Dragon's Heart (9 page)

B
e at ease, my Queen.
 
You do not know your own strength.

But I do, Dark Lord. It is you who
has forgotten the strength of a Dam.

Draakar
moved to stand directly behind her. He did not touch her, though every cell in
his body cried out to him to fuse himself to her. To join with her. To take
what he had a right to.
 

The
temptation to finally be able to come into his full power and save his people
made him want to rush things, but he could not give into it. It took all of his
will not to touch her. He could not let his need rule his actions. He made the
error once already; he would not make it again. This time, he would not lose
her.

They
had to find their way through their separate pasts to each other, to a future
together. They were born to be together. Their emotions were already engaged,
but the physical side of their joining would have to wait on her trust. Right
now, her vulnerability made her a very dangerous Dam. One who had not learned
to control and harness her magicks.
 

Maya
had enough power to change into dragon form on Akgon and here on Earth. The
magicks she would unleash during a mating could cause her to change fully to
dragon form and sustain it, but the magicks required for such a change could
also be uncontrollable and destructive to her. To gain greater control she had
to accept him, but first she had to embrace her brethren half. It would be his
pleasure to aid her in all ways.

I feel your need, Dark One,
Maya hissed
in his mind.
Know the day you touch me without
my permission is the day you die.

Draakar,
Dark Lord of all brethren and who bowed to no creature, bowed his head to his
queen and stepped back.

My queen. I am yours to command.

“Why?”
Maya asked aloud, spinning around to face him.

“Why
what?” Draakar responded, as he willed the mirror to repair itself and it
appeared whole again.

But
he’d read her mind and knew she would ask the question she found the most
troubling, and ignore what he had called her. “Why do I hate you?” she asked
instead.

      
He
clamped his own thoughts tight and hesitated before he answered. The one
question he knew he’d eventually and reluctantly have to face. How did he
answer her without driving her away from him? With the truth, just not all of
it—not yet.

     
“You do not hate
me.”

     
“No,” she
whispered, but in a stronger voice stated, “I don’t hate you. But, my God, I am
angry with you! Why?” Her gaze searched his features seeking the truth, her
lips curved in misery.

     
“I have wronged
you. For that, believe I am truly sorry. I have mourned us in my heart for all
of these last thousand years. Know what was done was for the good of the
brethren.”

     
“What did you
do?”
Why was I sacrificed
?

     
“My father was
killed, betrayed by one of our own kind, and my mother died trying to avenge
him. Like my father before me, I became Dragon Lord. My first duty was to the
brethren, even at my own expense. We needed every ounce of magicks to open the
portal to Akgon. Once connected, someone had to hold the gateway open.” He paused,
took a hard breath and stared into her eyes, willing her to understand. “I was
the only one strong enough to do that, and as the leader, I had to go with
them. When we arrived on Akgon, we found it to be a magicks rich realm but wild
magicks, in need of balance. I had to stay to provide that balance for the
power there, so the brethren could survive.”

     
But you had no right to sacrifice me. You
could have come back. Once the magicks were tamed and a balance achieved you
should have returned to Terra. Just as you are back now, but it’s too late. I
will not forgive that. You did not return for me after you knew my first cycle
had come. I existed, but you were nowhere to be found. You condemned me. I know
what you want. Now it is my turn. I condemn you now.

    
She looked away from him.

    
What of the brethren? You have a duty….

     
I hold duty to no one.

     
Maya

  
She turned
to face him again and her eyes had stopped glowing. “I’m sorry, Draakar,” she
answered sadly. “It’s a lot to take in right now.
 
I need…I think I need time to process it all.”

     
“I understand.”

     
“I know there’s
more, but can we continue this later. I think I need to be alone for a few
minutes.”

     
He had more to
say, much more but wisely didn’t. She definitely wasn’t ready to hear about
Talon’s mother and he needed to find the words to tell her. “Of course,” he
said instead. “Take your time. Why don’t you rest a little? You’ve been through
a lot in a short period of time, and there’s still more to take in. I’ll go and
tend to my guests. Come down in a couple of hours. We’ll have an early dinner.”

     
“Fine. Ah, this
place is enormous. How do I find the dining room?”

      
“We will
await you in the library. You can find your way to any room in this castle. All
you have to do is think about where you want to go. If you need me, it is the
same. Just think of me and you will always be able to find me. I cannot hide
from you, Maya. I’m here now and I’m not going anywhere.” He didn’t tack on,
not without you,
but the message lay in
the silence between them.

     
He let the heat
he held within for her rise to the surface and knew she wasn’t immune to him
when he observed the faint flush on her cheeks. “I will wait for you, Maya.
It’s my turn now.”
 
