“I swear I mean no harm to you or your house,” I say, keeping my voice steady. “I only crossed into your territory because every other path was blocked.”

I try to hold my ground even as every muscle in my body coils tight, ready to bolt if he decides to strike.

“Blocked?” He raises an eyebrow. “How terribly convenient for you.”

His dragon, Khaira I recall from the horror stories of our House, watches with ancient, knowing eyes from where she crouches nearby. The beast’s gaze feels heavier than Draven’s, as if she can see straight through every lie I’ve ever told or ever will.

“A storm swelled the Blackwater River two days ago,” I explain desperately, hoping he’ll believe at least the truth. “The eastern route was completely impassable. I had no choice but to cut through.”

“There’s always a choice.” He circles me slowly, predator assessing prey. “Some are simply less pleasant than others.”

“And some aren’t choices at all,” I counter. “Sometimes it’s simply survive or die.”

“Poetic.” His voice drips with mockery. “But poetry doesn’t explain why a lone woman crosses the most dangerous territory in the realm.”

He doesn’t believe me.

I can see it clearly in the way he studies me, cataloging every detail with ruthless precision. My worn but finely made clothes. My calloused hands. My straight posture despite my exhaustion.

“Where were you heading then?” he demands.

“The neutral lands beyond your territory. I planned to pass through unnoticed and disappear completely.”

“You failed spectacularly at that.” He stops before me, close enough that I feel his body heat. “My men found you easily enough.”

“Your men tried to feed me to the sirens,” I counter before I can stop myself. “Is that standard patrol protocol in your lands?”

Something flickers in his expression.

Not anger. Something more complicated than simple fury.

“They will be dealt with,” he says flatly. “Their methods were… excessive.”

“I hope so,” I agree, softer now, remembering my place. “They pushed me off a cliff to die.”

“And I caught you.” His eyes narrow dangerously. “Some might call that fortunate. Others might wonder if it was orchestrated.”

“With all due respect,” I counter. “I wouldn’t arrange to be thrown to my death with a futile hope of any dragon nearby saving me.”

“Stranger things have happened in these lands. Spies use creative methods to gain access to enemy territories. I’ve seen it before.”

“I’m not a spy,” I insist firmly. “As I said, I’m just a wanderer and have nowhere else to go. No one is waiting for me anywhere in this world.”

“Just a wanderer,” he repeats, voice heavy with skepticism. “With quality boots and posture that screams formal training. You stand like a soldier, not a vagrant.”

My heart stutters. He’s far too observant for my comfort.

“Survival teaches hard lessons,” I say carefully. “I’ve had to learn to defend myself on the road. It’s kill or be killed out there.”

“Who taught you? Where exactly did you train before becoming this convenient wandering rogue?”

“Various places. No single master. I learned from anyone willing to teach me in exchange for work or coin.”

“That’s wonderfully vague.” He resumes circling like a predator stalking wounded prey. “Almost deliberately so, wouldn’t you say?”

Khaira rumbles low in her throat and the sound vibrates through my bones like an earthquake’s warning. Draven stops abruptly then. His eyes drop to my pack, still clutched protectively against my chest.

“What are you hiding in there?”

My blood runs cold. The dragon egg pulses faintly beneath the fabric, sensing the danger surrounding us both.

“Nothing of value,” I lie quickly. “Just clothes. Supplies. Everything I own in this world, which isn’t much.”

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