General of Draconis (Winged Beast Book 3)

by Crystal Dawn

  “Not if it’s a true bond.” Garulto offered.

  They left quickly. Tomi got a covered bowl of rich gravy and hurried back while Romo waited for plate of food. Garulto saw her and sank his fangs into Dori’s neck. His mate sat up straight eyes wide open.

  “Drink this Mom.” Tomi said and Dori automatically gulped it down. Romo entered with the plate of food and she started to eat, but ran out of steam and fell asleep before she finished.

  “She probably needs to go home where she can rest better. Every two hours wake her and have her eat whatever you can get in her. Set the alarm, Garulto. You need sleep too. The rest of you can take turns staying to help him for a couple hours at a time. I’m not sure how long it will take to get her back in good condition. If you need me, call.” Damos urged.

  “Trial by fire.” Romo said and Garulto agreed. Who knew what Dori would think of this?

  Chapter 7

  Dreams

  Dori was home. Had she left Draconis for good or was she just visiting? Her baby, Kitty was with her. “He sounds great Mom. When will I get to meet this wonderful man you’ve taken up with? Why did he let you travel here alone?”

  Dori wasn’t sure what to say. She couldn’t remember why she was here much less why she seemed to be alone. “Don’t stress out Mom. It’s just a dream and stress is bad for the little one. Trust your doctor, he won’t steer you wrong.” Kitty whispered and she was disappearing fast.

  Everything was disappearing and someone was calling her back home. It was Betty. “Mom, you have to eat for the baby. Please wake up.” Betty sounded upset.

  “I’m coming. Keep your pants on.” Food was being shoved in her mouth. “Slow down and let me chew so I don’t choke. Kitty said to tell everyone hello. She’s doing great, just like we expected.”

  “I’m sure she is, Mom. Here, just another bite.”

  “You’re a terrible liar. There’s always another bite.” Dori said.

  The next dream was on her as Betty faded away. “You’re a dragon!” Dori exclaimed. “What a magnificent beast you are.” The dragon preened and seemed to smile, it’s fangs clearly visible.

  “Thank you for noticing.” The dragon replied. “I’m part of you now. Let’s discuss what this will mean to you.” The dragon began to explain in detail how the mating venom Garulto had injected her with changed her at a primal level.

  She and her dragon were having a great conversation and she was learning so much including the stories of dragon kind when someone started calling her away. “Go for now. You have to eat so we can survive.”

  This whole situation was weird and surreal. Dori wasn’t sure what was going on except everyone seemed worried about her including her dragon. Her dragon! That was the weirdest thing of all. Dori had gone from an ordinary human to a magnificent dragon shifter.

  “There was never anything ordinary about you Mom.” Bree said. “Now open up and take a bite. DO it for the baby.”

  “What happened?” She asked and she took a bite.

  “Apparently carrying a dragonlet takes too much out of a human. Even a tough old girl like you.”

  “I got sick?”

  “Not sick so much as drained. You and the baby almost died.” Bree started crying, but never slowed down on the food she was feeding her. Dori wanted to answer, but her mouth was full.

  “She’s awake?” Garulto asked. “Praise the goddess.”

  He sat next to her and held her hand while Bree kept feeding her. Dori turned her head refusing to take another bite. “How long?”

  “Take a bite and I’ll tell you.” She did and he began to explain. “I came home from work and you were asleep and I couldn’t wake you. I took you to Damos and you gave the poor guy a terrible time until you fell asleep again and nothing woke you up then.” Dori remembered so she nodded hoping he’d continue.

  “At that point, the only thing I could do, was mate you. It only required the bite. You woke up long enough to eat something and we’ve been waking you up every two hours to eat for three days now. There’s been a slow improvement, but this is the first time you’ve seemed fully aware.”

  “What did Damos say?”

  “He said to feed you every two hours, watch you closely, and call him if anything came up.” Garulto recited.

