Hidden Dragon (The Treasure of Paragon Book 7) by Genevieve Jack (best book club books .txt) 📕

“What’s going on here?” A prickly heat crawled up the back of his neck to his ears.

“Filling your mate in on what she missed last night,” Colin said. “Think we’ve made a breakthrough—”

Sylas grabbed his brother by the collar and lifted him out of his seat, a difficult task considering Colin had a good hundred pounds on him. Fortunately, his twin got the hint that he was upset and came along willingly. He dragged his twin out the door.

“Why would you tell her without speaking to me?” His dragon chuffed and twisted inside him.

“Because she asked and she’s an important part of the rebellion.” Colin narrowed his eyes. “Why wouldn’t you want me to tell her?”

That was a harder question to answer. Why was he so angry? Even Sylas didn’t know for sure, only that he was. After a moment of consideration, he supplied the first thing that came to mind. “She lost her homeland yesterday. The Obsidian Guard burned the Empyrean Wood to ash. I was trying to give her time to grieve and recover. We’re finally safe here. Why does she have to be involved with this mission right now? I think she’s earned some time off.”

And she’ll be safer here, his dragon chimed in.

Colin folded his arms, his biceps popping to a size bigger than Sylas’s head. Damn, the guy had turned into a beast during his time in Rogos.

“Have you spoken to Dianthe about this? Because she seemed more than ready to channel her grief into making Eleanor pay for what she did.”

“I’m her mate.” Sylas growled. “It’s my job to care for her.”

“Yes.” Colin nodded. “But she’s a grown fairy. She can make her own decisions.”

“Thank you, Colin.” Dianthe appeared beside Sylas, her wings flared.

“Dianthe… I—”

“Save it.” She tipped her head toward Colin. “Have you told my mate yet about our monumental discovery?”

“No.” Colin frowned. “Maybe you two should talk first.”

Sylas didn’t like the sound of that. Something in his brother’s eyes told him he might not like this revelation.

“What’s going on?” He focused fully on Dianthe.

“I know where the Everfield orb is,” Dianthe said proudly.

A chill traveled the length of his body. Fuck. He’d wanted to keep her out of this. If she knew where an orb was, she was definitely in it. “Where? Are you sure?”

“Positive. When I was a little girl, my aunt used to take me to Solaris Field.”

Although Sylas had rarely visited the fields on the outskirts of Everfield near the Nochtbend border, he was familiar with them. Fairies would often visit to collect pollen from the densely growing sunpitcher plants there. The cone-shaped flowers collected the light and glowed like stars, making it an especially entertaining place to bring fairy children. Pollen collected from the flowers had an exceptionally short shelf life, making it too delicate for collecting, packaging, and reselling—another draw for the people of Everfield. Paragon was not interested in the fields. Yet those who had the time and inclination could collect the pollen for free. It was delicious when ingested immediately or baked into a number of dishes.

“What’s in Solaris Field? I’m certain if the orb was there, someone would have found it by now,” Sylas grumbled.

“Beyond the fields, on the border of the Grimtwist Forest, there is a lake. Solaris Lake. Most fairies never go there because of its proximity to Nochtbend, although it’s perfectly safe during the day. My aunt took me because the water is always pleasantly warm. I used to swim with her in the afternoons.”

“Your aunt let you swim in strangely warm waters beside the Grimtwist Forest?” Dianthe’s Aunt Gemmy had passed away from natural causes several years ago. She’d always been a little eccentric, but at the moment Sylas had to question her judgment.

“One fall afternoon, Aunt Gemmy took me to the lake to swim because it was too cold for the sea. In the past, I’d only waded into the lake, sometimes playing with the water sprites that lived there. I’d grown into a strong swimmer that year and was feeling exceptionally adventurous. I dove to the bottom of the lake that day, and what I saw there I would never forget. Something bright green glowed from inside a tangle of lake grass. When I touched it, the smooth crystal was hot. I tried to free it to show my aunt, but it wouldn’t budge. And when I told her about it, she said that in most cases it was best to leave magical objects where you found them. So I did. But Sylas, it looked exactly like the orb from Rogos, just green instead of purple. It’s there.”

Sylas brushed a piece of invisible lint from the arm of his tunic and looked toward Colin. “Colin, you and I should go retrieve this orb. I know Everfield. We can be in and out in a day. Between the two of us, I’m sure we can pry it up.”

Dianthe gasped. “If you think I’m not going, you need to see a healer. There is something seriously wrong with you. Everfield is my home. I’m the one who found it, and I know exactly where the orb is. You need me.”

Sylas opened his mouth to tell her the idea was ludicrous considering Aborella knew her identity. Dianthe couldn’t even make herself invisible for the goddess’s sake!

But Colin spoke up first. “I agree with Dianthe.”

“Excuse me?” Sylas glared at him in righteous indignation. How dare he suggest his mate be sent into a dangerous situation without clearing it with him first? Didn’t he understand what it did to a dragon to know his mate might be in peril?

“Leena can’t leave the scrolls. She’s taken a solemn vow to protect them.” Colin gestured toward the tent and the scribe inside. “And I’ve taken a vow to protect Leena. You can’t imagine how brave she was to leave Rogos. Do you know what Eleanor would do to a scribe outside the boundaries protected by elfish magic?”

Sylas frowned. He could imagine. “Gabriel then.”

“Gabriel has to