197

Abigail was nervous and her hands trembled as she packed her suitcase. She hadn’t changed much in the weeks since we arrived but I could almost taste her fear. My duffel bag was on the floor near the room’s door and I pulled her into my arms as my hand smoothed over her hair and hugged her.

“It’ll be okay, I promise.”

“I trust you, Wynter, but I can’t help feeling like bait here.”

“You’re not bait, Abby. If I had a choice you’d never even meet the King. The plan was for you to meet him if I didn’t get a way in. I never thought he’d call for both of us at the same time.”

“I’m just scared. Scylla doesn’t have a good feeling about this.”

“It’s a request I can’t refuse. You don’t say no to the King. I’d die before I let anything happen to you.” I kissed her on top of her head as she squeezed her arms around my ribs once and finished packing.

Two Royal Guards were waiting beside an SUV for us. Abigail held my hand all the way to the Country Palace that was a lavish estate. There were guards at the gate, patrolling the grounds in sets of two, guards on the palace’s roof and I took note of their positions.

We were met by a butler at the front door and two footmen who took our luggage. “Welcome to the Country Palace. The footmen will escort you to your suite.”

“Thank you.” Abigail gave him a weak smile but no words formed in her mouth as she grasped my arm tightly.

We were shown to a large suite on the second floor with two bedrooms, two bathrooms, a comfortable living room and a small kitchenette stocked with basic necessities like bottled water, coffee, sodas, fresh fruit, cheeses and snacks.

“At least the rooms are nice.” Abigail’s voice was small and she retreated to her bedroom with her suitcase as I sat down on a sofa in the living room.

There was a gas fireplace and a large flat screen television on one wall. Big picturesque windows framed another wall with a balcony that held a table and four chairs. I noticed that our balcony looked out over a large wooded area about a hundred yards to the east.

The view was breathtakingly beautiful, looking out over lawns of green grass with trees everywhere. It was a beautiful place to live in and the only marring of the beauty were the guards you saw every fifteen minutes.

A knock on the door interrupted my solitude and I switched the television off. I got up from the sofa and opened the door looking at the young man that stood in front of me with his head bowed.

“Mr Albescu wishes to speak with you in his office.” It was another footman and I pulled the door closed behind me. I didn’t have to worry about Abigail leaving the confines of the room, she was scared enough to stay put.

“Intra.” I recognized Sorin’s voice as the footman knocked on the door and he opened it for me. I walked into the spacious office and the door behind me closed.

“Ah, Wynter, nice to see you again.” Sorin stood up from his desk and walked towards me, hand outstretched.

“Nice to see you as well, Mr Albescu.”

“Call me Sorin, please, let’s sit and discuss the way forward.” I could only wonder what he meant by the way forward.

I sat down on the plush brown leather sofa as Sorin moved to a drinks cabinet and continued to pour two glasses of brandy. He handed one to me and I smiled my thanks. I had not expected such a casual meeting with him.

“I trust your accommodations are suitable?”

“The suite is very generous, thank you Sorin.”

“Your simulation test was quite impressive. I’ve never heard of or seen anyone able to morph their hands, not even the King.”

“I was trained well and the simulation test isn’t that far off from what my brother and I did for the Unit.”

“A pity that your brother is bonded and couldn’t join you here.”

“My brother’s a vampire.” I watched his face intently and there was slight shock at my revelation about my brother.

“Adopted?”

“We have a diverse family, my stepmother is fae.”

“I understand diversity quite well. I married a human girl and we shared a wonderful life together.”

“Then you also understand why I prefer to keep that part private.” Sorin nodded his head. Marrying outside of your species wasn’t uncommon but it certainly wasn’t the norm.

“The King has watched your simulation as well and he is quite intrigued with you.”

“I’ve gathered that’s why I’m here.”

This would’ve had me excited if I hadn’t known of the King’s past transgressions. It was easy getting swept up in the grandeur of the Royal Family, how they lived and the primal urge to be a part of something that served our people.

“He is going to offer you the position of Royal Assassin. You could live wherever you wanted, meet with the King a few times a year and receive your assignments digitally. You are actually perfectly suited for the position.”

I was being offered the same position my father had rejected with King Florin. His rejection had led to our tribe being killed with only four survivors. The offer left a bitter taste in my mouth but I also knew that one wrong move could unravel the whole plan.

Sorin’s office door opened and I stood up as Dorin walked in and hugged his father. He turned towards me with a smile and shook my hand. Something flashed in his eyes as he pulled me closer and sniffed me.

“It’s only been a few hours, Dorin.” My voice was light and even Sorin frowned at his son’s actions.

“This scent …” He leaned in closer again and took another sniff at me. “Who does this scent belong to?” His eyes were flashing between dark brown and yellow and I’d know that look in his eyes anywhere.

I took a step backwards as Dorin looked at his father and then back at me. “You’ve been in very close contact with my bonded half!” Dorin’s voice rose an octave and it was now laced with anger.

“The only woman that could have been in close contact with you is your sister.” Sorin looked at me and it was in that moment that I knew I was either going to fall and burn or rise triumphantly.