  “Did I upset him much?” Dori asked and no one spoke. “I guess I did. You’d think he’d have a thicker skin being a healer.” Bree shot her one of her signature are you kidding looks. She fed her another bite of food. “I think I can feed myself for a while.”

  Bree looked at Garulto then handed her the spoon and the bowl. “This is good. Who cooked it?” Dori asked.

  “You did. We found your frozen meals and we’ve been using them.” Bree admitted.

  “I guess once I’m up and around I’ll be cooking nonstop for a week.”

  “I doubt that. I think you’ll be taking it easy until the dragonlet is born.” Garulto suggested.

  Dori smiled. “You believe there’s any way I would or even could follow those orders?”

  “Dori, think of the baby. You almost died. Both of you.” He shot her a pleading look.

  “I’ll get back to work slowly. I can’t just sit on my ass. That’s just not who I am. How is the worker program going?”

  “Havos was a good choice, he’s been keeping things running smoothly. The problem is pay day is coming up and he hasn’t a clue. No one but you knows how to manage that.”

  Dori giggled. “I’m not technical at all, but I know what I want. It’s all setup on a program to automatically pay into the accounts it needs to go in. I’ll get my share, the barracks will get there rent, the fines are paid, and the rest goes into the worker accounts where they can draw it out. I just spot check to make sure there are no snafus.”

  “What are these snafus?”

  “Problems or mistakes.”

  “Okay. I think I understand. You check to ensure the program continues to work as expected.”

  “Yes. How have you been holding up?”

  “I’m fine. My concern is you.”

  “Don’t give me that line. Did you have to take off work the whole time?”

  “No, I’ve been working from home. I think I like it better. I may make this option available to mated males if their jobs suit it.”

  “For your pencil pushers?”

  “What are pencil pushers?”

  “People who do a lot of paper work.”

  “Yes, those would be the ones.”

  “I’m tired again. I’ll see you later.” She was aware of Garulto catching her bowl before it fell and grabbing the spoon from her hand before she was out again.

  Dori didn’t know how long she slept, but her dragon kept her company. Her beautiful dragon was copper colored and had an emerald green under belly. The same green shade adorned the underside of her wings. Her dragon was big, but she had a dainty demeanor.

  “Our colors match our mate’s. He has the same two colors.” She insisted. Dori agreed, she’d seen Garulto shifted and he did have those two colors.

  It was later when someone woke her up again. “Tomi? Is that you?”

  “Yeah, Mom. It’s me. How are you feeling now?”

  “Still tired.”

  “Do you want to try to feed yourself or do you want me to feed you?”

  “I can try. Now, tell me what you’ve been up to?””

  “I’ve been helping Bree, but the plants are planted and the animals settled in. I don’t think she needs me anymore. I heard the café at the castle might become available, but I don’t think I’ll be able to fund the start up.”

  “Where there is a will there’s a way.”

  “I know you believe that, but where would I get money? I don’t know where to begin.”

  “Start by making a list of what you need and what the cost is for each item. I’ve heard that there‘s no rent except a small utility charge because the king likes having food available.”

  “I heard that too. I wonder
who would know?”

  “Erak would know.” Garulto said as he stepped back into the room.

  “Figures.” Tomi said.

  “Erak is a nice guy. What do you have against him?” Garulto asked.

  “You wouldn’t understand.” Tomi said.

  “Not if you won’t tell me.” He agreed.

  “I don’t want to be a Mrs. Someone. I don’t just want to be someone’s mate. I need my own identity and he’s so dominant that I would lose myself and become just an extension of him.” Garulto said nothing and Dori kept her mouth shut too. “Aren’t you going to say it’s not true?”

  “Whether or not you keep your own identity after you mate, is up to you. It’s true some women become a wife and mother and don’t want any more than that. If that worries you, you’re the one that has to fight to keep yourself whole and a small part separate.” Dori offered.

  “What if I’m not strong enough to?” Tomi asked.

  “I think you know better than that. You can do it, but you’ll have to fight for your own place at his side instead of behind him. He’ll try to give you what you want, but he’s a male, he’ll forget. You’ll have to keep reminding him.”

