Dragon's Prize (Dragons Awaken Book 2)

by Maya Starling

  “Don’t! The dog… wolf… whatever you are, OUT!” she commanded Pup again.

  Kaden’s eyes flashed yellow at her command.

  “Don’t you go all drama on me, boy. Those eyes don’t scare me, I’ve seen worse in my life. Now, either he goes out or you both sleep with the cow and the horse.”

  Kaden was taken aback by the old lady’s tenacity. “Pup, go out. Be a good boy and look after Mousse.”

  Pup whimpered and left with his tail tucked between his legs.

  “Spoiled brat!” the old lady said as she threw a bone after Pup and closed the door shut.

  “Now… Go through those doors and take a bath first. Leave your dirty clothes on the side.”

  “Yes, ma’am.” One thing Kaden had learned in his long life was that you never mess with old dogged women. They could be quite daunting and fearless.

  The bath and shave were refreshing. He was extremely exhausted. Things were not going as he had planned. He unwrapped his injured hand and studied it. It seemed completely healed. It was slightly red, but there was no danger of the wound opening and bleeding again. He would leave it unwrapped. He put on a fresh set of clothes and joined the old woman in her kitchen.

  “Ah, you clean up very nicely, lad. Now, sit and eat.”

  “First, forgive me my manners, I haven’t introduced myself. My name is Kaden –”

  “Do I look like I care about manners… eat, boy, before it all turns cold. And you can call me Sophie.”

  Kaden looked at the table and saw what she had set out for him; a steaming cup of soup, a thin piece of cooked ham, some homemade bread and cheese, and a cup of milk.

  “Thank you, Miss Sophie.” Kaden winked as he took a seat. It felt great to just relax for a bit, to be a normal man.

  Sophie laughed, tucking the loose strands of her grey hair back into its braid. “Don’t you go flirting with me now… these old bones don’t know how to have fun anymore,” she said as she sat across him.

  Kaden wolfed down the food while being scrutinized by Sophie’s all-knowing eyes.

  “You’re a familiar one, have we met before?”

  “I highly doubt that, Sophie,” Kaden said as he shook his head and took a sip of milk, “Although there is something familiar about you, too.”

  They looked at each other in silence, both trying to place the other’s face somewhere. Her eyes drifted up to his scar. With her fingers, she tapped at her mouth in thought.

  Kaden was the first one to recognize her. “Sophie! Little Sophie!”

  “Little? Whatcha on about?” She threw him a confused look.

  Kaden’s laugh boomed through the house.

  “It is you! Remember Sophie, when you were a child, there was a fire…”

  “How do you know about that?” her eyes grew big.

  “And you were caught in it… that is until…” Kaden let her continue.

  “Until the dragon came and saved me,” Sophie said.

  Kaden merely raised his left eyebrow, drawing her attention back to the scar. He waited for her to figure it out.

  “You?” She brought her hands up to her mouth. “It was you?” Her eyes filled up with tears. Kaden nodded.

  She stood on shaky legs, walked around the table and wrapped her arms tightly around Kaden.

  “My dragon!” she murmured against his neck as she let the tears flow freely. “I thought I’d never see you again.”

  “My little Sophie.” Kaden gently hugged her back. “Never thought I’d see you again either. Let me look at you.” He pulled back and wiped her tears away. “You’ve grown old.” He chuckled and it earned him a smack on the head.

  “And you’ve grown human and mouthy.” She laughed back. “Now how did that happen?”

  Kaden helped her sit on his chair, and he brought the other one next to her. He sat down and said, “It’s a long story.”

  “Well, it’s a long night and we have a lifetime to catch up on.” Sophie demanded. “I always dreamed you’d come back for me someday and that we would fly away into the sunset.” She smiled at the memory.

  Kaden put his hands on either side of her face. “I cannot believe this.” He pulled her head closer as if she were a child and pressed a soft kiss on her forehead. “Very well,” he agreed and proceeded to tell her the whole story. About being cursed and about the curse being broken. About Olivia and about their love. It felt so good retelling and reliving it again. It made his heart swell with feeling.

