Dragon 7 Chapter 8 (Patreon)

“It’s okay.” Scarlett patted Jadelyn’s leg as they all rode in the limo.

“I don’t like this.” Jadelyn crossed her arms. “Scar, they are coming for him and we need to protect him. What is even happening? Simon? I want to know how the hell they wound up with that body.” Jadelyn had stolen Scarlett’s phone so she could multitask as she reached out to her contacts. Scarlett let her; Jadelyn hated feeling useless.

Scarlett had caught the third agent and confirmed which station Zach was being brought into, and they were following that agent. The lawyer was supposed to be on his way to the police station, too.

“I’ll call my father.” Scarlett stole her phone back from Jadelyn, dialing his number. She knew he could help.

The dragonettes were both on their phones as well, rapidly exchanging messages with the others most likely.

There was an entire storm of shit that all of Zach’s wives were about to bring down on those agents.

It wasn’t a chat group that Jadelyn was on, but the wives had their own. She started tapping away to talk to them just to vent and make sure they were all informed.

“Hi Dad. Something happened. Norton and a few suits showed up and arrested Zach.” Scarlett started, putting her father on speaker phone.

“What?” He said. “I haven’t seen anything. What did they arrest him for?”

“That’s the kicker. Simon Greenleaf’s death. They had pictures of his dug up body.” Scarlett frowned at Jadelyn.

It only took a moment before her phone started blowing up with messages from the rest of the wife chat.

Morgana was pissed. Jadelyn quickly started typing what she knew so far before the drow vampire went on a rampage.

Scarlett wasn’t sure if the information would really make Morgana any less pissed or just enrage her more.

“No way.” Her father said over the phone. “The elves would never dig someone up after they bury them under their family tree. And that is without a doubt where Simon wound up. They would kill anyone who tried something like that.”

“I don’t know what to tell you dad. We saw the photos.” Scarlett was frowning as she saw the same things as Jadelyn, messages from Morgana confirming the elves would never dig up the body. The Highaen sisters jumped in, agreeing as well. But Yev’s responses were particularly violent.

“Let me get on the phone with the elves.” Scarlett’s father grumbled.

“Probably going to have to get in line. Jadelyn is telling the wives the update as we speak. Pretty sure the sisters are about to go off on the elves. Pregnant dragon females can be intense.” Scarlett winced as she caught up on Yev’s replies. If an elf didn’t die in the next twenty-four hours, it would be a miracle.

“Daughter.” Scarlett stiffened. Her father never called her that. “This is serious. Jadelyn, I know you are there. Call your father and explain what is happening. We need a council meeting to sort this out. You should not be figuring it out on your own.”

“Why?” Jadelyn asked.

But Scarlett already knew the answer. “Because someone betrayed both the elves and Zach tonight. More importantly, this could put the Philly council at each other’s throats.” She ran her tongue over her canines. “Thank you father. Anything on Zach?”

“I don’t see anything, but I don’t have time to dig right now. I’m going to head over to the elves and sort things out.” He hung up.

Chloe looked up at them, the dings on her phone slowing down. “Poly is on her way to the station. Trina is going to do her best to keep Yev calm, but that’s a bit of a losing battle. Yev is going to be due any day now, and we don’t want her agitated.”

“Good luck with that.” Scarlett snorted. She’d dealt with the sisters extensively on the wedding planning. Yev might be the more submissive of the two, but when she wanted something, she could be as stubborn as her mate. “Best thing we can do is stay the course and hopefully give everyone good news soon. I’m more worried about the council. The elves and dragons are going to be pissed and pointing fingers.”

Jadelyn fretted in the seat next to her. “We’ll just have to get him back. Send a few whole law practices at them.” There was a firm set of her brow. Jadelyn was strategizing who she needed to line up to free their man. Scarlett had no doubt that Jade would hire a mercenary crew to raid the police station if it came to that.

Scarlett put her phone down, eying their surroundings as the agent pulled up to the local police station. She took a deep breath, working to keep her emotions in check so that she could work through whatever situation presented itself.

