Chapter Five

 

 

To Trin’s relief, Creata was loving the visitors and the conversation. Her staff brought out tray after tray of food, and Trin’s stomach growled at the scents.

Creata smiled. “Help yourselves. I am stuck here until the little miss finishes.”

Trin winked and balanced two plates on her arm while she went through the selections. When she was done, she slid the plate in front of her friend, and Creata grinned. “Thanks. You got all my favourites.”

“Sweetie, everything is your favourite. It is your buffet.”

Creata took cutlery from the maid standing by, and she stabbed the scrambled eggs, wrapping them in a strip of bacon with a deft twist.

Trin dug into her meal with a smile. Vasic might have met her because she was suitable, but he fell for Creata because she had excellent appetites. No food was made in her home that she wasn’t willing to eat. As long as Trin had known her, the lioness never turned down bacon, and from hints Creata had given, she enjoyed Vasic’s intimate company very much. It was nice to see what a couple could do in their first year together.

Rish cleared her throat and started the briefing. “Right, well, as you know, tomorrow is the ball, but before that is the meeting.”

Trin cocked her head. “Brommin mentioned a cocktail party?”

Rish rocked her hand from side to side. “Sort of.”

Meadra leaned toward Trin and asked, “Do I have a dress for that?”

Trin nodded. “You do. Do not worry.”

She sighed and continued to work at her fruit salad.

A maid came up to Creata and whispered in her ear. Creata smiled. “More guests have arrived. This is turning into a weirdly fun day.”

Esty was lifted to her shoulder while Creata tucked her breast away. When she was set, she burped the little mistress of the house, and the noise made all the women smile.

Rish gave Trin a sly look. “Brommin made a noise like that when he was a baby. It nearly deafened me.”

Trin coughed as she caught the hint. “Uh, right.” She felt heat climb in her face.

Mirbella came through the house with two assistants and Takka walking in behind her. “Okay, so cocktail dresses first. We are going to do this right here for the sake of speed.”

Meadra held up her hand. “I got a gown made in Breaker City.”

Mirbella gave her a long look and grinned. “Keep it for another day. Today, you are all wearing my designs.”

Apraxa grinned. “Excellent. I have seen your workmanship, and I look forward to it.”

“Good. You will be first.” Mirbella looked to her assistants, and they erected a framework from thin rods and fabric until a changing room had been set up.

Apraxa looked down. “I am not done with my meal.”

Meadra was done, so Trin volunteered her. “Mirbella, my aunt is done. She’s a fairy dragon.”

Meadra looked a little nervous as she got to her feet.

The seamstress looked her over and nodded. “I have something for you. Love your hair, by the way.”

Meadra was whisked behind the curtain, and one assistant left the back garden to get more samples from their vehicle.

Trin listened to the surprised squawk and guessed that Meadra had just lost her clothing to the seamstress.

Rish cocked her head. “Your aunt looks a lot like you.”

Trin smiled. “Yes, close enough to be my mother. Genetically, anyway.”

“So, what Makros was saying was right. They are trying to build elite dragons.”

Trin nodded. “That is what is going on. Fortunately, my mother’s and father’s lack of self-control resulted in me. Unfortunately, it cost my grandmother my life.”

“How?”

“My aunt is younger than I am, and she looks exactly like my mother.”

“Oh, oooh.” Rish nodded. “Right. So, this might be a problem for your father.”

“No. He met my mother before her dragon was drawn out. Meadra is a completely different person. She has her own hopes and dreams and is going to find her own mate. Her life will diverge from mine, and that is a good thing. She has dreamed of life out and free. This is her chance.”

Mirbella backed out of the changing area with a smirk on her face. “I am amazing.”

Meadra came out, and her hair was pinned up on her head as she stepped forward wearing an opalescent gown with hints of purple in it. The gown was simple, stylish, and showed no hint of the corset. It was a classic style with gossamer panels of fabric running from shoulder to wrist. She looked delicate, feminine, and magical.

Trin smiled. “Meadra, you look wonderful.”

Her aunt grimaced. “I feel naked.”

Mirbella snorted. “You are wearing four layers of fabric. It just feels like nothing.”

“Meadra, twirl.”

Trin watched as her aunt took a few steps forward, and then, she spun. The fabric whirled out in a cascade of colour and movement. When she stopped spinning, she was smiling. “Thanks for that, Trin.”

“Trin, you are next.”

Trin got to her feet and smiled at Meadra. “You look wonderful.”

“Thank you, Trin. Your turn.”

They both went into the changing area where the assistant helped Meadra into the ball gown while the second assistant returned with armloads of garment bags.

Mirbella made sure that Meadra was getting into the formal and boned gown for the ball without issue. It was a soft mauve with gold trim that made her hair even more vibrant.

Trin removed her clothing and set it down on the ground while Mirbella found the gown she was looking for.

“Aha! Come here you wily thing.” The weight of the gown was apparent when Mirbella lifted it out of the bag.

“Is this for the ball?”

“No, this is just for the introduction night. The one for tomorrow night is in a bag on its own. That one is really heavy.”

