The Dragon’s Chance by Jessie Donovan

Chapter Twenty-Three

Iris Mahajan had spent the last six weeks tapping every source she had, calling in a few favors, and finally spending every waking moment trying to determine who inside Lochguard had worked with Arlo MacAllister.

The blasted report from Antony's people had said there were two suspected accomplices in the illegal dragon's blood operation, one of whom at least lived on Lochguard themselves.

Which was why she was now dressed in a bloody impractical skirt and top, with a cardigan to cover her dragon-shifter tattoo, doing her best to blend in on the busy Royal Mile in Edinburgh, waiting for her suspect to show his face.

She was almost positive that Lance MacCann had a meeting in the next half hour along the Mile, although she wasn't quite sure of where.

Despite Lance's mate, Harriet, being the daughter of Lochguard's old clan leader—the old male had used fear to rule and rarely had dealt with clan issues unless bloodshed was imminent—the female was sweet and didn't have a dishonest bone in her body. Harriet was friends with Kiyana Boyd and Gina MacDonald-MacKenzie, two of the human females living on Lochguard.

And since Gina's mate, Fergus, helped gather intelligence for Lochguard, Iris had trusted him to help her keep track of information. According to Fergus, Harriet had said Lance was going to be out of town for the day to supposedly meet some local schoolteachers about doing a cross-cultural event for human and dragon children.

On the surface, it seemed plausible. Lance's mate worked part-time at the school, and the female always wanted to find new ways to introduce the dragon children, including her own, to human ones.

However, Lance had merely requested permission to visit Edinburgh to do some shopping. Or so the paperwork Finn had shown her said.

Iris had caught Lance in the lie, and Finn trusted her enough to let her see where it went. As of late, Lance had earned some rather large commissions for his website and social media strategy consultations, far beyond what he'd ever earned in the past. And some digging had revealed no recently acquired big clients either.

It was the extra income, plus the lie, that made Iris's gut scream Lance was her target.

Her dragon huffed but remained silent. Iris bit back a smile, knowing how hard it was for her beast to do so. But they were in Edinburgh in broad daylight so she'd never pass for human if her pupils started flashing.

Especially since it was a gloomy day and sunglasses would seem out of place.

Iris quickly checked her phone, but there were no messages from Brodie or Cooper. They were also Lochguard Protectors. Brodie she'd trained with back in the British Army, and Cooper was Lochguard's second-in-command of security. She trusted both of them with her life.

And since she couldn't watch the entire mile herself—even with certain establishments banning dragon-shifters from entering, narrowing down Lance's destination choices—she needed Brodie and Cooper's help to watch the other end, closer to the Palace of Holyroodhouse, as well as the middle section. Iris was keeping watch closer to Edinburgh Castle.

As she continued to simultaneously browse the wares outside the tacky souvenir shop and watch the street for signs of Lance, something across the way caught her attention. A broad-shouldered figure, dressed in an unremarkable dark suit, sat at the window of a cafe, drinking tea and pretending to read a newspaper.

Aye, pretending because he currently stared straight at her and winked.

It was that bloody human, Antony Holbrook.

What the hell was he doing here?

Her dragon wanted to speak but couldn't. What Iris wouldn't give for some sunshine and a pair of sunglasses.

But even without her dragon's words, Iris could guess why the male was here. Either Antony had been watching her since the whole mess with Jake Swift, or he had information confirming what she'd suspected, in that Lance MacCann was indeed the inside traitor on Lochguard.

The first option was merely annoying. The second pissed her off.

She'd worked hard to piece together information and get herself to Edinburgh, all whilst never letting on she was a dragon-shifter.

And if that damn human male ruined it, she was tempted to lure him somewhere isolated and show just how accomplished she was at taking a human down.

Aye, he could do with a bit of humility, that was for sure.

Her dragon laughed, but Iris ignored her beast. No doubt her dragon would think of another way to deal with him, one that involved no clothes and a bed.

