Page 17 of Delinquent Dette
Quite the change of heart for a boy raised by Eamon, one of the next Drakes on Frikka’s shortening list. “Doesn’t work like that.”
“I’ll go tell Papa that a Drake grounded you and he’ll say it’s okay to come out!” Cinder moved to stand and Frikka halted him.
“No. Not yet. I want to meet my grandpups before I go annoying Hallr. Besides, if Hallr’s been mean, he may be grounded, too. Iamhis papa.”
Cinder mulled over the words. “Okay, Farfar.”
A distant shout caught their attention, and Cinder looked up, someone calling his name.
“I gotta go, now.” Cinder turned to give Frikka a hug.
“Okay. I’ll see you soon. Which window is yours?” Frikka pointed to the building.
“The one with the magnolia beside it.” Cinder pointed to the second floor.Easy.
“Okay. Go have fun before you get into trouble.” Frikka grinned and watched the little one go galloping off, happily joining his siblings and Hallr.
He’d draw it out as long as he could before confronting Hallr, because things wereveryinteresting.
Chapter Ten
Sten
Spring 2023
Being a hermit had its advantages. He didn’t have to see anyone, have to fool with Drakes or their shitty business. The only other dragons he ever saw were his sons: Jasper and Peter. Hallr had stayed in the new world and continued pissing off dragon society in his papa’s name. Torsten had returned to the homelands and had seated the Nordic dragon council, too busy to fool with his depressed father.
Jasper and Peter came around, but they relied on Sten for protection during their heats. He was a Drake that wouldn’t touch them. Their scent did nothing, as was proper.
Jörmun had met his mate in another Drake, a Finnish male, and kept to himself.
“Father.” Jasper, who had lived with him all that time, knocked on his office door and gave him a hopeful smile.
“What is it, child?” Sten stretched and scratched at his scraggly beard. It’d grown wild and unruly, a few months—years overdue for a trim.
“I got a notification this morning from the Illinois estate.” Jasper held a tablet in his hands and walked over, showing the stooped and lean figure of someone at the entrance.Frikka.
He was too thin, face gaunt and eyes hard.
“It looks like he took something in a sack out of the secondary vault.” Jasper panned through a few images and brought a genuine smile to Sten’s face, the expression so foreign, it nearly hurt.
“It appears so.” Sten rested his fingertips on the screen as if he could touch him, jumping when the image disappeared andpopped up a home screen of sorts. He missed being able to touch pictures without wild fuckall happening. He huffed.
“I sent word to Sile Long, and he says it looks like he’s back.” Jasper pulled up a train of emails that Sten panned through. He’d gotten a new identity.
Sten studied the emails and took a deep breath. “We know where he’s been going?”
“About that. Hallr sent a letter a while back saying he’d found the nestblossoms and I just figured it was another pipe dream, but it looks like he really did it this time. Enough that he’s been given a council seat and they’re giving blossoms to single Dettes as medicine.” Jasper pursed his lips and stared at his feet. The sweet Dette looked so much like Frikka but had none of his venom or mischief. He was all sugar and innocence and had horrible luck with Drakes that didn’t understandno. Though, those Drakes often turned up missing or dead.
Sten wouldn’t complain, though. He likely knew who was behind it.
“Maybe I should call Hallr… Do you have his number?” Sten drummed his fingers over his desk and leaned back. He’d not talked to him in a dozen years. Not talked to Frikka in much longer. Sixty years? It was a wild spring when Frikka dropped by for his heat and left before Sten was fully awake.Typical.
“I can get it.” Jasper waved his fingers over the tablet, tapping away. Maybe he would pay Hallr a visit. See how he was faring.
A few minutes later, Jasper wrote digits on a piece of paper. A new number—likely a cellphone. Things were changing so fast, but it was easy to pretend it was another time when he lived like he did. Poland was great and all—no dragons. No council. It was easy to help Dettes there.
Sten thought about it for a long moment before pulling up his phone, dialing the country code and Hallr’s number.
