Destined for the Dragon

by Zoe Chant

  The set of the man’s jaw was tense as his eyes flickered from Darklis’s face to Stefan’s, to Magnus’s, and finally to—

  “Alanna...!”

  Magnus’s arms came up as Carlyle dashed forward. But his dragon’s instincts remained calm, telling him there was no danger.

  And after a moment, Magnus’s human brain caught up, and realized it was true. Hadrian Carlyle hadn’t sped across the room to attack them.

  Instead, he had wrapped his daughter in his arms, pulling her into a fierce, protective embrace.

  “They told me you had been killed,” Carlyle muttered as he hugged Alanna, pulling her into his chest. “They said that... God, when they told me you were still alive, I wouldn’t let myself believe it until I had seen you with my own eyes.”

  Watching them, Magnus could feel Alanna’s shock as it permeated her mind. Her father had pulled her head against his shoulder, but Magnus could still see her stormy gray eyes, wide with surprise. Her arms were still by her sides, as if she was still too stunned to move them.

  Are you okay? Magnus sent to her.

  I... I... Alanna blinked, clearly gathering her thoughts. I’m... fine. I think. It’s just that... I don’t think my father has hugged me since I was five...

  It was then that Magnus saw her eyes grow wet with tears, and finally, she raised her arms to return her father’s hug.

  Magnus withdrew a little, leaving them to share this moment. Alanna had told him that her relationship with her father was a distant one; that Carlyle was far too caught up in his duties as Lord High Hunter to pay much attention to her, and that it would have been wrong for him to show her favor just because she was his daughter.

  “Thank God you’re all right,” Carlyle murmured, so softly that even Magnus almost didn’t catch it.

  The two of them held each other for a moment longer, before finally, Alanna pulled away.

  “We... we have a lot to talk about,” she said softly. “Father.”

  Carlyle nodded, his expression soft as he looked at his daughter – then he glanced over to where Benedict and Casper were tied in the corner, and his face contorted with anger.

  Magnus noted, not without some satisfaction, that Casper looked terrified – his face was ashen, his eyes opened wide in what was almost a caricature of fear. Benedict, on the other hand, had his head turned away, but Magnus could still make out his dark scowl.

  “We do.” The Lord High Hunter pulled back slightly, but not before squeezing Alanna’s arm one more time, as if to reassure himself one last time that she was really standing there in front of him. He turned, looking between Stefan and Magnus. “It seems that I owe one of you my deepest gratitude for saving my daughter’s life.”

  Magnus stiffened, uncertain of how to respond.

  “That would be Magnus,” Alanna said, reaching out to take his hand. “And... it’s more than that, Father.”

  Magnus caught his breath. Was she really going to tell her father what they were to each other?

  “He’s my mate,” Alanna said, turning to look up into Magnus’s eyes. “It’s true, I owe him my life. But it’s more than that. We’re bound together. And if you’re truly grateful that I’m alive, Father, then that’s something you’re going to have to accept.”

  Shock glimmered in Carlyle’s eyes as he gazed at them, his eyes moving back and forth from Magnus to Alanna.

  Magnus could feel how on edge Alanna was. Somehow, he could sense that this was the first time she had ever spoken to her father this way – the first time, perhaps, that she had given him an order, rather than the other way around.

  “I... I...” Carlyle said, clearly lost for words. It was strange to see a man who was clearly so self-possessed, so utterly in control of himself and those around him lost for words. “It sounds like I need to hear the whole story,” he finally said.

  Everything came out in a rush after that.

  Magnus let Alanna do most of the talking – she was the one who had most of the details about what had happened between her and Casper, and then her and Benedict.

  Hadrian Carlyle listened, his eyes flashing with anger as Alanna related how Casper had attacked her, how the land Magnus had been living on was owned by the Novak Clan, and how Benedict had left her a note in her mission file – clearly, he hadn’t trusted that Casper would get the job done, and had included what he’d thought would be a failsafe if Alanna survived the attack.

