by E. J. Waugh
The Dragon Lord’s Omega
E. J. Waugh
Copyright © 2016 by E. J. Waugh
All rights reserved. This book or any portion thereof
may not be reproduced or used in any manner whatsoever
without the express written permission of the publisher
except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.
Contents
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
Chapter Thirteen
Chapter Fourteen
Chapter Fifteen
Chapter Sixteen
Chapter Seventeen
Chapter Eighteen
Epilogue
Chapter One
Elston woke in the most comfortable bed he’d ever lain in, blinking up at a beautifully-decorated ceiling and wondering if perhaps he’d died and this was what the afterlife was like.
If that was the case, he was much more comfortable than he imagined he would be. Perhaps death wasn't the worst thing that could happen to a person after all.
He jumped at the sound of something moving beside him, and turned to see a young woman standing in the doorway. She smiled at him, smoothed her plain skirt, and moved toward the bed. “It’s good to see you awake. We were afraid you wouldn’t recover.”
“Oh.” He blinked at her. “Umm. I feel recovered?”
He felt heavy and sore all over, but assumed that was from running through the forest for hours. He must have been miles from home now.
Being miles from home had been his intention, so that part of his plan had worked. There hadn't been a second part, so he wasn't sure what to do next. Finding out where he was might be a good step.
“What is this place?”
“Highweald Castle,” the girl responded. “We found you outside. It looked like you collapsed. We thought you might have been ill. The master had us bring you back here. You were lucky he was passing.”
“Was I?” Elston asked, but he didn’t expect a useful answer. He didn’t like the idea of anyone being master to anyone else. He understood the necessity, but the concept made him uncomfortable on a gut level. Perhaps because of what he’d been running from.
“Very. It’s snowing now. You would have been dead within hours.”
Maybe he had been lucky, then. Alive, he still had control over his own destiny. If this master wished him ill, then he would run again. It seemed a much easier path to take now that he’d done it once. He could run forever, if he had to.
“The master would see your wounds bathed and cleaned. Is it all right if I do that?”
“Wounds?” Elston frowned, but as he said it, he began to feel the stinging of cuts and bruises. While he’d been running, the whipping of low branches and the cutting of thorns hadn’t bothered him, but now that he’d rested, he recognized that he hadn’t come through his adventures unscathed.
“You only seem to have scrapes and bruises, but if they became infected you would suffer. It is best to clean them.”
“I can do it myself,” Elston said. “You don’t need to go to any trouble.”
“It’s no trouble.”
“All the same, I’d rather you allowed me to do it myself.”
The girl paused for a moment, and Elston watched her consider. He didn’t want to get her in trouble with her master, but he was sure that any man who would rescue a stranger would not punish a servant for allowing the same stranger some dignity.
“Then I’ll leave you the water and wash cloths.” The girl nodded to a table beside the bed, where steam was rising from a metal bowl. “If you need anything, I won’t be far.”
“Thank you.” Elston sat up in the bed, more to demonstrate that he could than because he wanted to, and watched the girl leave.
He found clean clothes folded at the bottom of the bed—which was larger than the room he’d slept in yesterday—so peeled his old ones off. His travelling cloak was hanging over the back of a chair, clean and dry, with a tear he’d been meaning to see to mended. His boots sat on the floor beside it, cleaned of the mud that had caked them, and the small bag of important possessions he’d been carrying was perched on the seat. He had no doubt it still contained everything it had when he left.
Warm water soothed his sore muscles, even as he brushed blood and dirt away from scratches and tried to avoid tender bruises. They’d heal in a few days, and if this was the worst that happened to him, then he’d escaped practically unscathed.
His mind went to his father, and how he might be worried for him, but he pushed the thought aside. If his father had cared about his wellbeing, he wouldn’t have tried to gift him to someone like Torv. He knew better, and he had no sympathy for whatever his father might be feeling now.
Once he was as clean as he could make himself, he allowed himself to dry off before pulling on the clean clothes that had been set out. They were too big, hanging on his thin frame, but clever tying kept them up. The neck of the tunic slid over his shoulder no matter what he did with it, so he decided it would stay that way if that was what it wanted.
When he was done, he sat down again and let himself fall back onto the bed, which was so soft and inviting that he thought he might curl up in it and sleep forever, given the chance.
Since no one came to disturb him before the need for sleep overwhelmed him, that was what he did.
It seemed like moments later that he was woken by light streaming in through the window in front of the bed, the sound of curtains being thrown open creating a rhythm that was equal parts strange and comforting. The bed was still warm, and soft, and the girl from the night before smiled over at him when he opened his eyes and sat up.
“Good morning,” she sing-songed, her entire manner cheerful and bright. “The master would like to know if you feel up to eating with him this morning.”
Elston’s stomach growled before he could give any answer. There was no person he wouldn’t face for the chance to eat something, including this mysterious master. Besides, it would be rude not to greet his host.