“Dorin, I need you to sit down and breathe. This is not how I planned on doing it but I need you both to keep an open mind and to trust me.”

“Her name, just tell me her name.” Dorin looked almost pleadingly at me.

“Abigail Grey.”

“Abigail …” He smiled as he repeated her name and I knew that I had to tell them the truth of everything.

“You can’t bond with her.” Dorin’s eyes flashed yellow again and Sorin went to stand in front of his son.

“The bond is sacred, it is not for you to decide.” Sorin’s eyes had darkened and I stood my ground as my eyes flashed yellow as well. My aura was far stronger than theirs and I had an inkling that it would even be stronger than the King’s.

“No it’s not for me to decide but I won’t be the one who tells you no. I can make you both submit and force you to stay away from her but you’re going to do it by choice.”

“Only the King can make someone submit.” There was a hint of amusement in Sorin’s voice.

I closed my eyes briefly as Echo pushed forward and when I opened my eyes, they didn’t flash yellow, they were yellow. Echo exhaled a breath and I felt my aura release into the room. Sorin and Dorin both looked down immediately and the force took them to their knees, their heads bowed.

I immediately pulled it back in and Echo retreated slightly. Sorin was the first one to look up and his mouth opened and closed several times. Sweat beaded Dorin’s forehead and he released a breath that sounded haggard.

“Sit so we can talk.”

Neither of them said a word but Dorin eyed me suspiciously. I had learned to bury my aura from a young age and the spell that Aunt Marlo had performed had also suppressed it. I sat down on the chair facing the sofa and I let my eyes return to normal.

“The moment the King lays eyes on Abigail he’ll want her to bond with Prince Nicu.  The strongest dragon in existence is the gray dragon. The silver white dragon is next in line, then comes the violet dragon and so on. Royal Dragons have always been what is known as Russian Violet, the darkest shade. We all know the darker the shade the stronger the dragon.”

“A woman born of a man with a strong dragon is desirable but the bond has always been respected.” If we were normal people Sorin would’ve been right, but we weren’t.

“Yes, but a dragoness born of a dragoness will make men fight to the death to claim her.”

“What exactly are you saying, Wynter?”

“My mother was the first dragoness to merge. She was a perfect white, so beautiful it seemed that she glowed in the moonlight. Abigail however has a silver white dragoness.”

“If what you are saying is true then the Elders of your region would have reported the occurrence.” Sorin was so trapped in doing things by the book that it was almost sad.

“Abigail merged with Scylla when she was ten, there were no Elders present to report anything. We’re not integrated into a lair. My father chose that life for a reason, a choice that was taken from him by this King.”

“I’m not saying I don’t believe you but you can’t expect Dorin to reject her. They are best suited for each other, decided by Typhon himself.”

“I’m not asking Dorin to reject the bond. Once the King is aware of her dragon and he will be the moment he meets her ... what do you think will happen if he learns that she’s bonded to another? Dorin will have some kind of accident, training gone wrong, electrical malfunction of his car. Don't you see I'm trying to save your son’s life here.”

“We can sneak her out of the palace … to safety.” I smiled at Dorin’s suggestion.

“And you will both have to live on the run, forever. The King already knows I have a sister, he’ll be suspicious if she’s suddenly not here anymore.”

“So what are you suggesting?” Sorin was much calmer than Dorin, his agitation could be felt in the room.

“He has to pretend that the bond doesn’t exist. Let the King meet her, let him arrange the wedding. You will convince him that there is no better person to safeguard her life than me, her brother. It’s a few months before she turns eighteen and there can be no wedding before that.”

“Why would I let my bonded half pretend that I don’t exist and sit back to watch her marry someone else?” Dorin’s anger was evident but he kept missing the point.

“The King will have you killed, Dorin. Look at your father’s face, he knows what I’m saying is true. Stop acting like a spoiled brat because I do have a plan. Nicu won’t ever get that close to my sister.”

“What plan?”

“I’m going to kill the King.” Both Dorin and Sorin’s eyes widened and the shock and disbelief were etched onto their faces.

“You speak of treason!” Dorin’s voice was filled with anger and the look he gave me told me he was thinking about just killing me himself.

“It is not treason if you kill the King in a claim.” I undid my watch from my wrist and took off the underside of it. I pulled the small memory stick from its hiding place and returned my watch to my wrist.

“What claim? That law hasn’t been exercised in nearly two hundred years. Unseating a King is unheard of!”

“This contains all the evidence to support my claim. I do need help in lodging the claim. As you said, Sorin, that law hasn’t been used in over two hundred years. You as the King’s Advisor though have the power to convene such a trial.”

“And as per the bylaws of such a claim I am not allowed to divulge anything we’ve discussed in this office. You’re smarter than I thought, Wynter.” I gave him a half smile because that had been my intention.

“You could tell the King of my intentions but I know you won’t because a man that marries the human woman that he loves will never stand by and watch as someone else ruins his son’s life. You are a good man, Sorin.”