Dragons Don't Love (13 page)

She’s dressed in the manner of the day
for women. I played the lady’s maid and helped with the heavy
makeup and putting a hot iron and pins to her hair. There were
several advantages to playing a lowly servant to get her ready. I
told her that I could only perform the artistry needed while she
was unclothed. The sparkle in her eyes let me know she didn’t
believe a word. She uttered no objection, though. It took much
longer than we planned and now we are late for the ball.

Smelly people all. We’re in a large
chamber filled with gluttonous humans. The candles have coated the
walls with black halos of soot. The perfume of the guests only adds
to the rancid smell of the place. My dragon’s nose may never be the
same.

My bride is holding up well. She’s
curious and mystified at the same time. I had to give her a quick
course in realm jumping then answer close to a million questions.
No, we are not alone. The realms are endless and each a unique
experience. Vast lands and civilizations caught in time. After
thousands of years of exploration, I’m quite bored with them. Until
I hear of a special treasure that cannot be stolen. Dragons live
for the unattainable.

I’m also proud that my bride handled
jumping realms so easily. It can be quite painful. Many brides
refuse to do it. My new bride was too excited about the pending
theft of her own treasure that impatience was her only
response.

I peer down at her.

“
Where is this Sir Orifice
you spoke of? I feel faint from all the bad smells coming from the
people,” she says in a hushed voice.

I glance over her head and see our
target and host heading over. “Behave,” I whisper. She will slip
and call him Sir Orifice at the worst possible moment and I’ve
warned her of this. I can’t say more because he’s upon
us.

I immediately hear the tension in his
greeting. “Lord Maccabee, to what do I owe the honor of your visit?
And I do not see your brothers in attendance. Have they by chance
been arrested?”

I ignore my bride’s raised eyebrows
and answer Locksy in a bored tone. “My brothers are well and I have
no idea why you would think them arrested. If that is a joke, it’s
in quite poor taste.” I know damn good and well that Locksy
suspects us of stealing from him. I turn to my bride and take her
hand. “This is my sister Guinevere. She’s of age and I promised her
a celebration for her birthday.”

I clench my jaw as Locksy stares at
her breasts. Her cleavage hangs over the ruffled trim of the
low-cut gown. He takes her hand from mine and kisses the backs of
her fingers. “A pleasure to meet you, my lady. I was not aware Lord
Maccabee had a sister. You look nothing alike and must tell me how
someone as fair-skinned as Maccabee could have a sister with your
fire.”

My bride’s tinkling laughter is quite
perfect. “Well, Sir, you ask of a delicate matter that is very
ungentlemanly of you. May we leave it at we are half-brother and
sister with him on the titled side of the blanket?”

Locksy’s guffaws turn the heads around
us. He looks to me. “I promise to show your sister a good time.” He
places my bride’s hand on his arm and stares at me with cold eyes.
“A rare treasure of mine went missing the last time you visited.
Would you know anything of that, Lord Maccabee?”

I flick unseen dust from my tailored
coat and reply in an uninterested fashion. “I have all the treasure
I need, as do my brothers. You are holding the arm of our rarest,
gem, so do be careful with her.”

He stares at her breasts again. “I
will be exceedingly careful. Please enjoy all my party has to
offer, Lord Maccabee, and I will see that Guinevere has an
exceptional celebration for her birthday.”

They walk away as my anger simmers. I
knew this part of our charade would be difficult. I didn’t know
that I would want to incinerate Locksy with dragon fire on the
spot. My bride can handle herself and, after all, she needs to
steal the treasure to call it her own. I am merely here to
assist.

Over the next hour, it becomes
apparent that Locksy has several men watching me. It makes the next
part of our plan more difficult. I try to keep an eye on my bride
when a lady, and I use that word loosely, demands my attention. In
a split second, I lose sight of my bride. She must get into
Locksy’s rooms above the stairs and there is only one way that will
happen. I also know I will kill the weasel before
departing.

It’s twenty minutes before I give my
guards the slip. The lady who stole my attention from my bride is
waiting for me in her chamber preparing herself for a night of
debauchery. She will be quite disappointed when I don’t show. Even
if I didn’t have my bride with me there aren’t enough jewels in
this land to entice me between that lady’s thighs.

I make my way to Locksy’s rooms and
listen at the first door. I don’t hear a sound from within, so I
turn the knob and enter. A small light comes from his bedroom and I
quickly cross to the threshold.

“
What took you so long,
dragon?”

Locksy is passed out on the floor, a
large chalice resting beside his head along with a small slash of
blood. I gaze at my smug bride. “It seems you didn’t need my
help.”

She holds up an elegant
jeweled bauble with a bright blue stone in the center. It will look
lovely hanging at her throat. I also know Locksy has larger, more
valuable pieces. The arrogance in my bride’s eyes tells me so much
and pride envelops me. She has the undeniable heart of a dragon.
She has chosen her first treasure because the blue stone calls to
her soul.

“
Is he dead?” I ask with
delighted optimism.

“
Bad dragon.” She gives me a
naughty grin. “He will have a great headache when he awakes. The
man is all hands, and I fear that I broke a few of his fingers
after I hit him over the head.”

I look down. The mangled fingers save
the miserable man’s life. I smile at my bride. “It’s time to leave.
I can stand not another moment in this cursed realm.”

Getting out is easy. My bride leaves
her gown behind and we scale the walls with her in her warrior
leathers that she wore underneath the dress. I can’t get over her
choice of prize. The finest treasure is always in the eye of the
beholder.

We gather our larger weapons from a
small alcove located in the back of an alley then run through the
streets laughing. A woman’s screams bring my bride up short and I
lose her hand at her sudden stop.

“
Ignore it, bride, there is
nothing we can do.” I grab her hand again, but she wrenches it
away.

