I hadn’t evenseena cleaners’ cupboard in this place. I was slipping not to have hunted one out already. Probably because, apart from the two Mortimer grandsons, most of the dragons here were too old for my taste. The gathering skewed pretty heavily male, though, and I hadn’t by any means seen everyone yet, so I lived in hope.
When Jack introduced himself to an older guy named Edward Vane, I knew even before hearing his accent that he came from Manchester. With only sixty dragon families in the country, dragon kids learned their names and territories alongside their alphabet. We’d never get to meet most of them, but it was important to know who they were—know thine enemy, and all that. We were uneasy allies, until we weren’t.
None of us had anything interesting to say to one another, except for wondering out loud what Abimelech Mortimer was up to. Vane swiftly made his excuses and moved on.
Glancing around the room, I found the heads of family had gone off for their meeting, leaving fewer dragons present thanthere had been. Most were clustered in small groups, talking intently. That second Mortimer grandson was still here, and Jack wanted me to mingle. I would beveryhappy mingling with either of the younger Mortimers.
Except, it seemed Mortimer of the spectacular arse had a boyfriend. A dark-haired dragon beside him was glaring at me as I appreciated that arse again. Where Abimelech had been cold, the dark dragon’s eyes ran hot, but there was something in them that reminded me of the older dragon. A power, an authority…
Shaking my head slightly dispelled the weird urge I was feeling to nod to him in respect. It also got rid of a sudden, unexpected longing for someone to be that possessive overme. For me to be the centre of that person’s world. That wasn’t what I wanted. I was having too much fun to get tied down.
But the boyfriend’s reaction suggested that hooking up with anyone at this moot would be a bad idea. Jack might actually be right for once. Who was I kidding? He was almost always right, the bastard. This meeting was too important and dragon politics too murky for me to risk bringing my family into disrepute over a bit of fun.
Pity, though. A quickie would have been a nice distraction.
ARCHER
Abimelech Mortimer’s summons to this gathering had given only four weeks’ notice. Regardless of my annoyance at the tone of the invitation, I’d dropped everything to be here. Missing the first meeting of all the dragon families in three centuries wasn’t an option.
A dragon moot was an opportunity to debate, and if a vote were to be held, all dragon families would be expected to honour the majority opinion. I couldn’t imagine what might cause Mortimer to call one after so long.
At least I hadn’t had far to come. Winchester to Avebury was little more than an hour’s drive. I’d often brought Mia and Tim here when they were younger, back when Tim was still speaking to me.
Avebury was like Stonehenge, with arrangements of prehistoric standing stones fulfilling an unknown and mysterious purpose. The stones were smaller than those at Stonehenge, and they didn’t have lintels, but the number of stones and the area they covered was much greater. They were said to have been set out in the pattern of a serpent, though so many stones were now missing that no one knew for sure. I thought it was true and that it had once been a sacred place for us—there had to be a reason Avebury was neutral ground for dragons.
Had Avebury been built by dragons? Our strength would explain how such massive stones had been carried to the site and anchored in the ground to stand upright. Perhaps dragons were responsible for Stonehenge, too. No one knew. No one would ever know, the truth being lost in pre-history.
Almost all dragon history and lore had been lost. We didn’t know if the remaining fragments that had been passed verbally down the generations were myth, legend, or fact. Nothing had been put in writing, as the discovery of texts about dragons could lead to humans learning we existed. We had to be constantly vigilant. Mortimer had hired the entire hotel, conference centre and spa complex for our exclusive use but there would always be human staff around. The word dragon could never be uttered.
Mia and I arrived at the hotel in good time and, after stashing our bags, we walked around the gardens. I’d rather avoid other dragons until we knew what this was about. Small talk wasn’t one of my strengths, and small talk made in ignorance could be dangerous.
My father would have circulated around the room, and by the time formal proceedings began, he would have spoken to everyone present, learned their names and their worries, and left them all thinking he was the most charming dragon they’d ever met. Unfortunately, when it came to social graces, I took after my mother.
“I wonder why he’s called this meeting,” Mia said, for approximately the hundredth time.
“Only another thirty minutes, and we’ll find out.”
“You’llfind out, you mean. I suppose listening at the door isn’t an option.”
I glanced warningly at her. “That would be a good way to get your head ripped off. Mortimer’s likely to post guards around the place to give us notice of any humans who come close while we’re talking.”
“Well, make sure you tell me straight away.” She looked up at me, grey eyes worried. “Please?”
“You know I will.” I put my arm briefly around her shoulders and squeezed. She was growing up, but she was still my little sister.
After a childhood filled with uncertainty and change, Mia was easily unsettled. Yet again, I was furious with Tim for not coming with us to keep her company while I was in the head of family meetings. Even though he wasn’t speaking tome,surely he’d have some concern for his seventeen-year-old sister who was going to be left twiddling her thumbs for hours at a time. Or, if I knew Mia, scrolling on her phone for hours at a time.
Perhaps I shouldn’t have brought her when Tim refused to come, but it would make our family look weak for me to be the only representative. I couldn’t ask any of the other family members to come with me because I didn’t know whom to trust.
“It’ll be okay,” I promised her, and hoped I was telling the truth.
Chapter Two
ARCHER
I headed to the conference room where the heads of each family were to meet, leaving Mia in the main hall. Her anxiety had disappeared now that things had started. She was a good, bright kid, and I knew she’d represent the family well.
The generously sized room with white-painted walls and corporate blue carpet was almost filled by a series of curved oak tables, assembled to form a perfect circle. Name cards were at each seat, laid out in alphabetical order, and each place had pens and paper set out, together with a glass of water.
