Legend of the Inero Dragon (11 page)

"What?" Matt whispered once he finally caught
Jason checking out his paper. He shielded his notebook and
scowled.

I was only curious.
Jason shrugged and returned his gaze to the
Lords.

You don't like when I read over your
shoulder when I'm curious.

Sorry.

Matt sighed, his body relaxing.
If you're
bored, there's a game some of the other brothers play involving
hand signals. Do that. Now if you'll excuse me, I actually want to
listen.

Jason frowned. Whatever Matt
had written was something he didn't want anyone else seeing. He'd
never cared before about anyone reading over his shoulder. Jason
pulled out his own notebook, found a page in the middle, and
started to write down his own questions. In his own messy script he
scribbled out:
What is going on?

Chapter
Twenty-One

Jason was gone for a week, and Gwen found
plenty of activities to keep herself occupied. She'd left home over
a month ago but the whole situation was still surreal. Some days
she'd wake up and miss home so much she'd want to cry. The only
thing stopping her was Navi. If she cried in front of her, then
she'd be asked a lot of questions. The less she thought about home,
the easier it was. She didn't want to talk about it and dig up all
of the happiness. Her life on the farm didn't matter anymore. She'd
never been good at talking about her feelings anyway. Adapting to
this new life was the best thing for her to do, and she was getting
better at it every day, even with out Jason's help.

Just before the sun came up, Jason shook her
awake. She jumped then frowned.

"It's only me," he said, laughing.

"I didn't think you'd be back until
later."

He shrugged. "We had a good current, or so
I'm told. I don't understand how flying works."

She closed her eyes, snuggling back into her
pillow. She turned to lie on her side facing him. "You had to wake
me up? You couldn't let me sleep in?"

"No, I couldn't. Get up and get dressed."

"It's still dark out."

"Is it? I couldn't tell."

She groaned. "It's too early for
sarcasm."

He moved away from the bedside then headed
out of her room. "No such thing. Please hurry, this is
important."

With a sigh, she dragged herself out of bed.
It didn't take long to get ready. She threw on the first outfit she
found in her dresser, ran a brush through her hair before pulling
it out of her face, and didn't bother to put on any make up. He
wasn't allowed to see her look cute today. She found him in the
kitchen with a backpack and a thermos.

"Get your shoes on," he said. She did so,
making sure he saw her eyes rolling. It didn't seem to bother him
much because he smirked. "I forgot that you're not a morning
person."

"It's dark out. I wouldn't consider this
morning," she said. Once her shoes were on, she placed her hands on
her hips. "What's this about?"

"I can't tell you here. That would defeat the
purpose of leaving the house," he explained. He offered her his
hand. "It's only a short walk, I promise."

Gwen took his hand. He had yet to let her
down, so she had no reason to deny him her trust. Despite
everything she'd been through, he hadn't lied to her. In fact, he'd
been nothing but patient and accommodating to her needs. She owed
him the occasional benefit of the doubt.

They walked for ten minutes, deeper into the
city, and came upon a park. It wasn't big by any means. All it
consisted of was a bench overlooking a tiny storm pond. She didn't
understand what was worth seeing here.

The smell of coffee filled the air as he spun
off the cap to the thermos. Inside the backpack were two mugs,
bagels with cream cheese, and oranges. There was a separate thermos
as well. He handed her a mug and a teabag silently, poured some hot
water for her, then handed her a bottle of cream.

"Is that everything you need?" he asked.

She nodded, taking a sip once she had her
black tea just the way she liked it. "So what's this about?"

"I wanted to be able to talk with you freely.
I'm not sure how much longer we can do that at the house. My father
is the type of man to bug homes and he has spies everywhere."

"Navi and I were able to talk about things
he'd probably rather not hear," she pointed out. "At least in terms
of their relationship."

He shrugged. "She knows what she's doing.
This is a lot more important than a shallow marriage though." He
stopped. She waited with raised eyebrows for him to continue. He
took a long sip of his black coffee.

"What was life like on your farm?" he
asked.

Gwen couldn't help but laugh. "I can't talk
about my life on the farm. Won't we be arrested and executed by my
telling you the secrets of milking cows?"

"Let me rephrase my question," he said after
another sip. "Were you treated well? Did you have enough to eat?
Did the army come through by chance and do anything you'd consider
odd?"

She glanced at him over her tea mug, unsure
of what to think of his question. "My parents treated me
wonderfully."

"I didn't mean to imply—"

"And they made sure I was well taken care
of," she continued. "The ratio of how our produce was divided
changed. Less went to our town and more towards the city. As a
whole, the members of the town decided it best to start offering
new kinds of payment in exchange for services. They're good
people."

He pulled out an orange, cutting the rind
with his large, black claws with ease. "Yes, I know. I can tell
because you are a good person. Let me explain what I found out at
the council. The Nation of Inero is in a famine, according to the
reports my father has put in. In the city, I haven't seen anything
out of the ordinary. I wanted to know if it was true out in the
country."

Gwen shook her head. "We haven't experienced
a poor season for a long time. Your father is lying."

"I thought as much." Jason sighed, his
attention focusing on the orange. He peeled off the rind, tossing
it to the ground for the animals to take, before splitting the
orange in half. He offered her a portion, which she gladly
took.

"Why would he lie?"

"Because he's trying to put on a show for the
other tribes. He wants to distract them from the truth."

"And that is?"

"That the increased portions going to the
city were bribes to his military officials. He's buying them so
they will not question his motives for wanting to go to war. That's
the only logical explanation I can think of."

She ate a wedge of the fruit and frowned. "Is
there a reason to go to war?"

"That's the part I haven't figured out yet,"
he said softly. "Now do you understand why we couldn't talk at
home?"

