Dancing with Dragons

by Lorenda Christensen

  I gave her honesty. “I’m not entirely sure.”

  But I needed to at least try and find out. I approached the dragons cautiously, unsure exactly what Benaki’s plans were for all the human employees. Had he just dismissed us, or were we being corralled until he had the chance to get rid of us all?

  The dragon on the left waited until I was within ten feet of the door before he spoke. “By order of my lord, the great General Benaki, no one is to leave this building.”

  Well. It was always hard to tell with dragons—their voices were always terrifying—but the creature didn’t sound overly excited or gleeful about his announcement. In fact, he sounded like any other run-of-the-mill security guard bored half to death. He hadn’t even bothered turning his head in my direction.

  I took that as a good sign. At least they weren’t planning on slaughtering us yet. That’s not to say I was happy about being held prisoner. It was like the time the generators in the CreaTV building back home had run out of juice while I was on the elevator with two other people. We were nearly certain that the elevator wouldn’t actually fall and kill us all, but it didn’t mean we wanted to spend our entire day in a four-by-four box.

  This box was substantially bigger, but I still felt my pulse rate rise at the thought of being held here indefinitely.

  If Benaki had managed to somehow convince Savitri’s dragons to hold their own dragon lord in the building, then it was clear this wasn’t just a self-centered whim. He’d made actual, detailed plans for this takeover.

  Somehow, I needed to talk to Daniel. Maybe he could help me figure out just how far Benaki’s influence stretched within the ranks of Savitri’s army. Or at least he would have an idea of how to get me out of here. I took a couple of steps back from the pair of reptiles before I spoke, just in case I’d misjudged the situation or one of these dragons had a hair-trigger temper like Benaki. I pointed past them to the front parking lot.

  “My husband is out there. I was supposed to meet him for lunch. If I could just step outside for a moment, let him know—”

  “No.” This time, both dragons turned to peer at me curiously, as if they were trying to determine the depth of my stupidity. The one on the right opened his mouth for the first time. “Benaki said no one leaves the building.” His speech was slow and deliberate, and his teeth flashed as he attempted to enunciate.

  I fought the urge to roll my eyes. Unused to my American accent, they thought I hadn’t understood the order. “No, no, I understand Benaki’s orders, but my husband has been waiting for me for hours. I just need to speak with him for a moment.”

  When the dragons made no move to open the door—in fact, the slightly crankier one on the left snorted a not-so-subtle poof of smoke from his nostrils in response—I clenched my hands behind my back and tried again.

  It seemed my fear of being trapped overruled my fear of being eaten. Or maybe Benaki had finally pushed me over the crazy line right along with him. I’d certainly dealt with enough stress lately to justify a mental breakdown.

  “Can I assume you are aware General Benaki has seized Lady Savitri’s mate, and is currently using him as a bargaining chip in his plan to take over as dragon lord of China?”

  There was a gasp behind me from the young receptionist, but neither of the dragon guards so much as twitched at my news. Which meant it wasn’t news to them. They were definitely General Benaki’s dragons.

  Crap. I’d been carrying a small hope that maybe all these dragons needed was to hear the full story, and they’d be falling all over themselves trying to get back into the dragon lord’s good graces before she sliced them to bits.

  Then again, if they were loyal little soldiers, they’d have Benaki’s best interests at heart. Maybe I could use that.

  “How well do you think Benaki’s plan will work if news gets out that he’s acted against a ruling member of the council?”

  The dragon on my right twitched first, so I addressed my next question to him. “And how do you think the dragon council will treat those who facilitated Benaki’s attack on Lady Savitri?”

  The dragon snorted, his pupils narrowing to slits. “The dragon council will never know of Benaki’s actions. Lady Savitri and her mate won’t live long enough to share it.”

  “Shut up, you stupid frog-spawn.” The other dragon swiped a clawed hand toward his partner, and I waited a moment while they scuffled. Today might not be my lucky day, exactly, but Benaki had given one good thing today. He’d chosen two idiots to guard the door. And after eight years of dealing with upper management as part of my job with CreaTV, I knew I could work with idiots.

