Page 8 of The Lost Empress

“Exactly,” Mahkah stated, a smile unfurling on his tan face. “But I’ve determined how to know that his skills are progressing and growing stronger.”

“Oh?” Gen asked, looking between the man and the dragon. “What is it?”

“Well, you know that his color is purple but you must have noticed a bit of gold, right?” Mahkah asked.

Gen cut her eyes to Emperor, studying him. “Yeah, I just figured those few scales were the gray hairs I was giving him.”

Sophia and Wilder laughed, enjoying the joke.

“You’re not far off,” Mahkah replied, nodding. “If you think of gray hairs as resembling wisdom and growth, then that’s accurate. You see, the gold shows the growth and increase in Emperor’s power.”

Gen blinked at her dragon. “Are you telling me that as he gets more powerful that he’ll become more gold?”

Mahkah and Emperor both nodded in reply.

“Yes, when I’m at full power, I’ll be all gold,” the purple dragon answered.

“Wow, that will be beautiful,” Gen stated. “And it will be wonderful to watch you evolve.”

“Definitely!” Sophia cheered. “That’s amazing. You, Emperor are full of surprises.”

He nodded. “I’m full of potential and look forward to unlocking that with time.”

Gen was simply astounded that one day, her dragon would have full telepathy, able to read anyone’s thoughts. He’d have the ability to control anyone’s mind. And he’d see the future with precision. And if that wasn’t impressive enough, he’d look spectacular in all gold scales. Emperor wouldn’t just have the title, he’d look like and have the powers of the ruler of dragons.

CHAPTER SEVEN

INSTINCT’S IRRESISTIBLE CALL

Hiker Wallace’s Office, The Castle, The Gullington, Scotland, United Kingdom

The Castle seemed to be mocking Gen by appearing extra inviting. She was instantly at ease surrounded by the stone walls and firelight, making her feel at home as if she was in London. The old oil paintings and marble statues seemed to be plucked straight out of the 15th century and placed around the path she took up to Hiker Wallace’s office. Gen pushed down the nostalgia brought on by the allure of the Castle as it enticed her various senses.

When she made it to Hiker’s office, he appeared surprised that she wanted to meet with him. He sat stoically on the other side of his desk as she explained her concerns about Dwayne Stone. When she was done detailing her experiences with the Rogue Riders, Gen remained still, waiting for Hiker’s reaction.

For a long moment, the large man with a light-colored beard and shoulder-length hair didn’t say a word. His blue eyes seemed to be studying her, like trying to dissect her from the inside out. She knew that he was old and had seen much in over five hundred years on the planet. All that experience had hardened the man and although he appeared very closed off, Gen knew she could trust him. She felt that about Hiker Wallace and believed her instinct.

The leader of the Dragon Elite’s chair creaked like it was complaining when he rocked forward, putting his weight more firmly on the surface of his desk. “When I started in my leadership, I was a lot rougher on the men than I am now…” He hesitated, giving her a look of uncertainty for a moment. “Back then, there were only men in my ranks of dragonriders.”

“I know that, sir,” Gen pointed out. “Why are you mentioning it?”

“Because there might be two things at play here,” Hiker began, his Scottish accent strong. “It might be that Dwayne, as a new leader of the Rogue Riders, is coming in tough to establish authority. You see, it’s better to start off as really strict and then ease off as you create expectations. But you can’t go backwards.”

Gen nodded, understanding at once. “You can’t begin relaxed and then toughen up when your subordinates don’t adhere to your leadership.”

“That’s right,” Hiker affirmed. “My other point is something I’ve only recently learned in the last few decades. And that is that women and men can’t be led the same way. I didn’t know that at first. It wasn’t until Sophia that I had to understand women and their feelings. I could yell at my men for days and they wouldn’t take it personally. They’d be madder than hell, but they wouldn’t get hurt feelings. Then Sophia came along and got in my face, telling me that I couldn’t talk to her in a certain way if she didn’t deserve it—if she hadn’t done something wrong.”

Hiker actually laughed, throwing back his head, his belly really shaking from the gesture. When he looked at Gen, he was sincerely smiling. “I had never heard such a thing in all the centuries I’d been alive. I’d never considered that I couldn’t talk to someone sternly if they hadn’t deserved it. But you want to know what?”

“What’s that, sir?” Gen asked, leaning forward, actually interested in the answer to this.

“She was right,” Hiker answered, still laughing. “Sophia was…well, still is and always will be, a pain in my ass. But she listened to my authority whereas the men goofed off. She did what I asked. She was trying. And she was right that she didn’t deserve my wrath.”

Gen stared at the surface of the desk, not really seeing it. “So you didn’t realize that you had to talk to women differently than men…”

“Yes, and that could be Dwayne Stone’s problem,” Hiker replied. “He’s young and very inexperienced.”

“I get that, sir, and I appreciate your perspective and candidness. However, I don’t really think that’s his problem.”

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