  “What if he gets tired of being reminded? What if he gives up?”

  “Can you really imagine that ever happening?”

  “Maybe you’re right. He might be willing to give it every chance to work out. Maybe I need to be willing to give him that chance.”

  Of course she was right. Mother knows best and all that. Maybe she would see all her daughters settled except her youngest Kitty. Right now it seemed her girl was a lifetime and lightyears away. Oh, yeah, she was. Tomi had left and she was alone with her mate.

  “Was there anything you wanted to know about mating or your dragon?” Garulto asked.

  “No, my dragon has been talking to me.”

  “Already? That’s unusual. Everything about our mating has been unusual, why change now?”

  “Finish eating Dori. It’s the food you eat that will get you the energy to get out of bed.”

  She did as he said just because she knew he would just insist until she did or feed it to her himself. When the bowl was empty, he handed her more food. “Where did this come from?”

  “I had an extra plate in case your appetite picked up.” Garulto explained with a slight smirk. He was proud of himself.

  “What if I hadn’t eaten it?” Dori asked as she finished the food on the plate.

  “I would have eaten it.”

  “You gave me your meal?”

  “No, I gave you a meal and I can easily get food anytime I want it.”

  “Rub it in, why don’t you.”

  “I don’t understand.” Garulto said.

  “It means that you are talking about what you can do, while I can’t do anything at all.”

  ‘Oh, I’m sorry.”

  “I need a shower so bad.” Dori mentioned.

  “You can take one with me. That way if you have trouble, I can help you.”

  “Okay, but it will have to be an in and out thing. I still feel weak.”

  “I had nothing planned, but getting clean. I’m thrilled you are feeling better. There’s no way I would push you to do anything strenuous.”

  Dori handed him the bowl and she pulled the covers off. She noticed she was wearing one of her favorite sleepshirts. It was not sexy at all, but it was well worn and comfortable. It was so soft and thin, that it felt almost like being naked. Sitting up slowly, she felt a little dizzy so she sat still.

  Being an active person, this was killing her. Having her activities limited would be hard. Garulto moved in front of her and offered her his hand. She took it and he slowly pulled her up and into his arms where he supported her weight. Once she nodded to indicate she was ready, he slowly walked to the shower giving her the support she needed.

  One arm was around her waist as he turned on the water and set the temperature. “Do you need me to continue to hold you?”

  “I’m afraid so.” Dori admitted.

  “That is alright, but sit in this chair and I will undress. Then I will undress you.” He helped her into the chair that must have been placed there in case she needed it.

  The male stripped quickly and helped her out of her nightgown. Now they were naked so he helped her up again and they entered together. “Hold onto me while I wash you.”

  Dori held on tight, her arms around his neck as he shampooed her hair and then cleaned her body. He was not trying to tempt her, but her dragon wanted her mate and Dori’s body tingled with need. Unfortunately, she was too tired to do anything about it. Once he had her rinsed off. He turned off the water and helped her out of the shower. Now he dried her carefully and took her back to the bed.

  After helping her sit on the edge of the bed, he went to the dresser and got her a nightgown. It was another comfortable one and Dori decided she would buy some sexy stuff as soon as the baby was born. Garulto would love it.

  He helped her put it on and then helped her back under the covers. She felt sleepy as hell and even though she’d packed away a dragon’s portion of food, tired as a newborn baby. Dori fell asleep in a quick minute. It didn’t last for long. Bree was waking her up again and Romo had come with her.

  “I feel bad that you’re having to baby me like this.” She admitted.

  “Don’t be silly Mom. There’s three of us and Garulto has you alone at night. It’s easy. It doesn’t even begin to compare with what you’ve done for us.” Bree insisted. “Now eat.”

  “I never realized how bossy my girls are.” Dori said looking at Romo. He wisely kept his mouth shut.

  “You taught us how to take a situation in hand when needed.”

