TATORE .2
TATORE .2
SENECA VEYLOR'S POV
Suddenly, Orion pivoted to get the upperhand. “Who are you defending, little brother? Seneca… or his breeder?”
I tensed at that question.
Truly… who was he defending?
I wanted the answer now, but I knew Malrik would savor this. He never defended anyone. Not as kids. Not as adults. Not once. Not even when we fought for sport after the ancient dragon demons inhabited our bodies and made us Lords, he never interfered, always stood by the side and watched like entertainment.
Too chill to defend anyone or anything, too selfish, too self centered, too nonchalant.
And now, he seemed frozen by Orion’s question.
Why?
Seconds ticked, Malrik said nothing.
Just stiffened.
I tilted my head, eyes locked on him.
“You know I’d never take sides.” he said finally. “Unless one of you is being an asshole.”
I saw right through him.
He was lying.
Orion’s lips twitched. “Are you… in love with her, Malrik?”
I wanted to speak up immediately, but Kaelith disapproved of my interference. “No. Let him ask.”
I sunk back into the throne, heart thrumming, fingers twitching.
Malrik didn’t blink. “Love is too strong a word to toss around like that…”
“And?”
“You know I don’t waste my time on humans.”
Orion persisted. “Yet you defend her? Funny how that works.”
Malrik’s lie flowed smoothly. “I’m defending what’s right. Right now, the right thing is stopping you from making this about yourself.”
Orion’s face fell. “I thought you were always on my side. Always.”
“I’m always on the right side.”
“The right side or the winning side?”
“The right side,” Malrik gritted.
My thoughts spiraled.
Beyond Orion’s anger for his breeder.
Now, my focus was solely Malrik.
He was inhabited by a shadow dragon which matched his personality.
It was selfish… cunny… self centered…
Yet, here he was… doing something completely out of character.
“You haven’t been interested in my breeder, have you?” I asked.
Malrik didn’t flinch. “No.”
Orion growled. “Liar!”
“I said no!”
“Your eyes were glued to her the entire match, brother!”
“They weren’t.”
“They were,” Despite the rage bubbling in my chest, I tried to stay calm. “You said so yourself.”
Malrik’s jaw ticked. “They weren’t!”
“Why are you being so defensive brother? Admit to the infidelity. You've been seeing her?”
“I haven't!”
“Doesn’t sound convincing,” Orion fired back.
“Believe whatever you want. I do not fucking care.”
“Then stop acting like you do,” I said.
For the first time, Malrik looked at me.
Orion stepped in again. “Just admit it. You’re obsessed.”
“I’m not.”
“Interested,” I pressed.
“No.”
“Curious?”
“No.”
“Then what?” Orion growled.
Malrik’s voice finally slipped, just a fraction. “Focused.”
“On her?” I probed.
Silence.
It fucking irked me. My fingers twitched against the armrest, Kaelith was pushing a bloody graphic of a bloodied beaten-to-pulp Malrik in my head.
“If he crosses the line, kill him.”
My chest was heaving.
But even before I could send a punch into his jaw for the long silence, the door down the throne room burst open again, putting a sudden halt to whatever fight could have broken out.
Ziarah strode in impatiently, bald face squeezed into a fleshy pulp of frown, heeled boots pounding into the floor aggressively.
“Dominus Seneca,” she bellowed. “The doctor you asked me to summon arrived hours ago. He’s been cooling his heels and is now waiting to tell you something crucial about the breeder.”
My muscles locked.
The word doctor snapped Orion’s head toward me so fast I thought his neck would break. His eyes—blood red—flared wide for a single heartbeat before a slow, vicious, mocking smile curved his lips.
“A doctor?” he repeated.
“Yes,” I said tightly.
“You called a human doctor?”
“Yes. A human doctor. What does that matter to you?”
“Oh, everything,” he sneered. “After all this chaos, you haven’t even put your Alpha mark on your breeder? You didn’t heal her yourself? I didn’t think you could drop any lower, but look at you… terrified to claim your own property. Is that—”
“ORION!”
My roar shook the walls.
In response, he flinched.
I rose from the throne.
“You’ve crossed your line enough today. First with your breeder. Then with your mouth. And now with me.”
He straightened, but barely.
For the first time since all the bragado, his fucking shoulders slouched, his dragon was cowering at the waves of anger from ‘Lith.
Good.
“The verdict for attempted murder on a protected vessel is death,” I said. “That is the law. A law we wrote. Or did you forget the script in your desperation to breed?”
Orion sucked in a breath.
He tried to speak—
My glare shut him down.
“You've been pushing…”
With two strides, I closed in on him.
“And pushing…”
I shoved him in the chest..
He didn't budge.
“And I've been letting you off TOO many times! I should kill you. I should revoke the fucking grace to breed…”
I jabbed again, this time with enough force to draw a grunt from his throat.
“But maybe I am a weak Alpha, Orion, for even considering your miserable…”
I shoved.
He stumbled a step back.
“Greedy…!”
I shoved again, harder.
“Foul-mouthed…!”
Another shove.
“Selfish…!”
Another shove that rattled his teeth.
“Unhinged…!”
His feet slid back.
“Disrespectful…!”
My fist slammed into his chest
“Dragon-forsaken…!”
He stumbled again, arms flailing for balance.
“Bastard!”
The final shove tore through me like a bolt.