The Claiming of a Virgin King (16 page)

“
Why?”

“
Because,” Dragan said.
“We are about to have some guests, and we thought it best not to
allow them some easy targets.”

“
Guests…” William gasped
as Dragan’s meaning became clear. Did the lord possibly mean what
the king thought he did? “You don’t mean…”

“
I do,” Dragan said. “And
now is the time for truth.”

He pressed his palm against the
crystal interface again, setting it in auto-motion then turned to
William. The look stamped on his features made William shiver. It
was a combination of excitement and resolve.

“
It is important that you
know,” he began. “That I have been uncomfortable with what Maylor
has been doing for some time. On that basis I knew that there would
have to be a plan in mind should it be needed. I held back though,
convinced myself that it was not my place to interfere with the
events of the mainland.” He paused. “You came at just the right
time. A year past and I would not have agreed to help.”

“
You wouldn’t?”

“
No,” Dragan said.
“Despite my intense, overwhelming attraction for you, I would have
refused. My people come first. Their safety comes first. But I have
come to realize that my people include those who are in the north.
It is my duty to help them too.” He paused again and the next words
he spoke made William gasp. “I decided to help them some weeks
past. Before you even arrived on the islands.”

“
But…” William shook his
head, his eyes wide as understanding finally dawned. “The bargain?
Why did you suggest it? If you were always going to help, why
demand that from me?”

“
Because I wanted you and
because you wanted me. A bargain was the only way you were ever
going to bring yourself to the point where you were willing to
admit that fact. I knew the plan was already in motion. Knew that I
was going to help regardless. In that room, with you so close, with
my heart racing, I saw a way to get what I wanted.”

“
Then you tricked me?”
William breathed.

“
Yes,” Dragan said. “And
it was wrong, but I cannot, will
never
, be able to bring myself to
regret it.”

William’s head was spinning, his heart
thudding as he tried to comprehend what Dragan was telling
him.

A trick.

A lie.

A bargain that was never
needed.

He swallowed unsteadily,
his mind racing. He wanted to rally at the lord for this, to fume
with anger over it, and yet…yet…part of him knew that Dragan
was
right. Had William
known that Dragan was already committed to helping he would never
have allowed what had happened between them to even get
started.

But that doesn’t make what
he did right.

No, William thought, it did not. But
how intense must Dragan’s attraction have been for him to lie like
that? It was not part of his character at all. William had learned
a lot about the male next to him over these past weeks, and one
thing he was sure of was that Dragan was always honest to the point
of bluntness. This action, this trick, it didn’t fit at
all.

“
Why?” William whispered.
“Why?”

“
I did not know it then,”
Dragan said, and he was looking straight at William now. “But it
must already have been there. Almost like it simply took you
arriving to wake it up. I love you, William. Deeply. Completely.
From the start it seems, I was willing to do whatever it took to
have you.”

The words were not a
surprise to William. He had heard them before after all. But this
was the first time he believed them unquestionably. And it was odd,
but he was sure he should have been angrier, sure that he should
have been berating Dragan for his lie, but he wasn’t. All that
William could think was how lucky he was to have a male like Dragan
love him. And in that moment William realized that was the
only
thing that
mattered. The reaction of the court, of his people, of all of them,
didn’t mean anything. Dragan had been right. They would follow
where he led, and if he returned to the capital, triumphant, hand
in hand with his alien lord, who could dare to say anything against
him?

No one.

And so he spoke, and the words simply
came, and there was no denying it anymore.

“
I love you
also.”

Dragan let out a deep sigh. “At
last.”

“
And I can forgive your
lie,” William added. “Else I would never have realized the
fact.”

“
Then you are mine?”
Dragan asked.

William couldn’t help but
nod.
Acceptance
.
“Yes.”

“
And I am
yours?”

Happiness
. “Yes.”

“
And then all is as it
should be,” Dragan said, and he was smiling now, because the
coastal town was upon them.

“
And Maylor?” William
asked. “What of him?”

And Dragan’s next words were more
shocking than all the others that had come before. “You can ask him
yourself,” he said. “He is docking even as we speak.”

Chapter Sixteen

Dragan looked around the dock with
narrowed eyes. Over fifty ships were there against the shoreline,
and they all bore the mark of Maylor.

He had expected slightly more if he
was honest, and it occurred to him then that Maylor had left
perhaps a quarter of his army back on the mainland. That might have
been a problem, but Dragan had made sure that there was someone
else who would deal with that…someone who had been crucial in this
entire endeavor.

“
How many?” William asked
as they stepped forward.

“
Several thousand,” Dragan
replied. “He is planning to kill almost all of us. Not the children
I suspect, but certainly the adults.”

“
And take the
islands?”

“
Precisely.”

“
Your spies have told you
this?”

“
Not just spies,” Dragan
replied. “We have had a traitor in their midst for some time. Her
name is Chauce.”

William sucked in a sharp breath.
“Chauce is Maylor’s most trusted advisor.”

“
Yes,” Dragan agreed. “But
she has worked for us from almost the beginning and she, along with
your remaining generals, will deal with whoever is left on the
mainland.”

“
And she brought them
here?” William asked. “
Tricked
them. My God…”

“
Exactly.”

“
But…not to suggest your
plan is lacking in any way, but where are all of our
people?”