“
No, that’s a woman. We
cannot leave her, Laryn.” Her use of my name gives me pause. The
next sound we hear is fainter and I fear we may be too late. I sigh
and head in the direction of the screams. Around the next corner a
group of men stand over something in the street.

“
Well, well, well,” a man
calls out and all eyes turn our way. “Another fine piece to whet
our appetites, gentleman.”

My bride gasps and I’ve guessed that
she sees the woman lying at their feet. She’s bloody and bruised
and chances are good she’s no longer alive. A man stands from
between her legs and secures his pants. No one is safe here and I
truly hate this realm. The laws protect only those with money. The
more corrupt you are, the more wealth you hold.

My bride slowly releases the loop that
holds the blade of the halberd and pulls the grip from its sheath.
The men start laughing.

“
Your blade doesn’t scare
me. I have one of my own.” The leader grabs his crotch in a lewd
gesture. There are five of them total. They all carry swords and
each but the man to speak has pulled his.

“
What say you we end their
worthless lives, bride?”

“
I thought you would never
ask, dragon.”

I’m unconcerned they will have time to
ponder our words. None will leave this place alive. My warrior
bride charges first. I have about two seconds to admire her ability
before dispatching the man stupid enough to grab his cock instead
of his sword. My bride’s first strike is true. I give no
consequence to the blood that sprays me from her attack. Two men
come at me with swords above their heads. Their mistake. Two heads
roll to the ground. One man left. I watch as my bride dodges his
blade, spins, and strikes beneath his raised arm nearly cleaving
him in two.

Blood covers us both. My bride stands
still, inhaling deeply, which causes her breasts to rise and fall
rapidly. She’s never looked more beautiful. She turns suddenly and
kneels by the woman. I know we are too late because I heard her
last agonizing breath. The men had literally beaten her to
death.

I reach for my bride’s arm, but she
jerks away as she takes the woman’s lifeless hand. “Why? Why would
they do this?”

Nothing I say will help, but I try.
“This land is ungodly. I told you I hate it here and this is only
one of the many reasons. I am sorry you saw this.”

She looks up at me with tears
streaming down her face. “I am not sorry. I wish I had more men to
kill.”

She’s glorious.

The words slip from my lips before I
can stop them. “What is your given name, bride?”

Chapter Twenty-Three

Roxanne

He asked for my name. My brave, brave
dragon. He took me to steal my first treasure and had no qualms
about me fighting bad men with swords. In his eyes, I’m as capable
as a man. I love him more than I can ever put into words. It’s hard
to remain unselfish and not want his love in return.

We have many good years ahead of us.
Great years. I just can’t help worrying about what will happen when
I die. My heart breaks over the thought of any pain he will suffer.
To wait thousands of years for a mate to transcend is cruel. The
time he has already waited crueler still.

I gather my hair back and prepare for
a visit from Acasia and Ashrac. My stolen piece of jewelry proudly
adorns my throat on a piece of leather that matches my outfit. My
dragon likes the stone and I enjoy seeing pride in his eyes when I
wear it.

Sir Orifice only had one goal and that
was to remove my dress and fuck me. Hitting him over the head with
a large vase from the nightstand beside the bed was easy.
Repeatedly stomping his fingers beneath my boot satisfying. My
thirst for blood began as a child when I planned to kill the
dragon. I will never be a normal bride. Had never been a normal
child. Somehow the gods matched me with the one man who would see
my savagery as a bonus.

Bastian and Laryn are planning to fly
around and discuss dragon business during my visit with Acasia.
Laryn gave permission for me to use a section of the castle I’d
never seen before. He also explained that his servants wouldn’t
speak to me. I was to inform them of what I needed and they would
obey instantly. The entire discussion was difficult to come to
terms with.

Certain humans from the earth realm
give up their children to save them from a fatal illness. Bringing
them into the dragon’s realm cures them but takes away their voice.
They owe servitude to the dragons and live their lives fulfilling
the debt.

I’m not sure how I feel about this and
plan to discuss it with Acasia. I also have another train piece to
add onto Ashrac’s engine. Laryn wanted me to give it to the child.
He loves the boy. I see it every time he speaks of him. I never
point it out, though. Laryn needs to keep his heart free of love
for me. If thinking he can’t love at all helps, so be
it.

They finally arrive and Laryn’s
manservant, Peter, fetches tea and sweet cakes for me and my
guests. I hold off giving Ashrac his new toy until he jumps around
from one piece of furniture to the next. He brought his train
engine and the combination of the engine and new gift gives his
mother and I a chance to speak in hushed tones.

“
I had many questions about
the earth humans too,” Acasia replies to my first question
honestly. “It seems so strange that they lose the ability to speak.
If I hadn’t seen it with the child we carried over from earth’s
realm, I too would have trouble comprehending what
happens.”

I can accept this without actually
bringing a child across but I must ask about what bothers me most,
“Did Bastian hide his servants as Laryn has?”

She takes my hand and squeezes it.
“Yes, he did. It’s very difficult for brides at first. I do not
understand all the strange rules of this land and I’ve been here
twenty-five years. I may be dragon, but I am still a bride. The
ability to shift to another form has not changed my mind on many
things. When I was restricted from entering my home realm, I had a
temper tantrum to rival any Bastian has thrown.”

I can’t help laughing. “Your dragon
throws tantrums?”

“
Worse than his son if you
can believe that after witnessing Ashrac kicking Laryn.”

We both laugh.

Acasia looks to her son with a loving
smile. He’s across the room making train noises and driving the
engine and new car through strategically placed pillows. She turns
back to me. “I was lucky not to get several dragon traits after I
transcended. I do not need to steal in order to maintain the sense
of superiority that the male dragons live for.”