He bowed and
closed the sitting room door behind him.

     
She lay on the
bed for a long time, no longer hungry or tired, just staring at the high
ceiling. A work of art, in and of itself. In vivid colors, it depicted a golden
dragon kneeling before a woman dressed in a green and gold gown with long
flowing black hair. The artist painted the woman turned toward the dragon so
you couldn’t see her face. One hand rose so she touched the spiked ridge atop
the dragon’s bowed head. If this picture had sound, the dragon would have been
purring. This damsel had tamed the mighty beast. But the art represented a work
of fantasy. Right? She wasn’t so sure anymore.

     
Incredible
couldn’t even begin to describe the last twenty-four hours. She didn’t know
what to believe. Could all of it be true? She had also guessed at what Draakar
didn’t say. Talon had a mother and Draakar was the father. At the thought, a
sharp emotional pain stabbed at her heart, forcing a cry of despair past her
lips.

      
Maya? Maya, answer me. Are you all right? I
feel your distress.
His thoughts came again in her head. Thoughts she did
not want.

       
No, Draakar. I’m not all
right. Not at all. But I will be. Please, just leave me alone. I will be down
shortly.

     
Maya abruptly
shut down the mental connection between them. Though she sensed it there still,
like a living thing hovering around her subconscious, ready to return as soon
as she dropped her guard. She wouldn’t—couldn’t—communicate with
him that way: dragon-to-dragon and mind-to-mind. Too intimate. He had no right
to lay a claim on her. None. She would not think about the other voice in her
head, the one speaking thoughts that were…her own.

     
Okay, she had
no choice but to accept she might be brethren and maybe could communicate
telepathically. Well, she was human too and Earth her home. What could she
possibly do if the brethren race were dying, and Earth might also be in danger
from this renegade dragon? Of course, she’d do what she could to help, but she
would do it her way.
 
She’d be damned
if she became his consort, or whatever, when he had another.
 

     
Maya got off
the bed and checked her watch. There was just enough time to call Justin before
she changed for dinner. She didn’t want to talk to him but if she didn’t get
the call over with, he would just keep pestering her parents until she spoke to
him.

     
Her feelings
for Justin had changed. Maya wasn’t sure when. No, that’s not exactly true.
They had never changed. She’d always known she could never love him as a woman
loves a man. Oh, she cherished his friendship but nothing more would ever exist
between them. Determined to make her feelings clear to him once and for all,
she pulled out her cell phone and called Justin.

     
He answered on
the first ring. “Maya. Thank God! Are you okay? Where are you?”

     
“Hello to you
too, Justin. In answer to your questions, I’m fine and since you’re in Paris
you know I’m not. The question is, why are you in Paris?

  
“I thought I’d surprise you.
Imagine my surprise when I arrived at the hotel your parents said you’d made
reservations only to find out you’d canceled them.”

     
“Justin, I told
you not to come. It’s your own fault for not listening to me.”

     
“But…”

     
“No buts,
Justin. Please, do not bother or worry my parents again because I changed my
plans without consulting you. You are my friend, Justin, not my keeper.”

     
“I care about
you, Maya, and I thought I was more to you.”

     
She sighed. “I
know you care about me and you tried for it to be more, but you know I’ve never
thought of you as anything more than a friend. It’s why I’ve not been able to
sleep with you, and why I never agreed to marry you when you brought the
subject up.”

      
Justin’s
voice came across hoarse. “I’ve never pressured you about sex. I was willing to
wait until after we were married.”

     
She took
another deep breath. She’d hurt him, but she had no choice. “That’s not going
to happen. Listen, Justin, I’m sorry you went all the way to Paris. You can
either go home or enjoy your stay. It’s up to you.”

     
A moment of
silence sat between them before he responded. “I can’t believe this. We need to
talk and not over the phone. Are you coming to Paris?” His voice no longer
sounded winey, but more authoritative.
  

     
“No, I’m not,”
her voice came out even more so.

     
“Then where are
you? Still in Ireland?”

     
Maya hesitated.
“Yes.”
   

     
“I see…”

     
“I’m not sure
you do. Like I said, stay or leave Paris.” She had to be clear and firm with
him. It was the only way he’d heed her once and for all. “Do what’s best for
you, but don’t come here looking for me, and don’t worry my parents about my
whereabouts again. There’s really nothing more for us to talk about. I’m sorry,
Justin. We’ve always been good friends, and I’d like us to continue to be so,
but that’s all we can ever be to each other.”

    
“You don’t mean
that.”

     
“Yes, I do.
I’ll call you when I return home. Have a safe trip.” Maya disconnected the call
before Justin could reply. She would have disconnected the call even sooner had
she known what he did after she hung up on him.