Chapter 1
I found Mariah as a young child, wandering the streets. I was a mere fourteen, and she was ten, hiding in the shadows stealing to survive. I took pity on her and had her come work for me. We have grown quite close, and she has been my right-hand maid ever since. “Your majesty, they are waiting for you.” She never looked me in the eye; it made my heart hurt for her. But I will never apologize for the power I hold. “Who?” I got up, walked to my six-foot mirror, and looked at my gown I was wearing. “The council, it’s an emergency.” She walked closer to me but still keeping her distance.
“Oh, hold your head up and look me in the eyes, Mariah. We have known each other for far too long for you not to look at me. Come, tighten my corset.” She immediately looked up, and her blue eyes met my deep brown ones. She slowly undid each tie and pulled and pulled until I was close to not being able to breathe comfortably. “This dress is beautiful.” She whispered. It truly was. It was a gown for a queen, black and red. Hugging my every curve just right but still demanded respect. “Permission to speak out of turn?” I just nodded my head and waited for her to speak. “Word has been spreading through the servents about secret meetings the council has been having. They are talking about taking your crown because you are unbetrothed.”
“Of course, that’s what they are worried about. We are in the middle of a godforsaken genocide, and all they care about is if I can give them children. Typical.” She grabbed the brush off my vanity and brushed my course curls back up, and pinned them with bobby pins. “You would think we are past this as a society. Guess not.” Mariah helped me slide on my shoes and followed me through the stonewalled hallways. As we walked, my four ladies came giggling down the hallway. “Oh, Cherry, where are you going in such a rush?” Bellamy yelled as they all caught up to me. They were all beautiful and so diverse. Bellamy was the most beautiful of them all; she was from South Asia, with strong eyes, beautiful skin.
“Hey, you, back away. You’re too close.” Veronica pointed to Mariah, and she listened. Veronica was a strong woman, Indian descent. She was my right hand. Both of us together were powerhouses. “There is an emergency council meeting care to join me?” I smirked as two of them gathered on each side of me. “One day, they will learn their lesson Cheridan. They keep undermining you, might as well fire them all.” Beaumont chuckled and flicked her dark black hair over her shoulders. “Don’t you think she would have done that already?” Sienna snickered and lightly shoved Beaumont. “Play nice, ladies.”
“Well, I have a date. A count asked me to dinner.” Bellamy chirped up, we all turned to her. “Well, who is it you crisp? Aren’t you going to tell us?” Beaumont asked her. “Count Dean Allister, very handsome. He owns over 50 acres of land and owns many dragons. Very profound businessmen, with land in other kingdoms as well. Even Druin.” iI turned to her and raised an eyebrow. “How many dragons?” I asked her. “Five,” Bellamy said confidently. “Not as many as me,” I smirked, knowing no one would have as many as me. “You are a queen, so of course not. But three is still a great deal. All healthy and one male, two females. He has hired many faires to take care of them. Get them out of the woods.” Silence fell on us as she spoke of the faires. It was a sensitive subject.
We made it to the council room, and immediately everyone stopped talking and rose when they saw me. As I walked in, they all bowed in their dark gray robes. “Your majesty, we weren’t expecting you.” The head counselor spoke, I never turned my head to look at her. I walked to my throne and sat down, and Mariah gave me a glass of wine. “Isn’t that something? Here you are in my castle having meetings about my kingdom, and you weren’t expecting me?” They all were shocked, had no words left to say. “Please, continue.” I smiled and waited for them to speak. Though no one began to. I heard a chuckled coming from the back of the room, and everyone turned their heads. And the laughing got louder and louder, and I narrowed my eyes at them.
“Whoever is laughing, please step forward.” I was hoping that would shut him up, but no, he continued as he walked forward. The gentlemen that stood before was breathtakingly handsome, a face I surely would have remembered. He had dark curly hair and beautiful tan skin with bright green eyes, mesmerizing if you ask me. “And you are?” I straightened myself in the seat and puffed my chest slightly. “Forgive your majesty; I am Lord Vincent Morell Shepard. I am a new member of your court. It’s a pleasure to meet you.” He bowed before me, his eyes never leaving mine. “What about what I asked made you laugh?” I asked him. “Nothing you did, your majesty. It was the council’s silence. They were more than willing to talk about Kingdom tasks before you showed up. And now, when the one person who can implement them is here, they are as quiet as snowfall.”
My ladies chuckled at that, and I couldn’t hold the smile forming at his honesty. “Exactly what I was thinking. Lord Vincent, come before me, and catch me up.”
