Page 23 of Wynter and the Stone Dragon

“Is everything alright, Your Highness?” Hagar inquired.

Khalid nodded. “Yes, I want to have a meeting with you both,” he said.

He turned and strode away from his quarters. His mind whirled while his body hummed with contentment. He could still taste Wynter on his lips. He remembered the sensation of her body wrapped around his, and silently cursed when heat pooled and his cock responded.

Several minutes later, he entered the conference room, followed by Hagar and Habanamru. The other men were already there, seated at a large conference table. He gave them a brief nod before rounding the table and waving Hagar and Habanamruto their seats.

“I know there are questions, and I will answer them the best I can. What is shared in this room will go no further,” he stated in a hard voice.

Doctor Baqir peered over his glasses. He was a short, round man dressed in traditional robes. His bald head was covered by a kaffiyeh. Baqir had been his father’s physician and was close to seventy years old.

“I suspect this has something to do with your uncle’s death,” Doctor Baqir responded curiously.

Khalid nodded, turning his attention to Farid and Mousa, who were sitting in silence. Both men were hesitant to meet his eyes.

“Farid, Mousa, would you like to respond?” he asked.

Mousa glanced at him before shaking his head and staring straight ahead. Farid swallowed. Khalid took pity on the man.

“Say it, Farid,” he quietly encouraged.

“Was it really a dragon?” Farid asked.

“Yes.”

Khalid breathed a sigh of relief. It was finally out. In a way, this cemented Wynter’s presence in his life, and it made the fantastical elements seem more real now that more people had seen them.

Talk erupted around the table. When Khalid was finally able to get a word in edgewise, he told them the whole story, including how Wynter cured the Queen, disappeared into a portal, and recently told him about alien life in many worlds.

Talk exploded around the table again. Khalid gritted his teeth. The words ‘monsters’ and ‘invasion’ filtered through.

“It isnotan invasion! It is one person,” he growled.

“And a dragon,” Habanamru grumbled.

Khalid shot the huge, normally silent guard a heated glare. “And a dragon,” he conceded.

“What happened in the courtyard?” Giaf asked.

“My uncle opened fire on us. Wynter protected us from the bullets, and the dragon climbed the wall and took care of Inarus,” he replied.

“A dragon would explain the wounds to your uncle’s body,” Doctor Baqir murmured with a satisfied expression.

Giaf shook his head. “So, what… how… do we handle an alien woman and her pet dragon?” he asked.

Silence fell around the table. It was the first time any of them had really thought about the logistics of dealing with such an extraordinary situation. This was far different from overthrowing a tyrant. The rest of the world could look the other way when it came to toppling an abusive regime. Aliens and dragons were going to be a little more difficult to explain.

Eventually, Khalid looked at each man with a resolute expression and replied, “Keep her… them… safe. We are going to keep them safe.”

ChapterTen

The sun was setting on the horizon by the time he dragged himself away. There had been one minor crisis after another. It hadn’t helped that his mind had been on Wynter.

He rushed into his living quarters, scanning the area for her with a small amount of desperation. Dhat-Badan looked up from where she was setting a glass of water in the sink with an amused expression. She gave a slight jerk of her head toward the hallway.

“If it helps, she has missed you, too, Your Highness. I will retire for the night now,” Dhat-Badan said.

“Yes… thank you. I wish you a good night, Wise Woman.”

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