Page 81 of The Dragon With A Girl Tattoo
SIXTEEN
BECKET
“I’m ashamed of myself,” I told Aisling two hours later.She, Ysolde, May, and I were out in the small garden at the back of her house, absently watching as four children ran around screaming while shooting one another with fancy water pistols.“Ouch.I hope Anduin is all right,” I added to Ysolde when her son did a face-plant after leaping off a kid’s plastic play castle.
“Eh,” Ysolde said, glancing at the boy.He was up and chasing after the older kids without so much as a pause.“He’s tougher than he looks.He gets that from me.”
Anduin yelled something quite rude in Russian.
Ysolde pursed her lips.“Andthathe gets from his father.Anduin!You know better than to use that word!”
May laughed, then quickly stifled it with a glance toward me.“Sorry.I know this is a solemn moment and all.”
“It may be solemn for you,” I said, alternating between on the one hand wanting to march back into the room where the wyverns were present to give them all another piece of my mind and, on the other, wishing to apologize again to Aisling for defending Yrian with such vehemence the men threw me out of thesárkány.“I’m mortified that I let my temper get the better of me.But really, your wyverns were being unreasonably mean to Yrian, and I’m not going to stand that from anyone.Not even his brother.”
“I don’t think Baltic was being mean so much as just pointing out the obvious problem,” Ysolde said, but patted me on the arm to show support.“I agree that Hunter and Archer went a bit over the line saying Yrian cheated them out of the right to kill their father, but I can understand that emotion.”
“It didn’t give them the right to be so snappish at him,” I said, taking a chair when Aisling gestured toward a patio table.“Telling him he did it on purpose because he has main-character syndrome ...that’s just bullshit.Yes, Yrian came out of his griefscape to help you guys, but to accuse him of wanting to be the hero of the day is ridiculous.He’s gone through hell trying to cope with Bael, and honestly, it’s not like any of the other dragons are helping him.They just tell him to do the job, and then don’t lift a finger to help.”
Silence fell and my shoulders sagged at the sound of my words, guilt piercing me like shards of glass.
“Well, now,” Aisling said, blinking a few times as she gazed at me.
“I’m sorry,” I said, lifting a hand in apology.“That came out a lot harsher than it sounded in my head.Obviously, I’m not blaming you.It’s just so frustrating when everyone piles their expectations on Yrian and doesn’t realize that he’s just one man.”
“A demigod, evidently,” May said, since I’d let that slip earlier during my verbal explosion at the wyverns.She slid Ysolde a look.“Does that mean Baltic is one, too?”
“Goddess, no!”she answered, looking mildly horrified.“It’s no doubt because his mom was a dragon, while all the other Firstborn had two demigod parents.And frankly, I’m happier that way.I can only imagine how annoying the First Dragon would be if Baltic had the same sort of abilities as Yrian.”
“You don’t like him very much, do you?”I asked, suddenly distracted.
“Me?”Her eyes widened.“I like Yrian quite a bit.He’s intense, but in a good way, if you know what I mean.”
“No, I meant the First Dragon.He’s basically your father-in-law, right?”
“Oh, him.”Ysolde gave an abbreviated eye roll, followed by a little laugh.“I’m actually fond of him, not that I don’t think he can be an interfering boob sometimes, but I know he loves Baltic, and to me, that’s the most important thing.I mean, obviously he loves all the dragons, but Baltic being Baltic, I appreciate the fact that his father cherishes him so much.”