“Of course. I’d… be honored,” he said, not sure that was the right thing to say. The girl smiled again, so it couldn’t have been too wrong.
“I’ll let him know and collect you when breakfast is ready.”
“Thank you. Uh. I forgot to ask your name last night.”
“Alina,” the girl curtseyed briefly.
“I’m Elston,” he said, realizing that he’d never given his name, either.
“The master will be pleased to know your name. And I’m pleased to meet you.”
“Between you and me, I’m happier to meet you than I am him.” Elston smiled a small, but heartfelt smile at her.
“I don’t know if you’ll think that once you meet him. He’s very handsome.” She grinned. Elston’s stomach flipped at the thought, but he did his best to hide it. Alina disappeared again once the curtains were open, and Elston looked to the foot of the bed to see that he’d been left another set of fresh clothes.
Since he’d slept in the last batch instead of taking them off, he took the time to change. The second set fit slightly better than the first, though they were still loose around the waist. He supposed that the kind of people who lived in castles kept assorted clothing for occasions like this.
He took the time to braid his hair as well as he could, wanting to make the impression that he was grateful enough for his rescue that he would put some amount of effort in. Despite his reservat
ions about his sight-unseen host, there was kindness in all of his actions so far, and that had earned him the benefit of the doubt, to an extent.
Besides, his looks had allowed him a lot of leeway in the past, and there was no sense in not capitalizing on that now. The kindness of strangers was the only thing he had to rely on.
Chapter Two
Jaren found himself pacing as he waited to be called for breakfast. It had been so long since he’d interacted with a human he didn’t already know or employ that he wasn’t sure he still knew how to do it.
Elston was uncommonly pretty, too. He was glad to put a name to the face; he’d barely stopped thinking about the other man since he’d stopped to rescue him.
Not that he expected anything to come of meeting a stranger in the woods, but despite his age, Jaren had never quite given up on the notion of love. Something about the way they’d met tickled his romantic side, and a tiny part of him hoped it had been fate.
A knock on the door told him it was time to head down for breakfast. “Thank you,” he called out, and then turned to the mirror one last time.
He would have to do. As long as he didn’t frighten his guest, it would be a start.
When he arrived in the small dining room he’d requested breakfast be served in, he found his guest already there, Alina sitting beside him, and the both of them speaking in low murmurs. Alina jumped up the moment he entered the room.
“I’ll leave you now,” she said, bowing her head in Jaren’s direction.
Elston—who had been smiling a moment ago—looked between the two of them and swallowed visibly.
“If you’d prefer to keep Alina by your side, that is perfectly acceptable,” Jaren said, not wanting to leave a bad impression from the first moment. “She is to tend to you for the duration of your stay.”
Elston looked over at Alina again. “I’ll be fine,” he turned to Jaren. “I wouldn’t want you to think I was afraid of you.”
Jaren paused for a moment, wondering how much Elston knew of him. He moved to the table and sat down, nodding to Alina as he passed. “Go and rest.”
She bowed her head once more and then left the room in silence, the sound of the door closing behind her barely audible.
Elston cleared his throat. “Uh, thank you for bringing me here. I understand I would have been done for if you hadn’t.”
“We don’t often see people wandering this deep into the forest,” Jaren said. “But I couldn’t have left you to die when I had the means to do something about it.”
“When I was a boy, I was told never to come into these woods, because a dragon lived here.” Elston leaned forward, looking at Jaren carefully. “I can see now that it’s true.”
For a moment, cold fear filled Jaren’s chest. His secret was not well-kept, but it was secret for a good reason. Elston’s expression wasn’t one of fear or hatred, though. It was the awe of a child watching a thunderstorm for the first time.
“What gave me away?” Jaren asked. If Elston wasn't going to panic about it, then neither was he.
“Some of the stories were quite detailed. Though I expected to find you an old man.”
“You came here expecting to find me?” Jaren raised an eyebrow. No one ever came looking for him.
“No, not expecting. Not looking, anyway. Just aware that I might run into you. I imagined you very differently. I wasn't sure the stories were true until I saw you.”
“How did you know?”
“You're a large man, even for an alpha.” Elston took a slice of bread. “But it's your eyes. They're so old. They could have seen the passage of a thousand years.”
Jaren huffed a laugh, his age weighing down on him now that Elston had mentioned it. “They have.”
The awe on Elston’s face intensified, to Jaren’s surprise. “You must have so much knowledge of so many things.”
“I’m not sure about knowledge, but experience, perhaps. I have a great number of stories.”
“I won’t prevail on you to tell them,” Elston said, though it was obvious that he would have liked to.
“I have nothing more pressing to do than share them with you, if you find yourself in the mood to listen. Very few people want to hear an old man droning on about his past exploits.”
Elston opened his mouth to speak, then closed it again. He paused, sighed, and looked down at the piece of bread in his hand. “I don’t want to intrude on your hospitality for longer than I have to. That would be rude.”
