Page 27 of Brutal Alpha Dragon

A moment of tense silence fills the air as Father allows this information to settle.

Raising a terse brow, I’m the one to cut that silence. “So we have someone opposing our methods?” I grouch. Not because I’m upset that we have opposition.

But because I’m the only dragon-shifter who can say I saw this coming.

“Yes,” Father relents with a huff.

“Wait,” Aragon interjects. “I’m not sure I follow.”

We all turn our heads in Aragon’s direction, realizing that he hadn’t witnessed the first trial of the human mate selection process. He had no idea about the Dragon Council’s new ideal while he was away traveling the world.

And it’s the twins who have fun taking turns explaining the situation.

“Oh…” Aragon mutters as he turns to me. He’s probably just as vexed about it as I was when I heard about it. Or even how upset I currently am.

He’s the only one of my siblings who’s exactly like me. He thinks the same way, and acts almost the same. One would swear we were the twins of the family. That’s why I know exactly what’s going through his mind.

All I do is give him a knowing look before turning back to my father.

“Perhaps the Cube of Knowledge can intercept the message,” I suggest, even if my suggestion has undertones of sarcasm. After all, the Cube sifted through every database known to man to find a suitable mate to have my babies. “Surely it can determine where the message came from.”

Father shakes his head slowly. “Wherever that message came from, they’re using systems as secure as ours. That’s why we need you all on board.”

I glance around at my siblings in the room, then nod. “The Aurora Dragons will be prepared for anything that comes our way,” I declare courageously. “Now that Aragon is back, we’ll resume training. Tightening up any loose ends.”

“Good,” Father praises with little excitement. He rises from his chair, and my brothers soon follow as they file out of the study.

Only Kairo remains seated at the desk, her head hanging with remnants of the shame from earlier this morning.

“What is it, Kai?” I ask, annoyed. Kairo shrugs her shoulders, only further infuriating me until I grunt to draw her attention to me.

When she looks up, I notice the corners of her eyes softened with wariness.

“Forgive me, Brother,” she apologizes again. This time, it’s earnest and genuine, with no hidden connotations of irritation. “I know what I did was wrong, but something needed to happen.”

I swallow down the lump that threatens to form in my throat. If I could, I would completely forget last night’s commotion.

Not so much about Lily escaping her bedroom. But what that led me to do…

“Don’t you see, Kai?” I gesture to Father’s empty seat. “Already, we’re facing backlash because of this program. If anything, we shouldn’t be going ahead with it.”

“Wait…” Kai frowns. “So you’re telling me that my brother, the Alpha of the Aurora Dragons, is prepared to back down in the face of adversity?”

“That’s not—” I begin to protest but press my lips tight when I realize that Kairo is right.

She huffs her disbelief. “That’s exactly what you’re doing Draco,” she argues. “You’re the first of us to embark on this journey. And if I was a male, I would have followed through. I would have been honored to pave the way for the clan. For all the dragons.”

My jaw drops when another realization dawns on me. Kairo doesn’t have the option of taking a human mate. As a female, she cannot carry human seed. And her choices for a mate amongst the clan aren’t promising.

I dip my head in shame. “I’m being selfish, aren’t I?”

Kairo gets off her chair, pushing the basket of fruit under my nose. “I don’t know what you’re being, but it’s not the Alpha of the Aurora Dragons.”

With her parting remark, Kairo leaves me in the study alone to ponder my recent behavior. She’s right. Of course, she’s right. And though I hate to admit it, it’s time I faced my biggest fear.

Impregnating a human with the dragonspirit seed…

As much as I detest the idea, it’s something I will have to do. I will have to accept this fate and forget my disdain for the human race.

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