“Your Honor,” Jake said, after giving Commander Hawkins a poisonous glance. “Section seventeen of the Torch Lake Hearing Procedures Code states that any party in a hearing may call character witnesses who, although they do not have direct knowledge of the matter at hand, can bear witness to the good character of the party bringing or defending a complaint. We would like to be character witnesses for Ms. Evans.”
“Very well,” Councilor Morgan replied. Mandy watched as Jake, Leif, and Clint stepped up to the podium and each, in turn, testified that she was well-known for her moral character, for working hard, and for always telling the truth. Commander Hawkins’ face turned redder and redder as each of them spoke. Mandy felt tears stinging her eyelids once again. She had felt so alone when she walked into this hearing room, but now she was quite unexpectedly surrounded by friends. Four dragons stood around her at the podium, a sight that would make it hard for the High Council to easily dismiss her complaint. Dragons were too greatly revered in this city to overlook four of them joined together for her cause.
As Clint finished speaking, Russ leaned over and whispered proudly in Mandy’s ear. “I found that rule that allows character witnesses. Pretty useful, don’t you think?”
Mandy looked up at Russ, her heart flip-flopping in her chest at the sight of his face only inches from her own.
“Thank you,” she whispered. She didn’t know what else to say. Something had changed in Russ’s attitude toward her, and she found herself wondering if there might be a small chance that he was once again allowing himself to feel a tiny bit of the passion that they had both felt that night in Chicago.
Before her heart could get too carried away, Councilor Morgan was once again speaking. “Are there any further witnesses?” His question was met with silence, and so he continued. “The High Council will retire to chambers to deliberate. Everyone please remain seated and wait here while we make a decision on this case. If it takes us longer than one hour to come to a conclusion, we will let you know. In that case, you will all be dismissed and we will reconvene tomorrow.”
Mandy turned and walked back to the front row, but now, she did not walk alone. She sat between Russ and Jake, and Leif and Clint sat on either side of them. Mandy was surrounded by dragons, and she felt invincible. Who could touch her now? Around the room, she heard angry murmuring, but the snickering had stopped. No one was laughing anymore, especially not Commander Hawkins. Mandy chanced a glance at the Commander. He was sitting with his arms crossed and staring straight ahead. The sneering expression on his face had disappeared, replaced with something between anger and worry.
He knows things don’t look good for him, Mandy thought.
Next, Mandy turned to try to sneak a glance at Russ. But there was little chance of her peek going unnoticed, since Russ was steadily staring back at her. His gaze filled her body with fiery warmth, and she quickly looked away. Russ reached over to grab her hand and briefly squeeze it, which only made the fire inside her hotter.
“I’m sorry for everything,” he whispered, his breath once again hot in her ear. She didn’t dare turn her head to look at him again. Instead, she stared straight ahead and focused on the big clock on the wall, watching the seconds tick by. Her hand burned where he had touched it, and a thousand tiny prickles of electricity seemed to emanate across her body from where his fingers had been moments before.
The minutes that ticked by felt like an eternity, but in reality the High Council deliberated less than ten minutes before they came back out. Mandy felt like she couldn’t breathe as she watched them solemnly walk back to their seats at the front of the room. The rest of the room seemed equally breathless. Not even the tiniest of noises could be heard as Councilor Morgan stood and cleared his throat.
“In the matter of Commander Hawkins versus Amanda Evans, the High Council has decided that several days will be required to deliberate over the matter.”
Mandy felt like she had been dunked in cold water. This wasn’t bad news, but it wasn’t necessarily good news. The ten minutes she had just waited had been torturous. How could she possibly wait several more days to hear what Commander Hawkins’ fate would be? What her fate would be? Their futures were closely tied, after all. Councilor Morgan was continuing to speak, though, and Mandy forced herself to pay attention.
“The Council does agree, however, that on preliminary viewing the evidence points strongly to the possibility that there is some credibility to Ms. Evans claims against Commander Hawkins.”
