Page 72 of No Ordinary Drakeling
“Hey, I don’t have any problem with you carrying a purse. Do what suits you,” Zane responded.
Tiri straightened his shoulders and slid his bag behind him, so he could return to his game of Skee-Ball. “I don’t have an issue with purses either, but this is obviously a bag and not a purse.”
“Come on, let’s play.”
Sucking in a deep breath, Tiri checked behind him to make sure he wasn’t about to cause any further physical damage. Once he knew it was safe, he turned to the machine. He pulled his arm back and let the ball fly up the incline. It went steadily upward until it got close to the scoring area, then it came careening toward Tiri, almost hitting him. The ball thudded onto the carpet next to his feet. “I don’t seem to be very good at this game,” Tiri muttered as he bent over to pick up the current bane of his existence.
“It’s your first time. You’re doing okay. Let’s try again,” Zane said. His stunning mate was smiling broadly, and Tiri hadn’t missed his chuckle.
“Okay, but we might not make it out of here alive.”
“A risk I’ll take. Go ahead. Throw it again. A little harder.”
“Harder? What if it comes back again and damages something or someone?”
“Trust me, just let it rip.”
Doing as he was told, Tiri once again tossed the ball down onto the ramp. This time it flew upward and though it wound up in the hole that awarded the least amount of points, Tiri jumped up and started clapping. “This is fun.”
“You’ve got the hang of it now,” Zane said as he leaned down and activated the machine next to Tiri. He watched Zane deftly grab a ball and seconds later, it dropped into the center hole, giving him a hundred points.
Tiri pursed his lips. “I don’t need to ask if you’ve played before.”
“No bitterness, sprite. I’ll give you all my tickets.”
Tiri snatched his second ball and without incident, managed to raise his score. “I’m going to get good at this, so I can beat you someday, dragon.”
“Challenge accepted.”
“I like you, Zane. Will you tell me about your family?”
“I like you too, Tiri. You want to know about my brothers?”
“I know Chrysander and Damian are twins, but that’s all I know.”
“The four of us consider ourselves family, but only Chrys and Damian are related by blood.”
“You have different parents?”
“We do, but only Chrys and Damian have living ones. Costas just lost his a few weeks ago.”
Tiri continued to bump his score slightly as Zane’s left his in the dust. “And yours? Did you lose them very long ago?”
“I don’t know who my mother is, and my father was murdered when I was seven.”
“Oh Zane, I’m so sorry. Did they find out who committed such an atrocity?”
“I’m not sorry. Bernal deserved it.”
Zane’s voice was rough with emotion, and Tiri could not understand why his kind mate was happy that someone had taken his only parent’s life. “Was he a very bad man?”
“My father once held Damian’s job. He was the Imperial Duke. It was his duty to ensure the safety of the emperors. Have you heard the tale yet of the emperors, Drystan and Conley?”
Tiri nodded, happy he had some knowledge. “Ellery told me of them. He’s very much in awe of the current Reverent Knights. He believes they’re men with great honor and is glad to know them.”
“They were extraordinary emperors and remain incredible men. Bernal oversaw their safety. Instead of doing his sacred duty, he paid humans to storm into the castle and kill them. My father was a traitor, and I’m embarrassed to be related to someone so vile.”
Taking a break from his game to lay a hand on Zane’s arm to soothe him, Tiri peered up at him and was almost afraid of the hatred blazing in his dark gaze. “I did not know. I’m sorry to bring up something so terrible.”
