by Sky Winters
"So, that's it then," she said, standing up and walking over to the window looking out over the city.
"Why wouldn't it be?" said Thorne. "The job was to bring you to the Abruzzi, and that's about to be done. Then you're their problem."
"Oh, so I'm just a problem to you?" asked Adelaide, turning her gaze back to Thorne.
"Considering you're a goddamn magnet for dragon assassins, I'd say you qualify."
Thorne knew what she was getting at. He knew she felt that their night together was something more than just a quick screw, and he realized that he'd be lying to himself if he were to say he wasn't developing some sort of feelings for her.
But, like Thorne said, she was just a job. More than that, too, she was a human, and dragon and human pairings weren't exactly looked upon kindly in the dragon world.
"I don't even know what these people want with me," she said. "For all I know, they're gonna serve me for dinner."
"You watch too many movies," said Thorne. "Dragons don't really eat humans. You'd be more likely to be a live-in slave or something."
"And that's supposed to make me feel better?" she said, her voice edged with anger. "I can't believe you don't even give a damn about what these dragons want with me. Don't you know what kind of job you're doing?"
"I told you," he said, raising a finger in the air, "I'm in this to get paid. I don't give a good goddamn what they want with you after that. You're just some fucking human."
The words tasted like ash in Thorne's mouth, and the feeling only worsened as he watched Adelaide's expression fall in response. But he knew he had to put some distance between the two of them; he needed to shove whatever feelings he'd developed far, far down and hope they'd just disappear with the fullness of time.
"Then you're not going to have to worry about this ‘fucking human' for much longer."
With that, she stormed out of the room, leaving Thorne alone.
After a time, another text vibrated in his pocket, signaling that the escort had arrived. The crew, Adelaide in tow, arrived in front of the building and were presented with a massive stretch Humvee, covered in what looked like steel plating. Two serious-looking men in suits stood near the doors of the tank-like car. The crew whistled and made other impressed-sounding noises as they looked the vehicle over.
"Holy shit," said Corvo. "They weren't fucking around with that escort."
"I've seen rides like this before," said Mick. "More of a tank than a car. And loaded for bear."
The crew climbed in and soon were off. Thorne spent the ride in silence, the rest of the crew already celebrating their payday. And Adelaide simply looked out the window, saying nothing. Thorne could only imagine what she was thinking.
Soon, they arrived at the Abruzzi building and, after going through lengthy security checks, found themselves in the main hall. Harold, Marion, and Cedric, all seated in grand, high-backed chairs in front of a massive conference table, appeared to be very pleased to see the crew as they entered the spacious room.
"There she is," said Harold, standing and clasping his slim hands together as Thorne and the rest of the crew entered. "I can't believe I'm looking at her with my own two eyes. Simply incredible.
Thorne and the crew came to a stop in front of the Abruzzi. Harold approached the team, his eyes locked onto Adelaide.
"She's beautiful," said Cedric. "More than I could've ever hoped. You've done very well, my dear parents."
Marion scoffed.
"You think this is about getting you paired off with a girl who you find pleasing to look at?" she asked. "You know damn well that it's what's inside of her that we're concerned with."
Paired off with a girl? thought Thorne. Is that what this is about?
Harold stopped only a few feet from the crew, an eager, excited expression playing on his prim, elegant features. Thorne remained silent, looking at Adelaide out of the corner of his eye. But instead of saying anything, Harold simply leaned in and took a long slow sniff of the air in front of Adelaide, a blissful expression forming on his face as he did.
"That smell…" he said. "It's even more intoxicating than I dreamed. Like…cinnamon and lilacs. I'm halfway tempted to take you for myself."
"Father, you wouldn't!" said Cedric, raising slightly from his seat. "You promised me that she would be mine."
"Oh, calm down, boy," said Harold, waving his hand dismissively toward Cedric while keeping his eyes on Adelaide. "I told you she'd be yours, and that's what I intended to do. But that doesn't mean a man can't indulge in a little fantasy here and there."
Finally, Adelaide spoke. Thorne could tell by her tone that she couldn't take any more.
"What's going on here?" she demanded. "What the hell are you planning on doing with me?"
Harold's silver eyes flicked onto Adelaide's.
"And, on top of everything, the girl's got spunk. I like that."
"Hopefully it doesn't mean that she's going to be…difficult about all of this," said Marion.
"About what?" demanded Adelaide.
Thorne glanced to the rest of his crew. He could sense that they were just as curious as Adelaide about whatever her fate might be.
"I suppose there's no reason to keep this all a secret any longer," said Harold. "After all, we've got her right where we want her."
He turned his back to the crew and took his place in his seat.
"That girl, this little Adelaide, is going to be the bride of my son."
Thorne couldn't understand his reaction to this news. He felt anger, apprehension, and envy all at once. He'd performed hundreds of jobs over the years for the dragons of this city, but now was the first time he felt anything approaching emotional investment. But he kept his silence.
"What?" shot out Adelaide.
"That's right," said Harold.
"But she's just some girl," said Corvo, speaking out of turn. "Why did our boss have to go all the way to New Orleans just to pick up a girl for your son? New York isn't exactly short on women."