But no matter how attractive he might be, she wasn't going to allow him to undermine her. Iris had devoted her life to becoming a Protector, to protect the clan that had welcomed her parents when some of the other British clans had turned up their noses at taking them in decades ago.

Lochguard was hers to protect, not his.

Then she noticed a familiar tall male form walking down the street with his head bent and the collar of his jacket turned up high.

The brown-haired form of Lance MacCann had finally shown up, bringing her mind back to focus on her task.

As Lance eventually entered a pub down the street, Iris slowly made her way toward it too.

When she crossed the street, she quickly glanced toward the cafe. Antony was gone.

She resisted a growl. He was going to swoop in and take credit for her work.

Maybe to some it wouldn't matter, as long as the guilty were taken into custody and dealt with.

However, Iris had had enough of males swooping in to take credit for her work during her time in the army or during the annual training exercises most Protectors had to attend with the British Army, Royal Navy, and Royal Air Force members.

Cocky human males who thought they were so much better than her.

Not only because she was female, but also because her parents were from India, which somehow made her less everything—competent, intelligent, brave, trustworthy, and the list went on.

Pushing aside the memories of the arseholes from her time in the army and a few times since, she focused on slipping inside the pub and blending into the background. All that mattered was getting the evidence she needed to convict Lance and rid Lochguard of its latest threat. Only then could Sylvia MacAllister come home with the male she seemed to fancy.

Quickly scanning the room, Iris didn't spot Lance anywhere. However, she noted the stairs toward the back of the place.

After quickly ordering a soda—any sort of alcohol purchases by a dragon-shifter in Edinburgh could lead to trouble if reported—she went upstairs.

Since it was near lunchtime, the place was mostly filled with tourists enjoying the regular pub fare of fish and chips, meat pies, and burgers. In the far corner, away from the window, she spotted Lance sitting at a table.

Not just Lance—no, he was sitting across from Antony.

For a beat she wondered if she'd misjudged either of the males, but quickly ignored it. Too many lies and unaccounted monies said Lance was up to something he shouldn't be.

But whereas Lance didn't know Iris was there, Antony did. And the human male could easily destroy all her hard work with a sentence or two.

Mentally cursing Antony Holbrook, she slid into a chair at a small table along one wall and did her best to inconspicuously watch them while pretending to do something on her phone.

In less than five minutes Lance left, never noticing Iris off to the side.

However, Antony casually walked by her table, dropping a napkin on his way, all while never looking at her.

Unfolding the crumpled napkin, she read the message: Old Assembly Close, birdbath. 20 minutes. Tell no one.

The human wanted a meeting, did he?

She quickly looked up the location of the specified close on her phone—there were heaps of the small alleys along the Royal Mile—and discovered it wasn't far from the famous St. Giles Cathedral just down the road.

Hmm.Iris didn't like meeting Antony alone without telling anyone, but she had a way around that. She quickly typed up and scheduled an email to go out to Brodie and Cooper in an hour. That way, if something happened to her, they'd know where to start looking.

In the meantime, she'd see what he had to say.

Quickly finishing her soda, Iris exited the pub and casually walked down the street. The best way to go around a human city without anyone realizing she was a dragon-shifter was to act like one of the tourists.

So even though she hated wasting time buying a postcard and stopping a few times to look at T-shirts and tartan blankets, she reached the close before the deadline. She didn't know exactly where the birdbath was at, the narrow alley off the main street wasn't long, and she noticed Antony standing next to a little outcrop building with some sort of warning sign on the green door. The fence created a little area surrounded by trees and a birdbath on one side and the building on the other.

Since people were walking down the close and through the small courtyard to the left of the birdbath, she'd have to be careful and not let her eyes flash or talk too loud.

No doubt Antony had planned that.

If he wasn't interfering in her own investigation, she might acknowledge admiring him a wee bit.

But no, there were more important things to worry about.

She approached him, trying her best not to notice how his hair was a touch too long or how his shoes were a wee bit scuffed. All part of his cover, she imagined.

Not that she thought his broad shoulders or narrow waist were part of it; he probably ran triathlons for fun, to prove he could win over those younger than him. Aye, she could see that, for sure.

