20. Chapter Twenty

Once Toby made it to the cabin, I was on edge to go see her stepmother. There was something about a threat that put my dragon in a bad mood.

The urgency he had to rip that woman a new one was fierce.

Toby plopped down on the couch and lifted his feet to the coffee table. "Take your time. I'm in no rush to get back to the castle. Your mother is on a war path to get the royals settled in."

I had no intention of hearing about my mother's plans, nor did I care about the royals.

Toby blew a piece of white-blond hair from his face. "Those female dragons have been searching high and low for you."

Amara's gaze flickered to mine.

"Let's hope they don't search too high," I mumbled. "If anyone shows up here, let me know, and escort them off this mountain."

"You're turning into a hermit."

"I'm turning into a dragon that wants his peace and will do anything to get it. I'm tired of my mother pushing women on me. It's exhausting and pointless."

"I'll tell her to direct them to me then."

"Take all you want," I said, grabbing the door handle. "I'll be back soon, Amara. Stay inside until I get back."

She nodded and sipped on the cup of coffee I made her. She looked nervous, nibbling on her bottom lip and bouncing her knees up and down. Walking over, I leaned down and tipped her chin upward. "Everything is fine. Relax. I won't be gone long."

Amara placed her palm on my cheek. "Be careful. She's a snake in the grass."

"Dragons trump snakes, Little Mouse."

I left the cabin in a run, jumping off the side; I flew down toward the kingdom, landing on the bridge that led toward the castle.

The guards did not move as I landed and began my track toward her house. Maybe they sensed the anger my dragon was trying to hide. Either way, I jumped from the roof of her house, and toward the kitchen door.

Through the window, I saw the Doberman I'd put to sleep staring at me. He put his head back down and didn't dare bark.

That's what I thought...

I knocked loudly three times, hearing someone walking toward the door a few seconds later. Helena opened the door, her eyes round with surprise. As if she hadn't sent me a threatening letter demanding her stepdaughter back.

"Don't look too surprised, Helena. You started this."

She opened the door to her home wide, gesturing for me to come inside. One of the stepsisters came down the stairs, but Helena pointed her finger toward the second floor.

She glared at me, a nasty snarl on her face, and reluctantly walked back upstairs. "So," Helena said, leaning against the kitchen island. "I see my letter was delivered. Your brother was kind enough to deliver it for me since you've taken her somewhere I can"t reach."

My gaze skated around the room, noticing the un-moped floor, and the dirty dishes in the sink. "Looks like Amara's lack of presence means you have to clean up yourself. Not a good look for you?"

She lifted her chin defiantly and folded her arms over her chest. "I'll never understand why you chose Amara, but she's not up for grabs, so I'd like you to bring her back, and I won't cause a scene."

Slowly making a circle around her living room, I stopped at the alphabetized bookshelf. "My dragons did this," I said, nonchalantly. "I had them come in and clean this place top to bottom so that Amara could come to the ball." I walked back over, examining the baseboards and then her lack of remorse. "So that I could see your face when I took her away from here."

Helena chuckled. "She'll get nothing if you take her. The will states—,"

"That she be stuck here doing whatever the hell you want her to until she turns 28? Yeah, I've read the will, Helena. Too bad, I don't give a damn about it. Have you ever heard what a dragon will do to have their mate?"

She scoffed. "Amara is not your mate—,"

"She is," I said softly. "She's been marked, as well. If anyone, family or not, touches her, they will pay the price. That means you, Helena. My lawyer is currently looking at the will. If I need to buy that damn restaurant out from underneath you, I will do it. You're finished treating my mate like some kind of maid."

Helena's gaze dropped to her feet. "I'll let you have Amara without a fight if you take one of my girls."

"I'll take one," I said with a dark chuckle. "And toss her off that mountain. I wouldn't touch either one with a ten-foot pole."

"Not for you," she hissed. "Give one to your brother."

I rolled my eyes. "Is being a part of the royal family that important to you? You would seriously toss either one at any dragon in the family?"

I had a feeling she was hiding something, but I didn't know what it was. "Tell me, why is it so important for one to marry into the family, Helena? Are you that desperate for money? Power? Tell me, what is it?"

She pressed her mouth into a hard line.

What was she hiding?

My dragon smelled it. The lies. Something deeper.

"Who doesn't want what's best for their child, Dorran?"

"It's Dragon Prince to you, and apparently, you don't."

