Dragon Heat by Charlene Hartnady

Chapter 11

“Any chance you could open a window, Sire? Perhaps the door?” Ice asked Thunder, breathing through his mouth. Sweat dripped down his forehead. Breathing through his mouth only served to remind him of how decadent Azure had tasted. All he could think about while buried between her legs was how good she would feel on the end of his cock. Of being buried deep inside her. He bit back a groan. Ice knew it would sound a little desperate and a whole lot horny.

Ice put a pillow over his erection, since their light cotton pants did nothing to help keep him together. This was a shit show.

“I used tons of that soap,” Azure choked out. Her face was tight with both arousal and pain. She had a hand clasped tightly to her stomach, bunching the fabric of her dress in her hand.

“This is insane,” he growled, standing. “Where is the healer?” He kept the pillow firmly in place. Neither Thunder nor Storm would be affected by Azure’s heat because they were mated males. They obviously didn’t give a shit about how Azure must be feeling right then, either.

“I don’t need a healer. I just need…ah…I…need to be…left alone,” Azure pushed out.

“Sit!” Thunder pointed at the chair behind Ice. “The healer will be here as soon as she has finished mixing your tincture,” he told Azure, who nodded. This tincture was supposed to help ease her heat pains. Where was the female? It felt like they had returned to the lair hours ago when, in reality, they had been back less than an hour and only ten minutes in Thunder’s office. “If we make this meeting quick, it won’t be necessary,” the king went on. “Let me conclude everything you have told us, Azure.” He paused. It looked like he was regrouping. “The Earth dragon tried to force you to breed,” he spoke to Azure, who nodded once. “You ran and hid in one of the pools. Then these strange creatures abducted the male, pulling him deeper into the caves?” He shook his head, looking deep in thought. “What do you make of this, Storm?” The king turned to his brother and second-in-command.

“It sounds crazy. Are you sure you didn’t knock your head?”

Azure looked pale; that, and shell-shocked. She didn’t need to have her story torn apart. It irritated Ice.

“Azure didn’t knock her head,” Ice snarled. “I can vouch that Skarn…or whatever that fucker’s name is, didn’t leave the cave. I would have seen him. I could scent blood when I entered, and yet Azure wasn’t injured. Azure was shivering and wet from hiding in the pools. She was frantic with worry. I assure you that she knows what she saw. She’s one of my best hunters, which takes patience and keen observation skills.”

Storm made a noise like he was thinking things through.

“Yes, but—” Thunder started to say.

There was a knock, and a female entered carrying a vial of brown liquid. Her hair was sprinkled with gray. There were fine lines around her eyes. “Here you are,” the female said, looking at Azure. “You poor dear.” Her eyes went to the king and his brother. “Sire.” She curtseyed. “My Prince.” She inclined her head at Storm. “May I?”

“Certainly.” Thunder waved a hand, motioning for her to enter. “Let’s continue,” he said to them. “You mentioned that this creature you saw was large, with an elongated jaw. It may have initially been in human form, but you’re not sure. The creatures hissed and spoke in a different language. It could see in the dark and more than likely had scales. Is that correct?”

“I know what I saw,” Azure said, her voice strong and true. “Thank you,” she muttered when the healer handed her the vial.

“It won’t taste very nice, but it will help you with the cramps,” the healer said.

Azure drank the liquid and grimaced. “There were more than one of them. They overpowered Skarn, a dragon male in his prime. They took him. They have him now.” She handed the vial back to the healer.

“Why would these things take Skarn in the first place?” Storm asked.

“Did this happen in the heat cave?” the healer asked Azure. She narrowed her eyes in thought.

“Yes.” Azure nodded.

“I heard stories as a child.” The older woman lifted her eyes for a moment. “Hmmm…I didn’t think they were true, but perhaps I was wrong.” She rubbed her chin. “It sounds like the fifth tribe.”

“Fifth tribe? What stories?” Thunder asked, his voice animated. “Sit…please.” He gestured to one of the chairs.

The older woman sat on the sofa across from them; she was still lost in thought. She licked her lips and cocked her head. “My mother used to tell me these stories when I was a whelp. She is still alive, but her memory is not what it used to be. I will try to remember all I can.” She paused again, then continued. “There used to be a fifth dragon tribe. Not just Fire, Air, Earth, and Water.”

“A fifth tribe?” Thunder frowned.

The healer nodded.

“What kind of tribe?” Storm leaned forward.

“I can’t recall.” She shook her head. “The fifth tribe had a falling out with the others. There was war.”

“Why was there a falling out?” Thunder’s eyes narrowed on the healer.

“Something about a female…but it could have been over power.”

“Probably both,” Storm said. “Nothing like a female to make males lose their minds.”

Especially if she was in heat, Ice thought to himself, risking a look at Azure. There was a touch more color in her cheeks. She wasn’t shivering so much anymore. It looked like that tincture might be working.