  Alanna related how Benedict had betrayed them, and how he had been meeting with a manticore, of all things, when she had happened to arrive.

  Carlyle’s eyebrows shot up to his hairline at the last part.

  “A manticore?” He glanced at Gord. “Him?”

  Magnus nodded. “That’s right.”

  “I’ve knocked him out for the moment,” Darklis piped up from where she sat across the room. “I just showed him his reflection. It works every time. Well... this time. I’ve never met a manticore before. But that’s what the book said, and it seems like it was right.”

  Magnus knew Darklis had a keen interest in developing her knowledge and skills in all areas of dragon magic – and it seemed her studies had once again come in useful. He vaguely remembered that showing a manticore its reflection would stun it to the point of paralysis, but he didn’t think he would have thought of that off the top of his head.

  “I had no knowledge of any of this,” Carlyle said, but then he paused, shaking his head. “No. No, that’s not true. I knew. Of course I did. I knew there were many among our ranks who didn’t want to accept the new direction I felt the dragon hunters had to take. They didn’t want to accept that peace was possible – or even desirable.”

  He looked up, and Magnus was surprised by the anguish he saw in Carlyle’s eyes. He looked back and forth between Magnus and Stefan, his lips twisted in pain.

  “But I didn’t want to accept that they couldn’t be reasoned with. I thought they would see the light, and so I did nothing. For the sake of keeping the peace within the families of hunters, I chose to close my eyes to the discontent I knew was growing. After Bain, I told myself that the bad apples had been rooted out. I should have known...”

  Magnus sucked in a breath at the name Bain. “You punished him?”

  Carlyle looked up as if surprised. “Of course I did. He broke our laws – he collared a dragon and violated a treaty, not to mention attempted to murder two people. He was stripped of his rank and imprisoned. I would never let a man like that walk free after what he’d done.”

  “But I never heard about any of this, Father,” Alanna broke in. “I’d never even heard the name Bain before Magnus told me what he’d done.”

  Again, surprise registered in Carlyle’s eyes. “Magnus told you?”

  “Yes.” Alanna’s voice was firm. “He’s the dragon Bain collared.”

  Carlyle looked at Magnus, his mouth set into a thin, hard line. “Then it seems I owe you even more than my gratitude.”

  Magnus closed his eyes. He wanted to tell Carlyle that he didn’t want anything from him – he had his mate, and that was enough. But it was difficult to find the words just now.

  “And it also means that I have something that belongs to you.”

  Magnus opened his eyes, frowning. “What do you mean?”

  Carlyle grimaced, before he reached into his pocket. He removed a small box, which Magnus could see was made of the same black, iridescent material as the slave collar he had once been forced to wear. He didn’t know what it was called, but it seemed to have the effect of blocking dragon magic – he was sure Darklis would be able to tell him more. Later.

  Right now, all his attention had suddenly been drawn to the box in Carlyle’s hands as he opened it up to reveal what was inside.

  Magnus suddenly felt as if all his breath had been sucked from his lungs.

  Is that... is that...

  Unconsciously, he reached out a hand.

  “This needs to be returned to you,” Carlyle said as he slowly and care
fully tipped the box over so the silver pendant, attached to a long chain, slithered out and into Magnus’s outstretched palm.

  He gasped as he felt it against his skin, warm and somehow familiar.

  It was only small, but it seemed almost to vibrate in his palm, emanating power.

  The pendant’s face was carved with scrollwork, a curved, elegant pattern interlaid with deep red stones that Magnus could instinctively tell were rubies.

  Something about the pendant called to him, singing in his blood, making his heart beat with a kind of power he hadn’t felt in a long time.

  Our hoard, his dragon roared suddenly, rising up within him, wings spread, jaws smoking. It belongs to us! It is ours!

  The dragon bellowed again, claws raking the air. The idea that someone else had had its hoard, for whatever reason, was making its fury hard to control.

