“Tell me about yourself,” Neo said once they’d placed their orders. They sat in a quiet, somewhat secluded, corner of the café where there was little chance of being overheard.
Gwen made an unhappy face. “What do you want to know?”
“I don’t know, tell me something about you when you were younger. Where did you grow up?”
A faint smile curved her lips, “I grew up on an estate outside of Edinburgh.”
“Edinburgh?” Neo frowned. “That’s Scotland, I thought you were a Welsh dragon.”
“I am. The entire clan is called Welsh dragons. Our other form is what is commonly known as a Welsh dragon, no matter where we are born or where we live.”
“That’s interesting. What happened to the Celtic dragons?”
“Some of them mated into the Welsh clan, but mostly the Celtic dragons are native to Ireland.”
“You grew up near Edinburgh, what kind of childhood did you have? Were you happy?”
Gwen fell silent for a moment, her eyes were on him without really seeing him as she thought about it. “I guess it was an average childhood. Not too different from most children of the era. My parents weren’t land owners, but they were well off enough I never went without anything I needed. After they died, Uncle Triston took me in,” she paused.
Neo knew he was frowning. “Wait, weren’t you an adult by the time they died, or am I doing my math wrong? Young, but still an adult.”
“You have to remember what it was like for women at the turn of the 20th century. We were still expected to be the responsibility of a man, either our fathers or our husbands. Especially there.”
Neo nodded, it hadn’t been all that different here. Yes, there had been a few independent women, but they were usually widows or prostitutes. An unmarried woman on her own was rare then, even in the west.
“Uncle Triston indulged me.” Gwen wore a soft smile as she remembered. “Anything I wanted to do, he made it possible. He had been my father’s best friend. He had money and no children of his own, so I benefited from his indulgence.”
“I’m glad you had someone to help you through the loss of your parents. Is he still around? Part of the clan there?” Neo wondered if her uncle still being in her clan would make it hard for her to leave.
“No. Uncle Tristan was killed some time ago.”
“Killed?” Something about the way she said it made him curious.
“It was a dominance fight, but the other man had no honor. He conspired with his second to take out my uncle, two against one.” She closed her eyes and took a deep breath.
“I’m sorry.”
Gwen’s eyes opened. “Why? It wasn’t you.”
“Because it hurt you.” Neo watched her for a couple seconds then tilted his head and narrowed his eyes. “What happened to the two men?”
“They disappeared.” Gwen paused while the waitress delivered their plates, then once she was gone, continued, “Not right away, but one at a time, they just quietly disappeared.”
“No one missed them?” Neo lifted one brow as he eyed her.
“They did, but there were no traces of foul play. It looked like they had just picked up one day and walked away from their lives, never to be heard from again.” She acted just a little too innocent. Somehow Neo knew, Gwen was responsible for the disappearances.
“That’s an accomplishment.” Neo looked down at the plate in front of him with a critical eye. He’d had a hard time getting the new cook here up to speed with plating. The man believed that flavor was enough. He’d been difficult to convince that things needed to look appetizing as well. As far as Neo could see, the new cook had finally figured it out. Turning his attention back to Gwen, he found her eyes closed as she savored her food. “You approve?”
“Very much. This is good.” She took a second bite, still savoring it, but not as long.
“Any close friends?”
“Not anymore.” Gwen blinked. “I mean, I have a couple of close friends but one by one they’ve left the clan for different reasons; I’m the last one left.”
“What’s made you stay this long? If you don’t mind my asking, that is.”
“No reason. I’ve not had anywhere to go. There hasn’t been another place I was willing to move clans to be... until now.”
Neo’s heart leapt. He still found it hard to trust that she would give up her clan for him. After all this time, how could he be sure his curse had been lifted?
“What? Nothing to say?”
He shook his head. “You keep saying you’re going to come here; be with me. I want that, I really do. I just have a hard time trusting that it will happen. It’s not that I doubt you. I’ve just learned not to take anything for granted until it actually happens.”
16
Gwen wasn’t sure what to say so she watched him while she ate. She had no concept of what he had been through for the last two thousand years. Sure he’d told her, but what must it have been like for him to go through every day knowing, or at least believing, he would never find the one person who was meant to be his other half? Just the idea was enough to depress her, much less actually living through it. She had worked hard to earn the respect she thought she’d earned, but if what she suspected was true, and something in her gut said it was, then there was nothing left for her in her clan. Neo had respect and a good position here. Teya was willing to accept her and put her to work, without a single question about Gwen’s worth or what she could bring to their clan. While the idea had surprised her at first, now she was grateful.
Her chest ached as she thought about Ellis and the suspicion that he was reporting back to the clan on her work. Even if she hadn’t already decided to come here, she wouldn’t stay in a clan that would do that. The environment of distrust wasn’t a place she wanted to stay, or a place to start a life with her mate. Could she walk away on just the suspicion? It wasn’t fair to her alphas or her clan. Yes, she could leave, with the reason of joining her new mate’s clan, but it just felt unfinished to her to do it that way. She needed proof.