  “So now, I’m trying to catch up to them.”

  “That bastard! Never did like those royal pompous asses!” Sophie said.

  “Woah, there, girl, settle down. I don’t want your old heart to give up on me now.” That earned him another smack on the head, eliciting a chuckle from his lips.

  “Dirty old man!” she threw back at him, making Kaden choke on his own saliva.

  He started coughing as Sophie started laughing at him.

  “What? It’s just as true as I’m old. You’re way older than me and she’s what, how old?” her laughter finally settled down with his cough.

  “Honestly, I don’t know… I think around twenty.”

  “Ha! You men are all the same, always going for the young chicks! What’s wrong with us old hens?”

  Kaden had to laugh again. “Ah, my Sophie, you’ve got quite a fire burning inside of you.”

  “Yeah, yeah, the coals are still burning, but slowly going out. I ain’t gonna live forever, and before that happens, I expect to meet this Olivia of yours.”

  “Oh, you will Sophie, you will.” Kaden yawned.

  “You better go sleep.” Sophie stood. “You’ve got a long day ahead of you tomorrow.”

  Kaden stood up as well. “You’re right.”

  “You’ll sleep here; the floor will do for you just fine.” Sophie led him to the room next door and pointed towards the old fireplace now slowly crackling with fire. “Your clothes will be clean and probably dry by the morning. I’ll put them by the fire.”

  “That’ll do Sophie, that’ll do. Thank you and good night, sweet Sophie,” Kaden teased as he hugged her gently.

  “Good night, my dragon.”

  When she left, Kaden decided he would leave her a pretty green sparkling pebble in the morning.

  A few days later, Kaden was riding well into the night again when he spotted a camp fire not far away. He pulled the mare to a stop and slid down quietly. He wanted to make sure it wasn’t bandits again. After ordering Pup to stay put, he sneaked forward, but before he reached the camp, he saw a man to his left walking the perimeter of it. There was something familiar about him, and as the man stepped out of the shadow, Kaden realized what.

  It was his red hair.

  Chapter 12

  “You know you shouldn’t talk back to him,” Charlie said as her gaze settled on Olivia’s bruised cheek.

  “I know.” Olivia sighed. She shifted slightly on the bench inside the carriage. “I just… sometimes I cannot stop what comes out of my mouth.” She ran a hand down her face, wincing when she touched the swollen, red bruise on her left cheekbone. At least her head was much better and the stitches were out. Only her broken hand was yet to heal. And the cheek.

  “Everything would be much easier if you just… played along.”

  “Ha! You mean if I submitted to him… First my pride, then my will... and then what? My body? I am not doing that.” Olivia snapped back.

  “Don’t take it out on me, Olivia. It’s not my fault. I’m just trying to help you the only way I can,” Charlie said with a hurtful expression.

  “I apologize, Charlie.” Olivia wobbled slightly as she got to her feet inside the moving coach and went to sit next to her friend. “I did not mean to take it out on you.” Olivia inhaled deeply, closed her eyes, then slowly let air slip out past her lips.

  “That time?” Charlie leaned her head on Olivia’s shoulder.

  “Yes and no,” Olivia said. “It is keeping him away, thankfully. But… I really hate wh
at he is doing to me, and the control he has over everyone. I am trying to hold on to the last threads of my dignity. I thought that maybe he would tire of me by now. I thought that would be my escape from him…” She leaned her head back, suppressing the tears of frustration. “Why is he so obsessed with me?”

  “That’s where you’re wrong. He thinks of you as a challenge to be conquered, to be tamed. That’s why I said you should just give in… at least to a certain extent.”

  “I am afraid to do that. What happens when he decides he finally wants to take advantage of my body? Fortunately for me, the blood just bought me a few days longer… but then what?” Olivia played nervously with the fabrics of her dress.

  “I really don’t know. But I’ll help you anyway I can.” The redhead sighed.

  Olivia took a deep breath and exhaled slowly. “I can promise you one thing. I will get us away from him before it is too late. When I make a run for it, I am taking you with me. There is no way I am leaving you behind with that lunatic.”