First rule was always to stay calm. Scarlett took another deep breath readying herself to strike first.

But before the car even came to a stop, Jade was jumping out of it and looking around. Scarlett cursed, getting out and putting herself ahead of Jadelyn.

They both were distracted by the same fact. The other FBI car was not in the parking lot.

“Where is it?” Jadelyn asked, looking at Scarlett for answers that she didn’t have.

“Come on. Let’s go in.” Scarlett urged Jadelyn forward as the dragonettes and Pixie trailed after them.

“Mrs. Scalewright.” A man in a pinstripe suit turned to greet her. “Scarlett.” He nodded politely. “They say they don’t have Mr. Pendragon in custody and are looking for the arrest warrant.” Mr. Schneider was prompt as always when Jadelyn or her family called him. He even beat them here.

Scarlett’s frown only deepened. “They should have just arrived. The agents left about five minutes before us.”

“Maybe they got lost?” The officer at the desk suggested.

Scarlett did her best not to display her thoughts on her face. She was pretty sure a donut was smarter than that police officer. Good police officers like her father were so hard to find. If this were his precinct, there was no way that type of answer would be allowed.

“There they are.” Chloe pointed back out the doors.

The other car had pulled up. Norton was there in the passenger seat, but that wasn’t who she wanted to see.

Scanning the back seat, Scarlett nearly blew a gasket as she saw that it was empty. She only had a moment to react and get a hand on each of the dragonettes before they noticed the same thing and blew the place out with their dragon forms.

They needed to keep their wits about them. It was still worth getting Zach out of the mess by the book. He had played by the rules and so would they.

Norton got out and so did the other agent, waving over to the third officer as they walked over without a care in the world.

They talked like they’d gone out for coffee and walked in together.

Jadelyn couldn’t hold it in, even though Scarlett already knew it would be worthless. “Where is my husband?”

“Huh?” Norton frowned at her and the others arrayed here. “I’m sorry. Do I know you?”

“You just arrested my husband.” Jadelyn looked like she was about to rip the man’s head off his body, so Scarlett stepped in front of her.

Norton looked to Lopez. “Do you know them or something about her husband?”

“Not a clue sir. Maybe she’s nuts? We just came back from a late dinner.” Lopez parroted.

Scarlett grabbed Jade before she caused more trouble. “Drop it. They did something with him.” She touched her mark, feeling the magic in it. They’d never talked about what happened with it when something happened to Zach, but she was sure he was still alive. She could still feel his magic.

“This won’t be the end of this.” Jadelyn hissed.

Mr. Schneider frowned as he took in the situation. Scarlett pulled him and Jadelyn away, keeping an eye on the dragonettes who were typing furiously on their phones.

“What just happened?” Schneider asked.

Scarlett waited until they got out of the station. “They arrested Zach and then dropped him off somewhere. Now they’re claiming to know nothing about the arrest.”

The lawyer stared at both of the girls with a look of disbelief. “You realize if you can prove that, you can basically tell the FBI to fuck off of Zach for the rest of his life. Besides, given what he is, could they really do much to him?”

The answer should be no. But then Scarlett didn’t understand why Zach hadn’t escaped whatever they’d had planned for him.

“I want your entire firm working on this. Go to the closest FBI office and cause a fuss until we get answers for where my husband is.” Jadelyn scowled at her lawyer, but the anger wasn’t directed at him.

“Maybe he’s back at the mansion.” Chloe said hopefully as they all crawled back into the limo.

Pixie had a little gold coin that was new around her throat, and she was putting it in her palm as she sat in the limo.

“That something?” Scarlett asked her.

“He made it so he could summon me. It has his aura, and a spell to tug it towards him.” She frowned at it.

Scarlett nodded. Zach knew what he was doing. She had to trust him. “Then he doesn’t need you. That’s good. I doubt they did anything too bad to him. Let’s get to the mansion and get to the council. If we can’t find him right away, and it seems like he doesn’t immediately need us, then we need to try to keep the world from imploding while he’s dealing with whatever is going on.”

