Drakhana's Claim Read online

  They must have been waiting for me to contact them because he answers a few seconds after I make the call. He and my mother are in their official robes, which I assume means they are about to enter chambers with the elders. Good, I caught them at the right time. They can relay my intentions to the council.

  “Oh, thank the dragon gods,” her mother says, her hand to her chest. “Ivy, we’ve been worried sick.”

  “Hasn’t Ivan reached the fortress yet?” I ask, confused. He should have gotten there by now.

  “He has,” my father reassures me. “But we don’t believe anything until we hear it from you.”

  “Well, I’m fine, as you can see.” I don’t tell them about the injury.

  What I do tell them about is the ambush. Their foreheads crease with every word that comes out of my mouth. Especially when I get to the part about the bitch female fire dragon with the earth shattering powers.

  “How did they come upon a power so great?” my mother asks, her concern mounting by the minute.

  “I don’t know,” I say in all honesty. “All I know is that we need to stop it. As soon as I am able, my strike force and I will return to Verglas and we can plan our next move.”

  “No, Ivy.”

  “I don’t understand, Father. What are you saying?”

  “I think what your father means is that it will be best if you stay in LA for now.”

  “Why? We need to strike while the iron is hot,” I insist, unable to understand their motives for asking me to stay. “We can’t allow them to regroup. We need to catch them by surprise.”

  “We already did that and it seemed not to work,” my father says. He might as well have punched me through the screen by pointing out my failure.

  “We were caught off guard.” I lift my chin. “It will not happen again.”

  “Ivy, Verglas is safe,” my mother says. “The fire clan haven’t invaded despite this new power that you’ve described to us.”

  “For now,” I retort. “All the more that we must not allow them to get the upper hand.” I say this even if I already know that the fire clan does have the upper hand. Unless we can find a way to stop that fire bitch, we would win. “We need to make them pay for what they have done.”

  “I believe that we need to take a different approach.” My father’s lips turn into a straight line. This is the same expression he uses when he’s about to bring down a decree. “Stay where you are. We will continue to scout and bring back some information. We will fill you in when we know more in a couple of days.”

  “It might be too late by then,” I say, barely able to hold in my temper.

  “Two days, Ivy,” my mother pleads. “Wait until we know more.”

  My father ends the call before I can argue further. I know that it wasn’t my father telling me to stay. It was my king. There’s nothing I can do but follow.

  Doesn’t mean I will like it nor stay idle. Everyone’s being fucking weak. Looks like I need to handle this by myself. Kill the elders by my own hand. That’s the only way to ensure the safety of my clan.

  All everyone really needs is one good war. Just so that we can all return to focusing on the ancient ways. All of this modernization is complete bullshit.

  “What are you doing here?” Logan asks when he enters the conference room.

  I turn on my heel and face him. Good. I need a punching bag to release all my pent-up anger on.

  “Last I checked, I outrank you. I can go where I please,” I say in the most arrogant tone I can muster despite the ache in my side.

  A muscle ticks along his jaw. “Don’t you care about the men practically dying down there?” He points at the floor to indicate the place where my men are.

  “Your medics have patched them up. Don’t insult my leadership skills by insinuating that I don’t take care of my men.”

  “That’s exactly what I’m doing.” He straightens to his full height.

  Don’t matter, I can still take him down. “What are you trying to say?”

  “I question your leadership capabilities. No general willingly puts her men in danger. Don’t you have a thought for those who died?”

  I take a step forward and bare my teeth at him. “Those who died have been honored. We can only be so lucky to find death during battle.”

  “You have lost your mind thinking there’s dignity in fighting.”

  “And you don’t?” I spread my arms wide apart. “Oh, that’s right! You turned your back on us.”

  “I did no such thing,” Logan says through his teeth, leaning forward as if he wants to take a bite out of me. I dare him to try. “What I do is for the good of the clan. For the future. You are so stuck in the past that you refuse to move forward.”

  “Excuse me for honoring the ancient ways.”

  “Is patching up a dragon only to throw him back into battle part of honoring the old ways? I think not.”

  “All those men down there willingly lay their lives on the line for the safety and future of Verglas and the ice clan. They will be honored for the rest of their days for their heroism.”

  “Collecting scars isn’t heroism, Ivy.”

  “General to you.”

  “I will call you as I please. I’m not longer under you. I will no longer follow you blindly into battle. My eyes have been opened.”

  “To what? To business?” I scoff. “There is no honor in that.”

  “That’s only because you know nothing of what I do,” he challenges. “Come to the city with me and see for yourself. See all the businesses that I’ve put up and continue to put up to ensure the future of our clan.”

  “Those will mean nothing if there’s no clan to return to,” I say. “The fire clan boasts of a new power, Logan. Please, we need all the help we can get. Fight with us.”

  He shakes his head, taking a step back. “I’ve left that life behind me.”

  I think fast. He’s a businessman, right? That means he’s open to making deals. I cast my die and see where it lands.

  “Okay,” I say.