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I found myself after the council meeting in the stables with my prized possessions. My beautiful dragons. The Kingdom Undamia was known for its magic; no other kingdom has. The magic to have mystical creatures living freely on our land, but once they leave our borders, they lose their magic. Everything that makes them important miraculous creates is gone. And when other Kingdoms find them, they are sold to the black market and ripped to pieces. It wasn’t kind what they do to such beautiful creatures. “My beloved, how are you?” Reginald snorted and slowly sat up, his bright red diamond eyes shinning. He was no fully developed, so he hadn’t reached his maximum height yet. He was only 12 feet, and he would grow to be at least 50. His scales were pitch black, making his red eyes even more enticing. He was the rarest of dragons, the most beautiful. He huffed at me and laid his head down at my feet. Even the mystical creatures knew who was in charge. I sat down beside his head, leaning myself against him and even out my breathing with his.
“Reginald, I don’t know what to do. The Kingdom is falling apart, and I am not strong enough.” Whenever I needed to be alone, I found myself here with Reginald crying and knowing that he heard every word and never judged me. “There is a genocide slowly beginning. There are members of my Kingdom killing beautiful fairies and selling them on the black market for their blood.” I leaned into his head as I felt the tears stream down my face. I heard footsteps approaching. I immediately sobered up and wiped my tears. “This time is private,” I spoke a stood up only to meet Lord Vincent. “Your majesty, my apologies. I had no idea.” He bowed slowly, keeping strong contact.
“Well, now you know, so you must leave me to be.” I turned and went back to my spot by Reginald. “Your dragons are beautiful; I have some of my own.” I heard his footsteps come closer, and he was before me. His green eyes widened once he saw Reginald. “Wow, a pure Conian and a male. How did you get him?” He went to touch Reginald, but he growled at him, and smoke came out of his nostrils. “I would step back if I were you. He’s not very fond of strangers.” Lord Vincent did as I suggested and put a decent distance between us. There was a small silence between us; it wasn’t awkward or anything. It was comfortable, almost as if I could sit here with him all night. “We missed you at supper.” He leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees.
“Trust me; if anyone were worried about me, they would have come looking.” I ran my hand down Reginald’s snout, and he purred. “I’ve never seen a connection this strong with a human and their dragon.” He was in such awe I could see it in his eyes. “I found him in the woods a few months ago. I was tracing fairy hunters, and I found him in a cage hanging from a tree. It was dark out, so we could hardly see him, that was until he opened his eyes.” I smiled at the memory. “All I saw was fear and his little body quivering. I immediately got him down and brought him here. Nursed him, raised him, I like to say he is the first man I’ve ever loved.” I heard him chuckle at me, and I turned toward him and smiled.
“What is his name?” Lord Vincent asked. “Reginald.” A belly laugh came from him and woke up Reginald and gave him the death stare. “You love laughing, don’t you? Are all your bones funny?” I raised my eyebrow, and he calmed down. “Oh, come on, Reginald is such a peculiar name for a Conian.” He scoffed. “Reginald is a handsome name, and a handsome name belongs to a handsome boy, Lord Vincent.”
“Please, just call me Vincent.” I could feel the blush rise on my cheeks, thankfully my brown skin complexion and the darkness made it hard to see. “That would be highly inappropriate, don’t you think?” I finally took the chance to look at him; his beauty was captivating. I knew that if I looked at him, I couldn’t turn away. He drew me in, a way that I have never been drawn in before. “No one has to know.” He smirked at me. “They’ll know.” I stood up and grabbed Reginald, and led him back to his cave. “Your majesty, I feel I should make it known that I am well-endowed.” He got up and followed me. I huffed at his cockiness. “I don’t worry myself about the physical attributes of a male, Lord Vincent.”
“That’s great to hear your majesty, but I was talking about my wealth, not my physicality.” I felt the embarrassment take me over; how could I be so vain. “My apologies.” I released Reginald, and he flew miles up to his cave deep in the mountains behind my castle. “No need to apologize. I am sure many men have tried to woo you. Please let me walk you back.” He stuck his arm out for me to grab, and I slightly considered it, but I have no time for a relationship. No man, no matter how charming, would distract me and my duties. I walked past his offering, making sure to keep my distance. “I own land in all kingdoms, have multiple dragons, ten, I believe.” He held himself with such confidence; I admired it. “Lord Vincent, thank you for walking me to the castle. But this is usually my quiet time, and since you interrupted, I would like the rest of the walk to be silent.” I knew if he kept talking, I would find myself in trouble. The type of trouble I can’t risk at the moment. “Of course, your majesty.”