That was their job. Zach was the son of two dragon gods, blessed by multiple beings that stepped out of myth, even to a paranormal. He would make the world quake and it was their job to support him. As his first mate, Scarlett would keep the girls all okay for his return.

“Someone betrayed the paranormal of Philly.” Jadelyn growled. “We are going to figure out who the fuck did this and then we are going to sick pregnant Yev on them. Or Morgana and Polydora. All of them are terrifying.”

“My vote is on Ikta.” Sarisha added. “Give whoever did this to Ikta and they’ll really regret their decision.”

The limo was quiet for a second before Jadelyn spoke. “Okay, Ikta too, after the others have had their turn. Whoever it is, they are going to pay dearly.”

***

“Where is my mate?!” Yev was throttling Sebastian against the council chamber as soon as he walked in.

He only made a little squeak as he struggled to speak.

“Sister!” Tyrande tried to pry Yev’s hands off, but it was more ceremonial than anything. Yev was stronger, and if she didn’t want to let go, it wasn’t happening.

They might look similar, but Yev was strong enough to put werewolves to shame.

Tyrande tried to use logic next. “He’d never dig his kin up after they’ve been buried at their tree.”

Yev let Sebastian go with a huff, glaring around at every single person nearby. “I want answers. Now!” A few elves flinched as Yev demand ended in a roar.

Tyrande almost wished that Jadelyn and the dragonettes hadn’t informed the rest of the wives yet that Zach was missing. Her sister was already on a hair trigger, and that had seriously escalated since she’d found out something had happened to her mate. The whole situation was a mess.

Sebastian coughed several times and another elf helped him stay standing. “We did nothing. We also want to know who desecrated our tree. When we went to check with Detective Fox, not only was Simon dug up, but the roots of the tree were heavily damaged.” The promise of retribution shone in his eyes.

“Sister, you have to know that there’s no way they’d do that to their family tree.” Tyrande tried to appeal to what little logic might have remained with her sister.

Yev stomped around, making the council chamber quiver before she leaned against a wall and the waterworks started. “I want him here. His egg is coming.” Tears started streaking down her face as she slumped against the wall.

“Shh.” Tyrande smoothed back her sister’s hair. “It’s okay. We’ll find him. If you get all worked up, it might come early, and then he won’t be here. Stay calm and we’ll get him to you as quickly as we can.”

Sebastian came over and Tyrande turned to him with a less patient gaze. “Who knew where your tree was?”

“We guard that information closely. Outside the elves, there are very few.” He pursed his lips. “But I just can’t believe that an elf would betray us in this way.”

“Simon’s parents?” Tyrande asked.

“They have been taken into custody, and they’ll be put through a magical truth test. If they desecrated their son and the family tree, they will be dealt with appropriately.” Sebastian’s lips were pressed into a firm line at the thought. “I don’t think it was them. Besides, there are plenty of people here who saw Zach kill Simon. Maybe one of them?”

His eyes drifted behind her, and Tyrande turned as Winter strode into the room with her normal frosty demeanor. “The fae are known for their trickery. It wouldn’t be impossible for her to have done something.” He added.

Tyrande suppressed a groan. Zach was balls deep in the fae, and that often came back to bite people. “Maybe. There’s an easy way to find out.” Winter had received a blessing from Iapetus, and his influence did seem to be part of the problem hanting Zach. Tyrande wasn’t ruling the Winter Queen out.

“You highness. Please do not confront her directly. She is the Winter Queen.” Sebastian grabbed Tyrande’s shoulder, clearly seeing her intentions.

Tyrande brushed his hand off. “You forget how much protection I have.” She held up her wedding ring.

“An absent King is a lacking protection.” Sebastian hissed.

Yev looked up from her tears, fury entering her eyes as she narrowed them. “He is not absent. He’ll be back shortly. Are you saying differently?” Yev tilted her head in a way that looked like she was about to bite the man’s head off. Literally.