  Charlie chuckled humorlessly. “I tried once. He whipped me for it… among other things.”

  “He is atrocious. I cannot believe people like him exist. But I will find a way. And I do not make my promises lightly.”

  Charlie looked up at Olivia. “Good.” Charlie smiled, letting hope in, though she doubted Olivia would succeed. No one ever escaped Magnus’ clutches. He was the Prince, after all.

  “But truly,” Olivia said. “I do not know what I would have done without you. You have been such a good friend.”

  “I know,” Charlie deadpanned.

  They both burst out laughing. It was a good way to break the tension, lighten the mood. Once their mirth subsided, Olivia sat across from Charlie again. Only the sound of hoofbeats and the squeaks of the carriage moving along penetrated their silence.

  “Charlie?”

  “Hmm?” Charlie looked up from opening her waterskin.

  Olivia hesitated but said, “What is it like?”

  Charlie took a sip and then offered it to Olivia who took it with a grateful nod.

  “You know… In bed… with a man. Does it hurt? How was it the first time for you?” She took a shaky sip.

  “Oh, that! Well… It can hurt even if it’s not the first time. But,” a smile crept onto Charlie’s face, “I remember my first time. If it’s with someone you love and who loves you back and you take your time to explore and learn about each other’s bodies,” by now Olivia blushed to top of her head, “it can be really wonderful, despite the pain of losing your innocence.”

  “So, your first time was not with a… a… patron?” The blush was firmly rooted on Olivia’s face.

  “Oh no! I didn’t want it to happen that way. I wanted my first time to be with someone I chose.”

  Olivia nodded in understanding.

  “Remember I told you about the trouble I got kicked out of the brothel for?”

  Again, Olivia nodded.

  “Well, you see… The innkeeper had a daughter. Let’s just say he caught us in an interesting situation. I was surprised we could keep it a secret for so long… I do miss her though… she was my first love.”

  “A girl?”

  Charlie laughed. “Yes, a girl.”

  “But… You…”

  Charlie laughed louder at Olivia’s befuddled expression. “Left you speechless, didn’t I?”

  Olivia nodded.

  “Well,” Charlie shrugged. “Some people like both men and women, like I do. It’s not something you announce when you meet people, you know? It’s just a part of who I am, and it very much broadens my specter of possible lovers.”

  Olivia gaped, then pulled herself together. “It sure does.” She shook her head, but smiled nonetheless.

  That night they reached a small village. They were in luck, for it had an Inn. Local drunks spent their evenings there, but at least it had some rooms. Charlie knew well what those rooms were all about, but with enough incentive by the Prince, accommodation was secured.

  The rooms at the Inn were for the Prince’s wounded knights. Magnus used his royal influence, successfully this time, to persuade the Innkeeper to offer his own home for, Olivia, Magnus and Charlie. These villagers didn’t seem to like Magnus much. He wouldn’t take the time to talk to them, to get to know his people in the farthest corners of his kingdom. What Magnus failed to realize was that it was the little people that were the pillar of his kingdom. Instead he was convinced it was the royal family and, more precisely, him. He did eventually talk to some of those who gathered at the Inn, but the only topic was himself, and his heroic deed of killing a dragon. He really wanted to be known as Prince Magnus, the Dragon Slayer.

  Alone in her room, Olivia cleaned up for the night. It had been another long day, and she was exhausted. A knock on her door pulled her back from the verge of slumber. She hesitated to answer.

  “Olivia, it’s me,” Charlie’s voice came from the other side.

  Olivia hurried to unlock and open the door.

  “I am so glad it is you. I thought it might be Magnus.” Olivia hugged Charlie tightly, making the redhead laugh.

  “There, there.” Charlie patted her back teasingly.

  “I am serious. I was ready to ignore the knock and pretend to be asleep.” Olivia pulled back.

  “No worries. It’s just little ole red me.” Charlie winked and walked over to sit on Olivia’s bed.

  “Are Damien and Theo going to join us tonight? I really like talking to them.” Olivia joined her friend on the bed, crossed her legs and turned to face Charlie.

