Bastian nodded. "Unfortunately Vatra was the only survivor. The rest were brutally murdered." He hesitated, but the truth would have to come out soon enough. "Jarrett did it."
"Jarrett?" Hazel remained calm, a mother’s response in the middle of a storm. "Why?"
"I wish I knew," Bastian said. "He was different all of a sudden. Murderous. Callous. Not the man I thought I knew. At least Tressa wasn't here to witness it. It'll break her heart, but she's better off without him. Jarrett disappeared after the slaughter. We haven’t seen him since."
Hazel placed a hand on Bastian's arm. "Maybe this means your time with Tressa has finally come."
Bastian hadn't thought of that. Jarrett's betrayal meant Tressa would be free again. He flashed back to his night with Elinor. Thought of the way her head tilted when she laughed. The bright smile she flashed when she was happy. The low growl in the back of her throat when he touched her. He looked at Hazel, remembering where he was. "I think Tressa and I are done for good. We've both moved on."
Hazel's shoulders fell. "Do you think there's any chance Connor will still have me?"
Bastian wished he knew the answer. "Inside, Connor is the same man. He has holes in his memory, and he's been through a trauma we will never understand. I can't say with certainty that he'll ever fully come back to us." He wrapped an arm around Hazel's shoulders. "But that doesn't mean you shouldn't try."
"I have to make him understand that I love him. I want to share in his joys and his sadness. Whether he is human or he is dragon, he is my Connor and I will never give up on him," she said, looking up at Bastian with tears in her eyes.
"Then go to him," Bastian said. He gave her a little push toward the doors. "I'll keep an eye on the children."
"Thank you," Hazel said. She gave Bastian a quick hug and took off in a run.
Elinor looked up from the corner of the room where she was reading a book to a small group of children. She smiled at Bastian and nodded. She approved. He knew she would. Hazel and Connor deserved a happily ever after more than anyone.
Bastian wished it were guaranteed. In Hutton's Bridge, nothing could have ever come between them. In the world outside, no one seemed safe. He watched Elinor, her blond curls cascading over her shoulder. Her smile reassured the children, who were adapting to their new situation quickly, but they still harbored a deep fear that might never leave them. One curled up on Elinor’s lap, resting his head on the crook of her arm.
Elinor was the right one to offer solace. Her heart was big enough to love all of them, despite only meeting them not long ago. Bastian looked to the rest of the children, running and yelling as they threw a ball back and forth in a game they'd invented.
"What are the rules?" he asked a little girl.
She darted past him, laughing as if she hadn't a care in the world. "Keep running and don't let anyone hit you with the ball!"
Bastian joined in the game, dodging and running, but often getting hit because he was the biggest and slowest target. Kids darted between his legs and used him as a shield. Bastian laughed like he hadn't in a very long time, until his chest heaved and his sides hurt. He glanced over at Elinor again. She sat alone with the little boy curled up and sleeping in her lap. The other children had scattered. Elinor smiled at Bastian, slow and lazy, while she stroked the napping boy's hair.
It felt strange finding happiness in this place, amid the chaos of battle and death.
The doors to the throne room flung open, destroying the peace that had settled over them. A man in a gray cloak burst into the room, his presence so commanding even the children stopped to stare at his wide mustache and square shoulders. Though he only stood a head shorter than Bastian, he seemed as if he was the largest person in the room. A scar slashed through the left side of his face. A puckered hole rested where his left eye should have been.
"King of the Blue.” The man nodded at Bastian. “I am a scout. I have a report for you."
"A scout? I didn’t send anyone out." Bastian said, wondering who the mystery man was. His face wasn’t familiar. Not from the Black Guard. Not from the soldiers he’d seen stationed at the castle.
The man clicked his heels together and snapped his chin to attention. "The battles have begun. The Black and the Red clashed north of here. Many riders and dragons are dead, littering the ground with their broken bodies. My men and I have risen from the ruins to the west to offer our arms in the cause. I am Donovan." The man bowed, his hands out to Bastian.
Bastian looked at Elinor. He didn't know what he was supposed to do. She shrugged, uncertain as well.