The gown was pooled at her feet, and Trin got herself into it, pulling the dress upward until the weight was hanging from her shoulders. The clash of the beads was a delicate chime while Trin breathed.

“What is this?”

Meadra had left the changing area, and Mirbella was the only one there.

“This is a masterpiece. I mean, I have been looking for a client who could wear it, and you wear it very well. Go and show it to your friends if you don’t believe me.”

Trin was about to step out when she heard a sharp whistle. She paused and grabbed Mirbella’s arm, mouthing “Stay here. Keep talking.”

She went invisible, shucked off her dress, and crept out of the changing area.

Men cloaked in shadow were surrounding the gathering on the patio. Their eyes were all directed toward the changing area, but one had his arm around Meadra’s throat.

Takka’s bag was laid out and spilled open beyond the circle, so that is where Trin headed.

The focus was on the change room while Trin carefully grabbed the knives and crept up behind the one holding Meadra. She said a silent apology to Creata for the damage that was about to happen to her garden, and then, she moved.

All the training that Rish had given her came into play as she struck with a blade to the neck the man holding Meadra.

Rish called out. “They are venomous.”

The distraction of the man howling and clutching his throat got Meadra away from the gathered assassins, and Apraxa inhaled and fired water bullets through three of the attackers. Rish dispatched two of them, leaving four for Trin.

She sprouted her wings and slashed the hands from two of the men, and when Esty let out a cry, Trin turned, and her body resumed visibility.

She felt the men behind her, but it was the two sharp shots that made her blink. Creata was standing in front of her baby’s pram with her plasma blaster in her hands. Esty’s cry had been her mother going for her gun.

Rish looked around and scowled. “I am going to make a call.”

She pulled out her phone and spoke in sharp tones, demanding protection.

Trin sighed. “Meadra, are you okay?”

She nodded and then looked at her dress. “I got blood on it.”

Mirbella emerged, her eyes wide as she looked at the carnage. “I can get the blood out. Just hold still.”

A light pink fire began on the ballgown, starting at the hem and creeping upward. Every smudge, every speck, every trace of the attack had been removed.

Mirbella looked to Creata. “Would you like me to take care of the dead?”

Creata nodded. “Please. Thank you.”

More of the pink fire began under the assassins, and they flared brightly before disappearing entirely.

 

In five minutes, the two survivors had been tied up, and the others had bled to death and been dispatched.

Trin had tried on both gowns and was very happy that she had gotten naked for the attack. The beads would have given her away.

The heavy beat of wings above them heralded the arrival of the dragons. Rish had called for bodyguards for the remainder of the day.

Trin got back into her daywear before she exited the changing area. The last thing she wanted was to be naked in front of dragons who might be interested in her as a mate. She had her sights set on Brommin.

The assassins had been taken into custody, and the dragon shifters were interviewing the ladies. Three men, in particular, were speaking with Meadra, and to Trin’s amazement, one of those men was Torm.

With Sosa having fallen for a silver dragon and gotten a quick dispensation for an immediate mating while Trin was in Breaker City, it looked like Torm’s attentions were wide open for his next target. As the dragons were at the helm for this, there was no problem that Trin could see if his dragon was choosing another likely lady. Perhaps the best match of all.

Trin watched him and smiled as his fascination for her aunt was apparent. Maybe a match would be struck.

Brommin stood in front of Trin as she continued to walk with a split focus. “Trin, do you know what happened?”

“Well, I was in the change room for most of it, but I am guessing that the guys came out of the shadows. One grabbed Meadra, so I am thinking it was the idiots in the valley who sent them to get her.”

“That is a good guess. So, you were in the change room the whole time?” He arched his brow.

“Um, what did everyone else say?”

“They said that they didn’t see anything. Knowing you as I do, that can only mean that you were involved.” He quirked his lips.

“I may have jumped out naked as a distraction. That was toward the end.”

Vasic must have arrived with the dragons. He was holding Creata and the baby and looking furious and concerned.

Creata gave Trin a look from under her lashes, and then, she winked.

Trin smiled; it was so nice to see her spirit back.

Apraxa was speaking with two more dragons, and Rish was at her side. Takka had disappeared.

“Do you know how they figured out you were here?” Brommin asked the obvious question.

Trin wrinkled her nose. “There are two guesses. One is breakfast, and the other is Mirbella.”

“What?”

“Breakfast. Creata’s maids went out and got enough food this morning for about nine people. That isn’t normal, and it is what someone who knew my relationship with her would expect.”

Brommin nodded. “Plausible.”

“The other one would be to watch Mirbella because if I were in town, I would need a dress, as would Meadra. They wouldn’t know about Apraxa.”

“Right. So, you are going to be at the introduction tonight?”

“I am. We all have outfits for it, so Rish just has to go through the details.”

“She didn’t?”

“She didn’t have a chance. We do know about the confirmation scans and the non-disclosure agreement. That is about it.”

He leaned down and whispered in her ear. The details were dispensed quickly, and as he moved his head, he brushed his lips against hers.

She smiled. “See you tonight.”

He smiled. “Yes, you will.”

She watched him go over to speak to his mother. Two days and then forever, or two days plus the engagement and then forever. After tomorrow, he would be hers.