Page 69 of Dragon Fight

“And we need to test the mood of the riders, see where people’s heads are at,” Brom said.

“And the representatives from each of the duchies that have arrived for the Gathering,” Flynn said, pulling me close once more, but this time for comfort rather than lust. He rubbed his nose along my neck before continuing. “My father has requested that I attend a dinner with him and some of the other Skanian nobles tonight. And he asked that I bring Pippin as my guest.”

“And the machinations begin the minute we get off dragonback,” Ged groaned. “So, the two of you go tonight and feel them out, but what about…?” His eyes flicked from me to Brom and back again. “What about Draven?”

It felt like all questions of strategy came back to the prince, but I didn’t feel like I could answer the unspoken ones that were attached to them. What did the other night mean for the relationship we were building between the lot of us? If I’d reacted badly to the news of history between Draven and Brom before then, how would I respond now that I had made my own? What did the arrival of Beatrice mean for us all, and what did Draven have planned? I stared into Brom’s eyes, seeing an answering pain and need in his, knowing he was the only one who really understood. Could we trust the prince to do just as he’d said and bring us closer together or would he tear us all apart? Brom nodded slowly, as if sensing my thoughts, before turning to the rest of the wing.

“Draven does as he will. It’s all he’s ever done. We cannot factor him into our decisions, nor can we exclude him.” He let out a long sigh. “We’ll just have to wait and see.”

“Well, he might be mad enough to fly away from all of this,” Flynn said in a much softer voice. His lips brushed against my neck and I shivered as a result. “But I’m not. Promise me that at the end of the day, when all is done, we come back here, all of us, to tear away all remnants of the day and come naked to our beds, to each other.”

I turned to him, the ragged sound of his words forcing me to take his face in my hands, to smooth my thumbs over the sharp planes of his face. His eyes fell half closed at my touch, his face nestling into my palm as he pressed a kiss there. But the half-lidded look he shot me? It tore into me, cutting through all the paraphernalia he so scorned, that he saw as obstacles between him and me.

“You have my promise,” I offered, a little tentatively, but my commitment to the idea solidified as I saw a slow smile spread across his face. The moment felt like one we’d stolen for ourselves amongst all of the chaos that raged outside.

“That’s all I need,” he assured me, moving forward, ready to claim my mouth with his and stir again the coals of heat that seemed to smoulder constantly between us. “Just that.”

“But not now.” Ged jerked me from Flynn’s grip with a rakish grin. “If the Gathering begins in an hour, we’ve got time to scoot down to the mews and see how Lance and the other lads’ dragons are faring. Get into your uniform, Cadet Emberly. You’ll need to be dressed properly, a proper representation of the corps if you’re to attend a Gathering.”

And the way he winked at Soren, the other man scowling, made me think that this was something Ged had heard many a time from his drill sergeant over the years. I moved, glad for something to do, and dropped my bag onto my bed. Glimmer cracked an eyelid to peer at me, but she wasn’t the only one to watch me. The feeling of eyes on my skin was palpable, once I’d shoved my travelling clothes off and then turned around.

I didn’t think Flynn needed to be worried about us making sure we were prioritising our relationship at the end of each day. If anything it would be the hiding of this bond, something that was discernible as they stared at me, their eyes feeling like hands sliding over my skin all at once.

Which made me wonder if they’d do just that at the end of the day. But not now.

I yanked my uniform shirt over my head, hiding my body away, the part of me that could be vulnerable and theirs, and took on the role I needed to play. By donning the pants and boots of a cadet, I became Cadet Emberly, not Pippin, something Soren noted with a nod, reaching over to straighten my collar, then flicking his fingers along the lines of my shoulders.

“Get Pippin and Glimmer to the Gathering on time. I have a feeling that all of us are going to want a front row seat to the proceedings.”

44

Any thoughts of romance or sex went out the window as the three of us walked down the hallway to go to the mews where all the cadets’ young dragons were kept when the boys weren’t caring for them.

“Ged!” A familiar man walked towards us, a broad grin on his face. “You’re back from your break. And with the wing commander’s wife in tow.” Hallin’s eyes slid over me for just long enough for Glimmer to growl. “I have to admit, if she’d chosen me, I wouldn’t be letting my wing mates within five feet of my girl.”

Which made me wonder about how he felt about Maggie, the maid he had dallied with in the bathrooms.

“Brom trusts me,” Ged shot back.

“More fool him.” Hallin smirked at that, but it quickly faded. “So you’ve heard about the other cadets?” The look Hallin gave me now wasn’t lecherous, but filled with concern. “The wing commander might have to pull rank and keep his pretty little cadet by his side if they’re going missing in the middle of the night for no reason anyone can see.”

“So that’s what happened?” Ged asked. “We’ve been asked by the general to look into it—”

“The general…” Hallin spat out the man’s title. “Another bloody Harlstonian. You know what they’re like.”

I glanced at Ged then, wondering how he’d respond to this. I didn’t even know which duchy Hallin was from, the man seeming to have internalised the corps principle of seeing past rank and birthplace to the man.

“Not all of them are bad,” Ged replied with a weak smile.

“I chose to marry one,” I added.

“Did you, lass?” There was pity in Hallin’s eyes, something I’d never expected to see. “Word amongst the men was that you didn’t get too much choice about that. Highborn girl like you, you’d be used to the idea of being married off without so much as a by your leave—”

“I’d choose Brom, no matter which family I was born into,” I replied, the other rider pausing at the steel in my voice. “If people are willing to spend their time gossiping about my marriage, then you can tell them this. I’m honoured to be his wife. I would be, whether he was a rider or not, and I can tell you categorically that nothing concerns him more than the disappearance of those cadets. We came back from our honeymoon early when we got word. And we’ll leave no stone unturned, trying to find them. Now, as you’re obviously a font of knowledge about what’s being said amongst the rider corps, do you have any facts to share that might help our investigation?”

Hallin fell silent then, studying me as if for the first time, but finally he frowned slightly and straightened up.

“The lads went missing the night of Zafira’s mating. When she rose everyone else was… distracted, as they might be. By the time the dust had settled the next morning and the other sergeants had done roll call, we realised they were missing. Those poor little dragonlings…”

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