  “Okay what?” He narrows his gaze at me.

  “I will go to the city with you and see for myself all these businesses you’re so proud of.” Before he can claim victory, I raise my finger and say, “But on one condition.”

  “And what’s that?” The skepticism on his face is priceless.

  “I will come to the city if you train with me.”

  “Absolutely not.”

  “What? Have you grown soft during your stay in the city?”

  Pricking his ego works because he charges toward me. I stand my ground, ready for whatever he does. He surprises me by stopping mere inches from where I stand.

  “I’ll show you who’s gone soft,” he says in the quietest, deadliest voice I’ve never heard from him before.

  It’s a sound that calls to the desires deep in me, pulling up a lust that I keep in check. Ah, he is indeed lethal. Maybe time in the city has done him some good. Matured him more.

  “I’m intrigued, but that doesn’t answer my proposal.” I lick my bottom lip. “Train with me. For old time’s sake.”

  “I will not train with you even if you torture me,” he says with such disgust that my lust is snuffed out by the spark of anger that returns.

  “Do you despise what we do so much?”

  “I despise the waste of life.” He backs away.

  “You bring shame to your clan.”

  “Think what you want, but you bring shame on yourself.”

  Before I can say anything else, I turn my back to him. He must have done the same because I hear the door open then slam behind me. Screw him and his high and mighty attitude.

  Six

  Logan

  After our explosive argument, and when cooler heads prevailed, Ivy reluctantly agreed to meet me at the city the next morning. At first, I feel like she’s pulling a prank on me. Telling me one thing but doing something completely different.

  Then I remember that Ivy doesn’t say anything t
hat she doesn’t mean. That’s what makes her a brilliant general. She’s upfront with her troops. No one has any inclinations to doubt her. Which might be to the detriment of her men.

  I had heard reports of the battle in the Nevada desert. How the fire clan had sent the ice clan packing. I don’t know all of it, but I’ve heard rumors of a mighty power from the fire clan.

  If only Ivy knew before she launched the attack that I was already in the process of bringing the fire clan to their knees. I was cutting off their business ventures and tacking over little by little. It’s my hope, that through this first step, that Ivy will eventually see things my way. That bloodshed doesn’t have to happen to bring down an enemy.

  I wait for her at the corner of Sawtelle Boulevard. The doughnut shop that I want to bring her to is a few minutes away. I had bragged to her yesterday that they were the best doughnuts in town. That’s what made her take me up on the offer of meeting in the city.

  Here’s the thing about dragons that you might not know. We can sense each other when we’re near. We can tell who’s a dragon and who’s human. It has to do with smell and aura. Dragons radiate the kind of power that humans don’t have.

  Ivy’s power? Well, it’s like a sledgehammer. That’s why dragons take notice when she passes. Even humans can sense her, that’s how powerful she is.

  I look up the instant I feel her approaching. She’s coming from the other side of the street, which meant she needed to use the crosswalk to get to where I’m standing. I suck in a breath at the sight of her.

  My image of Ivy involves her always in fighting leathers. This is the first time I’m actually seeing her in street clothes. Or what we refer to as civilian attire.

  She’s sporting jeans that skim her curves honed by years of training. Over the tank top is a light bomber jacket where she’s stuffed her hands into. Dragon gods, she even makes sneakers look good.

  She has her hair tied back, away from her face. Even from afar, I can see the blue in her eyes. That’s how striking they are.

  Ivy looks like a completely different person. The only way that I can tell she hasn’t been mind switched by aliens and it’s still her in there is the way she holds herself up. Her chin is raised and her shoulders are squared. Her gait contains the confidence of a soldier with the highest rank. Let’s not even discuss the bearing that she possesses because of her royal lineage.

  “What?” she asks when she finally reaches me. “You’re looking at me funny?”

  I mask my shock by teasing her, “Is that makeup on your face?”

  “Can’t a girl put on a little lip gloss without having a guy think it’s weird?”

  It’s not only lip gloss. If you really look at her, she’s enhanced her long eyelashes with a touch of mascara as well. Although, the rest of her face remains makeup free. Ivy knows how to look casual and put together at the same time.

  “Come on then.” I tilt my head in the direction we’re supposed to go. “Primo’s Donuts is this way.”

  As we begin to walk, she says, “What will I do to you if this proves to be not the best donuts as you’ve promised?”

  “Does it always have to be a reward and punishment system with you?”

  “You can remove the fighting leathers from a girl but that doesn’t mean her general stays home.” She shrugs.

  I give her a sidelong glance as I open the door into the donut shop. Instantly, the smell of fried dough and sweet glaze assails up. The coffee smell is absolutely divine. Ivy takes a deep breath, filling her lungs to full capacity.

  “It certainly smells good in here,” she comments as she approaches the glass case filled with a variety of donuts.

  “Primo’s is a Los Angeles institution. They’ve been here since 1956. Best donuts in town.”

  “What? Are you their spokesperson or something?”

  “Just try one and see what I mean.”

