Brantley turned to look at her and his gaze focused on her face. "Yes, I mean exactly what you are thinking. One of your babies is going to kill her. She knows it and so she is going to kill you one way or the other."

"Isn't she concerned about her own son?" Dawn asked as fear gripped her heart.

​​

"That woman killed her own sister to absorb her magic and then killed her mother in a rage. Do you think she would think twice before killing Daryn or you? She is only interested in conquering Lore and living for eternity." Ileus hated her for that and he was here on his purpose too.

Dawn's lips trembled, as she feared for the safety of her kids and Daryn. Her mind became numb. "The Stone of Solaris… Did you want me to find it?" Her body quivered at the thought.

Brantley closed his eyes as if what he wanted to say next was difficult. "When I was born, it was predicted by the priest of my kingdom that my mate would be someone born from an unnatural bonding. There have been plenty of unnatural pairs in the Lore, but none gave me the vibes. It's like I can sense—" He shrugged to shove that thought away. "Five years back when a dragon egg hatched, we were stunned. It had been thousands of years since one had been hatched. I sent my people to find out about it and it turned out that you were the one who triggered it. That was my clue."

Dawn frowned. "Clue? What do you mean?"

"I knew that it has to be you—the carrier of my mate. I could feel it."

For Dawn, the world stopped. There was stunned silence. She was carrying Brantley's mate? There was a knot in her chest that reached to her core. So this man was always protecting her?

"After the dragon egg hatched and we came to know that the dragon had chosen you as his rider, I made Arawn watch over you like a hawk through all your years at Yorkshire. And you cannot imagine how pleased I was when I came to know that you were a neotide. That was an unnatural thing. And more unusual than that was the fact that Daryn had marked you as his mate—a pureblood and a neotide. After that everything was carefully planned. When you came to Ulfric for the wedding, it was important for me that you find the Stone of Solaris because that stone meant fertility. It was necessary for you to absorb the energy of the blessed stone so that you gave birth to my mate."

Dawn pressed her hands over her forehead. Her mind jumped as if in a spasm. She was as white as chalk. Was she born for a purpose, for a bigger purpose than she could ever imagine? To give birth to kids who would kill their own Grandmother and to give birth to a girl who would be Brantley's mate. Things became dizzy. Her eyes and her mouth flared open in a stunned expression of shock. She was looking at Brantley but she didn't seem to notice him. She glanced nervously around her as if to find a support. She needed Daryn urgently.

Brantley continued. "It was very important that you carry the Stone of Solaris. I had to make sure." Then his voice was an octave lower, "I couldn't take a chance Dawn. The stone was lost and only you could find it. I know that you must have thought that I gave you such a difficult time, but if you would focus, you actually got to that place faster than you had imagined, faster than any of us. Why? Because it was all destined. Because you had to carry my mate." He went and knelt in front of her. He held her wrists and said, "Look at me dawn. If I would have told you what you were into, then I highly doubt that you would have ever gone to find the stone, because you two were content just being each other's mates." He looked at her tummy. "I am sorry to force you into it, but it was paramount." He looked at her face. "Don't hate me for it Dawn… please…"

Dawn didn't know what to say. Everything right from the time she was bitten, to her wedding in Ulfric, to the Kingdom of Ixoviya—events started replaying in her head.

Brantley continued, "I am so thankful to you for bearing the child who would be my mate, who would be my queen. You have something so precious in your womb that you don't know. That child would be the only one who would be able to kill Sedora. The whole— the whole Lore has their eyes on you. You have to survive this contest, you have to survive Sedora's caprice, her devilry. She is hell bent on killing you and I am hell bent on saving you." He clasped her hands. "Do you trust me?"

Dawn looked into his eyes. They had melted but they were holding tension. He looked hopefully at her. All the anger she felt for this man, dissipated. "You poor, poor man," she said in a whisper. "You had waited so long for all this to happen?" She couldn't fathom his anxiety, his nervousness and how he had to react in front of her and the rest of the world to get to this moment, only to be— to be snatched from the evil sorceress, Sedora. When she was in so much agony about Daryn, she couldn't imagine the agony of the man who was in front of her. He knew that Dawn was pregnant with his mate and it must be killing him to see her go through so much. She brought her hand to his face and brushed her fingers on his cheek. "I think I am feeling proud that I am carrying your mate. More than that I am proud that my child will be born for a greater purpose."

Brantley's tension evaporated. It was as if a weight had lifted off his shoulders after telling her everything. It was as if he was walking with the guilt all this while and by telling her lightened his heart.

"Thank you Dawn for understanding me…" he said.

"So that is why you created the magical light around me?"

"Yes…"

"How do you know Sedora?"

"Sedora knows that you are carrying my mate and that child will bring her doom. When I came to know that she was after you, I offered her a deal, in which I was ready to give a part of my kingdom to her in exchange for your safety. But she declined. She laughed at me saying that she would have it anyways after she killed you, which in turn meant that I would wither away also. Her plan is to attack my kingdom and seize it once I am dead."

"What a bitch!" Dawn's heart felt burdened with his anguish. That woman had been after her ever since she married Daryn. She had also pointed out that Dawn would never have babies and tried her best to annul the marriage. After she got pregnant, she used her connections to ban her from the clan so that she could kill her when she was alone. When her shenanigans failed, she abducted Daryn by conniving Gayle. "I am surprised that Gayle never told me about Sedora's true identity."