Dragon Blood (Completed)

Seeking Absolution

Chapter 30

"Is she awake?" he asked when Ash opened the door.

"Lord Prince, is everything okay?"

"I need to see the queen," Zane stated, not knowing why he felt so much truth in his statement. "Is she available?"

"Gabriel just brought her some soup for supper." Ash looked back into the room, still blocking Zane entrance. He said something to another guard in the room, and it was a few minutes before Ash stepped aside to let Zane enter. "The five suiters are here as well. I'm sure she will be glad for your support."

"I don't know what good I'll be. I'm not in the mood to play diplomat."

She was in the workroom. The documents had been removed from the long table and stacked up on a side bar near the window. Zane took an empty chair at the end farthest from Paige. She was purposely concentrating on her soup so she didn't look up when he came in.

Randy sat with his back straight, leaning forward with his long bony fingers clutched in front of him, looking rather optimistic. Hudson was glaring at him, his muscles rippling as he flexed. Zane wondered what had passed between the two before he came in. Cain was looking like he was feeling sick after watching two rabid beasts attack each other. Daynon looked pale, almost sick as well with his full focus on his hands. Vic was looking at Paige with a touch of revulsion, crossed with pity. Zane sat quietly, not in the mood to offer anything.

"You two are pathetic. Your attempt to win the position next to the queen has shown that you are no better than the Dyad," Cain sneered, looking between Hudson and Randy.

Hudson retaliated quickly. Almost without thought, his hand was around Cain's neck. Surprisingly, he was able to constrict his powerful hands enough to break through the layers of skin and fat to cut off Cain's air. It took three guards to pull Hudson off of Cain, and when he was free, the old dragon started to choke and sputter, trying to breathe.

Paige watched the violent encounter with little reaction. Zane could see that her eyes looked bloodshot, and her pale skin lacked even the illusion of life. If it weren't for the fact that she was sitting up and moving, he would have thought she was dead for sure this time. He hadn't expected her to deteriorate so quickly when he left her. She didn't seem like she would come to this so soon.

"Yes, with reactions like that, I'm sure the queen will feel quite safe. She would only have to worry about your violent outbursts." Randy's eyes slid to Paige to see if the remark won him any favor, but Paige was only looking at Zane. She raised her shaking finger to her eye, a silent question about his injury. He shook his head, indicating he didn't want to talk about it. She studied him for a moment with her vibrant yellow eyes, using her power to assess his mood. She frowned before she turned her focus back to her soup.

He wondered what she saw in him at this point; all his anger and pain must be spilling out of him, contaminating her sensitive Yellowback intuition. He shouldn't have come here. She obviously had too much to deal with. She didn't need his problems in her face too. He thought of leaving, but his thought didn't go very far.

"Lady Queen, when will you make your decision?" Daynon asked in a raspy, timid voice.

"In the morning. Now, if you could please leave me, I need to speak with the Lord Prince."

Paige watched them file out, their guards following silently, leaving her and Zane virtually alone.

"Did you see Vic?" she asked. "How he looked at me? One day, Dean will figure out what I've done and he'll look at me the same way. He'll hate me for it."