Authors: DJ Michaels
Chelsea looked up at Dev, not all that convinced he was the
man for the job. He was almost as big as Jax—who was the tallest, muscliest
Enforcer she’d met so far—and looked more like a professional wrestler than a
well-educated lawyer. His dark-purple hair was a handspan too long and his eyes
were glacier blue. He was striking to look at, but in the short time Chelsea
had spent with him she’d assessed him as the strong, silent type. She wasn’t at
all confident in his ability to talk their way out of this.
Then he took a breath and his deep voice rolled out over the
room. “Honored Councilmen, I am Devonelle Sharmanchere, keeper at Sapphire den.”
Chelsea leaned into Tarkan. “What’s a keeper?”
“They maintain our records,” he whispered. “Births, deaths,
dragon pairs and their partners. All laws, traditions and histories. Dev
specializes in the administrative laws of Sapphire.”
Not sure if she was any the wiser, she turned her attention
to the front of the room.
Dev stood tall, his hands relaxed by his side. “It is my
understanding that the special order session has been called to examine the
validity of the contract between Den Captain Arian Plenastenery, Enforcer
Tarkan Benestaire and the human woman Chelsea McMullin. Is this correct?”
Tollanare Ghananstall rose to his feet. “We do not answer to
you, Enforcer.”
“I’m afraid in this you must, Councilor. Under Gemarran law,
a contract can only be broken if one of the signatories brings the other to mediation,
or if it can be proven that physical or emotional abuse has been inflicted on
one mate by the other. The Council doesn’t have the legal or moral right to
void a contract between two or more consenting adults.”
Tollanare smiled and slowly sank to his seat and Chelsea’s
heart sank with him. Tollanare was young but he had an air of command about him
and that smile on his face was so full of self-satisfaction Chelsea knew they’d
walked into some kind of trap.
“That’s where your point of contention fails, Enforcer,”
Tollanare said. “When the Council first made arrangements to rescue the Earth
women from Brightstar, there were concerns raised about their place in our
world and how best to protect them. We knew they would come to us with no
family, no means of support and no knowledge of our world. The Council decided
that the best way to protect Sapphire’s newest inhabitants was to bring them
directly and legally under our care. The mating contract isn’t legal until this
Council ratifies it in our capacity as Chelsea McMullin’s legal guardians.”
Chelsea had been clutching tight to her men but she threw
their hands aside as she jumped to her feet. “Are you telling me you have legal
control over me? That I can’t make any decision for myself without first coming
to the Council for permission?”
Tollanare nodded. “That is correct.”
Bastards. The hot prickle of temper shot through her body
and heated her cheeks. “So for all intents and purposes, you own me. I can’t go
anywhere, do anything—including legalizing my relationship—without your say-so.”
One of the other councilmen nodded his head. “It’s for your
protection and the protection of the other women.”
That pompous little gnome looked so pleased with himself she
wanted to launch herself over the table and beat him to a pulp. Or better still,
she’d get Ari and Tarkan to do it for her. This asshole didn’t even know her, how
was he supposed to decide what was good or bad for her?
“Protection my ass.” She stomped over to stand beside Dev
who, magnificent man that he was, put a steadying hand at the small of her
back. “You’re a bunch of lying hypocrites. Those laws weren’t drafted to
protect human women, they were made so you and your bum-kissing toadies would
have a nice tidy pool of women to choose from. And that makes you different to
Brightstar, how?”
“Madam, moderate your language at once,” the gnome said, his
round face flushing red.
Chelsea cast a quick look at Ari and Tarkan and they gave
her the nod to keep going, god love them.
“I will not moderate my language or my outrage. You can all
go fuck—”
The now not-magnificent Dev clapped a hand over her mouth
and held her tight to his oversized body. “Honored Councilors, what Chelsea is
trying to address is the inconsistency in how this law relates the Earth women.
When the Enforcers were asked to go on the rescue mission, we were assured that
any women we bought back would be given full citizenship status. If that has
been done, then they have no need of oversight from the Council.”
Chelsea resisted the urge to bite Dev’s hand and she tried
to relax enough that he would feel safe letting her go. Then she would jump the
bloody table herself. Unfortunately he must have read her mind because as soon
as he released her mouth he slid his hand down her back and grabbed a fistful
of her bustle.
