“Really?” Cadence paused to ponder that. She hadn’t been around this area for a long time like Maude and her family, but now that she thought about it, she had seen a lot more friendly interaction and a lot less flaming and icing.
“Heads up,” Gretel interrupted, speaking to Cadence. “Humphrey’s on his way over here.”
Cadence felt a stab of fear. What now?
Humphrey was crossing the field in long, angry strides, with at least twenty of his men trailing behind him.
He was wearing a white silk suit with a blue silk shirt and tie, and white shoes that were already getting muddy from walking across the damp field. He’d probably throw them away when he left.
All of the dragons, both fire and ice, began hurrying towards Cadence, putting themselves between Humphrey and her.
Humphrey and his men aggressively shouldered their way through the crowd, elbowing aside men and women alike. Snarls and smoke and steam swirled in the air.
“Back off,” Laetitia snapped at Humphrey, standing right in front of Cadence. “We’re busy planning a festival here. She is aligned with the Garrison Clan.”
“This is none of your concern. She’s not one of yours.” He stepped around her and fixed Cadence with a fierce glare. “I have consulted with the Elders Council. You are not officially married to him yet, and therefore, unless you can prove that you are carrying his dragonlings, I have the right to claim you,” Humphrey said haughtily. “Your claim alone is not sufficient proof. I can keep you in my castle until tests have been run on you.”
“It’s too soon!” Cadence clenched her fists and tried to quiet her quaking stomach. “The tests won’t be accurate until next week!”
Then he bared his teeth in a frightening smile and stepped in very close, towering over her. The scent of his sickly-sweet cologne clogged her nostrils, and she struggled not to gag. She’d woken up that morning very sensitive to smells.
Part of her new dragon metamorphosis? she wondered. She had never heard of dragons having a good sense of smell. Or was she getting a bit of her wolf back? She’d never heard of that happening before either. Once the more dominant shifter genes took over, the other genes were dormant forever.
She took a step back, but he moved closer to her again.
Her stomach roiled.
“Move back,” she warned him.
“Last chance to do this the easy way,” he said, his lips curling back in a snarl. Icy vapor blew from his nostrils. “Let’s say my men and I have to drag you back by force right now. Assuming you even have dragonlings in you, who knows what would happen to them if I’m forced to get rough? They’re so fragile these days. Whereas if you come with me right now, and agree to be a willing and enthusiastic partner in my bed, I will ensure that you receive the best medical care, and once you deliver the dragonlings, if they are fire dragons, we’ll even return them to the Garrison clan.”
Never. “I mean it. Move back.” Cadence took a gulp of air.
“Hey, you heard her!” Darlene glared at him. “Lady with a baby. Leave her alone!”
“I’ve called Orion,” Gretel said, waving her cell phone at Humphrey. “He’s on his way, and he’s pissed.”
He ignored her. “If you are carrying ice dragons, we’ll keep them in my clan and you’ll be allowed to visit them. Of course, you’ll need to let me impregnate you again immediately, as soon as you’ve delivered.”
“I said get back!” Cadence yelled, and then it was too late. She leaned forward and emptied out her breakfast, vomiting all over his shoes. It splattered on his pants and suit.
“She said get back,” Gretel agreed as he leaped away from her, roaring with rage.
“You did that on purpose!” he shouted as the female dragons crowded around her protectively.
“No, you just genuinely made me puke.”
“See? It’s obvious she’s pregnant!” Laetitia snarled. “You’d better back off before I fry your face.”
“She’s an ice dragon!” he snapped at her, shaking with rage and disgust. “What do you care?”
Laetitia drew herself up to her full height. “She is carrying dragonlings. I will burn you to death if you attempt to take her with you.”
All the other dragons around her snarled their agreement.
Chapter Thirteen
The clinic was located on a mountaintop and built like a fortress. There were both fire and ice dragons guarding it, in equal numbers. When it came to protecting dragonlings, the dragons didn’t mess around. They couldn’t afford to. The future of dragonkind quite possibly lay within the clinic.