“What is’t, lass?” he asked. “Do ye no wish tae be me Queen? Is that’t? Go on and tell me.”
She bent her head and rested her eyes against his chest. Her voice quavered. “That can never happen. Ross told you Carmen and I would go back when the curse lifted.”
He kissed the back of her neck. “There mun’ be a way.”
She stayed hidden against his heart so long he started to worry. Was she crying down there? He put his arms around her to shelter her. “Lass.”
She heaved back her head and kissed him. “I can never be your Queen, even if I want to be. The minute you get onto the Throne, I’ll be gone. You’ll have some other Queen. Besides….”
“Besides?”
She let out a shaky breath. She opened her eyes and faced him in the dark. “We’re not the same species. You’re…. you’re this dragon. I’m human. We could never have children, and isn’t that the Queen’s job?”
Robbie froze. “So that’s it, is’t? Ye dinnae want tae be saddled with this dragon. I shoulda kenned it would come tae that.”
“Come on, Rob. You know it isn’t that. I would give anything to be with you. I just spent the most amazing night of my life with you. Don’t you know I want you more than anything?”
“What is it, then?” he asked. “Why cinnae ye see beyond that tae just ye and me taegether? Why does it ha’e tae be anythin’ else?”
“I don’t want it to be,” she cried. “I wish more than anything I could….” She stopped.
“What? You wisht more than anythin’ ye could what? What would ye do if you could ha’e anythin’? Would ye stay ‘ere and marry me? Would ye become me Queen? Huh? Would ye do that if ye could? Or would ye go home tae yer own country and leave me ‘ere alone? Huh? Which is’t?”
She hung her head. “Don’t ask me that when you already know the answer.”
He heard his voice rising, but he couldn’t stop it. “How could I ken the answer when ye ha’nt told me? Would ye stay ‘ere and be me Queen if ye could?”
“You know I would. You know I would give anything to make that happen, but it never will happen. Me staying here while you fight the Urlus won’t change that. The curse will lift, and I’ll vanish back to my own place no matter where you are. We’ll…we’ll never see each other again.”
“Is that why ye want tae come tae the war wi’ me? Ye want tae be there when it happens? Is that it?”
“Oh, Rob,” she groaned. “What’s the point in us loving each other so much if it can never be? What’s the point in hurting each other like this?”
“Is that what last nicht was tae ye?” he asked. “Did it hurt ye? That’s just bloody splendid.”
She tried to put her arms around him. “Don’t say that. You know I love you.”
“Then stay ‘ere. I’ll find Ross, and I’ll find a way tae keep ye ‘ere wi’ me. That’s the ainly way ye’ll love me.”
“I don’t want to stay here. I want to come with you and find Carmen and….”
“Carmen!” he bellowed. “Ye want tae find Carmen! Ye want tae go back! Ye’ve wanted tae go back all alaing! Ye never wanted tae stay here wi’ me.”
“How could I want to stay here?” she asked. “I never thought it was possible.”
“I’tis possible!” he cried. “Ye know it mun’ be possible. How in the name o’ heaven can there be allus wizards and such licht runnin’ around all o’er the place if it an’t possible? One o’ ‘em mun’ ken a way tae keep ye ‘ere if ye really want’t.”
She put out a hand to him. “Rob, please…”
He jumped out of bed. He threw his legs over the side and snatched his shirt off the floor. He threw it over his head and grabbed his kilt. “Go on. Go find summat tae send ye back. I’ve no doubt this Abraline will do’t. I’ve no doubt these Munros won’t bat an eyelash when ye tell ‘em ye dinnae care to be saddled with any kind of dragon freak. Go on and be damned tae ye.”
He pulled on his kilt and set to work buckling his belt. What was wrong with him? Why did he push her away like this, just when he needed her most?
She sat up in bed and grabbed his arm. “Don’t walk away, Rob. I would give anything to stay here with you. You know I would.”
He fought her off a moment longer, but she held on so tight he had to struggle hard to free himself. He yanked his arm free and hurled her down on the bed. She cried out in surprise. The noise pierced his brain, and he stared down at her in horror.
What was he turning into, that he could push her away like that? He came here to love her and cherish her forever. Now he had to go do something like that.