A murmur arose from the crowd, but Mandy sat perfectly silent and still, her heart pounding.
“Accordingly, it is the decision of the High Council that, while we finish our deliberations, Commander Hawkins will be placed on temporary probation.”
More murmuring, and an angry exclamation from Commander Hawkins.
“This is an outrage!” the Commander said, but before he could say anything else, Councilor Morgan raised his hand and gave him a harsh look.
“Commander Hawkins, you will refrain from interrupting the High Council while we deliver our official remarks.”
Commander Hawkins gave Councilor Morgan a sullen look, but didn’t make any further noise.
“This probation means that no new projects will be assigned to Commander Hawkins. He may finish any vital work on his current projects, but all orders he gives must be approved by at least two other commanders before they are implemented.”
Mandy saw Commander Hawkins shift uncomfortably in his seat, and the murmuring from the crowd grew louder. Councilor Morgan banged his fist on the wooden table in front of him.
“Quiet, everyone!” the noise lessened, and Councilor Morgan took a deep breath before continuing. “The High Council will debate the matter and call another hearing when we have reached our final decision. In the meantime, please consider these proceedings confidential, and refrain from discussing them with other citizens of Torch Lake. With that admonition, you are all free to go.”
Instantly, the room filled with noise. Everyone was talking at once. Commander Hawkins’ friends were surrounding him, already ranting about how unfair the proceedings had been and about how they were going to file an appeal. Mandy shook her head. It was too early for an appeal. The final decision had not even been made yet. Around her, Mandy’s four dragon champions, and the equipment specialist, were congratulating each other in low tones for their successful coup of the hearing.
Mandy herself felt dazed. She had been so sure that she was going to lose these proceedings that she didn’t know how to respond to her victory. And it was a victory, even though the High Council had not made a final decision. Commander Hawkins had, at the very least, been sent a message that the accusations against him were being taken seriously. He also wouldn’t be able to work on any new projects, which would irritate him to no end. Mandy felt less victorious over the fact that any new orders on his existing projects would have to be approved by other commanders. She knew that none of his commanders would dare question any order that he put forth for approval. Still, it would at least be humiliating for him to have to ask permission.
The High Council had stood now, and left the room. The court reporter was gathering up her things, and, slowly, the rest of the crowd was starting to filter out of the room.
“Shall we go?” Jake asked, glancing at his watch. “I think a celebratory lunch is in order. Perhaps even a round of drinks. It’s almost noon, which I think is a perfectly respectable time to have a beer, especially considering the circumstances.”
“I’m down for that” Leif said. Clint and Jordan agreed. Mandy turned to Russ, half-expecting him to say that he’d done his part for honor and wasn’t going to socialize with her any further. But he smiled and gave Jake a thumbs up.
“Sounds like a plan to me.”
All eyes turned to Mandy, and she realized they were waiting for her, the most important person of the hour, to give her approval to the plan. She felt exhausted, and would have preferred to go home and collapse int
o bed. But everyone looked so happy and hopeful that she didn’t have the heart to turn them down. Besides, she was curious to see how Russ would act toward her. She had no idea what had brought about the changes in him, but she was eager to see how deeply those changes ran.
“Alright,” she said. “I suppose I have to eat lunch one way or the other, anyway.”
Cheers went up from the group, and Mandy smiled despite her exhaustion. She had good friends surrounding her, and it was possible she might actually win her case against Commander Hawkins. And, of course, Russ was speaking to her again. How long he would continue to do so was anyone’s guess, but she was going to enjoy this while it lasted. Things were looking up for her.
She turned to leave with her friends, but the smile on her face froze when she found herself face to face with Commander Hawkins.
“This isn’t over, you know,” he said, getting so close to her face that his nose nearly touched hers. His eyes flashed with anger, and Mandy wrinkled her nose in disgust at his onion-scented breath. Before Mandy could respond, Russ stepped in and pushed Commander Hawkins back with a firm hand on the Commander’s chest.