  With difficulty, Magnus swallowed down its rage.

  “Where did you get this?” he asked, voice harsh, unable to take his eyes from it.

  “It was in our vaults,” Carlyle said. Then he laughed, though it was a cold, hard sound. “Hidden away. Obviously, I know now that it was hidden on purpose. But I wanted to bring them a show of good faith.”

  Magnus looked up, frowning. “What do you mean?”

  The pendant is ours, his dragon roared again. Was he going to give it to the Novaks? Our hoard?

  “Bain had this with him when he was imprisoned,” Carlyle explained. “I had always suspected it belonged to the dragon he had collared, but I never had a chance to find out before it went... missing.” His lips twisted. “I had the vaults scoured from top to bottom when I found out the Novak Clan were involved in this. I hoped they might be able to find the dragon it belonged to, and return it. I am honored that I’m able to do it in person – and that it belongs to the dragon who saved my daughter. I can only hope it goes some small way to helping you regain what you’ve lost.”

  Magnus stared down at the pendant in his palm.

  My hoard.

  It must have been one of the personal items selected for him by either himself or his parents. The piece he was supposed to keep on him at all times, to draw power from no matter where he was.

  Bain had obviously taken it from him when he collared him.

  And now... it is ours again, his dragon purred, obviously satisfied with Carlyle’s explanation. Magnus realized that as long as the treasure was back in its possession, it would probably be happy.

  Quickly, he lifted the pendant up and slipped it over his head. Immediately, he could feel its power coursing through him, giving him a kind of strength and vitality he could barely remember.

  Only Alanna’s touch had made him feel more alive.

  “Tell me, Father – how was it that Bain’s crimes remained a secret?” Alanna’s voice broke into his reverie.

  Carlyle shook his head, before he again looked over to where Benedict sat, disgust etched in every line of his face.

  “A favor to a man who I thought was a friend,” he eventually spat. “I trusted Benedict – we have known each other all our lives. I selected him as your mentor. He was like a brother to me. When Stefan’s messengers told me what Bain had done, Benedict begged me not to drag the Dacre name through the mud. He said that all he had was the honor of the Dacre name, and that he could not bear it if Bain’s actions took that from him.”

  Carlyle paused, shaking his head as a shudder ran through him.

  “I caved in and covered it up. Bain was quietly given a trial, and quietly convicted. You know I have always fought to keep my integrity as Lord High Hunter. But in this—”

  “Integrity? Don’t make me laugh.”

  Benedict’s voice suddenly rang out, startling them all. They turned toward him, to see a furious sneer plastered across his face.

  “Who was it that made peace with dragons? Who was it that put the word of a dragon above the word of my brother? If anyone has betrayed us, it’s you!”

  Carlyle stood, his hands clenched by his side. Magnus could see that he was virtually trembling with anger.

  “Is that truly what you think, Benedict? After all this time? After all the work we have done together?”

  Benedict said nothing, but he dropped his eyes in the face of Carlyle’s fury. Magnus glanced at Stefan, wondering if the clan leader – who had so far said nothing – was going to intervene. But Stefan gently shook his head.

  This is hunter business, he sent to Magnus. Let them sort it out. I’ve no interest in getting caught up in their internal problems.

  Magnus nodded, understanding. To be honest, he wasn’t sure he wanted to get in the middle of a dragon hunter argument, either.

  “Dragons are not the beasts we fought long ago,” Carlyle said, his voice cold. “I thought you agreed with me about that. I thought you understood. Dragons have realized they must leave their old ways behind. And so must we.”

  Benedict glowered. “If that’s what you think, then the world has no need for dragon hunters, Hadrian.”

  Carlyle’s gaze was steady. “Benedict. You know I have always dreamed of the day when that is true.”

  Shaking his head, Benedict spat on the ground by his foot. “They’re animals. You can’t trust anything they say. And you want to have a treaty with them?”