  “They might, although I think they’re looking forward to some alone time.” Charlie giggled when Olivia looked away, blushing.

  Another knock on the door, louder, had them both turning their heads.

  “Ladies, I know you’re both in there.”

  They shared a look of alarm when they recognized Magnus’ voice.

  “I will bust the door down if needed, and if it comes to that…” his ominous chuckle penetrated through the door, “you’re both in trouble.”

  Charlie was the first to stand up and Olivia grabbed her wrist, shaking her head no.

  “It’s better this way.” Charlie shook her hand free, walked over to the door and opened it.

  “See Olivia…” Magnus taunted over Charlie’s shoulder, “Charlie’s being a good girl, you should learn from her. I’ll be nice to her tonight.” He looked back down at the redhead in front of him and caressed her cheek. “We will have so much fun. I’ve missed you Puppet.”

  “I need Charlie to – ” Olivia rose to her feet, her heart thundering.

  “Don’t.” He pierced Olivia with a cold, hard look. “Unless you want to take her place.” He grinned, exposing all his teeth, the gleam in his eyes predatory.

  Before Olivia could get herself into even more trouble, Charlie looked over her shoulder at her dear friend. “It’s alright, Olivia.” She offered a weak smile, stepped out and closed the door behind her, thus preventing Olivia from interfering.

  Olivia plopped back down and dropped her face into her hands, ignoring the sting of the bruise. She tried not to cry. She heard footsteps in the room next to hers, Charlie’s room. Heard Magnus’s muffled voice. Then… There was silence. It didn’t last long until she started hearing the grunts.

  Oh God! She felt guilt grab hold of her throat as she gulped down the rising anxiety. She wished she could have stopped him, could have saved Charlie from him. Charlie would probably tell her that it was her job, but the pain in her eyes would let Olivia know just how much she hated it. At least there were no sounds of slaps and beating.

  The grunts became louder. Magnus said something. Charlie started moaning after that.

  Olivia couldn’t take it anymore. She shot up to her feet, grabbed her cloak and an apple, and almost sprinted out of the room. She knew who would be her best comfort now.

  The stables were close by, so she managed to sneak in undetected. It didn’t take her long to find
who she was looking for.

  “Hey, there girl,” she cooed gently to her piebald mare.

  The mare scoffed and ignored her.

  “I apologize, Starlite. I know I have been neglecting you, but I am only doing it to protect you.”

  Starlite still ignored her.

  Olivia took a crunching bite of the apple she brought with her. The mare turned toward the sound.

  “Oh, so now I got your attention.” Olivia smiled. She knew how much Starlite loved apples. When the mare was angry at her, neither carrots nor sugar worked, only an apple.

  “Come on, girl. I really am sorry… here.”

  The mare looked from the apple to Olivia but couldn’t resist the temptation. Starlite turned around in her stall and came closer. She sniffed at the apple and then looked up at Olivia.

  “Go on. It is all yours.”

  Olivia smiled when her mare gently took a bite of the apple, leaving half in Olivia’s hand. After munching on it slowly, she scooped up the rest.

  “That’s my good girl.” Olivia cooed a bit more as she reached forward and scratched Starlite between her ears.

  After she was sure that her horse was no longer mad at her, Olivia found a brush and gave some love and attention to the mare. She found Starlite’s company soothing and relaxing, and the mare enjoyed being pampered.

  “You know, I am starting to doubt that Kaden will come for me…” Olivia’s hope had been dwindling a bit with every day. “I just cannot bear the thought of him hurt, or worse.” She held back the tears. “I will just have to take care of myself and Charlie before he comes. I have to be the strong one now. Though, I feel like a weakling going back on my own vow. I do not want to be his wife. I want to escape that fate… but... it is not only about me anymore. I can do this. I can pull us through. I will make Kaden proud. Surely, Magnus would not hold up to his promise of harming my parents?”

  Once she was done, Olivia didn’t dare return to her room yet, so she settled down on the straw in the stall with her mare. She knew she was safe and wouldn’t get stomped. The soft sound of the mare’s breathing soon had her fast asleep.