Dragon Blood 2: Wyvern (10 page)

Amber watched as Kiani greeted Kade and congratulated him on passing yet another test. She handed him an envelope that he pocketed.

Amber glanced towards Maira who stood near her.
“What was that?”

“A Gold Dragon’s clan gives them fifty thousand each time they pass a test.”

“Kade has one hundred and fifty thousand dollars from that one test?”
Amber hoped the shock didn’t show on her face.

“Nah. He’ll give half of that fifty to Flinn since he doesn’t have a clan. Everyone must be paid.”

Amber started to shake her head, but stopped in time.
“What I really want to know is when he’s going to give her the proof about Paili.”

“He would have already done that.”

“When?”

“When Kiani gave him the cheque.”

“I didn’t see.”

“No one is meant to see, but it’s the most logical time.”

“You dragons just like to make things complicated.”

Maira smiled.
“We love complications. Not to mention intrigue, dramas and destruction.”

Amber turned towards Maira, startled.
“Destruction?”

“Ask your warrior what his tat means.”

Amber glanced towards Rian who stood a couple of paces behind her.
“What does your tattoo mean?”

“Creation, preservation, destruction.”

“That makes no sense.”

“They’re all part of each other.”

“Great, now we’re going to have a Yoda moment. I’m still not understanding here.”

Kiani stopped in front of her. “Amber. It is lovely to see you again.”

Amber forced herself to smile pleasantly and not growl in annoyance at the interruption. She couldn’t think of a single word to say.

“How are you enjoying staying on our lands?”

She shrugged. “It’s very green.”

“Yes, I guess that’s something you’d notice after living in your dry country,” Kiani said.

“What the hell am I meant to say to her?”
Amber appealed to Maira.

Maira smiled at Kiani. “It looks like everyone is starting to make their way to the dining room. Shall we?”

Kiani’s gaze was drawn around the room. “Yes, of course.” She led the way to the dining room.

Kade waited by the door for Amber and guided her to where she was to sit. The table was crowded with not only some of Kade’s immediate family, but also some of their important allies. Amber was annoyed to see one of those people was Paili.

“Stop looking at Paili,”
Rian warned.

“She shouldn’t be here.”
Amber stared at the plate of food that was placed in front of her.

“We can keep an eye on what she is doing while she is here,”
Rian said.

“I didn’t realise it was going to be such a large dinner party.”
Amber glanced towards Kade as he started to eat his food. She picked up her cutlery and moved her food around, trying to figure out what it was. It appeared to be some type of stir fry drowned in a dark sauce. It suddenly occurred to her to ask,
“Is this what my birthday party is going to be like?”

“Eat your dinner, Amber. People will wonder what the problem is if you do not at least try it,”
Rian said.

Amber took a small mouthful and finding it bearable had a little more. She looked across the table when she heard Crystal’s laughter. She watched Crystal chat to the young man beside her, asking a million questions and totally at ease with her surroundings. Amber couldn’t understand how Crystal could forget all their problems and just enjoy herself. She wanted to do something, not sit around and wait for someone else to make a move. She wanted to drag Kiani from the table and point at Paili and demand to know what Kiani was going to do. And if she planned to do nothing, she wanted to deal with it. Amber barely managed to stop herself from looking in Paili’s direction again.

She could now picture the woman without even looking. Paili was only a couple of inches off six foot, black hair piled on her head and eyes nearly as dark. Jewels decorated her throat, wrists and ears ensuring everyone could see her clan was wealthy. What had surprised Amber the most was that Paili, like the rest of the dragons at the dinner party, wore well known designer labels from her world. She was glad she’d given in to Maira’s choice of dress for her to wear this evening, but as always, she wore figure hugging dragon-leather shorts and top underneath her dress. There was no way she wanted to end up naked if she turned into an animal and then became human again.

“What time is it?”
Amber asked Rian.

“The night is still young. Try and talk to someone. It is meant to be a social event,”
Rian said.

Amber couldn’t resist a look in Paili’s direction.
“Siting down to eat with your enemies is considered a social event? Do you think knocking Paili flat would end the night sooner?”

