She was glad she had done so. The pressure that had been crushing her at the mansion eased off, and out here she could breathe again. It had also given her plenty of time to think about what Gilbert had told her… and no matter how she looked at it, one thing was clear. Gilbert believed what he was saying. She could think of no reason why he would lie to her.
And she didn’t want to think about what that meant for her.
Esther caught one of the twins, causing the other to shriek and run right into Polly. She tossed him into the air and laughed as he laughed. All three of them panted for breath, and the twin Esther was holding curled up against her shoulder and yawned.
“Thanks for helping with them,” Esther said to Polly. She adjusted her glasses and rubbed her son’s back. “Now let’s go play a quiet game.”
Nap time, she mouthed to Polly.
The twins were so hopped up on play that it took them a while to settle down. Polly took the time while Esther put her kids down to tidy up the kitchen and make sure it was spotlessly clean. Gilbert was off somewhere talking with Bryant. He had asked her if she wanted to come, but she had refused. She wanted space to figure out her own mind before hearing whatever Bryant might throw at her. Shane was convinced he could help, but if he couldn’t? Then what were they going to do?
After all these years of wondering who her father was… had her mother known? Or was it really just a fling?
Esther approached, breaking Polly from her cycling thoughts. “Thanks for helping with the twins. I didn’t expect motherhood to take up so much time. I thought babies just slept all the time. Toddlers need to be watched every second, though.” The beaming smile on Esther’s face told Polly that despite what she was saying, she enjoyed every second of her busy life. “I’m just lucky that Bryant’s been given an extended paternity leave to help me with them.”
Shane thought that Bryant could help them out with this situation. Polly considered as she swept some crumbs from the table into the trash. “What does Bryant do?”
“Oh…” Esther shrugged. He’s in security stuff. Works with international organizations. He’s very good at what he does.”
“That must be why Shane sent us here.”
Esther’s brow furrowed. “Kayla told me you guys were coming, but she didn’t say exactly what it was about. Said she didn’t want to talk about it over the phone. It all sounded very suspicious… are you in some sort of trouble, Polly?”
Polly shuddered. She’d already told Kayla and Bernie everything that Gilbert had told her about her connection with his clan. It wasn’t something she wanted to go over again, so she merely shook her head. Then she remembered that there was far more going on, and let out a sigh. Kayla had told her that Esther had known Claire Perry…
“There have been a couple attempts to kidnap me,” she said. She sank to the table, the weariness of the last few days sinking in again. She was running so hard that her body hadn’t had a chance to get sick, but she imagined that as soon as she had any time to relax, she’d be in bed for weeks. “We were able to catch a couple of the men involved, and they said that they’re working for Claire Perry.”
Esther’s face fell into a scowl. “Claire? I haven’t heard anything about her in… it’s got to be at least six years now.”
“You knew her, right?”
Esther nodded. “Yeah. She was funding a dig that me and my friend Dominique were doing. And then she tried to steal something we found. Four students died because of her. If she shows her face here, I’ll rip her damn head off.”
Polly was surprised at the fierceness with which Esther said this, but not the spirit of it. If somebody she knew had suddenly betrayed her and killed people, she’d want to kill them, too.
Her mind drifted to Gilbert, and suddenly she realized she wasn’t angry with him. At least, not as angry as she felt she probably should be. After all, he had lived next to her for years knowing that she was a dragon, the Queen Daughter of his clan, and had said nothing. More than that, he knew her father. He could have introduced her to him… he could have given her that connection.
A connection that she might never get… He was dying. How much time did he have left?
“Why is Claire after you?”
Polly jumped, so wrapped up in her thoughts that she had completely forgotten that Esther was there. She fidgeted, embarrassed by her lapse of attention, and shrugged. “Don’t know. Maybe she wants money. Gilbert is rich, Shane is rich. I’m friends with them both, and if she got me she’d be able to suck a lot of money out of them for ransom.”
Not to mention my home clan.
Her hands clenched as she considered it. This was the farthest she had ever been away from her mother. Jessica had moved to the same city as her when she went to university; she had even tried to move in with her at the Freemans’ place. Polly had always thought it was just so she could take care of her mother. But now, thinking about her fears that her father was trying to kidnap her…
What was the story there? And should she ask her mother? Or should she go to a different source to find out the information she wanted?
“Hey.” Esther put a hand on her shoulder. “You okay?”
Polly gave her a vague smile. “Yeah. I’m fine. I think I need to talk with Gilbert and Bryant… Do you know where they went?”
“Yeah. They went over that way.” Esther gestured with her hand. “Wanting privacy, I suppose.”
“Thanks.”
Polly headed off in the direction Esther had indicated. Her hands clenched into fists as she considered the situation. She needed definitive answers, that was certain. One way or another. And not the answers that others could give to her; she needed to make up her own mind.
She found Gilbert and Bryant deep in conversation near the tree line. Gilbert saw her coming and watched her approach, so wrapped up in her that Bryant actually had to tap his shoulder to get his attention. Knowing that she could command his attention like that made heat swirl in her chest… and lower regions. It seemed impossible that, even after everything, she could want him as much now as she had the night they slept together. More so even. She wasn’t satisfied with what they had done.
