“You are in such deep shit when you wake up,” Tate snarled at the sleeping dragon curled around her wrist.
“I take it you remember everything,” Dewdrop said in a wry tone.
Tate looked up, her lip still curled in a snarl.
“Yup. You definitely remember otherwise you wouldn’t look so enraged,” he observed.
It was a legitimate question. Tate’s memories could be a tad spotty when Ilith was ascendant. Some switches were clearer than others. Those sparked by desperation or in response to a threat on Tate’s life tended to be hazier.
Yet Tate remembered every second of Ilith’s time ascendant.
“Why? Why? Why did I have to get stuck with this dragon?”
Why couldn’t she have bonded with a reasonable dragon? One who didn’t do things that could be viewed as assassination attempts?
“Such a pain in the ass.”
“Aw, it’s not so bad, Tate. You managed to expose a major security breach for the empire, and he didn’t demand your head. I’d consider that a win.” Dewdrop stuck his hands in his pocket in a nonchalant pose.
Willa took the opportunity to rub her head against Tate’s arm, looking up at Tate with innocent eyes.
“What’s Willa doing here anyway?” Tate asked, smoothing back the fur on Willa’s head. The Veles closed her eyes in pleasure, a soft purr slipping out.
“It seems Willa and Pax take after their father,” Dewdrop said. “They don’t listen and they’re crazy good at sneaking into places they’re not supposed to be.”
Tate finished rubbing Willa’s head. “I take it she followed you then.”
Dewdrop nodded. “Yup. She didn’t make her presence known until we realized something was wrong on this side of the gate. By then, it was leave her with some very jumpy guards or bring her with me.”
Willa definitely took after her father.
“Speaking of, where’s Night?” Dewdrop asked.
“Pursuing Peter last I saw.”
Dewdrop frowned.
“Blade made me turn back when I hit Cliff’s Shadow.”
His frown changed to understanding. “Yeah, the way you’re dressed would have caused problems if you went any farther in. The people that live there don’t look kindly on the empire’s representatives.”
Tate looked over at where Ryu patiently waited. “How much trouble is this going to cause?”
“From the emperor—little to none. Though he’ll give you a hard time for a while.”
Considering Thaddeus’s behavior until now, that wasn’t surprising.
“It’s more problematic that he finds you amusing. He tends to find interesting uses for those who catch his attention.”
Tell her about it.
“Something tells me I already had it.” Tate rubbed the back of her neck.
Why else would she have been called to court and then to the murder scene?
A normal person might find it flattering to have the emperor’s attention. They might try to use it for their own gain, extorting favors from him.
Those people were fools. Nothing in this life was free nor did it pay to come to the attention of giants. For every favor gained, you owed two in return.