Sebastian froze, clearly at a loss of words.

Tyrande grabbed her sister and pulled her away before she got even angrier. A sad pregnant dragon was far easier to handle than a mad one. “We’ll get this all sorted out.” She promised her sister.

As she passed Trina, Tyrande handed Yev off and continued towards Winter who was making herself comfortable in her throne.

Winter didn’t acknowledge Tyrande until she was right in front of the fae queen. “Did you have anything to do with Zach Pendragon’s arrest?” Tyrande asked.

Winter rolled her eyes. “I knew you’d all blame me.”

“Given it involved Iapetus who you recently made a deal with, that’s a fair assumption. You didn’t answer the question.” Tyrande scowled, her actions had drawn a number of eyes.

Kelly came up behind her and put a hand on her shoulder in support. “Problem here?”

“Looks like there might be.” Morgana clicked her tongue as she joined Kelly and put her hand on the other side of Tyrande’s shoulder, smiling wickedly at Winter.

Tyrande had to stop from smiling and try to keep her more intimidating stance. Not only did she have the dragon king at her back, but the wives had continued to grow stronger bonds. They all shared the same goal at present, getting their husband back.

Through Zach, she had the Butcher of Bastion Hill, the first female Alpha, the entire dragon race, and the richest woman in the world. Heck, the powers of heaven and hell and more were behind her.

Winter scowled at the group forming in front of her, and a portal ripped open to the side.

Ikta stepped through, while Summer remained on the other side of the portal. Both of them scowled at the Winter queen.

Maeve stepped around Summer and up to Winter’s side. “Mother, it would be best to be direct in this situation. It is bound to escalate quickly.”

Tyrande snorted. How could she forget? She also had The Infamous Spider Queen and the Summer Queen behind her. Their husband’s harem could really shake multiple worlds if he ever wanted to.

“Daughter, standing there with those two reminds me of an old false prophecy.” Winter gave her daughter a chilling smile.

“Did you have any knowledge of my husband’s arrest involving Simon?” Maeve wasn’t beating around the bush.

“I am bound.” Winter said calmly.

Tyrande’s adrenaline spiked with that information. Winter knew something, but she was bound by an oath.

“Did you participate in this plot to capture my husband?” Maeve was stony as she scowled at her mother.

Winter looked around at everyone watching her and smiled. “No. I neither directly participated nor did I provide information for this event.”

Maeve nodded, a weight clearly leaving her shoulders.

Tyrande could relate to having a royal bitch of a mother. “Great. So she knows who, but she cannot say. Maeve, what is a false prophecy?”

Maeve paused long enough Summer jumped in. “There are fae who from time to time have the gift of foresight. It is an unwieldy power often fraught with misinterpretations. But they are written down regardless. Sometimes things happen such that the prophecy is deemed impossible and then it is considered false. Though, there is often a hint of truth still in them.” She frowned and looked at Ikta with an inkling of understanding.

The fae didn’t say anything, but the three passed some quiet communication between themselves.

“Maybe there is still a little bit of my old mother still there.” Maeve stated it absently.

Winter’s lips curled into a vicious smile. “Oh. I think you will find much of me remains. A brush with death is nothing but a whip that I’ll pay forward. Be careful associating with Summer so much, my daughter. I’d hate for you to turn into her little pawn.”

Tyrande reconsidered her previous thoughts; Winter was a much harsher mother.

“Your warning has been heard, but I think you exaggerate. The only one I consider myself serving is the Dragon King, and that’s only in certain instances.” Maeve licked her lips and turned back to join Summer on the other side of the portal.

Tyrande’s thoughts were swirling. They’d learned a little more information. Someone who had access to Winter and Iapetus had led to her husband’s capture, yet so far she had only heard of other humans interacting with the titan of mortals.

Her gaze shifted around the council chamber, taking in people who had made long lives of politics.

Each one of them became a suspect to Tyrande, and she was more than happy to take a few of them down if it meant Zach returned to her.