She wanted him inside of her.
But that wasn’t going to happen. Not until this whole mess was sorted out. She reached them quickly and folded her arms, looking at Bryant rather than Gilbert. “Do I look like a dragon to you?”
Bryant studied her. He showed no surprise on his face. “Not at first glance. But on closer inspection… you do have a bit of a smoky smell to you. Your build is typical of dragon women.”
She glanced down at herself. Wide shoulders, wide hips, curves on curves. She couldn’t count the number of times she had tried to diet away the extra pounds before she came to love her body. Even now, when she did an hour of kickboxing every night and walked every morning, she was still curvy as hell. And that was normal for dragon women, just as dragon men were so muscle-bound that they didn’t even have to work out to maintain their physiques.
She focused on Bryant again. “Okay. So, assuming that I am a dragon… why have I never shifted?”
Here Bryant gave Gilbert a side-eye glance, as though wondering why he’d never told her this before. Gilbert sighed and opened his mouth, but Polly rose a hand.
“I know what you told me. I’m asking Bryant; do you know of any reason why I have never shifted?”
“Yes. You’re cursed.”
Her eyes narrowed.
Bryant ran a hand through his hair. “Look, I know that it’s difficult for you to accept. But magic and dragons… we’re not witches, but we have an amount of magic in our bodies. Despite all the scientific explanations about how we can shift, that remains the most logical reason that we’ve been able to find. Now, magic beyond that is… well, mythical I suppose. There are lots of stories of dragons with magical gifts, though we haven’t seen any in years. But Gilbert’s clan is famous for their curse.”
A shiver ran down her spine as
she wrapped her arms around herself. She didn’t like how the gesture made her look vulnerable, but she needed to hug some warmth back into her body. She swallowed hard as she kept her eyes on Bryant. Gilbert threatened to draw her eye away from him, but she held her gaze steady. There was no reason for him to lie. If she blinked, though, she might miss a giveaway that would tell her whether she should believe him or not.
“Okay.” Her voice came out shaky and she winced at that. “Okay. So, the curse on his clan is well-known. Please tell me what you know about it… and nothing that Gilbert’s told you.”
Bryant shrugged. “Just that the royal family of that clan is unable to shift. The ruler always dies young. His or her children can’t shift until one of them ascends to the throne; then, whatever is stopping them from shifting in broken, and they can shift… all except the one who became the king or queen. Then the cycle starts over again. There are also rumors that if none of the children accept that role, the curse is spread to the whole clan until somebody else steps up.”
Polly nodded slowly. It was close enough to what Gilbert had said. She turned to him now and her shoulders sagged. “I’m sorry. I just had to hear it from someone else.”
He nodded. “I understand.”
Polly let out a shaky breath. “And if I don’t accept being the next queen…”
“The curse will transfer to the clan. Somebody else will step up to the role. And you will be freed from the curse, and be able to shift,” Gilbert told her steadily.
“Unless nobody steps up.” That was what he wasn’t saying. “If nobody takes on that role, then everybody loses the ability to shift and they die a horrible death.”
Gilbert bowed his head. “Someone will step up.”
Who, though? A mother or father who then passed the curse to their children? A young man or woman, giving up all their hopes and dreams and knowing that they’d put this burden on any child that they had—knowing that they had to produce a child, or else it would just happen again? Someone who had a life that they loved, people who loved them?
No. It wasn’t fair to them. This was her burden, and she would shoulder it.
“If you were able to shift, the curse would be broken,” Gilbert added. “And I—"
Polly held up her hand. “I don’t want to talk about that anymore, Gil. I want to meet my father.”
Chapter Ten
The clan’s castle grounds were wide and well-tended. His clan owned a piece of property near the sea, and the castle was built half a mile from the shoreline, close enough to appreciate its beauty but not so close as to pose significant danger during storms. Gilbert’s wings ached from the long flight; from British Columbia to here without stopping for a break left him exhausted. It was worth it, though, as they had seen no indication of anybody tailing them.
Now, as he sat down on the lawn and put Polly down, he was glad to have finally arrived. His hands were cramped up from carrying her, tight enough to make sure she didn’t slip, gentle enough to make sure he didn’t hurt her. She swayed a little as she stood beside him, whether from the flight or from being here, he wasn’t certain.
“Are you okay?” he asked under his breath.
She straightened her shoulders. “Yes.”
There was something far too stiff about the way she held herself. Her whole body trembled as she looked around, like she was trying so hard to keep herself from falling apart that she would shatter if she stopped. Gilbert slipped his hand into hers, needing to comfort her somehow.
“It’s going to be okay. I promise.”
She glanced at him with an expression that he couldn’t decipher. “I want to meet my father now.”
He released her hand. Of course. Out there in the world, he was just a man and she was just a woman. But here? Here, she was a queen and he was a king’s guard. He was sworn to protect her, but he could not assume any familiarity with her. It was clear that she was still angry at him for neglecting to tell her the truth of her heritage for so long. He wished he could ask her if she had talked to her mother about it yet, but that was far too intimate a question.