Although she had to admit that he was fit for his age. Maybe too fit.

Pushing aside any thoughts about what Antony might look like under his clothes, she stopped a foot away from him and merely raised her brows. The human smiled. "Good afternoon to you, too, my dear."

Again with his little endearments. But Iris wouldn't let it get to her, not here. Keeping her voice low, she said, "The bigger question is: Why were you meeting him? I'm beginning to think that maybe you're not on our side but merely on your own."

He brushed some imaginary dirt off his sleeve. The male tried too hard to appear nonchalant, that was for sure. He replied, "I owe too much to a dragon-shifter to ever hurt them. But do you want to waste time discussing me or our mutual acquaintance?"

No doubt his words about owing a dragon-shifter were merely to throw her off and distract her. "The mutual acquaintance you just had a drink with?"

"More like who just admitted to his crimes without even knowing it."

She narrowed her eyes. "He may not be the cleverest male alive, but surely he wouldn't trust you so easily."

"Ah, but this isn't the first time he and I have met." He leaned closer, and Iris ignored the heat rolling off his body. "I've been working on this for a while, my dear. Although it's nice for you to have finally caught up."

She clenched her jaw and resisted making a fist. Something about this human made her want to slap or punch him.

Her dragon laughed but still remained silent. For once, Iris was glad her beast couldn't talk right now and fluster her further. "Do you have a point? Otherwise I'm going to leave."

He raised one brown eyebrow. Unlike his hair, it didn't have any gray yet. "We both know you're lying. Unless you want to scurry back, tail between your legs, and admit defeat. Or you can stay and I can share what I learned. Either way, your pest won't be a problem much longer. The only question is whether you want to tell your boss what happened or have him hear it from me."

She hated the vague conversation, but the mention of her boss referred to her clan leader.

Still, his tone was bloody irritating. This human male was entirely too comfortable being in charge and being obeyed without question.

Too bad she couldn't call him out on it. Only because of the people milling about did Iris keep her voice low. "What did you find out?"

"See? It's not that hard to be civil." At the humor in his eyes, she did make a fist but refrained from hitting him. As if sensing he was about to go too far, he continued, "The acquaintance is guilty." He leaned even closer, his hot breath dancing across her ear as he said, "He'll be making the exchange in a few hours. Once he does, my people will take him into custody. JS should be safe enough to return after that, with the threats to his life gone."

JS had to mean Jake Swift.

Iris grunted. "I want a detailed report. It could help me keep an eye out for future problems."

He leaned back and searched her gaze, a beat longer than was proper.

Her dragon swished her tail inside Iris's mind, no doubt wanting to say something about the deep brown depths or firm lips that she couldn't tell if they were warm or cold.

Pushing aside her dragon's radiating lust, she waited for Antony's answer. Once she had it, she could walk away and hopefully never have to see him again.

Aye, then she could focus back on improving her tracking and spying skills to better protect her clan. Her few interactions with Antony had taught her she still had a lot to learn.

He smiled slowly, and Iris ignored how it made him appear years younger than he was. Antony finally spoke again. "I'll send you a private report, one for your eyes only. Maybe you'll learn something from it, so next time I don't have to swoop in and help."

Iris rarely lost her temper, but this male was pushing it ever closer to bursting. Through clenched teeth, she said, "Fine. I'm leaving now."

She turned to leave, but Antony took hold of her wrist. Ignoring how his long fingers almost made her feel dainty, she glared at him. "What?"

"We'll meet again, my dear. Never fear."

He released her and Iris turned and walked away.

Part of her hoped he was lying and she'd never set eyes on him again.

And yet another part was eager for it, making her heart thump inside her chest. Not only could he teach her a few things—loath as she was to admit it—she wanted to poke and prod until he lost his nonchalant mask.

Because aye, it was a mask. And who knew what lay beneath.

Taking out her phone, she erased her scheduled email and sent messages to Brodie and Cooper about meeting up and returning to Lochguard.

All that mattered in the end was how her clan was safe. At least for the time being.