She sneered. "Amara isn't my child—,"

"Exactly," I hissed. "And her made-up mental illness you've been dealing with all these years? You're a piece of trash, and I hope you know you'll never see her again. I'll have an evaluation performed tomorrow by our doctor and discredit your guardianship claim. I suggest you figure out another way to marry into our family because your girls will never be part of it."

I turned to walk toward the door when I felt her hand on my wrist. I yanked it from her and glanced down over my shoulder. "You won't win this. Amara will not get the house and the restaurant if she isn't here. You want her so badly, take her, and I swear she won't see a dime."

"She doesn't need a dime. She has all the money in the world with me, Helena."

She chuckled. "Amara loves that restaurant and this house. She shared it with her real mother and father far before I came along. She won't part from it. I wouldn't be surprised if she doesn't come crawling back once she realizes I'm not handing over anything. You think you know her. You don't. You've known her for what? A week? All those times you snuck into her window and drugged my dog. You don't know what she'll do to feel just a small part of her father again."

The smirk on her face fueled my dragon's hatred for this woman. Reaching forward, I slammed my fists onto the kitchen counter, breaking off a piece of granite, and it shattered all along the floor.

She yelped. "You have no idea who the hell you're messing with. Have a good day, Helena. Amara won't be back."

I left before I went with my urges and slammed her head into the counter. The cruelty she had for Amara twisted something inside of me. It ran so deep.

Pulling out my phone, I called Mr. Fredrick.

"Hello."

"It's Dorran. I need you to do me a favor. I need you to find out all you can about Helena Tremaine."

"Okay," he said. "Is something wrong?"

"No. She's my mate's stepmother. The one with the will."

"Ah, yes, have you decided if you want to contest the will or not, Son?"

"Go ahead with it, but I plan to have a fix before it's over with."

"Now, don't go getting into trouble, Dorran."

"You know me better than that."

He snorted. "Do I?"

I hung up the phone while walking toward the front doors of the castle. Dragons were moving in beds and chest-of-drawers through the front entrance, drawing attention from the passing civilians.

I slipped between them, shoving my way into the castle, finding my mother directing traffic. Her face lit up when she noticed me. "Dorran, you decided to come visit—,"

"Where is Dad?"

She scoffed. "With the leader of The East Kingdom in his office—,"

I shoved passed the movers and made my way toward his office. As if on cue, Damien stepped out from behind a pillar.

"Move."

He chuckled. "Look who it is, the failure of the family. The Dragon Prince that is outrunning his duties, and disappointing both parents at once." He chuckled. "How is the human mate, Dor? Is she worth pissing off Mother?"

I glared at the side of his head as I neared Father's office. "I'd do anything to piss off Mother. If you're so bored you have to hang around and dig information out of me, two girls are dying for your hand at Amara's house." I stopped at the door. "I know how much you like redheads."

I shoved open the door and walked into their meeting.

My father glared at me. "Look who decided to show up after he flew away with his mate, without introducing us, and marked her. Damn, son. You could have got her name first."

I rolled my eyes and glanced at the King of The East Kingdom. He stood to shake my hand. "Hello Dorran, I'm Criss, it's nice to officially meet you. Georgina told me so much about you."

Oh God …

"That's great. I need to speak to my father alone, please."

My father glared at me as Criss walked out of the office and shut the door behind him. "What possesses you to do the things you do, son? Why are you this way?"

"Oh, here we go with the dramatics, Dad. This is important. I need to know reasons why a human would be banned from the kingdom."

He leaned forward, his heavy brow low and his fingers interlaced on the desk. "Is your mate in trouble?"

"No."

"Then why do you need to know?"

"Amara's stepmother is trying to keep her there, and not let her be my queen."

He laughed. "Why on earth would she want to do that?"

"Because it's her stepmother, and she hates her. I need to protect Amara. I need your help."

Sitting back, he shrugged. "I'll tell you what. You bring her to dinner to meet us, and I'll help you with protecting your mate."

Bringing Amara to dinner sounded worse than cutting off my left wing. "I'm not sure that's a good idea. Mother is being cruel to her—,"

Dad waved me off. "Oh, you know your mother. It takes her time to warm up to people. Bring her tonight. We're having dinner with the royals of the East Kingdom, and I want them to meet your mate."

What other choice did I have but to keep my dad on my good side? If I was going to have him kick Helena out, I needed to at least attempt to do as he asked of me.

"Okay."

He slapped his knee dramatically. "Good deal. I want you to get acquainted with all the royals."

I stood slowly. "I need to get back to Amara."

"Dinner starts at 7. Don't be late. Your mother will have a conniption if you're late."

"We wouldn't want that."