Page 90 of Flameborne: Fury
There was a moment between us, a shadow in his gaze. A warning. My rage fought my integrity, which battled my need for my mate. Yet even through that storm, a zing of alarm sang in my head—if I handled this wrongly, Alexi would take the responsibility for her out of my hands and give it to someone who simply followed orders. I knew I had to remain close to this if I was to have any chance of getting her through it safely. Reluctantly, like pulling teeth, I made myself shake my head. “No, Sire. Of course not.”
“Very good. Then our next step must behowto plant her in Fyrehold. With no noble background she can’t be sent as a servant and we have no valid excuse to insert her into the courtof a royal. We need a reason to take her to their kingdom without suspicion.”
“Sire, her training—”
“Yes, yes, Donavyn. I’ll leave that to you—handle it. Handle her. However you need to do so. But I’m concerned with inserting her into Fyrehold.” Alexi frowned and rubbed his chin. “That two-faced twatwaffle did invite me to visit when he was here for the summit. Icouldtake him up on his offer and—”
All I saw was the harrowing image in my head of Alexi in a carriage, taking Bren with him and the hours they’d spend alone. I almost tackled the man.
“No,” I spat through my teeth. Diaan sent me a pointed glare, as Alexi scowled. I raised my hands to imply surrender, though there wasno fucking wayI was leaving Bren alone with the King. “Sire, it’s too dangerous.For you,”I ground out. “We believe we have a mole. If they aren’t an assassin themselves, they’ll certainly have one to instruct. It’s too risky to put you in our enemy’s hands with a suspected traitor’s network among them.”
“Perhaps you shouldn’t underestimate my husband,” Diaan purred, but the King raised a hand to stop her.
I thanked him. “It’s my job to protect you, Sire, and the Kingdom as a whole. Vosgaarde cannot remain stable if our ruler is at risk. Whoever takes her into Fyrehold must be welcomed by the King, but not seen as a threat. Someone whose presence implies trust. Not a scheme.”
“Then who do you suggest?” Alexi asked.
“I should go,” I said promptly.
Alexi scoffed. “You’re a military man. There’s no greater—”
“They’re already aware of our breeding difficulties, Sire. I could tell them I come to explore a mutually beneficial exchange of breeding stock. To observe their herd for insight on how ours might be improved. The King won’t even be part of the talks.There’s no political nuance involved. Quite the opposite, it will appear that I’m humbling myself, coming hat in hand, because we’re in dire need. It’s purely a trade deal, but given the respect of my position, I’ll be granted access to the Court while staying there. She could be one of my team.”
I felt the Queen’s eyes on the side of my face, but she said nothing. I watched Alexi the way a mouse eyed a cat—ready for flight. If he didn’t accept this explanation, if he didn’t allow me to keep her with me, I’d have no choice but to reveal the bond and pray that Bren would forgive me. I wasnotallowing her to walk into that hellscape alone and unprotected.
“It’s a good idea, especially if it gives you a chance to view their dragons and gain intelligence on their might,” Alexi said thoughtfully. “But what role would the girl play? How would you gain her entrance to Court if she’s not introduced as a Furyknight? You can’t be the one pursuing our mole. You’ll be watched too closely.”
I swallowed hard. “I’ll keep her close as an assistant. Something to do with the herd management—”
“Surely, they’d expect you to bring the Furymaster if it’s to identify stock? Fyrehold won’t allow more than two dragons across the border as part of a peaceful gathering.”
I nodded, suddenly relieved and thanking God for orchestrating details I couldn’t have foreseen. “I’ll tell them the truth: Our dragons have mated. The Primarch’s bond with Akhane is too new to be challenged by distance. It would tear them both apart. And the Primarch’s virility will affect the herd. This issue has becomeurgentbecause we want to take advantage of that. The Furymaster cannot be separate from his dragon. And in the interests of the herd’s fertility, I had to come immediately. Hence, my dragon’s mate must come too.”
I kept my eyes on the King whose gaze was suddenly speculative. “They won’t know she’s a Furyknight—won’t evenknow she’s bonded to Akhane. They’ll see her as part of my team. But meanwhile, we’ll have a legitimate reason to have Akhane there—which will soothe Bren’s bond as well. We couldn’t separate those two for months. Instead, she’ll accompany me, and I’ll bestow humility and honor on the Fyrehold Furyknights. It all works. It’snecessary,”I said.
The King frowned, but nodded slowly. It was Diaan who spoke up.
“I had forgotten your news,” the Queen said quietly. “How do they work, thesemates?”
35. A Plan
~ DONAVYN ~
“It’s very good news for the herd,” I said firmly, praying fervently that they wouldn’t ask the wrong questions out of sheer ignorance. They both understood enough of the dragon bonds to know that we moved squads and missions to keep Pairs together—partly for their sanity, and partly to encourage breeding. But did they understand that, usually, when dragons with riders bonded, their riders were unaffected, or at least, only drawn together in connection. Notmating?
“How does the mating affect this plan? Will it distract from our purpose? Oryours?” Alexi asked quietly.
The hair on the back of my neck rose. A quiet King was a dangerous one.
I met his gaze evenly. “There will be some complications in the next couple of days until Akhane’s heat has passed. When Kgosi and I went after them, before we knew you’d sent her orders, we discovered that Kgosi could sense her—a mark of a burgeoning bond. And when we reached them, Akhane was in heat. It’s what delayed my return. I would have been days longer, but when I learned that Bren had discovered true invaders, Iwas able to convince the dragons to work with us. While it is something to manage right now, ultimately it will benefit us—the dragons can sense each other’s locations which will aid us if there becomes a need to flee.”
Alexi huffed, amused. But Diaan stared.
“I know it’s a frustrating detail for today, but you must see this is perfect for this plan. There’s areasonto send her with me that is legitimate and would be confirmed by any dragon expert, or quiet queries back to Vosgaarde. If they truly are among us, they’ll catch wind of this and confirm that it’s normal practice to house the dragons close to each other—”
“And ruin your cover when our mole, or even an ignorant, tells them that the girl is a Furyknight.”
“Ah, but that’s the genius of it,” I said through a forced smile. “I’ll be in place to laugh off those ridiculous rumors as nothing more than exaggeration. She’s a herd manager's assistant. A Queen’s fancy. Not bonded to a dragon. She rides with me because Akhane is too young to bond a Furyknight, and we can’t take one of the men from his own Pair—it’s perfect. Even if someone here insists, at that distance, and with such outrageous details, no one will believe it. Could you imagine? AfemaleFuryknight on ayoungdragon? It’s clearly gossip gotten out of hand.”