Our
people…Dragan grinned at that. “They are where they are
supposed to be,” he said. “Don’t worry, my love, I have this in
hand.”

“
And we’re going down
there?” William asked.

“
No need,” Dragan replied.
“Maylor will come to us. He simply will not be able to help
himself.”

And he was right, because just then a
dozen or so people stepped off one of the ships and began to make
their way towards them.

“
He’s not worried we’ll
try and kill him?” William asked.

“
He knows my thoughts on
murder,” Dragan replied. “He believes I will do nothing until he
shows himself to be the aggressor.”

“
I’m hoping that is not
the case,” William sighed.

“
It’s not. Now, here, put
this on.”

William looked down to what Dragan
held in his gloved hand. His eyes widened when he saw it. “One of
the bracelets?”

Dragan nodded. “They are part of the
plan.”

“
I don’t
understand…”

Maylor’s group was fast approaching
and so Dragan spoke quickly. “You remember me telling you how all
of our tech works in the same way? That it all works by interfacing
with only our DNA?”

William clocked the bracelet around
his wrist. “Yes.”

“
These bracelets
stop
that from
happening,” Dragan said. “What we’re about to do will only work on
those who are
not
wearing them.”

“
Maylor’s
people.”

“
Precisely.”

William frowned. “But…I’m not one of
you.”

“
No,” Dragan agreed, and
he couldn’t help the slight smile that spread across his face. “But
you have plenty of my DNA inside of you. I don’t want to take any
chances.”

“
Oh…”

Maylor’s group was almost upon them
now. Dragan’s smile slipped. He allowed his face to go blank.
Because any moment…

“
Dragan!”

The words were practically spat at
him, and there, in the midst of the group, was Maylor. He was just
as Dragan had remembered him to be. His features were tight, almost
feral, and there was an unpleasant look in his eyes.

Dragan shivered, but not from fear, he
had never been frightened of this male, it was more from a
combination of disgust and disappointment. The pain that Maylor had
caused…

“
I am surprised you dare
to come here, Maylor,” Dragan said, but he said it slowly, softly,
because his bracelet was not quite glowing yet.

“
I had no choice, Dragan,”
Maylor snapped. “You left me none!”

“
I left you many choices,”
Dragan replied. “You picked the wrong ones.”

“
I picked what is right,”
Maylor hissed, and then, as Dragan knew they would, his eyes
skipped to William. “Well, look at this. The king is hiding here
now is he? Hiding behind the great and noble Dragan!”

“
Our king—”

“
He is not
our
king!” Maylor
snapped and he took a step forward, his fingers flexing, as if he
was desperate to get them around William’s neck.

Dragan tensed and looked towards the
hills where Lei and some of the other leaders were waiting, weapons
drawn. He wasn’t entirely sure one of them wouldn’t pull the
trigger, there was no question that they would protect the king if
need be, they had come to care for him these past weeks. But a
moment later and Dragan realized that they would not need to. His
bracelet was glowing now, which meant theirs would be too, and the
time was upon them.

“
He is our king,” Dragan
said softly. “This is his world. You are here by his
leave.”

Maylor laughed at that, a great
roaring laugh that made those around him, his generals, those as
guilty as him, laugh too.

“
I rule here now. I will
rule everywhere,” he said. “Look at him, your king, hiding behind
you like a coward! He does not deserve this world. It’s mine! My
home!” He grinned unpleasantly. “At least it will be once I have
taken care of you.”

“
Taken care of me?” Dragan
shook his head. “I never thought you would be foolish enough to
come here. Foolish enough to fall into my trap. But, of course, I
hoped, and then I planned for such an eventuality.”

Maylor’s eyes narrowed. “Trap?
Planned? What nonsense are you talking?”

“
I mean that people like
you, Maylor,” Dragan said. “Those who have lost touch with their
values, with the things that make them a person, will never win in
the end. Because those who care, those who understand what life is
all about, will always stand up to you.” He turned to William. “How
does your wrist feel?”

“
Hot,” William
said.

“
As it should
be.”

Maylor flexed his fingers again.
“What—”

And then a great boom filled the air,
and it was a boom that Dragan had only ever heard once before. The
last time was when he had entered the atmosphere of this world,
when he had come home. This time though, this was the reverse,
because the ship was not coming now, it was leaving.

“
Your ship!” Maylor
demanded, because he too recognized the sound. “What is it
doing?”

“
What it was meant to,”
Dragan said. “Taking you away from here.”

Maylor shook his head, his eyes
widening, and then to Dragan’s surprise he took a step back.
“Chauce…”

“
Lied,” Dragan said. “Just
like she has been doing for many, many years. The stasis units are
working perfectly, and they are waiting for you and for your army.
By the time you awake, Maylor. You will be far from here, far from
this world, and you will never be able to return.”

“
Impossible!” Maylor spat.
“Impossible! She would never.”

“
She did,” Dragan said.
“Because she had to. She knew what you were doing was wrong.” He
paused. “We all did and so this is your punishment.”

“
Impossible!” Maylor
roared. “You have no way to get us up there.”

Dragan sighed. “And here you are wrong
again, because my people came here in peace,” Dragan said. “And so
we have had time to build new things, to understand the value of
what is around us.” He held up his hand where the bracelet was now
glowing fully. “The ship is locking on to you even as we speak,
Maylor. Locking on to your DNA.”