  Bree told her how the plants and animal was growing while she fed her a bowl of food. It was good everything with Bree and Romo seemed to be going great. “How is everyone else doing?”

  “Niku, Betty, and Selia are doing great. Silly is caught up in school. They start them early here. Betty likes working with Damos and their farm is doing as well as ours. Tomi is, well Tomi. She seems a little less angry lately so maybe she’s settling in. Tomi saw Erak at the castle and was nice to him. Poor guy. He doesn’t know what to think of her.” Bree giggled.

  “He asked her on a date, but she couldn’t go because she’s worried about you. She told him to ask again once you’re feeling better.” Romo explained.

  “I don’t want to interfere with her love life.” Dori insisted.

  “I’m not sure Tomi is ready to date Erak yet. You may have just been a good excuse to put him off.” Bree explained.

  “You really think so?” Dori asked.

  “I do. She’s just starting to come to terms with things.” Bree observed.

  “How is Cretia and Niku’s brother doing?” Dori asked.

  Romo and Bree exchanged looks. “It’s the oddest relationship yet. They dance around each other but neither commits. Cretia keeps house for him. She’s a fair cook and a hard worker. She also harvests in the woods for spending money. Toreen lets her stay there, but doesn’t treat her like a mate.”

  “I see what you mean. I believe he doesn’t want to feel drawn to her, but he does. She knows he resents her so she keeps her distance.” Dori observed.

  “I believe you are right. What a mess that is.” Romo admitted. “Niku worries about them.”

  “He did what he could. Sometimes we have to let people we care about make their mistakes and hopefully learn from them.” Dori offered. It was good to be up for a while and know how everyone was doing. She was staying up longer each time and that was a good sign.

  Bree and Romo stayed to talk a little while longer and then they left. She understood. They were just starting out their life together and they had things to do including spending some time alone together. She drifted in and out of sleep until at some point Garulto woke her with more food.

  Her health was improving and she was awake long enough that he fed her again. Dori was ready to g
et out of bed and take on the world, mentally. But when she sat up quickly, she saw that she still had a ways to go physically. These dragonlets sure took a lot out of their mothers. Her stubbornness had cost her this time. Had she just mated her male when he’d asked, she could have avoided all this.

  “I needed to discuss something with you since you seem to be clear headed and you’re feeling better.” Garulto mentioned.

  “Okay. Hit me with it.”

  “Another one of your Earth sayings?”

  “Yes, it means speak.”

  “When I came home and found you unconscious, I had planned to ask you to help me make a decision. The king had offered me a position, but needed a quick decision. No answer would have been the same as an answer so since you were unable to help, I gave him an answer. I will no longer have the position at the school. I will have a general’s position. I will be at the castle mostly and work much like Niku and Romo except for the occasional emergency. I hope you will approve of my choice.”

  “That’s wonderful. We’ll have more time together as a family. “Dori approved.

  “I’m glad you see it that way. I’ll be starting tomorrow and the emperor has agreed to let me work from home until you are better.” Garulto informed.

  “That’s exactly the kind of job I’d hoped you might find. You’ll have time to help with the baby and teach him or her the things a dragon needs to know.”

  “It will be my honor and I will love every moment I spend with our child.”

  “You may not love every moment. It’s no fun when they’re sick and as they get older, they can get rebellious. It’s okay not to enjoy those moments as long as you love the child.”

  “There may be difficult times, but I can’t wait to meet the little one.” Garulto vowed.

  “Trust me. I’m ready for that too. Do you think I can sit up for a while?”

  “How are you feeling?”

  “Like sitting up anywhere but in bed would be wonderful.”

  Garulto smiled. “Okay, but if you tire, let me know right away.”

  He helped Dori up and she leaned on him. When they got to the stairs, he just picked her up and carried her down the stairs and to the nearest chair. Once she was settled, he went to fix her another plate and spoke to her while she ate. It was obvious eating large quantities of food was the only way she would have the energy needed to get back to her life. She loved to cook, it wasn’t just something she had to do.