by Donna Grant
“Few mortals know of us, Grace. Several Kings have taken females as mates, so you’ll most likely see them at the manor.”
Her lips parted. “I’m glad the Kings have forgiven us.”
“Many have, aye. There are still some who may never forgive humans for the war.”
“I can’t imagine a world with dragons.”
He started walking again, holding the torch up so that it shed enough light so she could see where she was stepping. They walked for a long time in silence.
With every step toward the manor, Arian began to worry. Con had never liked the idea of the Kings taking the humans as mates. Yet nine Dragon Kings had done just that.
“How does Con feel about the mates?” Grace asked.
Arian raised a brow as he glanced back at her. “Do you read minds, lass?”
She laughed, the sound bouncing off the stones. “No. Why?”
“I was just thinking that nine of us have taken mates. Though one of them is a Fae.”
“Obviously Con is fine with it then.”
Arian flattened his lips as he considered her words. “That’s no’ entirely true. He’s been known to step in and try to dissuade pairings.”
“Has he succeeded?”
“Nay.”
There was a quick intake of breath as she tripped and reached for him. Arian righted her and gave her a nod to see if she was all right.
Grace shoved her hair out of her face and dropped her hands to her side. “Does he want the Kings to be lonely and miserable for however long you live?”
“Eternity. And aye, he does if it means we’re no’ betrayed.”
Chapter Ten
Eternity. That’s what he said.
Grace could hardly fathom such a length of time. “You don’t die?”
“The only way for a Dragon King to die is—”
“By another Dragon King,” she said over him with a nod, remembering his earlier words.
The light from the torch flickered off his face, singeing the edges of shadows with red and orange. It gave Arian’s champagne eyes an amber glow.
In such a few short hours her life had changed. Before her stood not just a man, but an immortal dragon. And a King at that.
He made love to her as if he knew everything she wanted and needed. Though he might believe that she wasn’t a spy, the others wouldn’t be so easily convinced.
Of that, Grace was certain.
“Come, lass,” Arian said and took her hand.
She followed him another dozen steps before the tunnel melted away and she found herself standing in a cavern. It was half the size of Arian’s, but even with the little light from the torch she could see the glint of gemstones.
Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Arian watching her before he whispered a few words. Suddenly a ball of light flared above them, rising higher and higher while its light grew brighter and brighter.
Grace gasped when she saw not just the gemstones embedded in the rock, but dozens of drawings and etched stone of dragons. Every inch of stone was marked in some way.
“We took turns sleeping those years we waited until the humans forgot us. Those that remained awake dug tunnels. And passed the time with these.”
“Wow,” she whispered.
There were no words to describe the magnificence of what she was seeing. It wasn’t just beautiful and amazing, it was wonderful and inconceivable.
And it was a little sad as well.
To know that Arian and the others were trapped below ground for centuries was just wrong. This planet had been theirs until her kind arrived. Humans were like a plague. They destroyed everything and everyone. Just like what they had done to the dragons.
“What is it?” he asked when she lowered her gaze.
Grace turned her head to him. “I saw you in your true form. You were scary, yes, but also incredible. Seeing all of this makes me depressed knowing my race was responsible for keeping you from the skies where you belong.”
His arm wound around her waist as he pulled her against him. He kissed her softly, gently before he rubbed his nose against hers.
She laid her head on his chest and looked at the cavern again. It was pretty, but to not see the sun? No wonder so many Kings hated her kind.
“Doona fash yourself about it, lass,” Arian whispered.
She straightened from him. Without a word, he dropped his arm and continued walking. Grace followed as they skirted one part of the cavern. She could see several different tunnels that could be taken.
Arian walked past four before he took the fifth one. They encountered no one, but Grace had the feeling that others were there. Other Dragon Kings, that is.
She didn’t see them. It was just a feeling. Or perhaps it was the weight of what the humans had done to the dragons that pressed upon her as she saw more and more drawings and carvings.
Grace touched one dragon drawing she glimpsed from the torchlight. It was no bigger than her hand, and for some reason it struck her right in the heart. Such a tiny dragon after seeing so many huge ones on the walls.
Arian glanced back at her often, but there were no more words between them. The closer they came to the manor, the more worried she became. And the tenser he became.
She was tired. Some parts of the tunnels were relatively smooth and easy to walk. Other parts were like hiking in a minefield with all the boulders and dips and valleys in the rocks.
Thankfully, those treacherous places were few and far between and were only short distances. But her exhaustion and anxiety were taking a toll on her.
Tunnel after tunnel they walked. She lost count of the caverns they either passed through or she saw a glimpse of through an opening. Arian never hesitated in the direction he was taking her.
Grace realized that she was putting a lot of trust in him to be taking her so deep in the earth. He could be a serial killer.
The thought made her giggle. He was a dragon, not a serial killer. And though she knew his secret, she didn’t really know him.
Why then was it so easy to be around him and so comfortable to talk to him? She usually only felt that way with people she had known for years. Certainly it had never happened with someone she barely knew a handful of hours.