The other guard came to greet them. At the sight of Polly, the guard froze. Anybody who looked at her would see that she was her father’s daughter. They had the same strong jaw, dark eyes, the same regal air about them. The guard bowed towards her and led them in.
Gilbert wished he could take her aside just once more to assure her that everything was going to work out, that she didn’t have to accept the role she was born into. She had choices here.
All too soon, however, they were in the king’s chambers. Polly stepped in hesitantly, glancing around; Gilbert followed. The décor had changed dramatically since the last time he had been here. Then, he had knelt at the king’s feet and told him about how he had found his daughter. Now, the king lay in his bed, unable to even sit up. His dark skin looked dry and chalky, eyes dull, face thin. He was withering away. His fires flickered low.
Gilbert averted his gaze, unable to look at his king. If he had been able to get more done with his research, then this reunion would be much more joyous.
“Patil. My daughter.” The king’s voice was a rasp, but the love and joy in it was unmistakable. Gilbert stopped where he was, just inside the door, as Polly hesitantly moved forward. “I have waited so long for this moment.”
Polly gingerly sat on the edge of the bed. The king put a hand on her knee and smiled at her.
“You are as beautiful as I imagined you would be. I assume that Gilbert told you everything?”
She glanced back at him and nodded. “Everything he knows, at least.”
The king shifted in his bed. A nurse materialized from the other side, stepping out of the shadows, and helped him sit. She plumped pillows up behind him, then retreated once more. He took Polly’s hand in his and gave her a small, sad smile.
“I have wanted to bring you back ever since I lost you. I remember the day you were born. So little, so fragile. I thought there was nothing I wouldn’t do for you.”
Polly swallowed hard. “So… I was born here. You knew about me?”
The king’s smile faltered. “Yes.”
She shivered. “Mom always said that I was conceived by accident. That I was the product of a one-night stand and that my father didn’t know I existed.”
“Don’t judge your mother too harshly. It is a terrible burden to see someone you love like this.” He gestured at himself and snorted in disgust. “I remember my grandmother, watching my grandfather die. My own mother… she could hardly stand to watch it happen to my father, and couldn’t watch it with me. I understand why your mother did what she did… she loved you. So much. When she told me she was pregnant with you, the look in her eyes… she would have killed an army to keep you safe.”
“Is that why you didn’t go looking for her?”
The king’s shoulders sagged. Gilbert lowered his gaze. He wanted to stay here for Polly’s sake, but at the same time, perhaps this was not something for him to concern himself with… it was difficult to know what to do.
“I didn’t look for her because I didn’t want you to grow up as I had, with this burden on you. Knowing that you had to die for the clan… I had hoped to find a cure for this curse. I am so sorry that I failed.”
Gilbert found himself moving forward. He opened his mouth to say that it was his fault, not the king’s, when Polly turned. The look on her face, mourning and determined, froze him. For a long moment, all she did was look at him. Then she glanced away and gestured for the door.
“Please leave, Gilbert. I want to speak with my father alone.”
Gilbert opened his mouth to protest, but closed it again. “Of course,” he murmured, and backed up until he was outside. Then he shut the door softly.
Moments later, the nurse exited. Grief lined her face. Gilbert swallowed hard as he caught her arm. The question was clear in his eyes; he couldn’t make his mouth work. The nurse laid a gentle hand on his cheek and shook her head.
“A week at best. He’s a strong man, but this disease… it’s too strong.”
Gilbert nodded, his mind a blank of emotion. There was so much in him, more than he could handle. Instead, his mind was full of Polly. Her face when she smiled, the glitter of her eyes when she was angry, the sound of her breath. The way her body shuddered when he had brought her to climax, the feel of her breasts on his chest. The taste of her on his lips.
Greif welled up in him. It was so strong that he was unable to hold it in. He fled from the king’s door, not knowing if Polly would even want to see him once she was finished talking with her father. Soon, he found himself in the gym, driving his fists into the punching bag over and over again. The repetitive thunk of his knuckles, the throbbing pain that rose up in his hands as he bruised them over and over, gave him little relief.
If he had been smarter with his research, this wouldn’t have happened. Why had he wasted so much time with fundraising? He should have just had an assistant or two handle all of that. He should have concentrated his own efforts on his work. He had let himself get distracted and if he hadn’t done that, then maybe his research would be further along than it was.
And now what could he do? Perhaps he could find a way to awaken Polly’s dragon. It was too late for the king; he had failed him, but perhaps he wouldn’t fail Polly. Maybe he could switch his research; instead of looking at how to repair damaged neurons in the brain, he could look at how to get her to shift. Once she did that, the natural healing abilities of the dragon would be able to reverse the effects of the disease that would otherwise claim her… right?
Or was this all a fool’s dream, and he was going to lose her?
Eventually, he stopped beating on the bag. His lungs heaved and he leaned against the wall, his eyes closed.
She wasn’t his. They had shared a special moment together, but that didn’t mean that they belonged to each other. They weren’t mates and they never would be. If she did choose to take on her birthright… well, he couldn’t stand by and watch her slowly slip away. He’d have to return to the States and continue his research. She would stay here, queen of the clan.
The Dragon's Secret Queen Page 6