“Get out of her way, Hawkins. The High Council will decide when this is over, and, in the meantime, you have no right to threaten Mandy.”
“Oh, I’ll threaten whoever I want to,” Commander Hawkins said, turning a scornful eye to Russ. “Trust me, this was a big mistake. All of you are going to pay. Every last one of you.”
Russ rolled his eyes at Commander Hawkins, and motioned for the group to follow him to the exit. Mandy left without another glance at Commander Hawkins, but she couldn’t keep the words he’d spoken from echoing through his head. Commander Hawkins loved nothing better than revenge, and Mandy had a feeling the man was going to do his best to make good on his threat that they would all pay for what they’d said at the hearing today.
“Don’t worry about him,” Russ said, grabbing Mandy gently by her upper arm and steering her toward the exit. “He’s just barking because the High Council has muzzled him and he can’t bite.”
“I hope you’re right,” Mandy replied, even though she had a sinking feeling that things were going to be difficult for all of them over the next few days. But she forced herself to smile again, and to focus on how wonderful Russ’s hand felt on her arm. There would be plenty of time later to worry. Now, she wanted to go enjoy a beer with the man who still managed to drive her wild, even after everything they’d been through in the short time they’d known each other.
Chapter Thirteen
“May I walk you back to your office?” Russ asked, doing his best to ignore the teasing, raised eyebrows on the faces of Jake, Leif, and Clint. He needed to make amends to Mandy. Now was not the time or place to worry about whether the guys were going to tease him.
The guys, he thought. Did I really just refer to them as ‘the guys?’ I better be careful, or I’m going to start thinking of them as my crew. The last thing Russ needed right now was ‘a crew’ in Torch Lake. He was happy to be on good terms with his fellow dragons again, but that didn’t change the fact that he was planning to head back to Chicago as soon as his job here was done. Getting too close to anyone here would make that move much more difficult. Better to keep all his new friends at arm’s length.
“Um, sure,” Mandy said.
She sounded confused, but Russ shouldn’t have been surprised by that. After all, the last time he’d seen her he’d been yelling about how awful she was, and saying that he’d never help her. Now, he was helping her out at her Council hearing, buying her beers, and offering to walk her back to her office. He supposed no one could blame her if she thought he was sending mixed signals.
Russ told himself to choose his words carefully with her, but when he found himself walking beside her on the sidewalk a few minutes later, he had trouble choosing any words at all. Faced with the prospect of actually opening his mouth and apologizing, he realized that words were a woefully insufficient method of explaining his feelings. As a result, they walked in near silence all the way back to her office. He was swirling around a thousand different ways to apologize, and god only knows what she was thinking. They made it all the way to her office door before he finally spoke, and when he did, all he could get out was her name.
“Mandy.” He stared at her, wishing he could somehow make her understand the depths of emotion that filled him when he spoke her name. But she couldn’t read his mind, and he couldn’t seem to organize the thoughts swirling in his mind into any kind of coherent sentences. He stared at her awkwardly for a few moments until she coughed nervously and looked down at her feet.
“Do you, uh, want to come in for a minute?”
God, did he. He wanted to come in and spend the rest of the day with her. Talking, explaining, begging forgiveness. But again, words failed him, and so he merely nodded, and followed her into the small office. She shut the door behind him and gestured for him to take a seat, but he didn’t take the invitation.
Russ knew deep in his bones that this was a pivotal moment in his life. He didn’t know how all of the details could possibly be worked out between Mandy and him, but he knew that he wanted her in his life. They had so much to talk about—he needed to explain to her why he had decided to help her, and how his heart had changed toward her when he dug deep into the truth of how Commander Hawkins had acted. And he wanted to hear again, from Mandy’s own lips, that the kiss they had shared in Chicago had meant something to her. He hoped with all his heart that she’d been sincere when she claimed it did. But beyond that, Russ needed to figure out if there was any way to make a long-term relationship with Mandy work. He knew she loved Torch Lake. Her friends were here, her home was here, her work was here. He respected that. But he was going back to Chicago when his job was done. Could he somehow convince her to come with him? Was it fair to even ask her?
