Legend of the Inero Dragon (18 page)

Chapter
Thirty-Six

A girl? How is this
possible?
Matt had to keep his thoughts to
himself because he didn't know how Kat would react to his
questioning. She might have been convinced, but he wasn't. He
wouldn't believe it was true until after the baby was born. The
whole thing made him angry. Not necessarily the idea of him having
a daughter instead of a son, but more the fact that Lenora knew
more about the situation than he did. Why would his father
tell
her
something
prophesied about Matt's life and not him? It didn't make
sense.

"Are you going to take a nap today?" he
asked Kat as soon as they were home again. She went straight to
bed. He couldn't help but smile. "Would you mind if I went back out
again while you rested?"

"Only if you promise to come back again
before dinner," she said, running a hand along his cheek. "Where
are you going?"

He kissed the palm of her hand. "I wanted to
talk to my father. I won't be long. I can pick something up for you
on the way back if you'd like?"

"Tempting. I'll sleep on it and let you
know."

He kissed her lips before stepping away to
leave the room. They would need to move soon enough. While the
suite was enough for Matt and his bride, there wouldn't be proper
space to keep the baby with them for long. Maybe he should have
followed in Jason's footsteps and gotten a house instead of living
in the castle. Matt loved the castle, though. He knew his father
would provide him with a new spot perfect for them. All he had to
do was ask. Even though he didn't always get what he wanted, he
knew the request made it to his father's ears, which was a lot more
consideration than any of his other brothers received.

Dinner would be finished in the kitchen in
around an hour. More often than not, Lynx ate with his wife. No
doubt they were having some time alone. Matt wouldn't normally
interrupt, but tonight he didn't much care about being considerate
of his father's needs. He wanted answers. And he deserved them.

The door to Lynx's bedroom opened just as
Matt's knuckles were about to rap against it. An official from the
Royal Guard stopped suddenly to prevent from plowing through Matt,
bowed, then politely stepped around him. Matt's eyes narrowed, his
jaw tightened.

"Father?" he said, stepping into the room.
He didn't go past the entryway. His anger and frustration faded
when he saw Lynx standing in the middle of the den with his face
downcast and a hand on his chin. His shoulders were slouched. Matt
couldn't think of a time he'd seen the man look so sad.

He took a few cautious steps forward, wanting
to comfort his father, unsure if he should stay or leave. "What's
going on?"

Lynx finally acknowledged him with a sideward
glance before returning his gaze to the floor. "I fear I've done
something horrible. I've hurt the woman I love, and now she's left
me."

Matt had seen his father cheat several times.
He certainly wasn't surprised to hear that he had done it again.
What did surprise him, though, was that his father felt remorse.
There's a first time for everything,
he supposed. Navi was
one of a kind, Matt would give her that much. He couldn't say the
loss devastated him. He wanted his father to be with someone who
loved him in return, not something based solely on lust or
obligation. He didn't know what to say, so he waited for his father
to continue.

"I've complicated things further by being in
love with another. I'm not sure if it's possible to love more than
one person at a time. Do you? Because I can't let either of them
go," Lynx sat down on the couch and motioned for Matt to join
him.

"It depends on your definition of love," Matt
said. It felt awkward to be giving advice on love to his father.
"If it's meant to be, she'll come back."

"She will come back. I'm seeing to it. I've
sent out a team to bring her to me. Then we can talk. She will
listen, understand, and forgive me. She has to."

Matt nodded. He didn't doubt it. "But you
love someone else?"

"I've always loved Lenora. She's finally
earned my trust again."

"Then be with her. Forget about Navi
and—"

"She is mine. They both are. Lenora
understands this and so will Navi. I will not be denied my
happiness. This is my chance to finally be complete."

Matt played with his hands, glanced up at his
father, then stared straight ahead of him. "I came to discuss
something with you. If you do not mind changing the subject, I
would like to do so now. I promised Kat dinner, and she wants to
spend more time with me now that I'm home again. I don't want to
keep her waiting."

"What would you like to discuss?" Lynx's
eyebrows raised, his back straightening as he resumed his usual
confident posture.

"The prophet and what he's been saying about
me."

"I see."

Matt waited to see if his
father would elaborate further. When he didn't, Matt clenched his
fists in his lap with frustration. "That's it? Tell me, what do
you
see
,
Father? This is my life. I think I have a right to
know about what's being said, don't you?"

"I did not want it to affect your view on
how you chose to live it. You weren't supposed to know about any of
this until after the appointed time."

"The appointed time or never?" For the first
time in years, Matt raised his voice at his father.

"If you are going to yell at me, then I am
not going to tell you anything," Lynx said, folding his arms in
front of him as if daring Matt to continue. Matt opened his mouth
to apologize for the outburst, but he was cut off. "I understand
you are frustrated. You have more to look after than just yourself.
Since you are slightly informed, I suppose I can tell you more to
help put your mind at ease."

"I'd appreciate it," Matt said, trying to
hold back the sarcasm. He didn't want to make his father feel
disrespected.

Lynx stood once more and began to pace in
front of his son. "What do you know of the Great Dragon?"

"Not much beyond that He will exist," Matt
said. The Great Dragon was an ancient religious myth. Hardly the
kind of thing Matt found interesting. Even though he'd never been
much of a scholar, he believed all the same. What he did know was
that the Great Dragon would be born and be the answer.

"From the Touched, the Great
Dragon will be born, of pure blood
and pure hope. Child of
the ruler, the warrior, and the damned, they will wed the royal
clan. Made in lust and sin, peace shall they usher in." Lynx folded
his hands on his lap. "You know you are Touched. The child you have
conceived is believed to be a part of this ancient prophecy.
There's more though. Studying deeper into the Scriptures, our
scholars believe the Great Dragon will be of Inero blood and born
in the Oceina country. The land that is supposed to be ours, as you
already know. What you don't know is that the Great Dragon will be
of pure dragon blood. No humans will be involved which means He
will be the offspring of
your
child."

