Hoarded by the Dragon (Monstrous Matches, #4)

Griffin gives a croaking meow as a response, and I pet him. Already my fingers itch to run over one of the many blank canvases. I turn to the organizational drawers and find some soft vine charcoal for sketching, but I ignore it for now. Choosing to dilute some burnt sienna to start the basic shapes of an underpainting instead.

What I have in mind is more organic in shape than a sketch would provide.

There’s been a recurring dream that demands to come to life under my hands, and in the presence of so many blank canvases, there’s no stopping me now.





32





KALOS





“COUNCILOR MOON WILL SEE YOU NOW.” The assistant’s voice is soft and deferential, even as her eyes are bright with curiosity. No one would expect me to need the Council for anything.

I stand from the plush chair in the receiving area and straighten my tie. I’m unused to having to wait for meetings, but even with all the power I have, I bow to the laws… now that we have them.

Ben stays seated and nods toward me. He’s aware of what I’ve come here to discuss, but his presence wouldn’t help. I already have the cards stacked against me when it comes to asking for allowances that the Council would rather not give. It does me no favors to remind anyone that I have a demon with the invaluable skill of portal magic on my staff.

I itch at how far I am from Katarina, but Moon only accepts audiences in his home. A luxury of having the dubious honor of a seat on the Council.

But this can’t be avoided. The threat of the Leonids cannot be allowed to remain with my intention to make Rina my mate.

I’ve started the process of remedying the dragon with Rose, and it’s made everything more difficult than I imagined.

My dragon is much more present. Things that I could keep a cool head about before have me snapping in irritation. Emotions that I’ve silenced over the centuries are live wires in my body. I’ve kept my contact with Katarina to a minimum, hoping everything will eventually settle so I don’t upset or hurt her by accident. I don’t believe the dragon part of myself would hurt her on purpose… but I’ve locked him behind a wall in my mind for a long time.

The assistant leads me down the hall of the manor. The thick rugs under our feet muffle the sounds of our steps so that they don’t reverberate through the line of suits of armor.

It’s an unusual décor choice for an immortal of our history. Perhaps they are trophies of knights Moon dealt with when his kind were hunted. I applaud his morbid decision if it gives him an ounce of pleasure. Moon’s kind were rare even before others wanted to use their parts for spells.

Now they are nearly extinct.

The room the assistant leads me to is cluttered and warm in a way that modern décor doesn’t allow for. It looks to be a mashed-together personal library and study. Bookshelves take up every wall, with books and other memorabilia bursting from the shelves. My host stands with his hands clasped behind him before a grand fireplace that crackles.

Moon appears to be a man in his forties, but his long white ponytail and curling beard ages him. He doesn’t respond to my presence immediately, almost as if he’s fortifying himself.

Finally, he raises his gaze to mine and arches a silver brow in acknowledgment. “Kalos. It’s been some years.”

Decades. A discomfort bleeds into the confidence that I project. We were friends once.

“Councilor Moon,” I nod. My lips twitch even with the heavy feelings plaguing my chest, and Moon rolls his eyes at the address. “The beard is new.”

The look he shoots me is withering even as he strokes a hand over it. “It gives me an air of gravitas, don’t you think?”

“Definitely,” I say. Offending a Council member by saying he looks like the archetype for Merlin won’t do me any favors. I glance around but see nothing familiar in the room. There was a time when at least a few of the items he kept on his shelves were from me.

It’s jarring to realize that I hardly know the man in front of me anymore. The lines of caution and weariness on his face. The plain look covering the tinge of sadness in his eyes.

I have been absent physically as well as emotionally, and now, whether it’s from Rose’s digging into my soul or Rina’s presence in my life… I am awake.

Sorrow threatens to close my airway, the emotion as poignant as if I’m reliving all the ignored invitations over the years, but this time I’m not numb to the consequential loss. Robert Moon had been a casualty of my determination to keep free from all attachments.

I clear my throat. “I came here for an audience, but I should start with an apology.”

Moon’s brows rise in surprise. “An apology from a dragon? I thought I’d never see the day. And what, pray tell, are you apologizing for?”

“For being a terrible friend.”

Flashes of emotion cross Moon’s once familiar face. Surprise, anger, and exasperation—perhaps I should not have begun with this. Finally, when I think he’s going to snarl at me, his shoulders drop. Grief flavors the air. He sighs.

He gestures to two chairs before the picture window in the back of the room. “Let us sit. We have time to speak before you implore me in an official capacity.”

I move toward the seats with trepidation. Everything feels raw around me, and I didn’t anticipate a heart-to-heart when I made this appointment.

Moon starts speaking once we are seated. “When Ava died, you pulled away from everything that had been a part of your life. You seemed to bury your emotions, and I understood.”

It’s a marvel that I don’t flinch at the sound of her name in his smooth voice.

“I thought my presence may survive, but that proved inaccurate.” Moon shrugs. “I do not blame you for your grief. I’ve only mourned your absence.”

“Then you are a better friend than I could ever strive to be.” My avoidance of him wasn’t intentional… but it was effective.

There’s a twinkle in his blue eyes. “Quite right.”

I huff a laugh, but Moon continues switching to a serious manner. “If you truly mean what you say, and this isn’t you buttering me up for a favor… all is forgotten.”

I scoff. “I don’t need to butter you up for a favor.”

“Of course not. Why would the mighty Kalos need anything from anybody? We should all count ourselves lucky to exist on the same plane as his excellence.” His smile is teasing.

I scowl to hide my own humor. “I am not that insufferable.”

Moon raises his brows and shrugs, the motion exaggerated. “If you say so.”

We lock eyes and share a soft smile. There’s a harmony in our bickering that I wasn’t aware I missed.

Moon clears his throat. “Now what did you need this audience for?”

I lean back in the chair, momentarily mourning the lost moment and anticipating his reaction to my words. “I wish to have the permission of the Council to strike against the Leonids.”

Moon’s guffaw is instant. “And you think you don’t need to butter me up for that?”

“They are a threat to me and mine,” I cut into his chuckle.

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