Page 44 of Emperor of Draconis

“I’ll do it.”

Just before supper, she sent off an email to Ranger. First, he would need to find an agent to research each location. No point in waiting until the greedy US became too hard to deal with. It was true they held back a great deal of technology, but what they had given them was worth a fortune. None of it was useful for war. That was what her old country really wanted.

They had supper in their room, it was quiet and romantic. Maybe their life wouldn’t be so chaotic and dangerous all the time. Just as she thought it, a guard knocked on the door.

“Come in.” Torr called out.

“My liege, you have visitors.” He explained. “It is King Frick and his companions.”

“I’ll be there in a moment. Offer them refreshments while they wait.”

“It’s already been done my liege.” He offered.

“Thank you.” Torr said then the guard left. “What do you think he’s doing here?”

“Trying to preempt the damage he knows has been done. That would be wise whether he’s guilty or innocent.”

“I’ll admit that makes sense, but the people here aren’t usually so political.”

“Maybe he’s getting advice from an Earther?”

“That wouldn’t make him look innocent.” Torr pointed out.

“Only if you knew and could prove it.”

“I wish I could be sure either way. A king that’s a traitor can do a lot of damage.”

“Someone’s been doing a lot of damage.”

It was a shame she was right. The main clue he’d had was Frick and now the king was here. Maybe he could get something out of him. They were ready so he took his mate’s arm and escorted her to the meeting room where Frick waited with a group of six.

“Welcome to my castle. This is my mate and your empress, Kitty. To what do we owe the honor of your visit and why have you brought so many guests to this meeting with you?” Torr asked. He only had two guards in the room with them, so they were outnumbered.

As far as anyone knew only Frick and he could breathe fire, but he suspected Kitty could. She’d coughed flames a time or two. Few did that if they weren’t fire breathers. One of the males he’d brought with him looked and scented human. It was his suspicion if this meeting didn’t go well, Frick planned to attack.

That meant that there were others nearby waiting to strike. He sent a message to Jarel and Davy. There was no way to be sure it would get to them. Another was sent to Erak and Tomi. Mind messages were easy when you were sitting next to someone you had an attachment to. Sending over a distance was rarely effective. Looking at Kitty, it was clear she’d picked up the message.

He was pleased she didn’t look nervous or frightened. His mate was clearly a warrior. This was a good thing as something bad was about to happen. In the future, guests would not be allowed to come into the meeting room with so many extra people. It was something that hadn’t come up in the past.

There, that was a good thing. Erak and Tomi had come. He was lucky they were in Erak’s castle right now and not his. That also showed too many were always aware of his location. This event was showing all the security flaws. They were all surrounding him, he had a suspicion. Erak probably didn’t allow groups this size in his meeting room unless there was a scheduled meeting.

“Erak, Tomi so nice to see you two. Frick was about to tell me why he was here.” Torr announced.

“We didn’t really need Erak and his queen here for the meeting.” Frick stated.

“Then you should have waited until I was at my own castle and brought less people with you. Who is the Earther you brought?” Torr asked.

“Just an adviser. I’ll take your advice and come see you at your castle.” Frick began to back away.

“Don’t you believe it’s too late for that?” Torr asked.

“These are some of my best fighters. Do you wish to risk your queens in a battle?” Frick asked.

“You’ve not heard the story of Erak’s queen? She’s a vicious fire breather when threatened.” Torr explained.

“What about your queen?” Frick wondered.

“She’s her sister. Even a sister mated to a non-firebreather now breathes fire.” Torr explained. “I’ll take my chances if you want to fight.”

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