“They have not been granted citizenship yet,” Tollanare
said. “We thought it prudent to hold off on that until the women were more
settled and educated in our ways.”
Chelsea snorted. “You mean you wanted to keep control of us
until we were safely married off to men of the Council’s choosing.”
“That’s not what we meant at all.” Tollanare sighed and
rubbed a hand over his face. “When we made these decisions we knew very little
about Earth women and we felt these laws were the best way to protect the
people of Sapphire and the females we rescued.”
“Well, you know us now.” Chelsea took a long breath, did her
best to rein in her temper and tried to sound calm and reasonable. “You know we
pose no threat, you know we are intelligent beings capable of following your
laws. If we are not slaves then—by definition—we have the right to self-determination.”
She almost had Tollanare, she could see it in his eyes. And
then the hideous gnome piped up again. “Clearly you are not capable of
following our laws, otherwise you wouldn’t be here.”
“Oh, I’m sorry.” She gave him her best saccharine smile. “I
should have said we would follow the laws that are fair, decent and equitable.”
“Madam, I will have you arrested if you continue this
impertinence.”
Ha, she’d like to see him try. Her men would rip him a new
one if he so much as laid a finger on her. She was about to make the offer when
there was a commotion way at the back of the room.
Chelsea turned—as much as she could with Dev’s meaty fist
still clutching her skirt—and saw Sorcha’s flaming-red hair bobbing toward her.
When she got close enough she stared yelling and her pear-shaped Boston vowels
were music to Chelsea’s ears.
“Stop! Let me through. Don’t make any rash decisions. I have
a message you need to hear.” She continued on, now clearly talking to the
people in her way. “Holy Mary Mother of God, will you move your stupid asses
before we all die in a ball of flame?”
She burst through the crowd in a swath of tangerine silk and
stalked to Chelsea, glaring at her with her fiery green eyes. “You, Miss
Australia, are in so much
trouble
.”
Chelsea winked at her. “Yeah, I’m getting that.”
“No, I mean it.” Sorcha waved her hand in the air. “I’m
talking Armageddon, hellfire, brimstone, the whole shebang.”
Okay, now Chelsea was confused. “I’m sending us all to hell
because I want to marry Ari and Tarkan?”
“No, you idiot.” Then Sorcha clapped her hands over her ears
and screamed at the ceiling. “All right! I’m getting to it. Just give me a
goddamn minute!”
She dropped her hands, tossed her head like a
nineteen-twenties starlet and positioned herself to stand shoulder-to-shoulder
with Chelsea.
“My name is Sorcha Meehan. I am one of the rescued Earth
women and I have a message for the Council from Tengale, dragon partner to Den
Commander Jaxmyre Randovar.”
Jax shot to his feet and held out his hand like he was trying
to stop a rock fall. “No, no, no.”
Sorcha planted her hands on her hips. “Yes, yes, yes. Tengale
has been shouting in my head for a solid half hour and he won’t shut up until I
say his piece. And if I can’t get him to shut up I’m going to kill myself. After
I kill him.”
“This is a bad idea,” Jax said.
“I know.” Sorcha pointed to the sky. “Tell him that.”
When Jax looked up but didn’t move Sorcha huffed in disgust
and said something decidedly uncomplimentary under her breath.
“Right.” She swung around to face the Council. “Tengale has
asked me to speak for him so everyone in the room, especially the Council,
understands that this decree comes from the dragons and not the Enforcers. He
wants there to be no confusion about who is making these demands and who will
be delivering retribution if the demands are not met.”
She slipped her hand into Chelsea’s and took a deep breath.
“Tengale feels it necessary to remind you that dragons have their own society,
their own laws and obligations. When they claim an Enforcer, that male becomes
their responsibility.” Sorcha stopped and turned to Jax. “Tengale says you’re
his possession, is that right?”
Jax nodded. “The blacks are very territorial.”
“Even with people?”
“Especially with people.”
Sorcha glanced at Chelsea and lowered her voice. “You sure
you want to get involved with those Enforcers?”
Chelsea nodded. She had a pretty good idea where this was
heading and she was right on board. “I’m thrilled to be considered a dragon’s
possession.”
Sorcha heaved a melodramatic sigh. “Damn, you drank the Kool-Aid
didn’t you?”
