Chapter Fifteen #2
After pouring the tea and handing it round, the staff member disappeared, leaving just the three of us in the room.
I sipped my tea, aware of my father doing the same, both trying not to show our unease.
Which was undoubtedly very obvious despite our best efforts, and not helped by the fact I didn’t even like tea.
Still, drinking it gave me something to do, and it hadn’t seemed like a good idea to decline anything Mortimer offered.
Not yet, not until I knew what he was after.
“So, Dominic,” Mortimer said. “I’ve been talking to your father and other heads of family about the future for all of us. How we can’t risk repeating the mistakes of the past.”
Of families locked in combat, of rupture and hatred, sowing the seeds of mistrust that were now bearing rampant fruit. Exhibit one: the way we were watching Mortimer, waiting for him to spring a trap.
I tried to keep an open mind, though something was crawling up the back of my neck each time I looked at him. Once I’d put my teacup down, my right hand had formed a fist, clenching hard around my ring. What had I been thinking, bringing part of my treasure this close to a predator?
It was becoming harder and harder to keep my dragon in check, to stop him from showing in my eyes.
But as well as that sounding like a really bad idea when facing Abimelech Mortimer, I knew it would be the final straw for my father.
I’d be banished, with no hope of ever returning to the family, let alone leading it.
“As you know, families have recently begun experimenting by mixing with previously unknown families,” he said.
“My grandson first proposed this to me, and I understand his suggestion has been welcomed by many of his generation. Hence my request to speak with you and hear your thoughts on the matter.”
Two things were immediately clear to me.
First, I mustn’t betray that I didn’t have a clue what he was talking about.
If he thought there was weakness in our leadership structure, we’d be sitting ducks.
And whatever my father was as head of family, he wasn’t weak.
I knew he’d protect us. God knew, he did it every day by refusing to let me take my role as heir.
I was also sure that Abimelech didn’t care about my opinion. So why was he asking?
For once, I thought before opening my mouth, aware of Rhodri’s tension beside me. Also aware of the fact he hadn’t jumped in to direct the conversation away from me, underlining just how much power Abimelech held.
“I think it’d be best discussed at another Moot, openly between all families,” I said. “It’s almost irrelevant what a single person thinks. It’s the majority opinion that matters.”
“Yet the majority rarely want change. It’s the agitators, the activists who drive it through. And in time, almost everyone adapts, with no recollection they were ever against it.”
A hint of amusement crossed his face as he looked at me. As if I were simply young and na?ve.
“But we’re not talking about changing a piece of legislation,” I pointed out.
“This is more intangible, and highly personal. We want people to trust one another, to work against their own nature. Change has to be driven, sure, but it can’t be imposed if we want to change attitudes rather than simply ensure compliance. ”
He was still looking at me, those cold grey eyes almost hypnotic. “Ideals are all very well, but in practice, it only takes one person acting recklessly to derail years of careful diplomacy.”
I stared at him, unsure of his meaning. I knew where my mind had instantly gone, but surely he wouldn’t know about my fuck-up with the Carlew dragon.
The Carlew dragon who had suddenly shown up in our house, invited by Rhodri with absolutely no explanation as to why a dragon from a strange family was living among us.
Fury flared in me for an instant, because if Rhodri had told me why Oscar Carlew was visiting, maybe I wouldn’t have fucked him. As it was, a fairly forgettable fuck had turned into a whole thing.
Mortimer tilted his head, very slightly. “I believe the Carlews would see my point.”
So he did mean that. He was being deliberately provocative for some reason.
I knew exactly what that looked like, and right now, it was sitting opposite me in the form of an old dragon who could snap his fingers and have the entire Bedwyr family disappeared.
Still didn’t mean I was accepting an unfair portion of the blame for what had happened.
Not from him. I’d had enough of it from Rhodri.
“Respectfully, there were two consenting adults involved,” I said steadily. “And only one of those decided to change the understanding after the event.”
Fuck, what even was this language coming out of my mouth? A quick hook-up, which Carlew had abruptly decided should be the start of a relationship, was sounding like some kind of administrative quirk.
Rhodri was unnaturally still. He was undoubtedly appalled that I hadn’t simply admitted my bad judgement and accepted Mortimer’s rebuke. The weird part was, Mortimer didn’t look as if he cared that I’d disagreed with him, turning back to Rhodri instead of flaming me for impertinence.
They spoke for a while about dragons I didn’t know, and made references to events I had no knowledge of. I listened hard, not wanting to miss an instant of this unexpected chance to learn about things Rhodri would never tell me.
As I did, I drank my tea, which wasn’t even normal tea.
Kind of smoky, with a piece of lemon in it, and frankly disgusting.
And as I watched, I saw a different side to Rhodri than I’d ever seen before.
My entire life, he’d been the one in charge—decisive, controlling, and with a temper that rarely showed itself but was fearsome when it did.
Here, he wasn’t obsequious, because most dragons would rather die than suck up to anyone, but he was on the slightly-too-submissive side of respectful.
Even as I judged him for it, I realised that he wasn’t here representing only himself. He had to keep his family safe, and Mortimer was predatory. There was no doubt about that. Used to taking what he wanted, with no one able to stop him. No one willing even to try to stop him, I surmised.
Mortimer drew me back into the conversation a few more times, but after the first couple of attempts it became obvious he’d already assessed the pathetic limits of my knowledge. After that, he included me out of politeness rather than interest. Which was still more than Rhodri usually did.
It wasn’t all that much longer before Mortimer said, “Well, thank you both for coming. We’ll stay in touch.”
A clearer dismissal of my father than I’d ever thought to hear. Rhodri said all the usual things, and then we left, walking together through the hushed lobby of the hotel, out into the car park. As we climbed into his car, we both let out a long breath of relief.
“Well,” Rhodri said.
“Yeah,” I agreed.
I was full of questions, but I wasn’t going to ask Rhodri. He’d never answer them.
We’d only been on the road a few minutes when he sent me a sideways glance. “He appeared to be more interested in you than in anything else.”
So I hadn’t been wrong to think that. “Felt like I was auditioning for something,” I confessed. “Just hope it wasn’t the role of virgin sacrifice.”
Rhodri gave an annoyed sigh, and his jaw tightened. Well, fuck him.
He said nothing for the next twenty minutes, while hedgerows flashed past in the car’s headlights. I kept turning over in my mind everything Mortimer had said. I wished I knew what he was up to, because no one came to the arse end of nowhere for no reason.
“You don’t think he’s trying to sow discord within families?
” I said, words spilling out as soon as the idea had come to me.
Yet another thing my father hated about me, my impulsiveness.
“Why else would he raise the topic of the Carlew dragon? It’s pretty obvious you’d have been furious about what happened. ”
“And if he weakens other families, that increases his power,” Rhodri said thoughtfully.
“At his age, he’s probably thinking about succession, and God knows none of us know his heir.
The weaker he keeps us all, the more chance his heir has of continuing as leader without being challenged.
” He shot me a sideways glance, his face ghostly in the lights from the dashboard. “Interesting idea.”
The rush of gratification that went through me at his words was humiliating. I bit my lip so I didn’t say anything further and ruin the first good impression he’d had of me since… Well, probably ever.
We said nothing further for the rest of the drive, but as we parted ways just inside the front door, he said “I’ll see you tomorrow, Dominic.”
It wasn’t as if he usually ignored me completely, but that felt like something. Mortimer had made it clear I’d been there because he wanted it, but I couldn’t help hoping.
Stupid, I knew. But I did.