She stared up at him from the pillow. Her wide eyes caught a glimmer of light from the window, and he read her face plain as day. She didn’t recognize him. She just gave him a night of rapture, and now he had to treat her like that.
He slumped down on the bed and hung his head. “Forgive me.”
He never expected her to forgive him again. How could any woman take these insults and keep loving him? When she spoke, the steady determination that kept her going all this time made her answer smooth and sure.
“I want to be there,” she murmured. “I want to be there when it happens. If you get ripped away from me, if I get whisked away back to my own time, I want to be with you when it happens. I want to feel you there with me when it happens. I want to see your face and feel your hand and hold you right up to the very end. I want to spend every minute with you that I can. If it’s going to happen, I don’t want to be miles away where I can’t see you. If we’re going to be torn apart, don’t let it happen sooner than it has to. Let me come with you. That’s all I ask.”
He collapsed on top of her and took her in his arms. No man deserved a woman as fine as her. He pressed his lips against her ear. He could barely get the words out. “Awricht, lass. Awricht.”
Her voice changed to a high-pitched whine. She sobbed into his hair. “Ushne. Ushne.”
That voice and that name sparked a chain reaction in him. She didn’t care about the Phoenix Throne and being Queen and all that nonsense. She wanted him. She loved the very essence of him.
He flung himself off the bed and stood up. He cinched his belt around his waist and buckled on his sporran. “Get up, lass. Get dressed. Ye’re comin’ wi’ me.”
She hopped out of bed, but she didn’t put on the corsets and skirts she wore yesterday. She took her old trousers and shirt and jacket out of a drawer and slipped them on.
Robbie watched her. “Ha’e ye been hidin’ these allus time?”
She shot him a wicked grin. “Yep. The maids and everybody looked horrified that I wanted to keep them, so I thought I’d give the other clothes a try. Now that I’m going with you, I’m putting these on again. They’re more practical for the road.”
He shook his head. “Whate’er ye want tae do is fine wi’ me. Come on. We ha’e summat tae do afore the army leaves.”
He headed out the door. The castle still slept in silence. Their heels clipped along the stone passage. Elle hurried to catch up with him. “Where are we going?”
He cast a wary look over his shoulder. “There’s summat I ha’e tae do, and I dinnae trust anyone but ye tae come alaing. I dinnae wisht tae turn up on the battlefield wi’oot doin’ this ‘ere first.”
“What is it?”
He only shook his head and walked faster. He found his way out to the courtyard, and they slipped over the drawbridge into the open country. Mist shrouded the land all around and cast a spooky atmosphere over the country.
Robbie headed down the road toward the woods. Elle hesitated before she hurried to catch up with him again. “How far are we going? Do you really think we ought to walk there?”
“We ha’e tae walk,” he replied. “We dinnae want tae frighten the horses.”
She kept quiet after that. He didn’t want to tell her what he planned to do. He needed her for this. He had to do it, and he needed her resolve to help him. He would lose his nerve if he went alone.
He found the woods where he hunted with Alan so many times. He crossed it to a certain field he knew on the other side. All the cows were in the barn.
He pressed into the field and gauged the distance around him. Yes, this would work. Elle paused. “Well? What are we doing here?”
He didn’t give himself an instant to hesitate. He closed his eyes and forced his life energy out through his skin. He flung himself outward as hard as he could. He spread his arms, and his mind sank under a black tide of forgotten power.
His chest erupted out of him. His arms extended far beyond his body. Wings sprouted from his back, and his neck craned back to an unimaginable length. Before he could think twice, he changed into the huge iridescent dragon he was at the caldera.
Elle gazed up at him in awe. “Ushne!”
He curved his head around to look at her. His voice rumbled out of somewhere deep inside this huge body of his. “Get on my back.”
He stooped low, and she stepped on his elbow. She swung her leg over his neck and settled into the hollow between his neck and shoulders. He flexed his wings and took to the air. He soared over the fields and forests to the mountains far away.
Elle clung to his neck with her legs. He pumped his wings, and the power of his flight carried him into the sky where the rising sun painted the clouds crimson and gold.