Thorne's eyes flicked over to Aurelius, and he noted that the young man had a small smile on his face. Unlike the rest of the crew, he didn't seem to be surprised at this revelation.
"She's no ordinary girl," said Marion.
"No, not at all," said Cedric.
"That scent," said Harold. "That's how we know. That lovely, lovely scent that us dragons can't help but be irresistibly attracted to."
He narrowed his eyes, a grin forming on his lips.
"That girl, inside that lovely body of hers, carries the blood of one of the most ancient shifter families in existence. A family thought long-extinct – the blood of the Melefacts."
Gasps sounded from the crew, and it took every bit of restraint that Thorne had not to react in shock along with them.
"The Melefacts?" said Jace. "No goddamn way?"
"The what?" said Adelaide. "What does that mean?"
"It means, young lady, that you have a power in you that you can't even begin to understand," said Cedric. "You see, the Melefacts were one of the first five great dragon families to walk this earth; their lineage can be traced back for tens of thousands of years."
"Until they all went extinct," said Thorne.
"That's right," said Harold. "Lost in time. Us dragons have always wondered just what happened to these progenitor families, most thinking they were simply killed and replaced as new families came into being. But I've always had other thoughts on the matter. I believed that their bloodline was simply diluted over time as more and more of them mated with humans and gave birth to shifter half-breeds.
"Now," he continued, "a shifter half-breed still retains its power, but only after a generation or two. If a half-breed mates with a human, and then that offspring mates with a human, then, well, after a time, you have a being that no longer has the power to assume our form. For all they know, they're simply a normal human, just like everyone else. But in their blood is the traces of the power that they're descended from."
Harol
d leaned forward slightly, his eyes still locked on Adelaide.
"And now, we have her. We're going to bring her into the Abruzzi clan, and the child that she has with my son will be one of the most powerful dragons to walk this Earth. And that power will be at my command."
Cedric clapped his hands eagerly.
"She's mine!" he said with almost childlike enthusiasm. "All mine!"
"That's what this is all about?" said Corvo. "Some kind of breeding project?"
"That's certainly a gauche way to put it," said Harold. "I prefer to think of her as…a welcome addition to the family. Sure, it will be quite a scandal to have my son married off to what appears to be a common human, but the controversy will pass. And it will be a small price to pay for such a grand reward."
"And what if I don't want to go along with any of this crap?" said Adelaide.
Harold scoffed.
"You say that as though you have a choice in the matter," said Harold. "Unfortunately for you, your life as a free woman is all but over."
"But it won't be all bad, darling," said Marion. "You'll have access to the wealth of the Abruzzi clan. You'll never have to worry about any material concerns every again. Of course, we'll be keeping a close eye on you once you're part of the family, so it won't be the most…independent life there is. But you'll get used to that in time."
"All I have to do is be a broodmare for your son," said Adelaide.
"That's one way you could look at it," said Harold. "Or you could take it as an opportunity to be a wife and mother."
"In a loveless marriage," said Adelaide. "Where I'll be basically a prisoner."
Harold shook his head.
"Enough," he said. "I'm not going to waste my time explaining myself to a human, despite the blood in her veins."
He then turned to Thorne.
"I need to know when I get paid," said Thorne.
Adelaide shot him a look of surprise and hurt, as though she couldn't believe that he was thinking about money at a time like this.
"Of course," said Harold. "Ever the mercenary. Unfortunately, we're going to have to make a little adjustment to our arrangement."
"What?" said Thorne, anger in his voice.
"You see, despite the unorthodox nature of all of this, we would prefer to keep in like with…some traditions. One of those being keeping the bride and groom apart until we can officially announce the lovely couple to the rest of dragon society," said Harold.
"Not to mention with the fact that there seem to be other dragons who are very keen on taking possession of this girl, it's a prudent decision to keep her hidden away until we can officially bring her into the fold."
Thorne grunted.
"Then the job's not over?"
"Not for you, no," said Harold. "You're going to be keeping this girl protected under lock and key until the official announcement ball in one week. There, we will present Cedric and little Adelaide to the world. You will hand her over then, and payment will be completed once you do."
"I assume we're getting paid for the extra time."
"Naturally.”
Thorne didn't like this. He wanted to be done with Adelaide, if only to be able to put these strange feelings he'd been developing for her behind him. But he knew that there was no way to say "no" to the Abruzzi.
"So," said Harold. "Take her with you and keep her safe. And if you can find out just who is behind the recent attacks, so much the better."
"Fine," said Thorne. "But I'm expecting hazard pay if I have to fight off more damned grays."
"Naturally," said Harold. "Now, you all may leave."
An expression of realization then flashed across his face, as though he'd just remembered something of importance that he nearly forgot.
"Ah, one more thing before you depart."
He snapped his fingers in the air, and a pair of men in crisp, white frocks emerged from a nearby door and approached Adelaide. One grabbed hold of her arms, holding her in place while the other withdrew a small silver device from his pocket.
"What are you doing?" exclaimed Adelaide. "Let me go!"