“Whatever the fight was about, the fifth tribe lost the war,” the healer went on. “They fled for their lives. The other four tribes hunted them relentlessly, killing all they could find. Our species were far more…brutal than we are now.” The healer scratched her head. “With numbers of the fifth tribe dwindling, they ended up going underground. Deep underground. That’s where the stories take different directions. Some spoke of the fifth tribe dying out, never to be seen again. Others said that they adapted to living in the dark. That they thrived down there. There were stories told of an underground lair so big and beautiful it would boggle the mind. As a young female, I remember wanting to be taken by a cave dragon. Taken to a new world.” Her eyes twinkled. “It was all nonsense…or at least, I thought it was nonsense. Perhaps, after all this time, cave dragons do exist. It sounds like they took the Earth male.”

“Why, though? What would they want with him?” Storm asked.

“Who knows,” the healer said.

“They didn’t look like…dragons. They definitely didn’t sound like dragons, but perhaps I was wrong. It was so dark.” Azure sounded much better.

Come to think of it, he felt a little less edgy. His dick was still hard as nails, but his balls were no longer in his throat. The liquid in the vial was definitely doing its job. Then again, perhaps it was news of these cave dragons that took his mind off Azure’s scent. Probably a bit of both. He was glad she was coping better. Hopefully, the healer had more where that came from.

“We need to assemble the elders and see what information we can glean on these creatures. I will inform Granite of what has happened. We will need to decide how to proceed.” Thunder sounded pissed off.

“I’ll get the ball rolling,” Storm said.

“Please excuse me, Sire,” Azure said, standing. “I’m going back to my chamber. I think it would be best if a couple of mated guards could be placed at—”

“There is no need for guards.” Thunder shook his head. “You are still at the height of your heat. You need to pick again, although a cave might not be the best place to spend your heat.”

“No.” Azure stood taller. “I wasn’t happy picking before, and I hate the idea now. It’s not what I want.”

Thunder sighed and pressed two of his fingers into his closed eyes. “I explained this already.” He dropped his hand. “I need you to do this for your tribe. We need female dragons.”

“I can’t!” Her voice was slightly shrill. “Not after what happened. It was this close.” She held two of her fingers a fraction of an inch apart. “Those creatures were terrifying. I’m not sure what would have happened if they had found me. Aside from all of that, it’s wrong.”

“It was probably your scent that drew them,” Ice said, more to himself. “I’m glad they didn’t find you.” Their eyes locked.

“I’ve been through too much,” she said, her eyes still on him for a moment before they moved to Thunder. “I can’t…I won’t…I—”

“You must!” Thunder pushed. “You must dig deep. It’s what your body wants. What your body needs right now.”

“Didn’t you hear a word I just said? After nearly being forced and nearly kidnapped, it’s not what I want at all! What I need is to be left alone.”

“You left with a male you don’t even know. It would be better with—”

“Skarn was a mistake,” she said.

“Exactly,” Thunder spoke gently. “You need to choose a male you know and trust. What about you Ice?”

Holy fuck!

Ice put his hands up, palms forward. “It’s not up to me.” It was a pussy answer. It wasn’t even an answer. He’d dodged the question entirely, and yet he stood behind what he had just said. “If Azure doesn’t want to spend her heat with a male, if she doesn’t want a whelp right now, she shouldn’t have to choose anyone.”

“Blaze will be angry if Azure doesn’t try to get with whelp,” Storm said to Thunder.

“It’s one hell of a fuck-up. I think we have bigger fish to fry right now,” Thunder told Storm. He looked at Azure. “We need female whelps being born. Females such as you are the most important individuals in this tribe right now. I can’t force you. I can ask that you reconsider. That you give it some thought. You may never have this opportunity again. Don’t you want to be a mother?”

“I’ve never given it any thought. I didn’t think it was in the cards for me. It’s a big decision. One I can’t make right now.”

“You might never have this chance again,” Storm snapped.

She shrugged, looking small and sad. So unlike herself, it was alarming. “It’s a risk I’m willing to take.”

“Blaze might decide to take action against you. He was ultimately the one who invoked Kikalla,” Thunder said. “I would stand up for you, but if he decided to—”

“No!” Ice growled. He pulled in a deep breath and lowered his gaze. “Forgive me, Sire, but that’s not fair. I would stand against a decision such as that.” He bristled.

“You should pick this male,” Thunder told Azure. “He cares for you.” Before they could say anything else, he added, “You’re all dismissed. Azure will need more of your tincture,” he told the healer. “Although I am still hopeful that she will do the right thing.”

Azure’s eyes blazed. Her jaw clenched tight. She’d never been more beautiful, and he didn’t think it was her heat talking. Or his dick, for that matter. For just a second, he had wanted her to pick him and to agree. Just a second. It was over before he could analyze it.