  When the dragons had settled a bit, I raised my hands in a placating gesture. “It’s fine. Don’t worry. I have no intention of calling up the dragon lords. Why would they listen to me anyway?”

  The dragons cocked their heads, partly confused, and partly interested at where I was taking this conversation. Forcing my shoulders to relax, I ran a hand nonchalantly along the surface of the desk as I spoke, as if I were thinking aloud.

  “You see, I won’t be calling the dragon council, but I feel I should mention that my husband won’t feel the same.”

  The dragon on my left—the one I’d gathered actually had a brain in his head—stilled, and watched me closely. He’d begun to connect the dots.

  General Benaki’s plan hinged on Lady Savitri caring more about her mate’s safety than about who ruled the territory next door. But it also hinged on the dragon council taking Savitri’s recommendation. Which they wouldn’t do if they realized her judgment had been severely compromised. Or that she no longer had control of the army they were loath to face. Without her dragons, Savitri was no threat at all, either to China, or to the dragon council. I believed that Benaki fully intended on killing both Savitri and her mate, just as soon as the dragon council had voted him onto the Chinese throne, but for now, the general needed the Indian dragon lord alive.

  He also needed the rest of the world to think that Savitri was still in full control of her territory.

  I looked the smart dragon straight in the eye. “My husband is a reporter for the Tulsa Times Chronicle.”

  The dragon’s eyes widened. Apparently reporters didn’t gain any likeability points in translation.

  “And yes, just in case you’re not familiar with the North American media, the Tulsa Times Chronicle is the premier newspaper in Relobu’s territory, and yes, I have it on good authority that Lord Nir Relobu is a regular subscriber. So you see, it’s very important that I let my husband know that I’m okay. Because if I don’t, he’ll start digging around in Savitri’s business, and by extension, General Benaki’s.”

  “So—” still hiding my shaking hands, I took a deep breath and tried to look confident as I marched toward the front door, “—I think it’s in your best interest to let me pass.”

  I’d managed to touch the glass before the dragon’s arm blocked my vision—and my escape.

  “Benaki said no one leaves the building.”

  I opened my mouth to argue, but closed it when a clawed hand gripped my shoulder.

  Damn. I really thought I’d had him.

  “However...”

  The dragon’s next words were music to my ears.

  “I will allow you to write a short note to your husband. Tell him you’ve been asked to work late, and will contact him as soon as you’re free.”

  I stepped away from the door, and back to the relative safety of the receptionist’s desk, where the actual receptionist stood, wide-eyed.

  “My note will have to be in English. He doesn’t read dragonscript.” I prayed I’d get lucky for once and these dragons wouldn’t be able to read the note.

  The dragons looked at one another, and engaged in a quiet conversation before turning back to me.

  The girl beside me jumped when the dragon on the left—I’d started mentally referring to him as Smart Dragon—addressed her.

  “You there. Girl. Do you read and write English?”
>
  The dragon growled when she tried to sneak a glance in my direction. Instead, she swallowed audibly and nodded. “Yes.” The word came out so quietly that I barely heard her.

  He looked back to me. “You write your letter.” And to the girl, “And you will verify that it says exactly what it should say. No mention of Benaki, Savitri, or anything other than her plans to work late.”

  The receptionist and I looked at each other.

  Well, crap. I wouldn’t be surprised if the poor girl fainted in fear. I’m not sure she would be able to remember her name right now, much less have the presence of mind to help me fudge a letter to get us some help.

  So I had to hope Daniel was smart enough to read between the lines.

  “I need a piece of paper.”

  My request snapped the receptionist out of her fog and she opened a drawer to dig for a pen.

  “What’s your name?” I asked the girl when I saw tears trickling down her cheek.

  “Prita.” She swiped at her face with a silk-encased forearm.

