Feel the Burn (Dragon Kin #8)(25)

Yes. This day was getting better and better.

“Why is there a bear on me? What is happening?” a pompous-sounding voice demanded.

Gaius heard something wet hit the ground and assumed it was that poor bear.

“And what the battle-f*ck are you doing?”

Gaius slowly raised his head—and smiled. “Hello, Prince Briec,” he said, keeping his voice low. “You’re looking handsome today.”

That’s when Gaius took a boot to the face when the prince scrambled to get out from under him. If it hadn’t hurt, he’d be laughing more.

“What is happening?” Briec snarled as he got to his feet.

“Daddy?”

Briec started. “Is that . . . is that my perfect, perfect daughter?”

“Daddy, stop calling me that.”

“Yes,” Gaius heard Talwyn complain. “Stop calling her that.”

“And what’s that supposed to mean?” Rhi asked.

“What do you think it means?”

“Would you two shut it?” Talan barked. “I can’t hear another one of these bloody arguments! And someone get this crazed female off me!”

Arms stretched over Gaius’s shoulders, Kachka, who’d landed on top of him, rested her head against his cheek. “Be glad we never had chance to drink before that She-dragon threw us out of her lair. This would have been . . . less good.”

“I’ll keep that in mind for future reference.”

Prince Briec pushed his niece out of the way, ignored his struggling nephew, and lifted his daughter by her waist, turning in a circle as if she were still a small child rather than a grown woman.

“There she is!” he announced to the room. “My beautiful, perfect daughter.”

“Daddy! Stop!”

“You shouldn’t be telling me to stop. You should be thanking me for giving you such beauty and perfection.”

“Wow,” Gaius muttered to Kachka. “That is an amazing amount of arrogance standing there.”

“So this is the Southlands,” Marina Aleksandrovna said as she stood, turning in her own circle to look at the hall.

“This,” Tatyana Shestakova announced with awe, “is the seat of power of Queen Annwyl.”

“I bet,” Kachka whispered in his ear, “that she wishes she’d landed in the queen’s lap, the way you landed in the arrogant dragon’s.”

Gaius dropped his head and chuckled just as Zoya Kolesova demanded, “Where is your mother, boy? I will barter with her for you.”

Briec quickly placed his daughter safely behind him. “Why is there a giantess in this house?”

“Why are you looking at me?” Talan asked.

“Because she’s holding on to you like she owns you.”

“That is plan!” Zoya cheerfully announced. Then, she suddenly looked at Briec. “I will take you as well, pretty one. I have older daughters who will like you, too.”

“Older? What does that mean?”

Rhi jumped in front of her father, both arms out to block Zoya. “No. This is Prince Briec and he has been Claimed by my mother. An incredibly powerful witch.” When the giant smirked, Rhi added, “She can turn your blood to glass.”

Actually, from what Gaius had seen of Talaith’s magicks, no, she couldn’t. But he understood Rhi’s need to protect her father from Zoya. He would need that protection.

Zoya stared at Briec, apparently debating the pros and cons of all this when Talwyn suddenly pried the woman’s arms off her brother and said, “You need to see our mother before any decisions are made.”

In panic, Gaius quickly glanced at Kachka, but she only smirked.

“I do?” Zoya asked.

“Oh, yes. She’s the queen and Talan is her favorite. You need to go to her before you do anything else. Right now. Right this second. And make sure you are bold and pushy. And make sure you’re in her face about taking her son. The queen likes confidence.”

“Thank you, evil Abomination!” Zoya cheered, arms thrown wide. “Your help is truly appreciated!”

“Tal—” Rhi began, but Briec placed his hand over her mouth to silence her.

“I believe the females are down by the big lake.” He glanced over. Saw one of the squires walking by. “You there. Boy. Take this extremely large female down to your queen. Immediately.”

The boy stared up at Zoya, his mouth open, before he finally nodded his head and started walking. Quickly.

Zoya followed, the Khoruzhaya siblings, Tatyana, and Marina going with her while Nina toddled off in the opposite direction so she could deal with whatever wounds she had. Gaius had smelled the blood earlier, but thankfully he’d already eaten.

“Aren’t you going to warn Zoya about Annwyl?” Gaius asked Kachka.

“I didn’t invite her here, so . . . no.”

Kachka tracked her sister down. Took a bit. She started off outside, assuming Elina was hunting. But she was in bed. Kachka was ready to be disgusted, but when she found her sister on top of that dragon, she understood more. When one had to f*ck, one had to f*ck.

Without knocking, Kachka walked into the room her sister shared with no one but the dragon. Such a big room. Could get a whole tribe in here.

“When you’re done,” Kachka said to her sister, “find me.”