  We order two cups of coffee. I grab a chocolate old fashioned for myself while Ivy goes for the sugar razed. Orders in hand, we leave the shop and take a stroll through the city while eating and drinking.

  She takes a bite of the donut and stops. I stop with her. She looks up at me as she chews. The surprise in her eyes is unmistakable.

  “Good right?” I say.

  “Better than good. We need to go back so I can bring some to the men later.”

  It touches my heart that even now she’s thinking about her men. Which prompts me to say, “Don’t you think dragons deserve to live like this?”

  “Like what?”

  I indicate the city. “Living in peace and luxury. Where they don’t have to think about anything else but what they will buy for that day or what vacation they want to go on. A relaxed life.”

  The dragon gods might not have been on my side at that moment because a couple of police cars with sirens blaring drive by. Ivy watches them go. Then she looks at me with a smirk.

  “You need fighters to keep the peace,” she says as if proving her point.

  We come up to the bank and I usher her inside. The manager is already waiting for us at the entrance. He leads us toward the back where the private vault is. He swipes his keycard then steps aside to allow me to place my hand on top of the biometric scanner.

  Once the vault door opens, we’re left alone for privacy. I open the door and show Ivy inside. She looks in to see the stacks of gold bars and the bricks of money.

  “A literal dragon’s hoard,” she quips.

  “This is just one of the many stashes that we have. In here is more than enough to keep the entire ice clan living in luxury.”

  I close the door and lock it. Then we leave the bank and walk toward my car parked at the sidewalk. I open the passenger door for her.

  “I can open my own doors,” she says, but willingly gets into the car.

  “I know you can.” I close the door, round the car, and get into the driver’s seat.

  We drive towards the movie studios that we specifically use for all the entertainment content the different production companies that I establish creates. On the set, I show her the movie that’s currently filming based on a book that we just optioned. I even introduce her to the actors. Ivy doesn’t seem impressed.

  Then we move on to the headquarters of the various charities I’ve established. I show her each one and explain what we do. Like build schools in under-privileged parts of the world and water pumps for places without access to running water.

  When we exit the building, she says, “I get it. You’re doing good work here. But haven’t you noticed the fire dragons hanging around? There’s more of them than I care to have in my general vicinity.”

  “They are all businessmen,” I explain.

  “I hear that they’ve lost territory here.”

  I nod. “And might I point out that all that was done via business takeovers. No blood was shed whatsoever.”

  “You’re not going to insist again that fighting isn’t necessary, are you?”

  “Haven’t you seen anything that I showed you?”

  “All of those riches prove nothing to me, Logan. We’re still in danger from the fire clan. None of the things you showed me today gives me an idea how you will stop the power that bitch dragon has that killed most of my men.”

  In that moment, it seems like there’s nothing I can say that will convince Ivy of the good that I’ve been doing. I open the car door for her again, but she shakes her head.

  “I can find my way back to the factory,” she says. “Thanks for the donut and coffee.”

  She walks away leaving an uneasy air between us.

  Seven

  Ivy

  After making good on our agreement to go see the businesses that Logan’s been bragging about, it’s his turn. He remembered the time train and actually showed up early in his gear. I appreciate that since we usually start before the sun does.

  What time does Logan usually wake up? Noon?

  He seems ready to go. Suddenly, I’m flashing back to the days when
he was still a part of the strike force and training with everyone. The dragons who are well enough to train appreciate his presence. They all exchange back slaps and cordial words.

  Knowing that we will be training today, I spent the rest of the afternoon yesterday setting up a training area for the group. All those still recovering from their injuries I had to convince to sit this one out. It fills my heart with pride that my men, even injured, don’t neglect their duties.

  I just wish that Logan would wake the hell up and do the same. Those businesses that he showed me yesterday? They mean nothing in this fight. In the grand scheme of things, he’s playing games while we go to war.

  We start with a brisk jog around the compound. The custodian of the place had been quite helpful to me during the set up of the training area. I admire his support for what we do.

  I think in the back of his mind, all he wants is to be useful to Strike Force Alpha. I told him that for his hard work, I will make him an honorary member. The pride on his face was priceless.

  The way I set up the job around the factory facility mimicked an obstacle course. There are parts where we have to climb. There are parts where we have to jump. There are parts where we have to crawl on our bellies.

  Not once do we slow our pace. I keep an eye on Logan and he seems to be keeping up. When he starts to sweat and the shirt he’s wearing begins to stick to his body, I can see outlines of a fit physique. It seems he hasn’t let go of his physicality all that much since starting his business dealings.

  When we finish a circuit around the course, we gather at the cleared training area and start the calisthenics portion of the exercise regimen. To warm up, we do a ten-minute plank. Then we move on to ten sets each of high knees, plank jacks, and burpees.

  Once we’ve worked up a good sweat, I move on to five sets of side plank walks, jumping lunges, and mountain climbers. By now, we’re starting to get a great amount of sweat. No one’s really panting yet, so I switch to ten sets of jump squats, plank jacks, and saw planks.