  I gave her shoulder a reassuring squeeze. “Well, Prita. It’s nice to meet you, despite the circumstances.”

  I scrawled a quick note across the back of a telephone memo pad and pushed it across the desk to Prita, glaring at the dragons by the door the entire time. The Stupid One grinned back at me. Or snarled. It was hard to tell.

  Prita took the piece of paper, and spoke my words aloud, translating to dragonspeak as she read. “Daniel, I’ll be stuck at work for a while. Krishnan has me looking hard at the Moneybags acquisitions, and there are a lot of legal traps we have to get around. Don’t worry about bringing me clothes; I can pick up the red sari being held at the cleaners if I’m in a bind.”

  “Happy?”

  I addressed my question to the smarter of the two dragons, praying that the note didn’t trip any of his subconscious triggers. My fingers itched for an eraser. The “in a bind” line had probably been a bit too much, but I’d had to think fast. My only choice at this point was to brazen it out.

  The dragon stared right back, and I had to grip the bottom of the desk to keep from cheering when he nodded. “Give me the note, and I’ll deliver it.”

  Chapter Nineteen

  I spent the next couple of hours fighting off a panic attack.

  What had I done? There was nothing Daniel could do about a group of dragons loyal to General Benaki and trained in military maneuvers. Without fancy dragon-killing bio-material, humans didn’t exactly fare well against dragons, and I seriously doubted Daniel could get his hands on any of that stuff with the entire dragon population on high alert.

  When we first realized they existed, but before we realized they were intelligent beings, humans tried to band together and exterminate their entire race. I’m not even sure the dragons noticed. Our weapons, even the huge, armor-piercing variety, had simply been an annoyance to the flying reptiles. The bio-material was only thing that seemed to harm them at all. Unfortunately, the weapon didn’t allow you to choose your targets.

  Even if by some miracle Daniel could find a dragon-killing device, he wouldn’t be able to use it at Savitri’s palace without also killing the dragon lord’s mate.

  I almost hoped Daniel hadn’t understood my message. His comment about the butler at Savitri’s house had been a passing observation; it was possible he’d written off my Monopoly reference as a lame attempt at a joke. As for the red sari, days had passed since he’d first mentioned that he’d liked the color, and I’d passed on the outfit as a result. Would he even remember that I didn’t actually buy a red one?

  I wandered around the office, speaking quietly with some of the other employees. The mood was hovering between panic and grief as Nipa’s friends mourned her passing, and others realized we would all likely share her fate in the near future. While I’d been arguing with the dragons at the front door, Benaki had installed other dragons to guard the main work area. The phone lines had been severed—whether during Benaki’s printer-throwing temper tantrum or later by damaging the central control box at the corner of the block—and everyone was trying to come to terms with the situation.

  Shortly after Benaki hand-delivered her mate’s finger, Savitri had been “asked” to share a release with the local press. It was announced that there had been a chemical accident at Savitri Enterprises, and that we were all being kept here under quarantine, until they could be “assured the contamination was appropriately neutralized.” Delivery boys were asked to leave their packages near the front gate, and family and friends were instructed not to worry.

  Those dragons openly loyal to Savitri had been promptly beheaded, and we’d all had to watch as their bodies were lifted between two or more of Benaki’s dragons, depending on the body’s size, and flown to the building’s waste-processing unit for disposal.

  I wondered what the garbage company would think when they were finally allowed to pick up our trash. Especially given the relentless Indian heat.

  The dragon lord had made a brief visit to assure herself of the relative safety of her human employees, but she’d quickly retreated back to the confines of her office. Krishnan had quietly explained that dragons, on a good day, were only slightly temperamental. But Lady Savitri, forced to endure the stress of a murdered assistant, her slaughtered dragons, and the capture of her mate, wasn’t exactly fit for company. Stressed dragons forgot to sheathe their claws.