  “That treaty was signed when my uncle was clan leader,” Stefan spoke up, apparently deciding to interject now that dragons were being insulted. His voice was a low rumble, like distant thunder: calm, but containing a clear note of warning. “The Novak Clan vowed many, many years ago that they would never harm a human.”

  “And what’s to stop you from breaking that vow?” Benedict challenged. “Dragons are treacherous by nature.”

  Stefan raised an eyebrow. “Do you think dragons have a monopoly on betrayal?”

  Benedict opened his mouth to argue once more, but Stefan cut him off before he could speak.

  “Enough.”

  Even though the Voice command hadn’t been directed at him, Magnus could still feel the air shimmering as the powerful magic pulsed through it. He shuddered, and reminded himself to never, ever get on Stefan’s bad side.

  Perhaps even Carlyle had felt something of the magic that rippled through the air. He certainly looked rattled.

  Shaking his head, he turned away from where the now silent Casper and Benedict sat. His face was pale, his eyes downcast.

  “I cannot begin to tell you how... deeply sorry I am for all the pain the Loric Coven has caused you,” he said at last, his voice rasping. “First Bain, and now Benedict. And it took me almost losing my precious daughter to show me how blind I have been...”

  He trailed off. Magnus felt a ripple of concern from Alanna’s mind as she leaned forward, hesitantly taking her father’s hand.

  “I know you have always wanted peace, Father,” she whispered. “You’ve always worked so hard for it.”

  Carlyle glanced up at her, pain in his eyes. “Perhaps so. But I was so caught up in my work I... I failed to be a father. I know that now. It was only when I thought you might be dead that I realized...” He trailed off again, before pulling in a deep breath. “But that ends today. Benedict and Casper’s betrayal has shown me just how much things need to change. And to that effect, I have decided to step down as Lord High Hunter.”

  Magnus blinked, wondering if he’d heard correctly. Glancing at Alanna and seeing the shocked expression on her face, he realized that he must have.

  “F-Father?”

  Carlyle shook his head. “Not effective immediately. First, I’ll see to it that Benedict and Casper see justice, as well as anyone in the coven’s ranks who might have helped them. I will discover who was involved. But once the dust has settled, I’ll pass the mantle on. The coven needs renewal. We cannot continue as we have.”

  Carlyle turned to Magnus. “And to you, Magnus, I can only offer you my thanks. You saved my daughter. The Loric Coven has been responsible for a lot of pain in your life, and I don’t know how I can ever r
epay you for that.” Grimacing, he extended his hand. “But I want you to know, I will try.”

  Magnus frowned, fighting off the instinctive distrust that rose within him. It was true, he had held dragon hunters responsible for everything that had happened to him. He had hated them – despised them. And now, here was the leader of the dragon hunters who had ruined his life, taken everything, even who he was, away from him, holding out his hand...

  ... And Magnus was considering taking it.

  No – he was taking it.

  This must end, he thought, as he firmly shook Hadrian Carlyle’s hand.

  The Lord High Hunter was right.

  Things had to change if there was ever going to be peace between dragons and hunters.

  And that change could start now, in this room.

  As he and Carlyle shook hands, Magnus felt a burst of relief from Alanna.

  Thank you, Magnus, she sent to him, her voice warm but tinged with unshed tears. Just... thank you.

  Thank you, Magnus sent back.

  “Actually, Father,” Alanna spoke up a moment later, “perhaps there is something you can do...”

  ***

  “Do you really think they’ll be able to recover the lost information?” Magnus asked later, long after Hadrian Carlyle had left. He’d taken Benedict, Casper, and the still-unconscious manticore with him, to transport them back to Loric Coven headquarters under armed guard.

  “I’m sure of it,” Alanna said confidently. “Bain should be able to tell them something. And someone had to hack into the computer and change your file to make it look like you were a dangerous rogue dragon. I’m not a tech whiz myself, but I do know how hard it is to erase all traces of information from a computer. If that information can be found, it’ll be found. And then...”