Page 92 of Consumed By Fire
“Sure.” I shrug. “Come on in.”
The guard’s eyes go wide behind the mask. “But, Sire. I would—”
“Unless you think I’m not capable of handling myself, that is. What is your name, young man?” He narrows his eyes, picking a nonexistent piece of lint from his tie.
I can’t see the male behind the mask, but I’m pretty sure he has just turned pale. I can practically hear him backpedal. “Ummmm… My apologies…um…Sire. Yes, of course I’ll open for you. That’s no problem.” He puts a code into a keypad, and then his thumb on a sensor, and the cage door clicks open.
“Thank you.”
“Of course, Your Grace. I am here to serve.” He bows. It’s making me tired just watching all the antics. Then, the guard opens the door, gesturing for the prince to enter. “Your Grace.” He bows yet again.
Holy shit!
I now have a headache. I think I might prefer being tortured to this.
Ice walks into my cell. The door clicks closed behind him. I can tell why his mother called him Ice. His hair is a white shock on his head. It’s neatly trimmed, as is his beard, which is also white. The color is not the white of an elderly man but more of a platinum that shines under the harsh lights. His eyes are a bright blue. I’ve seen a pair just like that before through a slitted mask and quite recently.
“This is lovely. It’s just darned dandy.” He smiles at me. “I always wanted to meet a Draiger, and here you are.”
“Yes. I would say that it’s good to meet you, but I would have preferred to do so under different circumstances.”
He laughs. “I can quite imagine. What can you tell me about Draig?”
I shrug. “It’s much the same as Mistveil, except there is no castle and no royalty, either. I must say, this is…interesting. It’s…nice.” It’s a little over the top, but…I suppose that I can see the appeal.
“Indeed, indeed, it is.” He nods a few times.
“We have more females than you,” I tell him. “But I’m sure you were aware of that.”
“That must be…nice, too.” He scratches his beard. “Do you still need silly humans to ride your dragons in order to keep them calm?” He smiles.
“We do.” I suck in a breath. “Are we going to cut the shit now so that you can tell me why you’re here?”
He chokes out a guffaw. I’d love to say it’s a laugh, but it isn’t one, so I can’t. I wait until he is done. It takes a good few seconds.
His eyes are glinting a little. “That’s a good one, Draiger. I like you already.” He points at me. I note that he’s wearing a gold ring with the Reds’ crest on it. Then he looks outside the cage. “Guards, can you move away and give us some privacy?” He waves his hand as if to shoo them away.
“That would not be wise, Your Royal Highness. We would not be able to—”
“Move away immediately. I command it,” Ice growls, his eyes narrowing.
“Yes, Sire.” They do as instructed, albeit reluctantly.
“You’re still too close,” the prince tells them. “Go! Now! Down the hallway with you. I want to have a private conversation with Octane.”
I look up at the camera in the cell. Hardly private, but I don’t say anything.
“Of course, Sire.”
“Your Grace.” There’s a multitude of bows, and the guards file down the hallway in a pitter-patter of booted footfalls as they scurry away.
He sighs. “It’s so hard to find good help these days. Right, I wanted to—”
I don’t wait to hear. Instead, I take my chance. I might not get one again. I partially shift, which I don’t think he expects. Not that many Draig Dragons can manage a partial under these conditions. Especially without a rider to keep them in check.
I can!
Fuck the prince!