  After all the “troublesome” dragons had been disposed of, Benaki’s guards lined up all of the humans and forced Krishnan and I to translate as they read us the riot act. No contact with the outside world and no leaving this room without permission. Anyone who ignored these rules would be killed.

  After the “staff meeting,” one of Benaki’s dragons had enlisted Krishnan to facilitate the planning of a reception for the visiting dragon council delegates. I sat in the floor near the wall and listened as the dragon dictated exactly what the mood of the reception would be. Basically, he’d demanded that we all appear completely delighted with our jobs to anyone and everyone who so much as glanced at us, and to feign confusion should someone actually try to speak with us.

  When the amount of translation between humans and dragons had become too much for Krishnan to handle on his own, I’d been drafted to assist with the domestic side of the delegation’s stay. Guest rooms were prepared for our human visitors in the attached palace, and perches were moved onto the building’s multiple flight decks for the dragon contingent so they could enjoy the hot weather that was well-suited to the dragons’ reptile-based tastes.

  By the end of the day, I was exhausted, my recent injuries and the unexpected physical labor sapping what little strength I had left.

  “How are you holding up?” My boss appeared at my side as I stared, unseeing, at the spot where Nipa had taken her last breath. The body had been removed and stored in one of the empty walk-in kitchen freezers until further arrangements could be made, but it was clear from the way my colleagues walked wide circles around that specific portion of tile that she was still very much on everyone’s mind.

  We were all very aware of the possibility that no one would be around long enough to make those arrangements.

  I twisted my hands together to burn some of the anxious energy building as our confinement stretched on. “I’m doing okay. Did I hear Benaki finally consented to allowing you to get us some food?”

  Krishnan nodded. “I ordered pizza. It seemed like the easiest thing.”

  “Delivery?”

  “Yeah. We have an account with the vendor, so they’re leaving the food just outside the door.” His tone was defeated, probably because he too had carried a vague hope of using the need for food as an excuse to make contact with someone who could get help, or help us spin this situation into our favor.

  “Hey, look on the bright side. Benaki could have just starved us to death. In fact, I’m pretty surprised he acquiesced to your request. I didn’t peg him as a dragon who put worth on the life—or usefulness—of
humans.”

  Krishnan huffed out a humorless laugh. “He isn’t. But the dragon council reps would notice if there were no humans to receive them upon their arrival.”

  “Good point.” My mind raced. We had to get word to one of the dragon council that Lady Savitri was compromised. “How much contact will the humans have with the dragon council?”

  Krishnan sighed. “Plenty. But it won’t matter. With Nipa gone, we’re the only employees in the building who are dragonspeakers, and they won’t even let me out of their sight to pick up some pizza.”

  Shocked, I jerked my head to look at him. “We’re the only dragonspeakers?” I’d figured out that the majority of my office mates didn’t understand dragonspeak, but I’d honestly never given any thought to why Krishnan and I had been the only ones drafted to translate this afternoon. This particular Savitri Enterprises building had thirteen floors. Granted, I’d been told that many of them were used only on the rare occasions that Savitri had guests she wanted to entertain—the kitchens, the apartments and the conference rooms took up a good six of those floors—but that still left seven floors of employees.

  Krishnan noticed my look of confusion. “This is the only floor built for human use. Savitri’s office was placed on this floor to allow the second and third stories to remain open for flying space.”

  I thought back to the hugely tall ceilings in her office. No wonder I’d felt so small.

  “The receptionist is also a dragonspeaker, but she’s fallen ill from the stress of the situation. While they refuse to let her out to see a doctor, they did allow us to make a place for her to lie down in one of the empty office spaces. There have been several that are similarly afflicted, and a great many more with physical injuries. Though we have very few supplies, we’ve have managed to set up a makeshift infirmary, should you require any assistance.”

  Krishnan’s eyes landed briefly on my scalp, which had, until yesterday, housed a row of stitches. My hand automatically touched the wound. “Oh, thanks. But I’m fine.” His gaze was curious, but he didn’t push.