Her father had often warned her that her greatest gift—and biggest weakness—was that she trusted so certainly.
How many times had that trust been burned? And yet each time she found herself trusting again. It was a weakness, a flaw, and yet it was who she was.
It put her in positions to be deceived, mislead, and lied to on various occasions.
However, it had never put her in a position to lose her life, and that’s exactly what she felt was at stake here. Arian hadn’t said anything, but he didn’t need to. It was in the way he held his jaw.
Just when she was about to collapse and ask for a break, she saw a light ahead of them. Arian said another word, and the torch extinguished instantly.
“We’re here,” he said.
Grace looked ahead in the tunnel. “I need to know the truth. If I don’t answer Con the way he wants, will he kill me?”
Arian’s face softened as he smiled and cupped her cheek for a quick, hard kiss. “Nay, lass.”
“He won’t just let me go though.”
“We have our secret to maintain.”
“Well, he can’t keep me here,” she said, thinking of the next viable option.
Arian sighed and dropped his arms to his side. “There’s another way.”
“What way?” she pressed.
He paused before he said, “One of the other Kings has the ability to wipe memories.”
She blinked, unsure if she had heard him correctly. “I’m sorry. Did you just say wipe my memories? So you’d leave me wandering the streets without knowing who I am?”
“Nay, no’ at all. Guy will only wipe away anything you’ve seen or learned while here.”
“Meaning you.”
Arian gave a single nod.
Grace wasn’t about to give up her time with Arian. It was special, and she had the right to hold on to those memories.
Just as the Kings had a right to protect themselves.
“I understand,” Grace said. “I don’t like it, because I don’t want to forget you, but it’s better than being killed. Still, I don’t want my memories wiped. I’m going to do my best convincing that I’m telling the truth.”
“I know you will, lass.”
How she wished she could see his face better as he stared at her, but the shadows had taken over once more. Grace was relieved when he slid his fingers in hers and took her hand.
Together, they walked toward the light as the tunnel opened wider. When she saw the door that seemed to go into the house, she knew the time had arrived for her to face the King of Kings, Con.
Grace took a deep breath and slowly released it. Arian opened the door and she walked into the manor from what appeared to be nothing more than a wall. A hidden doorway. As if she would expect anything less after all she had learned.
“It’s going to be all right,” Arian whispered as he closed the door behind them.
She followed him through the house where there were once more dragons everywhere. Some were obvious, like the iron dragons that seemed to come from right out of the wall while holding a light in a claw, to others, not so discernable in paintings.
They passed near the kitchen where she could hear female voices and laughter, followed by a deep baritone. Arian didn’t so much as look in the direction as he led her onward.
When they came to the stairs, Grace looked outside to see that the rain had finally stopped as morning dawned. At least that was one thing she wouldn’t have to deal with.
She placed her hand on the banister, only noticing then that the wood was a dragon as well. A glance back at the newel post showed the head of the dragon, with every detail from its scales to its teeth painstakingly carved.
Grace ran her hands through her hair, trying to straighten what she could. She probably smelled, and she knew she looked awful. She’d much rather meet Con showered and dressed properly, but that wasn’t going to happen.
Arian reached the landing and proceeded down the corridor. Grace wondered where the next set of stairs led to, and she had the insane urge to find out right then.
Anything to delay seeing Con. She felt like a kid being sent to the principles office in elementary.
As if sensing her nervousness, Arian smiled at her. Grace attempted to return it, but her nerves were too wound up to manage more than a slight tilt of her mouth.
All too soon Arian stopped next to a closed door. He gave her an encouraging nod, then opened the door. There was no time at all for Grace to collect herself before she was standing before a tall man with penetrating black eyes that were as cold and desolate as a desert.
They were in stark contrast to his bright blond hair that was cut short on the sides and longer on top. Con wore a pair of black dress slacks and a burgundy dress shirt that was unbuttoned at the neck and his sleeves rolled up to his elbows.
Arian and Con clasped forearms like something out of the middle ages. Whatever was passed between them was done silently, because no words were spoken aloud, but Grace was sure something had been said.
Then Con’s midnight gaze was on her again. He looked her up and down without any emotion on his face. Grace was beginning to think he was a robot to not show any kind of reaction—good or bad.
“Grace Clark,” Con said in a deep, clear voice. “Thank you for coming to see me.”
“I didn’t have much of a choice.”
Arian spoke up then, “But she came freely, Con.”
Con looked from her to Arian and back to her. “Freely?”
“Arian told me you needed convincing.” Grace shrugged. “That’s what I’m here to do. I also know that if what I say isn’t satisfactory that my memories will be wiped.”
“It seems Arian told you a great deal,” Con said, showing his first signs of annoyance with the tone of his voice.
Grace lifted her chin. “Shall we proceed? I have a book that has to be written.”
Con turned to the side and motioned to the chairs before his desk with his arm. Grace walked past him and took the one on the right. Only once she was seated did Con move to stand behind his desk.