She nodded, her face grave.

"I picked now because the city is quiet,
everyone is still sleeping. Should we happen to be spied on, this
will look like a date. Especially in about five minutes when the
sun rises."

"A date? I didn't think you were interested
in those."

"I'm not," he said perhaps a little too
quickly. "But I still have to act like I'm trying."

Or they'll take me
away.
She shivered, instinctively snuggling
closer into his arms for warmth and comfort. He was the only person
who could keep her safe. Certainly Navi would try, but she wouldn't
be as successful as Jason. Being one of the dragons gave him a
different kind of power, even if Navi was the Great Lord's
preferred bed companion.

No doubt he'd think her random cuddling was
part of the act. Slowly, he moved an arm around her. She felt as
though he genuinely wanted to hold her. His body was relaxed and
welcoming, much different than some of the stiff and forced
affections he'd given her in the past.

"The year will be here before you know it,"
she said at last. "I know what has to happen. Navi told me. Maybe
we should arrange for a moment and get that out of the way sooner
rather than later."

"You don't really want me to sleep with you,"
he snorted. "I told her not to tell you."

"Why hide it from me?"

"Because I knew you'd either freak out or
proposition me and I don't want you to worry about it." He moved
his face closer to hers, resting his head on her shoulder. "We have
a lot of time. It's only been a month. Let's not do something rash
because we're afraid."

"Are you scared?"

"In a way, yes."

She watched his face. He gazed straight
ahead, his eyes narrowing. She grabbed his chin, forcing him to
look at her, then said,

"I want you to listen carefully to me. If
push comes to shove and there is no other way out, I want you to do
what is necessary to keep me with you. You've proven you will be
good to me. Whether we love each other or not, I'd rather it be you
than someone else."

He averted his gaze down to the bench. "I'd
rather it not come to that."

"I doubt it will," she said, placing a
grateful kiss on his forehead, hoping it helped reassure his fears.
"Thank you for being so concerned for my welfare. Don't keep things
from me anymore. Two heads are better than one."

"I'll try my best to remember. Usually, I
have my brother, but he's preoccupied at the moment." She sensed
bitterness in his tone. "I need you to keep your eyes and ears open
for me. You know how much the wives love to gossip. Especially Kat,
she's chatty."

Gwen had noticed but held her tongue. She
doubted he'd like her negative perceptions. Instead, she
nodded.

He pointed slightly left of them. "Good, now
I want you to turn and look east."

There was a small gap amongst the short,
glass buildings where she could see the castle towering over them.
The sun was starting to rise. Her breath caught in her throat as
the light hit the buildings. They reflected an orange glow as
though they were on fire. The metal trimming on the castle also lit
up with a blinding orange light. She'd never seen anything like it
before.

She couldn't take her eyes off of it. Jason
also watched, unblinking and drawing her closer, his arms
enveloping her. She started to wonder how she had ever made it
through life without him.

Chapter
Twenty-Two

Matt wasn't looking forward
to going back home. Yes, he wanted to see Kat, but he didn't want
to have the conversation that he'd been putting off repeatedly
while he was away. He didn't know what to say to her.
How is it possible for a person to love someone so
much and at the same time not be able to stand them?

Welcome to marriage,
Jason said.

Matt ignored his brother, working on making
sure the rest of his thoughts were completely blocked from
everyone. He needed to think on his own.

Kat was sitting on a chair doing her nails
when he walked into their suite. She glanced up at him but
otherwise didn't react. Not the welcome he had expected from
her.

"Are you going to tell me what's going on
now?" she asked.

"I needed some space," he said.

"You could have said so instead of making me
paranoid."

He rolled his eyes and sat down on the bed.
He felt tired. Even though he'd been sitting for a long time, the
cushioning felt nice on his sore backside.

"I don't appreciate you rolling your eyes at
my feelings either," she continued.

He almost did it again, but he held back
because he didn't have the energy for a blowout. If he wasn't
careful, this fight would lead to one. For the most part Kat was
well tempered, but she'd been irritated a lot lately and it
frustrated him.

"Well?" she asked.

"Well, what? I don't know what you want me to
say."

"An apology is a good start."

"Fine, I'm sorry you feel so paranoid and
moody that you're taking it out on me."

Her jaw dropped. "Excuse me?"

"Why are you being like this?" He glared at
her from across the room, wanting to understand what was going on
inside her head.

"Being like what?"

"Paranoid and moody."

"I'm not being—"

He released a groan. "Your thoughts and
clingy behavior suggest otherwise. I know I'm not the best at this,
but talk to me here. What's going on?"

Kat burst into tears. That was the last thing
he expected from her. She'd been through a lot of things at home
with her parents, and he could count on one hand the amount of
times she'd cried about them. He hated seeing it. And he hated
being the cause of it even more.

After a moment of doing nothing but sobbing,
she put her head in her hands. "I don't know what's wrong with me.
All I feel is sick all of the time and I miss you. I'm trying so
hard to not let things bother me, but you don't know what it's
like. Most of the days I spend my time listening to the other women
talk about how they've been discarded by their men. Every day more
of them are being forgotten. They're giving up so fast."

"I told you relationships
here are fragile. Remember? But we love each other, which is so
much more than any of them can say. I'm still here because I love
you." He leaned on his knees and pinched his nose.
Why doesn't she understand?
Are all women like this?

"And I'm scared because I love you so much I
don't want to lose you."

"All I'm asking you for is some of my own
space."

"And all I'm asking
you
is to
communicate with me before doing everything in your power to avoid
me."

"Fine."

"Fine!"

He frowned. "Why are you still not feeling
well?"

"The transition, I guess. You said it
wouldn't go well," she said, rubbing her arms.