Matt swallowed. "My child?"

"Yours or Jason's. Lenora told me the doctor
believes yours to be a girl. If this is true, then yes,
your
child."

His head was reeling. He didn't know what to
expect. Being told that the Great Dragon would be from
his
blood was definitely not on the list. "The prophet told you all of
this?"

"The prophet has seen all of this and more.
He has seen the greatness of the Inero people finally triumphing
over the Oceina. I almost couldn't believe it all myself,
especially from one so young. The boy is powerful. He has the
potential to be even more so. He needs your help to do it
though."

"I'm not sure how I can help him. I don't
know anything about prophecy."

"Your magic is powerful. With your brother,
you could give him enough of a boost to enter a completely
different realm." Lynx's eyes lit up as he spoke. It'd been a while
since he'd expressed this amount of passion for anything. Matt
liked it, but one thing troubled him.

"Are you sure we should be entering a new
spiritual realm though? Is it our place? I always thought there
were some things we weren't supposed to mess around with."

His father's jaw tightened as he spoke
slowly. "You have been given these gifts for a reason. There is no
point to not using your magic to its fullest. If God didn't want
you to do this, He wouldn't have made it possible. This
amplification of power could be the key to our success in the war
against the Oceina. You wouldn't want to hinder God's plans, would
you?"

Matt's jaw also tightened and for a moment,
the two were making the exact same thoughtful expression. "I feel
like you should be adding a 'but' here."

"It is a dangerous spell. All three of your
souls would be vulnerable to the spiritual realm, and I don't know
what that will do to any of you." Lynx continued before Matt could
reply. "You do not need to make a decision now. This is also
something both you and your brother must agree on. It will only
work if you two do it together. You would not be able to support
the prophet on your own. Talk it over with Jason and with your
wife. You should not keep this from her."

Telling Kat surprised him. Matt didn't expect
his father to make such a suggestion. Normally, his father preached
about how a man had his own business, and women were too delicate
to be bothered with it. Things like war, revenge, and power.

"I'll think it over carefully. I should be
going back to her now, actually. Thank you for telling me, Father.
I feel honored you trust me with this information," he said then
bowed his head. He wondered how long it would have taken for Lynx
to tell him if he hadn't confronted the man. Matt was positive he
still didn't know everything he should, but he didn't want to press
the issue further. He didn't know if he could handle any more
knowledge. His brain already felt like it was about to explode from
the news his baby could possibly be a girl. Everything else added
on top of that was causing an overload and an intense headache.
There was too much to process.

He stood and walked toward the door, silently
excusing himself from his father's suite. Just as he was about to
close the door, Lynx spoke again.

"Cherish her while you still can, Matthias.
If not, it will all be too late."

What does that mean?
He didn't bother
asking. "Thank you for your wisdom, Father."

Chapter Thirty-Seven

Three days passed since Navi had left, and
each day Gwen spent her time at home. Where else did she have to
go? She only went to the pool for Navi's benefit. Now her
obligation to be there was gone. Her obligation outside of trying
to make nice with Kat. She wasn't about to lose sleep over not
being there for her sister-in-law.

Sister-in-law
. That was the first time
she'd ever thought of Kat as actually being a part of her family
now.
Dad would be disappointed in me.
"Family is the most
important thing a girl can have." She mimicked his tone, one of the
few things she could still remember about him. It frightened her
how easily she'd forgotten the details about her family.

"It's not bad that I want to leave," she
mumbled as she put a few pairs of socks into her bag. "I'm not
abandoning anyone, especially not family."

"It's cute when you talk to yourself," Jason
said from the doorway. The pair of socks she held fell into the bag
as she let go of them in surprise. She faced him with wide eyes and
red cheeks.

"And how much of my conversation with myself
did you hear, exactly?"

"I didn't hear anything specific. Only your
voice and something resembling ee-ah-bah-an-ooo." He laughed as he
entered and placed his arms around her from behind, pressing a
gentle kiss on her forehead from above. His lips were so soft and
warm. She loved the feeling of them against her skin. If there was
one thing that made her feel safe, it was his kisses.

She zipped up the bag. A break from packing
seemed like a good idea to her. As much as it needed to be done,
she didn't like what it did to her sanity. All of the thinking she
did when she was alone only made her feel confused and unsure. Gwen
always had to be sure, especially in herself.

"What are you doing?" Jason leaned his face
over her shoulder. "Going somewhere?"

"Not yet," she said, forcing him to look into
her eyes. "I like to be prepared for anything."

His raised his eyebrows and he lowered his
gaze. "Or you're confident I'm going to agree with you." She was
becoming more familiar with his mannerisms. If memory served her
correctly, this particular look meant he disapproved.

Gwen
sighed and pulled away
from him
. "Maybe, but with good reason."

"Such as?"

"You know how dangerous it is to stay
here."

He nodded, backing away from her, then leaned
against the wall. "Yes, I do, which is why I think you're right.
Navi told me to try and stop everything, but I'm not sure I can.
I'm nobody of importance. I couldn't fight an entire army on my
own. My brother isn't going to be persuaded. That was the only
thing I could think of that might actually make a difference. I
give up. I don't want to abandon my family, but I don't want to be
a part of this anymore." He paused. "Am I coward for wanting to run
away?"

"In this situation, no. I think you're much
stronger for choosing to do the right thing instead of going with
the flow," she said, half-smiling. He continued to frown.

"I wish I could have helped more."

"I'm not sure how you could have."