“You’re quiet,” Neo said as they stepped onto the elevator to go back to the conference room.
“Just thinking.” Gwen shook her head to clear it. “Hey,” she turned to look at Neo a moment. “I have an idea.”
“What?”
“Let’s try to catch Ellis at his game.”
“What do you mean?”
“Once we’re all back in the room and working again, throw out some request for the treaty, something odd, not a deal breaker, but something I should check with my Alpha about. Act like you forgot to add it before or something. I’ll accept it without contacting them. We can watch his reactions to figure out if he’s spying.”
“All right.” Neo frowned. “But what?”
“I don’t know, think of something.”
“You’re not going to actually put it in the treaty, are you?”
“Not in the real one, but I’ll have to put it in while we’re working or it will give us away.”
The elevator door opening prevented Neo from responding. Ellis sat in the waiting area, one leg crossed over the other knee as he sipped from a paper cup.
“You ready to get back to work?” Gwen forced herself to smile as she spoke to the man who was supposedly there to keep her safe.
“Ready when you are.” Ellis stood.
“Good. I think if we push, we can get this finished in another hour or two, then I can send it off to the alphas and see a little bit of the town while we wait for them to get back to us.”
“Sounds like a plan.” Neo put in.
They followed Neo as he led them back to the conference room they had spent the morning in. After sitting down, Gwen opened the laptop and started reading aloud. She reworded a few things, clarifying them or making them more specific. They had been working for about ten minutes when Neo spoke up.
“Oh, I just remembered,” he cringed. “Teya wanted me to be sure we put in a clause about replacing any clan
members that leave.”
“What do you mean?” Ellis asked before Gwen could say anything.
“She’s afraid your people will come and find mates or make friends among our clan and our people will leave. It would be detrimental to our clan to lose too many people, so she wants it in the treaty that when someone leaves here for there, you must offer us a replacement of equal value.
Gwen made a face for a moment then shrugged. “I don’t see a problem with that.” She scrolled to another section in the treaty, one they’d already passed, and added the clause. From the corner of her eye she saw Ellis turning red but avoided looking directly at him, knowing it would give away that she was watching his reactions.
After she finished with the clause, she went back to where she’d been before and continued reading though it. A few minutes later, Ellis stood.
“If you’ll excuse me for a few moments, I need to use the restroom.”
“Go right ahead,” Gwen said without looking up. “I’m going to keep working.”
“Do you know where it is?” Neo asked. “I can show you if you like.”
“No, I asked the receptionist as we left for lunch. I’ll be right back.” Ellis left the room and the door swung slowly closed behind him.
“He did not like that,” Neo said after several seconds.
“I noticed. It looks like he has instructions about what and what should not be included.”
“I’d be willing to bet he’s contacting your alphas right now.”
“I don’t make foolish bets.” Gwen smiled. “I would love to be a fly on the wall for that conversation.” She quickly went to the clause she’d added for Ellis’s benefit and deleted it before moving back to where she was working and continuing. She really did want to get this done so she could spend more time with Neo.
When Ellis returned a few minutes later, his red-faced, angry look was gone and a self-satisfied expression was in its place. Gwen’s breath caught in her chest as she waited to see if he was going to say something, but he just sat down without a word. He sat for a while, unspeaking, until Gwen sat back with a sigh.
“All done?” Ellis asked.
“I think so. I just want to double check everything, and then I’ll send it to all the alphas to sign off on it.” She scrolled up to the top and scanned through the entire document, mentally marking each stipulation off the list in her head as she reached them. “All right,” she pulled up her email program and sent it off to Grigor and Rhiannon, as well as Teya. “Now it’s up to them.”
“But it can still be changed, right?” Ellis asked, one brow lifted.
“Of course. Any concerns any of the alphas have can always be fixed before the final versions are signed. The treaty isn’t binding until it’s signed.”
“Very well.” Ellis’s tone was oddly stiff and formal. “If that is all for now, I have a couple things I need to get done. Remember,” he met Gwen’s gaze, “no leaving this hotel without either Isla or myself with you.”
“I won’t forget,” Gwen said. She closed her software and shut down her computer as Ellis left the room. She waited until the door had completely closed before turning to Neo. “Let’s see how this unfolds.” Closing her laptop, she put the computer in the cross-body bag she carried it in and took a deep breath. “What now?”
Neo opened his mouth to say something but before he could make a sound, his phone rang. He pulled it from his pocket and frowned when he saw the screen. “It’s Teya.” Thumbing the answer button, he put it to his ear. “Yes?”
Gwen could hear Teya’s voice on the other end but couldn’t make out what she was saying.
“I’m in the conference room with Gwen.” He paused. “No, we’re done for the day. We were just packing things up and deciding what to do next.” Another pause. “Just me or both of us? All right, we’ll be there in a minute.” He disconnected the call and shoved the phone back into his pocket. “She wants to see us in her office.”