“Yep and it was delicious.”
Sorcha slapped her hand to her forehead. “Ow, ow. All right,
keep it down.” Another muttered profanity, this time about dragons and she was
back to addressing the council. “All the dragons in the den acknowledge that
Arian and Tarkan belong to Annlyss and Benmonth. Now the Enforcers have claimed
Chelsea, she also belongs to the den. Tengale wants to make it very clear that
the blacks will fight for what’s theirs.”
Chelsea thought there might be a light at the end of the
tunnel and she was almost ready to hope when there was an explosion and all
hell broke loose. An entire section of wall disappeared in a crumble of marble
and as the dust billowed, Chelsea saw a large black claw curve around the next
section of wall and pull it out from under the ceiling. She knew it was
Benmonth and when the opposite wall exploded, she wasn’t the least surprised to
see Annlyss’ gray claw contribute to the demolition.
Dev grabbed her and Sorcha, throwing them to the floor and
covering them with his body. The dragons took three large chunks of wall each
and then stopped as suddenly as they started. The Enforcers leaped onto seats
and tables, calling for order to be restored, forcing calm on the poor hapless
townies who’d been caught in the crossfire.
Finally Dev eased off them and Chelsea didn’t have time to
get to her feet before her men were there. They lifted her up and ran their
hands over her, checking for injuries. “I’m fine, truly. Not a scratch.”
“There better not be,” Tarkan muttered, smoothing his hand
over her hair. “You’re sure you’re all right, love?”
“Yes, I’m fine. Dev took care of us.” She looked at the
broken walls and then back at her husbands. “You know Benmonth and Annlyss
wouldn’t have done that if there had been any risk at all to any of us.”
Ari’s mouth turned down. “You wouldn’t say that if you could
see them in battle. Some of their maneuvers border on suicid—”
“Chelsea doesn’t need to hear that,” Tarkan cut in. He gave
Ari a weird look and Ari snapped his mouth shut. She tapped her toe. Maybe she
did need to hear about that, but not now. Not when Sorcha stared wailing again,
clutching her head and screaming.
“For the love of all that’s holy, shut the fuck up!”
Chelsea pressed her lips together. It wasn’t funny. Really
it wasn’t.
Poor Sorcha dragged her heavy skirts to her knees and
climbed up on the nearest seat, addressing the chamber’s shambles. “Tengale’s
not finished. He says there are black dragons at your estates and they are
within striking distance of your immediate family and several key family
members. If you do not give all the Earth females citizenship immediately, the
dragons will consider that an attack. If you do not ratify Arian, Tarkan and
Chelsea’s mating contract the dragons will demolish your homes and burn the
rubble. If you make any kind of move against any woman claimed by an Enforcer,
the dragons will smash Sapphire township to the ground.” Sorcha jumped off the
seat and walked over to Chelsea. “Tengale says Benmonth and Annlyss are on the
roof, waiting to take you home.”
Then Chelsea watched in awe as Sorcha turned on Jax, all six-feet-eight
of him and poked him in his mile-wide chest. “Your dragon is an asshole.”
Jax gave her an evil smile. “He likes you. I think he’s
going to enjoy having a new friend to talk to.”
“Obviously being assholes is what drew you two together.” She
turned her back on him and then muscled Tarkan and Ari out of the way so she
could put her hands on Chelsea’s shoulders.
Chelsea put her hands on her new friend’s waist and smiled
into her eyes. “Thanks, Boston.”
“If I said ‘you’re welcome’ it would be a lie. That dragon
is giving me a migraine.” She glance at Ari and Tarkan. “You sure about them?”
“Surer than I’ve been about anything else in my life.” And
that was the truth.
“What about the big, black and scalies?”
“Love them.” Chelsea’s grin got wider when Sorcha’s eyes
popped.
“Seriously?”
“Yep. My dragons just destroyed a building and threatened to
raze a town to keep me happy. What’s not to love?”
Sorcha dropped her hand. “You, my friend, have too many
kangaroos in your cornfield.”
Chelsea cracked up. She’d been teaching Sorcha Aussie slang
while they’d been sharing a room at the dorm and the American still had a bit
to learn. “You mean I’ve got a kangaroo loose in my top paddock and you’re
probably right. Want to be the chief bridesmaid at my wedding?”