Page 14 of Dragon Unbound (Dragon Kings 3)
Chapter Six
Time and again that day, Cullen’s gaze found the canyon. It didn’t matter if he was flying on patrol or sitting atop the mountain. His thoughts remained on Tamlyn and what she had told him. It was in his genes to help others. The right thing to do was to save the bairns. It didn’t matter the arguments. Not when it came to animals and children, in his eyes.
The repercussions if he disregarded Con’s order would be severe, and yet he had no other choice. To ignore the plight of innocents made him no better than those he fought against. He wouldn’t be able to look at himself in the mirror if he didn’t do something. The problem was that he didn’t know the realm. He couldn’t just walk into a human city and mingle as he did on Earth. Things were much different on Zora.
Then there was the peace—if you could call it that—between the dragons and humans. He could very well shatter that, causing the chaos that Brandr and Eurwen had gone to such lengths to ensure didn’t happen.
He stretched his wings out from his perch atop the mountain and shook his head. When things got to be too much on Earth, the Dragon Kings found their mountains on Dreagan, sometimes sleeping for several centuries at a time. Other times, they used their mountains to shift and be in their true form away from the mortals’ prying eyes. But on Zora, he could remain in dragon form for as long as he wanted.
The humans there knew about the dragons—and knew to stay off their land.
It had been the same on Earth once. Unfortunately, it hadn’t lasted long. The Kings had lost so much. Eurwen and Brandr had changed tack. It wasn’t that they weren’t making mistakes, they were making new ones. But that’s how it went. Cullen didn’t fault them for taking the actions they had, but he knew in his gut that continuing to let humans with magic suffer would come back to haunt them all.
A speck in the distance drew Cullen’s attention. He zeroed in on it and soon realized it was two dragons. It wasn’t much longer before he saw Vaughn’s teal scales and Eurwen’s peach scales and gold wings.
Cullen remained and waited for the couple to reach him. Eurwen was the first to land. The daughter of the King of Dragon Kings and a royal Light Fae, she had distinctive scales that set her apart from the others—just as her brother did. She nodded to Cullen as she shifted into human form. Vaughn took his human shape as he landed beside his mate. They joined hands immediately. Vaughn’s blue eyes swung to him.
Cullen shifted and eyed his visitors. “What brings you two here?”
“I want to hear your story again,” Eurwen said.
She had Rhi’s silver eyes and Con’s blond waves, a direct contrast to her twin’s dark coloring. Cullen hadn’t spent much time with either of them, but he had come to realize that Brandr was the quick-tempered one while Eurwen considered her options.
Cullen didn’t expect a different outcome after Con and Brandr’s visit earlier, but he detailed his encounter with Tamlyn for Vaughn’s mate. When he finished, Eurwen’s face was lined with concern.
“I think we should do something,” Cullen finished.
Eurwen said nothing as she walked a few steps away and put her back to them. She wrapped her arms around herself as the wind whipped her long, blue skirts against her legs. Her long, blond locks danced in the breeze, but she didn’t seem to notice.
Cullen slid his gaze to Vaughn. “What is she doing?”
“Thinking,” he replied.
Cullen didn’t believe there was much of a chance for Eurwen to agree with him. Yet, she hadn’t made a swift decision as her brother had. That said something. At least she was considering all sides.
Vaughn looked over his shoulder to the green canyon, but he said nothing. Cullen wanted to ask what his friend was thinking. In the end, he decided to wait until Eurwen had a chance to speak her mind. Though Brandr had decided instantly, Cullen wasn’t fooled by his cavalier attitude. Everyone was disturbed by the fact that children were being harmed.
Finally, Eurwen turned around. Her lips were pinched with stress, and her forehead wrinkled with a frown. “I wish things were simple. Things aren’t black and white, despite what they might appear to be.”
“I understand. Brandr made his position clear,” Cullen told her. “Just as Con did.”
Eurwen’s silver eyes watched him. “You disagree?”
“They’re bairns. I doona care what species they are, they’re innocent.”
She rubbed her temple as her gaze lowered. “That’s why I wanted to hear your encounter from your lips.”
“And?” Cullen pushed.
Eurwen shook her head helplessly as she glanced at Vaughn. “Each way I look at this, it destroys everything Brandr and I have built.”
“It doesna have to,” Cullen stated.
Vaughn’s brows snapped together. “What do you mean?”
“No one knows me. I can go to Stonemore and find the children.”
Eurwen slashed her hand through the air. “No, you can’t. It isn’t as if they’re all held together. The kids are with different families. It isn’t until they show magic that the families alert the authorities.”
Cullen shrugged. “Then I’ll wait.”
“How are you to know when the kids are taken?” Vaughn asked. “Then there is the fact that you know nothing about these humans’ customs.”
“I’ll find out. Jeyra can tell me a lot,” Cullen said.
But Eurwen shook her head. “Jeyra’s people are different from those at Stonemore. Every human city here is vastly different. They might be on the same landmass, but they’d be as different as Americans are from Europeans, as they are from Asians, and so on. If the kids were being harmed in Jeyra’s home city of Orgate, I’d agree with you.”
“Then I’ll talk to Tamlyn.” Cullen wouldn’t give up. There was a way, and he would find it eventually.
Vaughn’s lips pressed into a flat line. “You said she wouldna help.”
“I’ll convince her.”
