They sat like that, joined, replete, happy, for a long time after. Luc stroked Lilly’s spine with gentle motions.
“I love you, Lilly,” he whispered as her heart soared with the same emotion. Words weren’t adequate to express such a big concept, but she gave them to him anyway.
“I love you, too.”
They kissed and made love all over again, this time, more slowly and with even greater pleasure. It seemed every time they were together, they touched new heights, and she wondered how she had ever been so blessed to find a lover—a life partner—like Luc. She might still worry about the future a bit, at times, but all that really mattered was this moment…and this man. The rest would take care of itself. Somehow.
* * *
Lord Orthan cursed his missed opportunity. Things had not been going right for days now. He’d lost contact with his ally, the Alchemist Osmian, and that bitch, Lilly, had brought back not only an elf, but a snow dragon. Orthan felt sure he could still win the day—after all, he still had his paid-for army—but things would be much more difficult if Alric had allies, and time to prepare.
Orthan left the castle and made his way to his own mansion in the city. He had plans to make and messages to dispatch. Thankfully, though Osmian was out of touch, the tokens the Alchemist had given Orthan to hide his own activities seemed to be holding strong. He had secret things to do, and nobody must know that Orthan was preparing to go to war.
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
The next morning, Zallra was with Alric when Luc and Lilly answered the King’s summons. Lilly was shocked to see the remains of a breakfast tray and table clearly laid for two. Zallra’s eyes twinkled at Lilly when she caught the direction of her gaze, and Lilly felt her cheeks flush. Alric was her friend, but that didn’t mean she liked to contemplate his sex life.
Zallra was good for him, it was clear, and more than that, Lilly really didn’t need to know. As long as the Jinn dragoness treated Alric with the love and respect he deserved, Lilly would be happy for them both.
“Sir Luc,” Alric said. “And my dear Lilly.” He smiled gently at the mention of her name. “I have a task for you both, if Lady Shilayla would also indulge me.”
Shilayla was already up and flying around the city, learning all the streets and lanes, or so she’d claimed when Lilly had asked. Shilayla was likely doing more than that, but reporting her observations only to Luc, as was proper for emissaries from another land. Lilly tried not to let it bother her, but after their adventures together, she felt a bit left out. Still, the time was coming when Luc and his heartmate would fly out of her life forever, and she had better get used to that idea.
“We are at your disposal, King Alric,” Luc replied formally. His deep voice ran through her like a hot knife through butter, making her melt in the most inappropriate places when standing before the King.
“Then, I would ask you to deliver a message on behalf of the Jinn spymaster, Lady Zallra and myself,” Alric went on. He gestured to Zallra, who retrieved a sealed scroll from a side table. She held it out to Luc, who moved forward to collect it. “We have ironed out a deal between my kingdom and the Jinn. The details are in that scroll, but what it boils down to is this: I’m offering to annex certain portions of the wasteland under my banner if the Jinn mercenary companies are willing to live there. They will have a mostly autonomous zone that they will police and defend, with aid from our troops and allies, when necessary. It has become clear that the wasteland would be better used as a buffer between the heart of my kingdom and outside forces. While I didn’t have the personnel to expand it on my own, by reaching a deal with the Jinn, it is not only possible, but preferable. The Jinn are settling all over the lands. Many have chosen to make their permanent homes in Draconia, but the fighting folk among the Jinn have long trained and worked for a time apart from their families. I’m proposing to give them a permanent base in the wasteland in exchange for their service in keeping it safe.”
“It’s a fair deal,” Zallra said. “And, according to the local spymaster, it’s something that will serve the dominant Clans in this area well. It has the spymaster’s approval, and that of myself on behalf of the Black Dragon Clan, which rules over all the others, though ours is a looser sort of authority than Alric’s.”
Lilly noted the familiar use of Alric’s first name and the way her friend and King responded to it. He held out his hand, and Zallra put hers into it. Clearly, there was a deep bond of affection between the two of them that had blossomed in a very short time. Lilly would not have believed in such a thing if her own heart hadn’t been snared by Luc so easily. Sometimes, the heart just went where it wanted, without counsel from the head.
Luc held the scroll tightly. “I will deliver your message, King Alric. It is my honor to do so, and by your leave, I will also ask Shilayla to communicate your plan to my people. The wasteland isn’t so far from our own border, and this is something our Council of Elders should know.”
“Of course,” Alric said at once. “Please do. I would have made a formal approach to your Council had there been time to do so. However, Lady Shilayla was listening while this was negotiated, and both she and Zallra agreed with it on behalf of the dragons.”
Lilly’s eyebrows rose at that news. Shilayla had been doing a lot of things on her own on this trip, and she got the distinct impression from Luc that this was something new. Still, it was good to have her input. Lilly just worried that the fair folk under the Veil might object, somehow, farther down the line. They’d just have to cross that bridge when they came to it.
Zallra went on to describe the Jinn encampments in the wasteland, describing the banners they were flying. She gave them detailed instructions on which banner they were to approach first and who they should speak to once on the ground.
Luc and Lilly prepared for their journey and set off not long after breakfast. They weren’t traveling very far, as the dragon flies, and it wouldn’t take long to get where they were going. Just a couple of hours, at most, Shilayla assured them. Compared to their earlier travels, this was going to be an easy jaunt, or so Lilly thought.
The first sign of trouble came when she saw dust clouds in the distance. They were a good distance away from the capital, nearing the northern border of Alric’s domain, and Lilly could clearly see the movement of dust near the ground. People were on the move.
“The mercenaries are marching,” Shilayla reported in her silent way. “I can see many banners on the move toward the border. Yet, the ones I was told to look for by Lady Zallra are not among them.”
“That’s a good sign,” Lilly said aloud, shouting to be heard over the wind of their passage. “Maybe the Jinn companies are awaiting instructions.”
“I’m not sure what we can do to stop the larger part of the force, but we can at least accomplish our mission to deliver the King’s scroll,” Luc replied.
“I will drop you at the Jinn banner Zallra described, then do what I can to discourage the marchers. There may be some ice dragons willing to help, if I ask them,” Shilayla said, surprising Lilly yet again with her words.
“Ice dragons?” Lilly repeated, awed by the idea. Ice dragons were said to be among the largest of all dragons, and their mirrored hides were thought impervious to all but the most deadly weapons. They were truly creatures of legend, rarer even than snow dragons.