“You are not much of a pacifist, are you?”
Rian asked.

“I said I wanted peace, not that I was incapable of standing up for myself.”
Amber bit back a sigh and made an attempt at eating some more of her dinner. How long could they draw this process out?

Amber soon found out they could draw the process out a very long time. It was after midnight when she finally managed to escape to Kade’s room. She discarded her dress in a puddle on the floor and dropped onto the bed to stare at the ceiling. “I never want to endure another one of those meals. Please tell me I don’t have to.”

Kade closed the door behind him and looked down at her. “It isn’t often I need to attend them.”

“Then please go without me next time. I’m amazed I didn’t fall asleep in my dinner.”

Kade laughed. “I’m glad you didn’t. The first thought everyone would have had would be poison. It would have caused a panic.”

“You’re kidding, right?”

Kade shook his head. “Not at all.”

Amber groaned. “I’m never going to figure your world out.” She started to say something when a woman entered the room and set up a solid looking fold out bed near the door, but she was too tired to get into an argument with Rian about where he was going to sleep. At least it was better than a mattress on the floor.

Amber was still thinking the same thing five nights later as Maira and Crystal helped her get ready for her party. It was the first time she’d used her bedroom. “What do you mean nothing has been done about Paili yet? And why does she have to be at my party?”

“Because these things take time and we don’t want her to be suspicious. She’ll already be wary when she sees Ronan arrive. We need to keep everything else as normal as possible,” Maira said.

“Tell me again how many people are going to be here?”

“Thousands,” Crystal interrupted. “I just can’t wait to go down there. A ballroom! You’re having your birthday in an actual ballroom. I really, really want to come back here in the September school holidays for my birthday. You should see how they’ve decorated the place. I can’t wait to show you.”

Amber groaned. “Great. Tons of people to watch me trip over my feet when I try and do those stupid old time dances.”

Kade entered the room in time to hear Amber’s complaint. He laughed. “You aren’t that bad. Besides, it’s only for the first part of the night. It’s expected.”

Amber turned to face him. “Your world has too many expectations.” She fingered the topaz that hung at her neck. A souvenir from her first hoard, the gold chain a gift from Kade for her birthday. She planned to tell her family it was from all of them. “Do we really have to go down to the ballroom?” She slid her hands up the front of Kade’s suit jacket.

“You look beautiful.” Kade’s lips met hers.

For several moments Amber forgot about the crowd waiting to help her celebrate her birthday. When she pulled away it was to find Maira and Crystal had already left. Rian as usual was nearby. “Where did they go?”

“They will be in the ballroom. It is time for you to make an entrance.” Rian held the bedroom door open.

Amber eyed the doorway as if it led to a pit of snakes. “When you said birthday party, I didn’t think it was going to be anything like this. Most kids I know celebrate their seventeenth with some smuggled alcohol and a stereo turned up loud enough to annoy the neighbours.”

“I want my world to see you’re important. This is how we do things.” Kade grinned. “If you want your noisy, drunken party we can have it Saturday at my house.”

“But then it’d be Brann’s party since that’s the day he turns seventeen.”

“I’m sure he’ll share it. Now quit stalling. You’re more valuable than any of those dragons down there waiting for you. You’re the only Dragon Mage in all the worlds who can heal.”

Amber sighed. “Fine. But if I make an idiot of myself I’m going to blame you forever.”

“You won’t. Now come on.” Kade slipped an arm around her waist and guided her out of the room.

“I won’t what? Make an idiot of myself or blame you forever.”

“Neither.”

As they drew closer to the noise of the ballroom, Amber’s steps slowed until she barely moved at all. Kade stopped and turned to face her.

“We could be watched by any number of Golds right this minute. Are you sure you want them to see you act this afraid?”

Amber tilted her head back to glare at him, but he was right. Which she hated even more. Pushing Kade out of the way, she strode towards the ballroom. Kade fell into step beside her. Pausing, she waited for the doorman to open the door to the ballroom for her and then continued to stride forward.