Robbie never experienced anything so exhilarating as that first flight. He narrowed his eyes against the wind whipping over his scales. It whistled all around his head. His sleek body cut the chilly air. He worked his muscles harder. He could fly faster than he ever thought possible.
Elle bent low over his neck and let out a wild whoop of thrilling excitement. The sound spurred him to fly faster. No matter how hard he flapped his wings, he could always fly faster. He put hundreds of miles behind him. The landscape rippled away below him, and he didn’t feel a thing.
He never would have dared to fly this fast if Elle hadn’t come with him. Now that he knew she was enjoying herself, he pushed himself faster and farther than ever. The air rushing past made a breathy sound in his ears ushne ushne ushne. So that’s where that name came from. It spoke out of the forgotten depths of his dragon soul.
He flew beyond the mountains and to the blue sea in the distance. Islands dotted the coasts. He banked and soared down the shore. Storms kicked the waves up, and spray splashed in his face. He zoomed around in a circle going a hundred miles an hour.
Elle shrieked with glee, and he chuckled low in his throat. He headed back the way he came and found the castle with the sun just hitting the upmost turret. He touched down, set Elle on her feet, and collapsed into his usual shape.
Chapter 22
Elle and Robbie walked into the conference room hand in hand. Alan turned around and narrowed his eyes at them. “What’s she doin’ ‘ere?”
“She’s comin’ wi’ us,” Robbie replied.
“She cinnae come wi’ us,” Alan countered. “We’re on our way tae war. It’s no place fer a woman. Ye should ken that, lad.”
Robbie stiffened. “I’m no lad, lad. I’m a mon if anyone in this room is, and it’s me Throne we’re fichtin’ fer. I’ll be the one tae decide whether she comes or no, and I say she comes. She’s fought and won a hundred times, and I’ll no leave her behind now. If she’s no comin’, then I’m stayin’ behind, too.”
Alan glared at him, and the King scowled. “Ye’re a mon o’ war, and ye ken best how tae get yer own Throne back, and we’ll no tell ye otherwise. If ye care ought aboot yer companion, ye’ll leave her where she’ll be safe. She’s best tae stay behind wi’ the women, and that’s all there is tae’t. If ye insist tae bring her alaing, it’s on yer own head.”
“I’tis,” Robbie replied, “and I say she comes. Now, if ye care a’tall to mak’ our plans, ye’ll go ahead wi’ that and leave the subject where it lies.”
Alan and the King exchanged glances. “Ye bring her or no, as ye please,” Alan returned. “Ye cinnae think tae include her in our plans.”
“Whye’er not?” Robbie asked.
“She’s…. she’s a woman,” Alan replied, “and she’s a foreigner.”
“I’m a foreigner meself, if it comes tae that,” Robbie countered.
“Ye’re the King,” Alan corrected him, “and ye’re the ainly one as can ficht the Urlus. Ye ha’e tae come. As for sharin’ our plans wi’ a foreign woman as dinnae belaing on the battlefield in the first place, ye cinnae include her in our conferences. Ye mun’ ken that yer ownself.”
“She’ll be included,” Robbie declared. “That’s me last word.”
The King and the Prince looked at each other one more time. Neither said a word. Elle watched Robbie work. He got more confident with every moment. That short flight he took outside strengthened him for what he set out to do.
He got bigger and more sure of himself in the last few minutes. How long did he hold himself back from changing? He must have known all along he could do it. He could fly far and fast whenever he wanted. He just had to overcome the mental block holding him back.
The same mental block held him back from her. It made him fight against his feelings for her. He kicked and scratched against loving her, but now that he embraced his dragon self, he let go of all his resistance. They were together for good and all—right up until the moment they wouldn’t be anymore.
The King and Alan didn’t argue with him, but they didn’t discuss their plans. They wouldn’t say a word in front of Elle. Robbie surveyed the two of them one more time. “No? Very weel.”
He took Elle by the hand and spun on his heel to march out of the room. Elle’s heart pounded. He couldn’t walk out on this. He invested weeks of planning in this war. He needed the Munro army to attack the Urlus. He couldn’t win on his own.
