Page 20 of The Dragon King's Awakening

A sharp-featured woman in a crisp suit rises from behind a curved desk.A green jade pendant gleams at her throat, catching the light when she moves.Court official, definitely.Her posture screams dragon, even if her human form is impeccably professional.

"Mr.Sullivan," she says, then her eyes widen as she takes in Zahraxis.She drops into a deep bow."Golden One."

Interesting.Most modern dragons aren't big on the whole formal hierarchy thing, but Zahraxis?Pure old-world royalty.I can already see the tension building in his shoulders at being treated like some kind of living relic.

"The queen is—" She's interrupted when the massive double doors at the end of the hall burst open.Three dragons in human form stride out, their heated discussion echoing off the marble walls.They spare our group no more than a passing a glance, though their auras pulse with barely contained agitation.

"—in an emergency session," the assistant finishes smoothly as she rises."If you wouldn't mind waiting…"

I can feel Zahraxis' patience wearing thin.Golden scales begin rippling beneath his skin again.My bounty hunter instincts kick in, recognizing the potential for a diplomatic incident.Time to intervene before an ancient dragon decides to redecorate the queen's waiting room.

"We have traveled far," Zahraxis says, his voice carrying that edge that suggests he's about two seconds from going full ancient dragon on someone's ass.

"How long?"I ask, my hand settling on Zahraxis' shoulder.If he decides to lose his shit, I need to be ready to minimize collateral damage.

"An hour.Perhaps two."

A low growl builds in Zahraxis' chest.The assistant's eyes widen slightly as she finally notices the way his control is slipping, the golden scales at his temples and throat now visible.

Time for some bounty hunter diplomacy.

"Let me be clear," I say quietly."Either the queen sees us now, or in about ten minutes, you'll have a feral ancient dragon tearing apart your waiting room.Your choice."

The assistant's gaze darts between us, unconsciously touching her jade pendant as she assesses the situation.After a moment, she nods sharply and lifts a phone."Your Majesty?The Golden One is here, but...Yes, I understand the timing is poor, however..."She winces, holding the phone away from her ear."My queen, he is on the verge of shifting feral in the reception area.Mr.Sullivan can barely contain him."

A beat of silence, then she replaces the receiver."Her Majesty will see you now."

"Racha," I call out when we enter the room, already moving toward the conference table like I own half the place, "please tell me we're not about to discuss another bureaucratic clusterfuck."

The queen's mate, Corey, stands near the window in his usual casual stance, while her younger brother Max perches on the edge of a chair, both of them grinning at my entrance.Zahraxis goes rigid beside me, his golden scales shimmering beneath his skin at my complete lack of formal address.

Racha turns, a smile already spreading across her face.Her green eyes dance with a mix of amusement and genuine warmth."Sullivan.Took you long enough."

"Took me long enough?"I drop into a chair, completely ignoring protocol."Have you met this guy?If it hadn't been for Rachel, I might still be chasing his golden ass across half the planet."

"Where did you find him?"Max asks, leaning forward with undisguised curiosity.

"Bear Island," I say, watching their reactions."At the Bloodline school."

Corey straightens."The one nobody can access unless?—"

"—unless you're specifically called by Fate," I finish."Yeah.And trust me, Fate was working overtime on this particular catch."

I'm halfway through settling in when I notice Rachel hasn't moved from the doorway.She stands absolutely still, eyes wide as she takes in Racha's aura.Right, it’s her first time seeing a dragon queen in all her glory.

"Hey," I say, rising again and moving back to her side."She puts her pants on one leg at a time.Well, when she's not conjuring them with dragon breath."

Rachel blinks, color rising in her cheeks."She's just so..."

"Powerful?Yeah, that's our Racha."I guide her forward with a light touch at her back."Wait till you see her eat a whole pizza in under five minutes."

"Sullivan," Racha says, but there's fondness beneath the warning.Her attention shifts to Rachel, her gaze softening."So you're the one who helped catch our ancient friend.And from what I see, quite a bit more."

"Two dragons?"Corey pushes off from the window, giving Rachel an appraising look."Fate's getting ambitious lately."

Max abandons his perch to circle closer, studying Rachel with that unnaturally sharp focus that makes him seem far older than his six years."You can see auras too?Like dragon sight?"

"Speaking of timing," Racha interrupts, though her eyes still sparkle with interest, "you couldn't have picked a more critical moment to show up."Her expression shifts, something darker crossing her features.

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