“Now?”
“Now.” Gwen’s stomach felt like it was in her throat as she picked up her bag and followed Neo.
17
Neo was a little nervous as he and Gwen made their way the short distance down the hall to his sister’s office. She had sounded more confused than angry over the phone, so he wasn’t too worried.
“Is she waiting for us?” Neo said to Rachel, who looked up as they approached her desk.
“She is. Go on in.” She waved them past.
Neo pushed the door open and held it for Gwen, then followed her to find Teya sitting behind her desk, studying a small stack of papers in front of her. “You wanted to see us?”
“I did.” Teya looked up at the two of them for a moment. “Have a seat.” She took a deep breath then continued. “I had a strange call a little while ago. Now I’m going over the treaty draft you sent and I’m confused.” Teya was looking at Gwen.
“What is it? I’d be happy to make anything you like clearer.”
“It’s not anything in the treaty, as far as I can see. It’s something that’s missing.”
Gwen frowned.
Neo suspected the call had been from Gwen’s alphas about the clause only they and Ellis were supposed to know about.
“What’s not there?” Neo asked.
“Let me back up a moment,” Teya leaned back in her chair and watched the two of them as she spoke. “The call was to ask me why I was asking for ‘replacement persons.’ It made no sense. When I convinced her to slow down, I understood what she was saying, but I was confused as to why she thought I was asking for it. Not that I admitted I hadn’t requested it. Now, looking at the treaty, there’s no mention of it.” She looked from Neo to Gwen and back for a moment. “Care to explain?”
Neo took a deep breath and opened his mouth, but Gwen spoke before he could.
“Before I explain, can I ask who you spoke with?”
“Rhiannon, why?”
“It was my idea,” Gwen said. “One of my bodyguards insisted on attending the meeting this morning. I didn’t think much about it until lunch time, and then he was behaving oddly. I began to suspect he was only there to make sure I did what Rhiannon and Grigor requested, and that he was reporting back to one or both.” Gwen paused and took a deep breath. “While we were at lunch, I asked Neo to make a request to be added to the treaty. One we hadn’t already discussed, and something that should be cleared with my alphas before being added, the replacement thing was what he asked for.
“I added the request to the treaty without checking with my alpha, then moved on. A few minutes later, Ellis excused himself, claiming he needed to use the facilities. While he was gone, I deleted the addition. I never had any intention of leaving it there, the only purpose was to prove he was spying.” Gwen took a deep breath and let it out in a rush. “I’m disappointed to find out it’s true. I was hoping I was wrong.” Gwen’s shoulders fell, and she seemed to deflate. Seeing her like this made Neo’s heart ache.
“I see,” Teya watched them both a moment longer. “So how does this change things for you?”
“It doesn’t. It just proves I have no reason to go back. I’ve already talked to Neo about moving here to be with him. I worked hard to be trusted to do this job. I’m disappointed to realize they didn’t trust me after all.” Gwen fell silent for the space of several heart beats. “Are you still willing to let me join your clan?” Her voice held mixed notes of desperation and hope, making Neo want to pull her into his arms, but he resisted. This wasn’t the time or place.
“I am. I have a couple ideas about where I want to put you, but we’ll worry about that later.”
“Put me?”
“Positions in the Fraction. Jobs I think you would do well at.”
“Oh.”
“For now though, give me a chance to review this,” Teya tapped the treaty in front of her, “and talk to your alphas. Once the treaty is in place and official, then we’ll figure out the details of your move.”
“Sounds good.” Gw
en smiled for the first time since they’d entered the room. It was a nervous smile, but it was something, making Neo feel better.
Teya looked up, meeting Neo’s gaze before turning toward Gwen. “Have you thought about hiring someone to pack everything and ship it over? About not going back at all?”
“I have.”
Neo turned to Gwen, surprised.
Gwen was shaking her head. “As tempting as it is, it would also be cowardly. As if I couldn’t face the people there.” Gwen took a deep breath and held it for a moment. “As much as I would like to, it would feel too much like cowardice, and I wouldn’t be able to hold my head up if I let myself hide out here.”
Neo’s heart swelled, and he fell just a little more in love with her.
“I understand.” Teya said with a nod. “I would feel the same way.” She eyed Gwen for a moment. “Does your sense of honor mean you have to make the trip alone, or would you like some company?”
Gwen blinked several times, as if processing Teya’s words before responding. “I hadn’t thought about it. I don’t see why I need to be alone, but I would never ask.” She turned away, Neo thought it was to keep him from seeing something she couldn’t keep off her face.
He wanted to comfort her, to reassure her without making a big deal about having seen the uncertainty on her face. He reached over and laid one hand on her leg. Within seconds, some of the tension drained from her. Gwen covered his hand with hers and leaned back in her seat, more at ease.
The Dragon Chronicles_City of Sin Page 25