Page 20 of Marked Dragon

Twenty years. That was shortly after Thorn had settled in Atlanta. “Why act now? Why not twenty years ago?”

“Because he was hiding.” King Arman scratched the back of his neck. “And staying away from other dragons. Icouldn’tkill my son, not when he wasn’t causing any harm.” His shoulders slumped.

If I hadn’t known better, I would’ve said he cared about Thorn. “Why try to kill him at all? And why would you tell Drake where Thorn was, knowing he’d be threatened by him?” My body heated, and I wanted him to spit out all the answers instead of making me ask him.

“I didn’t know what to do after he stole my dragon. That was what my father had done to people who opposed him, and if Thorn decided to take my dragon and keep it, the entire dragon shifter race would be tossed into chaos.” He clasped his hands. “As soon as I knew that Vlad was in the woods and in position to kill myboy, I knew I’d made a mistake, but I didn’t know how to stop it. When I learned the attempt had failed, I was relieved.”

My breath caught. I remembered Thorn telling me about his grandfather’s abuse of the mark. “If you were relieved, why did you have your guards track him, Vlad, and Cassidy down a few days after that?”

“Falkor said if the truth got out about what I’d tried to do, my people would turn on me.” He turned and stared into the tree line. “They were supposed to bring the three of them back as prisoners. I didn’t expect a fight to break out in the middle of human streets.”

I wheezed. “You thought making Thorn a prisoner would be better than killing him? Maybe he’d be breathing, but you would’ve stripped away everything worth living for from him and his parents.”

He flinched. “Is that what he calls Vlad and Cassidy?”

I swallowed my snort and forced myself to soften my response. “Do you blame him? They protected him and cared for him when his own blood didn’t.” Family wasn’t always forged by blood. In fact, those bonds formed outside of blood were stronger because peoplechoseto forge them. I was learning that now, with Thorn and Saphira.

“No, but that doesn’t mean it’s easy to hear.” His eyes glistened. “Shortly after that, I learned they were living in Atlanta. I told Falkor to keep an eye on Thorn. As long as he didn’t leave the area or start working with other dragons, we’d let him be. I didn’t have it in me to kill him, and I wanted him to be happy.”

His sincerity crumbled some of my defenses. Even though his logic was flawed, he’d thought he was doing what was best for the dragons he ruled and Thorn. Something tugged at me, and I almost closed the distance between us and placed a comforting hand on his shoulder. Even though he’d called me his daughter, I was certain we weren’t at that point yet. I forced myself to stay in place. “I wouldn’t call that happy.”

“Better than dead or locked in prison.” He exhaled.

We were losing focus, and Drake would be back soon. “Why did you tell Drake?”

“I didn’t. He and Falkor have grown close these past couple of years, ever since Drake took over the family business so I could focus on royal affairs.” He scowled. “It had to be Falkor. He knew where they lived and where they went on weekends to shift into their dragons.”

Tilting my head back, I narrowed my eyes. I didn’t want to be gullible and easily trust this man, especially when he’d ordered a hitman to take out his own six-year-old son. “And you didn’t notice that Vlad and Cassidy were prisoners here?”

He shook his head and frowned. “When I heard that someone could be stalking Drake, I shifted Falkor and Ladon to be Drake’s personal guards instead of mine. I wanted my son protected, but shortly after the transition, the two guards started avoiding me and spending time away from the chateau unless they were with Drake. I figured something was amiss, but I never imaginedthis. Drake tends to get himself into trouble, but Ladon and Falkor are more than capable of handling it.”

I clenched my hands as my pulse quickened. “Kidnapping and threatening tokillpeople isn’tgetting himself into trouble. That’s way over the line of acceptable.”

“You’re right.” He pursed his lips. “I’ll fix this, but I need to handle it delicately. I can’t hurt Drake. Not like I did Thorn.”

Something snapped in my chest, and for the first time, I believed I might be able to kill someone. “Drake and Thorn are polar opposites. Thorn is an amazing man who is willing to do whatever it takes to protect the people he loves. Drake is nowhere close to that.”

King Arman focused his intense stare on me. “Do you mean that, or are you saying it because he forced the mate bond on you?”

My body tensed as my dragon exploded in a guttural growl. I didn’t care if he was my king. He didn’t get to talk about Thorn that way. “He didn’tforcethe mate bond on me. When I was human, even while knowing he’d kidnapped me, there was something alluring about him that I couldn’t shake. After he changed me, I was even more confused because that attraction became a literal tug, and electricity sparked between us, intensifying the draw I’d experienced as a human.” I chuckled, remembering my confusion. “I thought it was a sire bond and tried to fight it, but every day, Thorn showed me that everything he’d done was to save the two people who had sacrificed everything for him. Even when we were his prisoners, he took care of Saphira’s and my every need and made us more than comfortable.”

The king’s brows furrowed. “You’re hisfatedmate?”

I smiled, the words causing a lightness in my body. I wanted the whole world to know that Thorn and I belonged to each other. “Yes, and Drake is now trying to use that bond to force Thorn to do something reckless to save me before the ceremony.” There was no point in lying about Thorn’s desperation to rescue me. Drake already knew. It wouldn’t make the situation more dire.

The king chuckled grimly and rubbed his forehead. “He learned that his brother was alive and would be considered the rightful heir to the throne despite his exile. Mira and I have given that boy everything he ever desired, which has exacerbated the problem. This is on me to fix.”

A tightness squeezed my chest. I could read between the lines. They had spoiled Drake, overcompensating for what they’d done to Thorn. “Isn’t it strange that the son you feared is the one trying to save the people he loves, while the one you spoiled is turning into the very thing you feared Thorn would become?”

“No.” King Arman’s jaw set. “That’s not it. Drake is just misguided. He’ll have to learn, and I’m here to teach him.” He nodded toward the house. “You need to join Mira before Drake gets back with your sister.”

Even though I still had so many questions, I inhaled, trying to calm my shaking hands. The king was right. Drake would be here soon, and if he found me speaking with the king alone, he wouldn’t approve. “Please don’t tell him about this conversation.”

“I won’t.” He turned to me. “I will have to figure out a solution without him knowing, or he’ll move the wedding up. I’ll find you when I have worked something out.”

I’d taken a few steps toward the door when the king said, “And, Everly.”

Turning back, I looked at him, and what I saw caught me by surprise.

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