“At my age, I’m not overly concerned about manners. There is a lot of space in this castle, and I have no use for it. You are welcome to stay for as long as it pleases you.”
“I appreciate that offer,” Elston said. Jaren wondered if he understood how sincere it was, how lonely he’d been without anyone to talk to but the handful of servants he kept on so that the walls didn’t crumble down around him, so that he’d have some reason to get up of a morning.
It wasn’t as though he could keep Elston here against his will, though. Or rather, he could, but it would entirely defeat the purpose of having him here at all. There was no joy to be had in a companion who was his prisoner. No gain in making another person miserable to take some of the weight off his own heart.
Breakfast continued in a comfortable silence, and Jaren was glad to see Elston eating well. The year had been harsh, and crop yields low. The winter would be difficult for many, especially a lone traveler. Jaren was deeply curious about what had led such a pretty omega to be travelling on his own, but thought it better not to ask. If that was information Elston wanted him to have, he would have shared it.
“I believe it will snow quite heavily for the next two days,” Jaren spoke up toward the end of the meal. “So it would be best, perhaps, if you delayed further travel until after then.”
“I’ll take that advice.” Elston nodded. “Thank you.”
“You’re very welcome.” Jaren pushed away from the table and stood. “And now, I will leave you in peace. If there’s anything you need, please don’t hesitate to ask for it. Alina is at your disposal, as am I.”
He bowed and turned to leave, aware of Elston’s eyes on him. The young omega wasn’t at all what he’d expected, and Jaren wasn’t sure how to understand him. All he was sure of was that he brought light into the castle, and it would be a sad day when he left.
Chapter Three
“Did the master ask you to stay?” Alina asked the moment she entered Elston’s bedroom.
“He, umm. He said I was free to stay as long as I wanted, but I don’t intend to stay long. I’m sorry to disappoint you. The weather should clear in a few days, and then I’ll leave,” Elston explained. He wasn’t sure yet why he was leaving, but it seemed wrong to stay here. He’d run away in the hopes of forging his own destiny, or finding adventure. Not to land in the arms of a strange, if apparently benevolent, alpha.
Jaren seemed kind, though, and Elston hoped to hear some of his stories before he left.
“I’m sorry to disappoint you,” Elston added when he saw the look on Alina’s face. “I suppose it’s lonely here.”
“It’s all right. I was just hoping to see a baby dragon before my term here is up.”
Elston felt his cheeks heat up. Though he was tired of being viewed as someone who was only of use for that, he did desperately want a family someday. It looked as if that wasn’t going to happen, though.
“Why is your term going to be up?” Elston asked. As far as he’d seen, Jaren liked Alina, and she was as good a servant as any.
“The master hires most of us from other households and offers us a five-year contract. When it’s over, it pays enough to set us up in whatever profession we might want to follow. I like working here, though. I’m not sure I won’t ask for an extension. But I’m afraid of watching him die.”
“Is he dying?”
Alina shrugged. “I don’t know. I don’t think he’s ill, but… I think he’s tired. They say that when a dragon’s heart breaks, it turns to stone.
The dragon, not the heart. Though I suppose the heart does, as well.”
“Oh.” Elston took a moment to think about that. Jaren had been kind to him, and he didn’t like the thought of harm coming to him. However, he couldn’t stay here on the off chance that it might save his life—he’d run away because he didn’t want his life to belong to anyone else, and it wasn’t fair to ask that of him now. Seeing to a stranger’s happiness was not his purpose.
“I think it would be a loss for someone with so much to share to die like that. He’s very good to everyone he employs.”
“I’m glad you’re happy here,” Elston said. He didn’t want to think about Jaren’s potentially impending doom any further. “What will you do when you leave?”
“See the world, I suppose. There’s so much of it, it’d be a shame not to explore at least some of it.”
“It would,” Elston agreed. Perhaps that was his plan, as well. To see more of the world. He’d gotten the slightest taste of life away from his quiet little town, and he wanted more of it.
“I’ll draw a bath for you,” Alina said. “You look like you could use one.”
“I don’t want to put you to any-”
“Trouble, I know.” She smiled. “It’s no trouble. Besides, it might persuade you to stay a little longer. Not forever. Just a few more days.”
“Perhaps,” Elston said, though he’d already made his mind up to leave. He didn’t want to end up trapped here. That was no better than what he’d left behind.
He watched as Alina and a young man who never spoke prepared a bath for him, fascinated by their efficiency. Elston didn’t think it was a good idea to interrupt them, and he reasoned that if he allowed himself to be taken care of, Jaren would look favorably on Alina when the time came for her to ask for an extension to her term here, if that was what she wanted.
Besides, the moment he sank into the warm bath, the embarrassment seemed worth it. He hadn’t indulged in a bath in a long time, and soon found himself in danger of falling asleep in the warm water. The mental and emotional impact of having left his home for good, with very little to his name, was finally beginning to wear him down.
