Page 11 of Consorting with Dragons

“I had the receipt, but you knocked it out of my hand and to the floor. Just before you threw me to the floor and ripped up my clothing.”

“Which happened, by the way, because I was disarming you after you attempted to murder me with your disruptor.”

He folded his arms over his chest, pushed his bottom lip out into a pout and glared at me. “That’s not what happened.”

“Then please tell me your version of it.”

“I admit I shouldn’t have pulled the disruptor on you. That was wrong of me, but I never would have shot you!”

“The charge whizzing past my head told a different story.”

“I-I never meant for that to happen. It was an accident. I thought I had the safety on!”

“Well, that would be a great comfort to my friends and family. You could have explained that to them at my funeral.”

He blushed very prettily, and this time he bit his bottom lip, which I found way too adorable.

“How old are you anyway?”

“I’m twenty-one, if it’s any of your business.”

I was surprised and relieved to hear it. I was afraid he was more like sixteen.

“I didn’t mean to do it,” he said, in a small voice that made me feel sorry for him. I tried to steel myself against him. He needed discipline.

“Please,” he , looking up at me with those extraordinary eyes of his. “You have to believe me and let me go home.”

“All right, calm down. No one is going to hurt you. I admit that both of us lost control. I shouldn’t have been so rough with you. And I should have let the Lycan officials search you for more weapons instead of taking matters in my own hands.”

“Indeed, you should have!”

“As I said. Now, we’ve both apologized. I hope we can put that part of all this behind us.”

“Oh, I just bet you do!” he shouted at me, “now that you know I’m a prince.”

“Actually, I’m from a royal family myself, so that goes both ways.”

He looked startled. “What? You are?”

“My grandfather was a king of Horvath. My father wasn’t the direct heir, so I don’t use my title, and I’m not in the direct line for the throne. But I have a title, nonetheless. And, oh yes, one more thing is in my favor…I didn’t try to murder you as you did me.”

He looked mad enough to spit at me, so I decided not to keep bantering with him. He needed to understand what had happened and what he was to me. But how could I explain it?

“None of that is what I need to talk to you about. I have something I need to tell you. To try to explain to you.”

“What’s your full name, sir?” he asked, ignoring what I’d said.

“I’m Marshal General Quinn Fortina. The egg you were trying to steal belongs not only to my queen, but to me and my unit.”

“I’ve already told you that we weren’t stealing it! My father,the king of Moravia, purchased the damn thing. I was simply there to pick it up.”

“Yes, but my aunt,the queen of Horvath, wasn’t willing to sell it.”

I was relieved to hear his father had been duped—if it were true—though his story still had to be verified. “If indeed your father was purchasing the egg, then I regret to inform you that he was the victim of a thief. Vetami eggs are never sold. They’re an endangered species on our moon, and King Davos and his son Mikos have certified them as such.”

He flushed a dark shade of red. “My father didn’t buy it from your moon. He bought it from Thalios, because they also have vetami. My father would never steal.”

“Then again, he was duped. Thalios has no rights over our vetami. The ones they have were stolen years ago. By law, they should have been returned to us, but our parliament didn’t want to start a war over the issue.”

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