“Really?”
“Really. It has actually been against the law for about three years. Since the new…” he sniffed in that arrogant way he had and said, “…queen has been in power.”
Talaith stared down at her mug and kept her face neutral even as her hand tightened around the cup. “A new queen?”
“Aye. The Butcher of Garbhán Isle is long dead. His sister took his head and his throne.”
“I see.”
“Did you not know of this?”
They told her it was coming—that she was coming—but no one had told her it had already happened. “No. Lord Hamish didn’t allow information in or out of the towns without his express approval. Those spreading rumors were usually dragged away in the middle of the night to his dungeons.”
The dragon rolled his violet eyes in barely concealed disgust. “I don’t like that little man.”
She finally smiled. “Only you would think him little.”
“Very true.”
She licked her lips and carefully asked, “Do you know the, uh, new queen?”
“I choose not to speak of her,” he answered distractedly.
He sat forward abruptly. “I itch to be off.”
Talaith groaned, unable to hide her distaste for flying. “Can’t we walk?”
“With storms coming? I think not, little witch. So drink up so we can be off. I grow weary of all these”—he glanced around—“humans.”
“Trust me”—she sneered before tossing back her ale in one gulp—“that feeling has become mutual.”
The townsfolk had been correct. A storm was coming. A bad one. Briec could smell it in the air. But it was moving fast, a lot faster than he was. Although he’d have no problems braving an ice storm, he couldn’t do that to her. These humans and their frail skin, she’d freeze to death before he ever made it home.
So, grudgingly, he headed to the one safe place he knew of in a thousand leagues.
They landed inside the cave as the winds picked up and the first drops of rain and flakes of snow fell on his wings. Thankfully, she’d stopped squealing during this flight, but she insisted on keeping a brutal death grip on his hair.
“You can let me go now.”
“Are you sure?”
He smiled at the trepidation in her voice.
“Yes. I’m sure. Unless you want me to shift to human while you’re—”
“No!” She cleared her throat. “I mean, no need.”
Her fingers untangled from his hair as he lowered himself to the ground so she could slip off.
She took several steps away from him, wrapping her arms around her body for warmth. “Is this your den?”
“No. But we’ll never make it in this storm. At least you won’t.” And he wasn’t willing to risk her.
“You sure we’ll be safe here?”
“Aye.” He moved away from her, heading deep into the cave. “You wait here. I won’t be long.”
“Yes,” she called after him. “What fun I’ll have standing around in this dank, dark cavern waiting around for you.”
Ignoring her sarcasm, Briec went to head off the trouble he knew was lurking around somewhere in this place.
After five minutes, the storm turned deadly. She couldn’t remember seeing a storm this bad in all her years in this northern land. But when lightning bounced off two stones outside the cave only to ricochet inside and nearly take her head, she decided waiting around for the dragon’s return might not be in her best interest.
Unsure what else to do, but knowing she couldn’t just stand there, Talaith headed deeper into the cave. It didn’t take much time to find a long corridor lit with torches. Sighing in relief at the soothing golden light, she strolled down the rocky path, almost able to ignore the massive bouts of thunder exploding outside the stone walls surrounding her.
She passed huge naturally formed chambers. Some were empty except for a big boulder or two, but as she moved along, she found the others filled with furniture, clothes, statues. Some chambers so large they held entire carriages. And one had gold coin and treasure from the dirt floor to her hip.
She paused at that one. She hadn’t seen gold since she’d last been to her father’s home, when she would sneak off to meet him. Smiling at the brief memory of, as her mother called him, “the one who gave me the seed which allowed for your presence,” she again strolled down the hall. After a few more steps, she stopped. Froze, really.
How long had he been following her? Watching her? True, she could stand here forever, terrified. But hadn’t she done enough of that for the last two days?
So, steeling herself against what awaited her, she slowly turned.
“Well, hello, pretty lady.”
It spoke. An enormous gold dragon with a gold mane of hair that swept across the cave floor spoke to her.
Why not? This sort of thing must be common among those of us going insane.
Most people never met one dragon. Somehow Talaith had managed to meet two. Could her life be any more unmanageable? Probably not.
He leaned down a bit and sniffed her. “Ah, big brother’s about, I see. Are you his gift to me?”
Talaith growled. She tired of arrogant, smirking dragons assuming she existed only to be their plaything. Actually, she’d grown tired of everything male. The entire male species merely horrid beings meant to do nothing more than destroy all that existed around them.
Enunciating each word clearly so there’d be no confusion, “No, you arrogant, half-witted bastard. I am not here for you.”
Startled, the dragon sat back on his haunches. “I…uh…”
“What? Am I supposed to be quaking in fear of you?” Purposely keeping her voice low and controlled, she stepped closer to him. “Should I be sobbing and begging for mercy? Well, I’d rather burn in the farthest reaches of hell before I give you or that arrogant, half-witted brother of yours the satisfaction.”
She thought for sure she’d die. Thought for sure she’d finally pushed her luck to the breaking point. Especially when he went down face first on the ground and repeatedly slammed his claw against the rocky floor, shaking the cave.
Surprisingly, though, death did not seem his purpose. Laughter, however…
Even more evident when he rolled that giant dragon body onto its back and laughed harder. Hysterically, almost. Powerful dragon limbs flailing and everything.
Eventually, her silver dragon charged in. She’d started to learn his different expressions and moods. Right now he appeared concerned.
He stared at the gold lying on the ground literally rolling around in laughter then at her. “What did you do?”
Incredulous, she snapped, “Me?”
The gold looked up at the dragon. “She is going to make your life a living hell, brother!” Then he exploded into another round of violent laughter, again rolling back and forth across the floor.
Growling, the silver grabbed the gold around the throat and picked him up, placing him on his feet. The gold hit him to get the silver claw off his throat. So the silver hit him back. They stared at each other for several seconds, then the battle was on.
Not bothering to look back, Talaith ran, praying she could avoid getting buried alive with two idiotic dragons.