Page 99 of The Dragon Queen Complete Series Collection

Chapter 98

Draven and I jerked away from each other as the dragon walked into the room, as if we were the ones indulging in an affair of the heart, not him and Brom. The queen dragon stared at the two of us, and it was as though she sensed all of the tense undertones, but she did not comment on them.

The news is not good, unfortunately , she said. Many of the enclave reacted as I expected, seeing your wing as agents of a power that seek to threaten everything we have built here at Dragon Home. She sighed. I admit, I’m not entirely sure that isn’t the case, but… She nodded slightly. You have brought us information, precious information, that allows us to prepare for the threats we face . Cynane turned to Draven then with a note of censure in her voice. News you could’ve brought us when you came here days ago.

“You came here days ago?” Brom asked the prince, his voice rising. “Before you came to Pippin’s estate? Before you instructed us that we needed to go to see my family? Before several attempts were made on my wife’s life?”

Soren had said that I had nothing to worry about with Brom, that he would choose me and his actions now were evidence of that. He marched across the room and then paused, only for a moment, as if mentally debating the rights and wrongs of laying hands on a prince of the realm, before grabbing the collar of Draven’s shirt and dragging him towards him.

“You put Pippin and Glimmer in danger?!” Brom’s voice had changed, a feral kind of growl taking over. “They could’ve died! Pippin could’ve…” Brom shook his head sharply as Draven just glared at him, then Brom dragged him closer. “She was lying there in the bed, lifeless as a fucking corpse, and you?—”

“I did what I needed to,” Draven spat back, the effect marred by his choked-off tone, as Brom’s grip pulled the prince’s shirt tighter around his neck. “Pippin would’ve been safe, Glimmer too.” He glanced at Cynane, who watched the proceedings with a censorious eye. “I had to know?—”

“You had to know what? That your fucking bitch of a mother was willing to send her own son to do the work of her assassins?” Flynn snapped, stalking closer. “And that she wouldn’t allow herself to just rely on you to get the job done?”

Draven, you came here with endless questions about queen dragons, but no mention of your queen’s plan s, Cynane said. Not until it was convenient for you to disclose.

“I had only suspicions and conjecture to go on,” Draven replied, pulling his collar out of Brom’s hands, before shifting his focus to Glimmer. “I sought clarification, solid information, before I went and threatened a treaty that had kept the peace between dragonkind and humankind.” He turned to Cynane. “Father can’t speak of this place to Mother or anyone else, and neither can I. You’ve all made sure of that with the mental block placed on each prince, each king and our dragons, and so there is no immediate danger facing Dragon Home.”

When he turned to face us, I saw it, the pain, the desperation that he so rarely showed and I knew he had to be consciously putting aside his princely mask right now.

“And with Pippin… With Glimmer…” His brows creased then smoothed, every muscle in his face seeming to shift as he struggled to find the words. “I had to know… Is Glimmer just a smaller than average queen dragon? Or is she the seer prophesied to come?”

“So you tested them.” Brom pushed himself away from the prince, stumbling as though he couldn’t get away quickly enough. “Gods, I always knew there was a cold side to you, a vicious one, but?—”

“But the apple doesn’t fall too far from the tree,” Ged said, narrowing his eyes as he crossed his arms and shook his head. “You are your mother’s son.”

I saw the moment Draven stopped trying to make his case. The light went out of his eyes and he stepped back, dropping his shoulders as if defeated. He stared at each of us, a plea for understanding in his eyes.

But it wasn’t granted to him.

I was still trying to piece things together. And the others? They stared at Draven not just like he wasn’t a prince, but that he was less than the dirt on the soles of their shoes. And I thought I had an idea of what he had lost what he’d been referring to when he’d been speaking just to me, earlier.

“What I’ve wanted is far grander than that: everything and every person who is mine.”

It wasn’t just Brom he wanted, but…

Before I could finish that thought, Draven spoke. He threw his arms wide then, as if in surrender. “If I’m the only obstacle to accepting Glimmer and her bondmate into Dragon Home, then take me out of the equation.”

“What?” Flynn said with a frown.

“Lock me up.” Draven’s wrists came together. “Put me away somewhere secure if that will help placate the enclave.”

“Gods, Draven…” Brom muttered.

“Use me as a hostage to ensure the others behave while they are here.” The prince glanced at us, then. “Just, for gods’ sake, don’t go blundering into anything you shouldn’t. You’ll…” His voice trailed away as he seemed to realise he had no power here, neither political or emotional. Darkspire chuffed, moving from his nest to go and stand by his rider. “Just stay safe, please.”

I tried to formulate the right words to be able to step forward and stop this, but Cynane had already nodded her agreement.

That would go a long way towards building some trust , she said. Come with me, Your Highness . I watched with a growing feeling of disbelief as Cynane, Draven and Darkspire walked towards the door. Your accommodations will be secure, but fitting someone of your rank and importance.

After they left, a silence fell over the room, the already cavernous space feeling even more empty as a result. I stared around me at everything: the dragons and their nests, the table full of food in one corner, the massive bed, then the men.

“This is for the best,” Brom assured me, walking closer but stopping short of touching me, remembering my resistance to his touch earlier. So I crossed that gap for him. I wrapped my arms around his ribs and hung on tight, his initially hovering in the air before coming down to hold me to him.

“Is it?”

I meant that question in the truest sense, as the revelations and events of the day had been coming too thick, too fast, for me to process, leaving me feeling disorientated and… like I’d lost something. It was as if Draven, through the act of walking out that door, had taken something important, something precious with him.

“It will all be alright now,” Brom said, rubbing his hand up and down my spine. “You’ll be safe. Glimmer will be safe.”

Would we? I wanted to ask him, but something stopped me, an almost superstitious feeling, because every time I thought we’d found our feet, something else popped up to knock one or all of us over.