But before anyone could react, the man with the device jammed the thing into Adelaide's wrist. A clear container filled with blood. A second later, the man withdrew the syringe and looked at it with a nod.
"Just going to run some tests on that lovely, lovely blood of yours, young lady. That will be all."
"Looking forward to seeing you again, my love," said Cedric, that same eager expression on his face.
With that, the crew was escorted from the premises and led back to the Humvee. The ride back was in silence, the information that they'd just received settling into their minds. Thorne couldn't help but keep one eye on Adelaide – after all, he'd been totally shocked by what he'd learned, and could only imagine what she was thinking.
But as he watched the city pass by through the tinted windows of the car, he told himself that all such concerns were nothing. He had a job to do, and he was going to see it through. Despite what he attempted to convince himself of, however, he knew that his heart had other things in mind.
CHAPTER 10
A pink cross.
Adelaide couldn't believe what she was seeing. Standing in the bathroom of her quarters in the Silver Talon HQ, her hand shook as she held the pregnancy test.
This can't be right, she thought. There's no way this is possible.
Snatching the flimsy cardboard box that the test came in, she checked the instructions once again. Sure enough, it was as she thought: One pink line means no, a pink cross means yes.
She was pregnant; there was no getting around it.
How the hell can I be pregnant? she thought, pacing back and forth in her bedroom. It's only been a week since Thorne and I…did what we did.
But there was no denying what had been happening to her. It started the first morning after she arrived here at the HQ, when she woke up gripped with a nausea more intense than anything she'd ever experienced. Then, over the course of the next few days, she'd experienced more and more symptoms. She was convinced that it was some sort of strange flu, and that it was nothing to worry about.
Deep down, however, she knew there was something else going on. She felt something, a presence in her. The thought that it might be a pregnancy occurred to her, but she dismissed it as insane. But she couldn't shake how she felt. Then, when she stepped into the shower the previous morning, she'd caught a glimpse of something strange with her figure. Adelaide stopped in front of the mirror to look at her nude body, and saw, to her horror, that there was a small bump in her belly that hadn't been there when she went to sleep.
Despite how insane it sounded to her, Adelaide knew as soon as she laid eyes on the bump that she could no longer ignore what was happening to her. She convinced Jace to grab for her a test the next time she was out, and once she had it, she knew there was no going back.
And now, she had to tell Thorne.
Thorne had been another matter entirely. Ever since he received the new orders from the Abruzzi, he'd been cold and distant toward Adelaide. She couldn't tell if he was simply upset that his job of babysitting her had been extended, or if there was something more. Despite how much it hurt, she'd been giving him his space. But now, that wasn't an option.
"We have to talk," she said that afternoon, finding Thorne in his private office on the upper floor of the headquarters.
"What is it?" he said, not taking his eyes off the computer in front of him.
Adelaide's stomach tightened with anxiety. As much as she didn't want to have the conversation, she knew there was no getting around it.
Thorne stared at her expectantly, waiting for her to speak. But no words came out. Instead, Adelaide marched to his desk, set the pregnancy test down, and crossed her arms.
"What the hell is this?" Thorne asked.
"It's exactly what it looks like it is."
Thorne swiped the little white object off the desk, shot out of his chair, and held it close to his fac
e.
"Is this some kind of fucked up joke?" he asked, boring into Adelaide with his hard gaze. "Because this is the exact opposite of fucking funny."
"No joke," she said. "I'm pregnant."
Then, she lifted her shirt up just enough to show the small bump that had somehow developed over the last few days.
"And I don't know how, but it's happening fast."
Thorne shot over to Adelaide and placed his hand on her belly. It was as though he was expecting it to not be real.
"How am I showing so soon? This is what I should look like after two months, not a week!"
Thorne looked away in thought.
"It's the blood," he said, his voice grave. "That's gotta be it."
"What?" demanded Adelaide. "My blood?"
"The ancient dragon blood that you've got in your veins. It's more powerful than even I was thinking. When dragons give birth, the process is much faster than with pure blood humans – only takes a few months. But with a silver dragon like me and a human with ancient blood, it's even faster than that."
Adelaide felt unsteady, as though her legs were going to give out from under her at any moment.
"I…can't be pregnant; I can't be pregnant with some…animal child! I'm not ready for this."
"Then you're gonna have to get ready," said Thorne, his voice stern. "Because this is happening, and that child inside of you doesn't care whether you're ready or not."
"And we got another problem," he continued. "The Abruzzi aren't gonna be happy if they find out that you're already pregnant before they marry you off to Cedric. They find out that I'm the daddy, and we're both gonna be in a world of trouble."
Adelaide's head began to spin. She felt like she was in the middle some kind of terrible, waking nightmare.
"Then…what are we going to do?" she said, her voice frantic. "If they find out I'm carrying your baby, they'll kill you, then probably me, then, then-"
Thorne's hands fell hard on her shoulders, holding her in place.
"Listen," he said, looking deep into her eyes. "This isn't what I wanted to happen, but no matter what, I'm gonna keep you safe. There's not a goddamn chance in hell that I'm gonna let the Abruzzi lay a hand on you."
