Dragons Lost (32 page)

But before I
die,
he added silently,
I'll be taking both you and your daughter with
me.

Beatrix raised
her eyebrow. "Death, my boy? Oh no. I did not bring you here to kill you."

Mercy gasped. "What?
Mother!" The paladin stormed forward and drew her sword. "We will flay him
before the crowd! We will draw and quarter him! We will—"

"—do no such
thing," Beatrix finished for her. "Sheathe your sword."

"I will not!"
Mercy said. "I will slay him here myself, here in the Holy of Holies!"

"Sheathe your
sword!" Beatrix demanded. "I will not allow you to slay your brother."

Mercy froze.

Cade blinked.

Beatrix smiled.
She turned back toward Cade. "Yes, Cade." She touched his cheek, and those
cold, heartless blue eyes suddenly dampened. "For years I sought you. For years
after your father stole you away, I scoured the Commonwealth for you. You've
returned to me at last. My lost son."

Cade stared at
the High Priestess, then laughed.

All his pain,
fear, and rage melted away into the laughter. His chest shook, and he fell to
his knees, consumed with the laughter, with the madness.

Mercy seemed
less amused. She stared at the High Priestess, pale, fists clenched. She
managed to whisper only one word: "What?"

Ignoring her
daughter, Beatrix knelt before Cade and caressed his hair. She stared into his
eyes. "We're going to cure you, son. We're going to burn out your dragon magic
and make you a paladin. And then, my son . . . you will hunt for me. You will
hunt weredragons until this column falls."

Cade fell and
lay on his side, too weak to laugh anymore, too weak to cry, too dazed for
thought. King's Column soared above him, stretching toward the sky, a pillar of
memory, of legend, and of dying magic.

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AFTERWORD

Thank you for reading
Dragons Lost
. I hope you enjoyed the book.

The next
Requiem for Dragons
novel is titled
Dragons Reborn
. Click
here
to grab your copy or search your favorite ebook store for "Dragons Reborn."

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And if you have a moment, please review a Requiem novel or two online. Help other fantasy readers and tell them why you enjoyed reading. And please help spread the word! Lend a Requiem novel to a friend, talk about Requiem online, and help others discover the books.

Thank you again, dear reader, and I hope we meet again between the pages of another book.

Daniel

NOVELS BY DANIEL ARENSON

THE MOTH SAGA

• Moth
  
• Empires of Moth
  
• Secrets of Moth
  
• Daughter of Moth
  
• Shadows of Moth
  
• Legacy of Moth
  

REQUIEM

• Dawn of Dragons
  
  • Requiem's Song
    
  • Requiem's Hope
    
  • Requiem's Prayer
    
  • The Complete Trilogy
    
• Song of Dragons
  
  • Blood of Requiem
    
  • Tears of Requiem
    
  • Light of Requiem
    
  • The Complete Trilogy
    
• Dragonlore
  
  • A Dawn of Dragonfire
    
  • A Day of Dragon Blood
    
  • A Night of Dragon Wings
    
  • The Complete Trilogy
    
• The Dragon War
  
  • A Legacy of Light
    
  • A Birthright of Blood
    
  • A Memory of Fire
    
  • The Complete Trilogy
    
• Requiem for Dragons
  
  • Dragons Lost
    
  • Dragons Reborn
    
  • Dragons Rising
    
  • The Complete Trilogy
    

ALIEN HUNTERS

• Alien Hunters
  
• Alien Sky
  
• Alien Shadows
  

OTHER WORLDS

• Eye of the Wizard
  
• Wand of the Witch
  
• Firefly Island
  
• The Gods of Dream
  
• Flaming Dove
  

KEEP IN TOUCH

www.DanielArenson.com

[email protected]

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