He didn’t hesitate. He got halfway across the room before Alan raced to his side. “Stop where ye are, Rob. Ye cinnae walk awa’ from us.”
Robbie didn’t stop. “No? Watch this.”
Alan darted in front of him and held out his hand. “Please, Rob. Ye ken we cinnae do this naught but taegether. Come back and talk aboot it wi’ us.”
“If ye wish tae talk aboot ought tae me, ye’ll talk aboot it wi’ Elle, as weel. That’s the ainly way ye’ll talk about ought tae me e’er again. Ye’ll ken that richt now, or ye’ll see the back o’ me this very mornin’. We traveled a laing way afore ye asked me tae come ‘ere and help ye, and if ye dinnae want tae do that any lainger, then good mornin’ tae ye and yers. We’ll carry on the way we were afore, and I’ll see how the land lie when I get tae the castle and find me brothers.”
He dodged around Alan and kept walking. Elle didn’t say a word. Adrenaline burned her guts. Would this work? She never wanted to know their plans, but Robbie had other ideas. Maybe this was his way of forcing the Munro to do his bidding. Maybe he had something to prove. He had to show them who was really in charge here.
She only hoped and prayed he knew what he was doing. She didn’t mind hitting the road with him the way they did before. She didn’t so much look forward to facing the Urlus and trying to get the Phoenix Throne back, just the two of them. They might never find his brothers. They could be wandering this backward country forever.
He knew better, though. He almost gained the door when Alan made one last dive to stop him. “Awricht, mon. Awricht. Ye win. She can stay.”
“I ken she can stay,” Robbie replied. “It’s ye who’ll come or go as ye wish’t.”
Alan hung his head. “Awricht, mon. Ha’e it yer own way.”
Robbie turned around to face the King. “Do ye wish tae conference this mornin’, or no?”
The King bowed his head in silent acceptance.
“Is there ought we need tae plan for the column?” Robbie asked. “I thought we settled all’at already. The column, the forces—it’s allus set tae go. What else do we need?”
“We need tae plan the main assault.” Alan motioned Robbie forward, and when Robbie returned to the King’s side, Ala
n unrolled a large map. “We’ll set up our blockade ‘ere. Our forces will assault the castle ‘ere, and the main body o’ the Urlus will come out and face off on this plane ‘ere. Once we engage ‘em, that’s when ye’ll strike.”
“Ye tell me what ye want me tae do,” Robbie replied. “I’ll go alaing wi’ yer strategy. I’m ainly one mon.”
“Ye’ll no strike ‘em as a mon,” Alan replied. “Once their forces lock wi’ us, ye’ll swoop o’er and lay waste o’ ‘em wi’ yer fire. That’s the way we’ll drive ‘em back and tak’ the castle.”
Robbie narrowed his eyes at him. He didn’t say it out loud, but Elle read his thoughts. His fire? Alan must mean the dragon’s fiery breath. He wanted Robbie to incinerate the Urlu forces. They wouldn’t stand a chance against a full-sized dragon. So that’s why they invited him along in the first place.
Robbie nodded. “Awricht. I’ll do’t. Anything else?”
“Once ye devastate the Urlu forces, their king will come out o’ the castle and challenge ye. Ye’ll fight him one tae one. That’s their way. Once ye defeat him, ye’ll ha’e the Throne.”
Robbie stared down at the map. He showed no sign of misgiving, but Elle couldn’t relax. Fight the King of the Urlus one on one? Could Robbie defeat the King? If he lost, he would never get the Throne. The castle would remain under its curse, and Elle would….
The truth hit her. If he didn’t get the Throne and break the curse, she would stay here, possibly forever. She might meet up with Carmen and the others, but they would never return to their own time.
Elle’s thoughts and emotions tangled into one confused knot of conflicting loyalties and desires. Did she really want to stay here forever—with Robbie?
Alan and the King studied him for any hint of protest, but Robbie only nodded. He raised his head to lock eyes with them. “Very weel. Prepare the column.”
He took hold of Elle’s hand and strode out of the hall. He marched down the passage to his room, threw back the door, and conducted her inside.
She eyed him sidelong. “I sure hope you know what you’re doing.”
Dragon Quest Page 13