He stared out the window for a time. Grace tried not to fidget in her chair, but the silence was cruel and unusual punishment when she knew Con wanted answers.
She drummed her fingers on the arm of the leather chair and looked around the room, seeing a medium-sized chest with a rounded lid off to one side. It looked ancient. There was a sideboard where a decanter filled with a gold liquid and several crystal glasses sat.
It was the pinging on the window that drew her attention. Grace looked outside to see the sky had darkened, as if night had changed its mind about allowing the day to break.
Lightning flashed in the distance, forking over the mountain. Grace barely noticed the dots of white on the mountain until the sheep began to run in a group to shelter.
Another storm. This was the last thing she needed. She gripped the arm of the chair and tried desperately not to show how she was affected.
Then Con turned and pinned her with a look.
And she knew it was too late.
Chapter Eleven
Arian didn’t look around the manor at all the changes that had taken place while he had been sleeping. With Con visiting each of the sleeping Kings and updating them on the goings on in the world and how humans had advanced, Arian was up to date on technology.
No, Arian’s attention was on Grace. She gripped the arms of the chairs tightly, making her knuckles white in the process. She was nervous, and she had every right to be.
Constantine hadn’t changed in six centuries, not that Arian expected him to. If anything, Con had gotten colder, more aloof. He was completely detached from the world.
“Keep the storm going,” Con said in his head.
After everything he and Grace had shared with each other, Arian felt ashamed for what he was doing. Yet, he told himself that the sooner Con got his answers, the sooner Grace wouldn’t need to endure her fear anymore.
Arian turned away from the window and grabbed the shirt folded on the edge of Con’s desk. It was plain and white, but Arian didn’t really see it. His focus was on Grace.
She convinced him of her innocence. All she needed to do was persuade Con as well. The problem was that to Con, everyone was an enemy.
Nothing Arian had tried to argue on his and Grace’s journey to the manor swayed Con. Con’s argument was that Arian hadn’t been involved in the shite that had been happening.
In other words, Arian was soft.
Which infuriated him. Arian might not have been fighting these past months, but he fought plenty enough before. He was one of the last to find sleep after the Fae Wars. Not to mention that it took a lot to convince him to change his mind once he made a decision.
Con, however, had used a low blow. He suggested that Arian had been influenced because of Grace’s body.
“Tell me what brought you to Dreagan, Grace,” Con asked.
Arian could hear the weather getting out of control. That was his doing because he couldn’t get a handle on his anger. He drew in a deep breath and slowly released it, the storm abating some.
Grace swallowed and looked Con in the eye. “As I told Arian, I checked into the B&B where I’m staying. From there I went driving, looking for a place that was quiet and where I could be alone. I drove deeper into the mountains. I had no idea where I was going. I drove until I reached the mountain and could go no further.”
“There was no road there.”
She gave a slight nod. “It’s true the road was more of tracks in the grass. I was curious and wanted to see where it would take me.”
“How long did you drive before you came to Dreagan?”
“I didn’t know it was Dreagan,” she said in an unsteady voice, her ga
ze going to the window as the rain pinged against the glass. “As for how long I drove, I’ve no idea. I wasn’t timing myself.”
Con walked around the desk and came to the front of it, leaning his hands and hips back against it. “You don’t know what time you left the B&B?”
“It was around ten or so,” Grace said with a shrug.
Arian wanted to go to her and stand beside her. To give her strength and to show Con that Arian was going to protect her. It might come to that, but Arian sincerely hoped it didn’t. Surely Con would come around to see what Arian already had—that it was merely fate that brought Grace to him.
“When did you arrive at Arian’s mountain?” Con asked.
“I don’t know. An hour or an hour and a half later. I didn’t really look at my watch. I had no one waiting for me or anyone to answer to. Why would I keep track of time?”
Con looked down at her boots. “You dressed for hiking.”
Grace laughed wryly as she straightened her leg so that it was horizontal as she regarded her shoes. “These aren’t hiking boots. They’re old tennis shoes that wouldn’t do me a bit of good,” she said, her voice growing louder in her anger. “Would you like to comment on my raincoat? Do you think I can make it rain at will?”
“Oh, I’m no’ worried about you having that ability,” Con said and glanced at Arian.
Arian fisted his hands. He might have told Grace much about his race, but he hadn’t told her about his ability to control the weather. He rarely used the ability, preferring to let the realm take care of itself.
But there were instances, like earlier when he needed to keep her in his mountain, that it came in handy.
Grace’s gaze swung to him. Arian gave her a small nod. If she saw it, she gave no response as she returned her eyes to Con.
“That’s right,” Grace said, jerking when more thunder boomed. “I’m just a human. I’m mortal. I’ve no magic or the ability to shift into a dragon. I am who I say I am—a novelist. I’m sure with the money Dreagan brings in that you have the ability to do a search on me. Do it. Find out all that you need. Hell, go to a bookstore and find my book.”
Con raised a blond brow. “Perhaps you made up everything that we’ll find. We’ve friends in MI5, Ms. Clark. We know what lengths someone will go to in order to hide who they are.”