Total pages in book: 141
Estimated words: 136009 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 680(@200wpm)___ 544(@250wpm)___ 453(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 136009 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 680(@200wpm)___ 544(@250wpm)___ 453(@300wpm)
“Call off your dragon!” Kerrigan shouted down at him.
“I will not! You started these hostilities!”
“We’ll kill you,” she snarled. “And then you’ll have a dead dragon.”
She hated even making the threat. It was barbaric that this was the outcome—that the death of one would kill the other. But it was the world they lived in, and it was the only threat they had. They could outpace his dragon, but if he fled without his rider, then it would all be for nothing.
The male cried out in anger and then went silent. “I told him of your threat. He will have words with your dragon,” he snarled.
Tieran tightened his grip. “His dragon is called Henrley. His rider is Gerrond. They have been bonded for fifty-seven years,” Tieran explained into her mind. “He says that killing them would be against dragon code, but I told him we are at war. He went silent after that. He will follow us back to the mountain if we do not kill his rider.”
“Good,” Kerrigan said. “Then let’s go back. Gerrond has some explaining to do.”
Chapter Ten
The Interrogation
Tieran dropped Gerrond onto the rock floor with a thud. The Fae groaned and rolled over, clutching his side. Kerrigan slid off Tieran’s back and came face-to-face with her mate.
“What in the gods’ names were you doing?” Fordham demanded.
“Hello, love,” Kerrigan said with a smirk. “I brought you a present.”
Fordham’s eyes snapped to the Fae slowly trying to come to his feet. “Where did he come from?”
It was in that moment that his dragon landed next to Tieran.
“Scout,” she said.
“And you decided to intercede?” he asked, low and lethal.
“He saw us. He was going to report to the Society.”
“I was not,” Gerrond said, reaching for his side.
Kerrigan shrugged. “He called me a bitch.”
“He did what?” Fordham demanded, hauling the Fae up by his shirt collar and holding him in the air.
The male looked wholly terrified. If the use of Wynter’s shadows had scared him, looking into Fordham’s murderous face nearly made him piss himself.
“I didn’t know. You have it all wrong,” the male said. “She threatened to kill me!”
“That is the least you can expect from me,” Fordham snarled.
“Ford,” Kerrigan began. “We can’t interrogate a dead prisoner.”
Gerrond’s eyes widened in alarm. “I’m not against you! I was looking for you.”
“Of that we’re certain,” Fordham said, throwing him to the ground.
Kerrigan returned a moment later with rope and tied Gerrond’s hands behind his back. “Delle, would you do us a favor and have the guards put Gerrond here in an empty, guarded room?”
“Of course,” Delle said, gesturing for guards to take over.
Fordham still looked ready to beat the guy into a bloody pulp for the insult. He was riled up, and she thought the show was a good one. They had an audience, and the guards and attendants would spread the story that Fordham was as ruthless as ever. But she also needed to calm him down away from all these onlookers.
“Brother,” Wynter said as she finally climbed down from Netta. “Your fiancée performed admirably as a rider.”
“Of course she did,” Fordham said. But there was still death in his look. “She is formidable.”
“I saw her intentions and jumped in,” Wynter said, saying enough without saying everything.
“I appreciate that,” Fordham said with a nod.
“Kerrigan,” Tieran said into her mind, “Henrley is saying that we have made an unwarranted mistake here. That he wants to discuss their actual objective. We could restrain him, but I believe Netta and I should speak to him first.”
“Will he flee otherwise?” she asked.
“I do not believe he’d abandon his rider.”
“Then do it,” she agreed.
To Fordham and Wynter, she said, “Tieran and Netta are going to speak to the dragon, Henrley. He’s not a flight risk. He sounds adamant that this is a mistake.”
“It sure didn’t look like a mistake in the middle of the fight,” Wynter observed.
“No, it didn’t.” Fordham clenched and unclenched his hands.
Kerrigan reached forward and put hers over his. “I’m all right.” She glanced around the room. She wanted him to be seen as fearsome. For her to seem that way too, to be honest. That was definitely working in their favor, but if they wanted to have a real conversation, they needed to do it elsewhere. “Let’s go interrogate our prisoner, shall we?”
Fordham leaned forward until his lips brushed against her earlobe. “Don’t think you’re getting out of a conversation about you using my powers.”
“I’d never expect that,” she said. “But maybe somewhere more private?”
“Assuredly.” He gestured for her to begin walking. “Wynter, you too.”
“Excellent,” she said with a dangerous smile. “I have a set of knives with me. Hopefully, he’ll let me play with them.”
“You’re a bit of sadist,” Kerrigan said.
“And?” Wynter strutted forward. “You say that like it’s a bad thing.”
Fordham shrugged. “You get used to it.”
Kerrigan followed the siblings through the cavern of Ravinia Mountain until they came to a series of rooms. Wynter ran her nails along the walls as they walked, explaining that these were their father’s interrogation rooms, but the prison was lower, darker, and deadly. Kerrigan had never wanted to see the interrogation rooms.