the two of you have been able to work together for some time.”

“She has been a great help to me already, but she’s forcing me to get sleep or she won’t help.”

“Good for her,” the king said. “I want you to know that Endolynn and I have done everything we can to help you. To get things set up so that you…” He paused, face becoming very serious. He looked like he was trying to figure out how to say the next part. There are things in motion throughout the nine kingdoms that will probably become a problem here sooner rather than later.”

“What kinds of things?”

Just then the queen swept into the room. He smiled at his wife.

“I just came to check on you and to grab my book.” She kissed her husband, a quick peck that still made Hailey feel uncomfortable. “You’re looking much better today, my love.”

“It comes and goes,” he told her. “You left your book on top of your dressing table.”

“Right. Thank you. Get some rest. I will make sure that everything runs as smoothly as I can make it.”

Hailey watched their interactions, wondering what it was that the king had been trying to tell her before the interruption. Finally, the queen swept out of the room. The king’s gaze lingered on his wife for a moment. “Some of us age better than others,” he said. Then he glanced back at Hailey. “What I was trying to tell you is that you will need to be strong for what is coming.”

“But what is it?”

He waved a hand at her and refused to answer. “You have enough on your plate for right now. Learn as much as you can from that other mage.”

“I will.” Hailey worried about what it might be that he was keeping from her, and how did he know?” It bothered her when she knew that they were keeping secrets from her. Then again, he had stopped talking the moment his wife had entered the room. Maybe this was something that only he knew through the heir’s magic.

“The only way we were able to get a mage here was under the guise of having someone court our princess.” He looked longingly at the wall that separated their bedchambers and she waited. She wished she had been able to wake the princess while he was in better health. If she somehow managed it with the help of Natalia, the princess might only have days to spend with her father.

He cleared his throat and went on. “We are doing the best we can, but sometimes, your best is just not good enough. Maybe we need to sacrifice more or maybe time is up for our little kingdom.”

“Don’t say that,” Hailey chided him. “We still have time to set things right and maybe with the help of Natalia, I can free the princess and everything will be fine.”

He patted her hand. “I’m sure you’re right, but sometimes I can’t help feeling that we’re betting against something bigger, something with a larger plan.”

She nodded, but half of this conversation did not make sense to her. She knew he was trying to tell her something but he was so reluctant to come out and say it.