The ballroom was a sea of faces, the centre of the room dotted with couples dancing to the orchestra that played in the far corner. Amber froze. A waiter walked past and Rian took a glass, handing it to her. Even after a couple of mouthfuls, she couldn’t have said what she drank.

People came over to her, their words a blur. She smiled and hoped that would be response enough. Her glass was taken from her hand and the next thing she knew, she was waltzing with Kade in the middle of the room. Slowly her brain started to function again and she began to recognise faces in the crowd. Her grip on Kade loosened and when she looked up at him, he smiled.

“Look at that. You’re still alive.”

“But you mightn’t be by the end of the night.”

Kade laughed, spinning her around fast.
“And after all the trouble I went to for you.”

“Trouble I could have done without.”

“I’m not hiding you away like I’m ashamed of you.”

Amber wondered if there was another meaning behind his words.
“You don’t think I do that, do you?”

Kade shook his head, his smile still in place.
“No. I understand. It might annoy me sometimes, but I also know it annoys you too. So I can live with it.”

“Mind if I interrupt?” Jasper tapped Kade on the shoulder.

Amber grinned at her brother as he waltzed her around the room. “This is nothing like my last birthday party.”

Jasper laughed. “I’ve barely seen you these holidays.”

“I guess we’ve both been busy.”

“I feel like I should be saying thank you a million times. This has been the most amazing holiday.”

“And that wouldn’t happen to have anything to do with me catching you kissing some girl the other day?”

Jasper laughed again.
“Not at all.”

After that, Amber lost track of how many dance partners she had. She finally had to beg off to rest her feet and grab a drink. As she took a mouthful of fruit juice, she was surprised to find she was smiling and actually having a good time. Well, other than the few times she’d caught a glimpse of Paili.

Across the room from her she saw Ronan talk to an older couple. He looked over as if he felt her eyes on him. He nodded in her direction and she smiled.

“You haven’t danced with me yet, Ronan. And after you told me to save you one.”

“What are you playing at now?”

“Nothing. Just using you. Weren’t you the one who said something about unity?”

Ronan turned back to the couple he’d been talking to and seconds later he strode across the room. Amber handed her glass to a passing waiter and watched as Ronan drew close.

He held out his hand to her. “Happy birthday, Amber.”

She took his hand. “And I didn’t even have to phone you so you could say it.”

Ronan laughed as he whirled her onto the dance floor.
“And how are you finding the evening since they dragged you down here.”

Amber grinned up at him.
“You see. That’s why I said it’s pointless for me to lie to you. I’m watched by too many of your people.”

“It’s not only my people who watch you.”

“I’m beginning to feel a great deal of sympathy for the celebrities in my world who have to deal with the paparazzi.”

“Is that what you want, Amber? To be famous? Come and see me when you’re eighteen. We can forget about the offer I made for you to marry my heir. I’ll marry you myself. You would be the most famous woman in our lands.”

“I’m flattered Ronan, but I’ll have to decline. When you wanted to end it, I’m sure I’d have worse than a broken heart. You’d probably rip it out.”

Ronan laughed.
“I might be tempted, but as you pointed out, I don’t break my word. Between us we could rule this world.”

“I want enough power not to be a target. I think ruling the world would put me on the top of every single person’s hit list.”

“Do you doubt I could protect you?”

“I’m not one for cages.”

Ronan smiled.
“Maybe we do have some similarities after all.”

Amber was curious about the fleeting expression in Ronan’s eyes, but before she could ask him, the world exploded around them. Ronan shielded her as rock and glass rained down, the nearby wall shattering to be replaced by thousands of dragons pouring into the ballroom.

The air was filled with screams, yells and roars. People shouted at each other. Some ran, others flew from the ballroom and some attacked the warriors that continued to pour in. Amber was torn from Ronan’s arms by the confusion and twin balls of flames appeared in her hands as she raised them. Before she had the chance to throw the fire at those attacking, a dragon grabbed her like a rag doll.

Her last vision of the ballroom was of Ronan, surrounded by dragons and none of them his own. Amber struggled to escape, but the claws tightened around her. She couldn’t breath. The world grew hazy as she gasped for breath. Haziness was replaced by blackness.