“Mandy,” he said again, not sure where to start. She took off her wizard hat and set it down on top of a small bookshelf that stood near her office door, then looked at him expectantly, waiting for him to continue talking. But still, the words didn’t come. His tongue felt heavy in his mouth, and his heart was full of emotions that could not be explained by talking.
And so, he made a crazy decision.
He stepped forward, slowly, and put his hands on Mandy’s upper arms. And then, still moving slowly, he bent his head down toward her face. He felt her tremble as he leaned in toward her. Her arms were shaking beneath the grip of his hands, and he had no idea whether that was a good sign or bad, but he kept moving forward, anyway. He leaned in until his lips were right in front of her lips. He locked eyes with her, and could see the heat in his own eyes reflected back at him.
“Russ…”
He decided to take a chance. He had gone this far, so he might as well jump over the edge. He put his lips on her lips, silencing her before she could say anything else. Fire surged through his whole body as his inner dragon roared, and he closed his eyes to give himself over fully to this moment.
She affected him more deeply than he remembered. Memories of their one night in Chicago came rushing back to him, and he felt an immense sense of relief as he gave in to the desires he’d been fighting ever since their first kiss. He wrapped his arms around her and slid his tongue past her lips, wanting to taste her, and to feel every part of her mouth. She moaned, and he felt her body tremble.
She felt small in his arms, and yet she fit perfectly. His heart pounded in his chest, faster and faster, as he felt a stiffening begin between his legs. He knew he was losing control. He couldn’t think clearly anymore, and if she had decided in that moment to start stripping him down, he would have gladly let her. He would have made love to her right there in that office—let the consequences of such a reckless move be damned.
But before things could go any further, she stopped them. Gently, she reached her hands up to place her palms on his chest and push him away. His heart dropped, but he did his best not to let it show in his face.
“Mandy?”
She rubbed her forehead for a few moments before looking up at him. She looked exhausted. Beautiful, as always, but exhausted. Russ suddenly felt foolish. He shouldn’t have sprung a kiss on her like that. She’d had enough to deal with emotionally today, without adding a confusing potential romance to the mix. But he couldn’t undo what he’d done, and, besides, if he was really honest with himself, he wouldn’t have wanted to take that kiss back. It had felt too amazing. Mandy kissed better than any girl he’d ever kissed before her.
“Russ, I hope you’ll forgive me for being a bit confused right now. I mean, don’t get me wrong, I’m wildly attracted to you. But you’ve gone from yelling in my face and calling me a liar to defending me at a Council hearing and now making out with me in my office. I can’t help but wonder what changed. And, honestly, I’m a little scared to let myself fall for you any more than I already have. How do I know you’re not going to flip back to angry Russ all of a sudden?”
Russ sighed and took a step backward. “I have made a mess of things, haven’t I?”
Mandy looked at him and gave a small shrug. “Maybe a little bit. But I certainly haven’t been perfect, either.”
Russ chuckled. “Can we have a do-over? Start over from the moment we met?”
Mandy laughed, too, and held out her hand. “Hi, I’m Mandy, nice to meet you.”
He took her hand and shook it firmly. “I’m Russ. The pleasure is all mine.” He continued to hold her hand when their handshake was done, and they both stared at each other until Mandy looked away shyly and pulled back her hand.
“Seriously, though,” she said, staring down at the floor for a few moments before looking back up at him. “What changed?”
Russ ran his fingers through his hair and then gestured toward Mandy’s office chair. “This might be a long conversation. Care to sit down?”
Without a word, she moved to sit in her chair, and Russ took a seat in the visitor chair.
Dragon Returning (Torch Lake Shifters Book 1) Page 11
