Dragon Born

Chapter 14

I had been so tired and preoccupied last night to notice Queen Bethany had made true to her promise: everything from my apartment had been brought to my chambers by the end of the day. The only thing that gave it away, though, was the attire Jessie had lain aside for me this morning--my own clothes. My chambers was so big, all my stuff had been tidied away, out of sight; I probably would have gone days without noticing my things.

I smiled at Jessie, at familiar clothes. It didn't go past me that my clothes had been pressed and the holes stitched, but I suppose the new Dragon Governess couldn't walk around the castle looking like she had been living in the forest.

Jessie greeted me merrily and handed me an envelope. I flipped it over to find the king's seal on the back. "What's this?"

"It came in for you this morning."

Curious, I ripped it open. It was a decree from King Krona:

Miss Lyla Feyton is no longer designated as the Dragon Governess and is hereby declared as Raiden's Protector. All concerns, be it health, safety, or the future regarding the young dragonling, are to be directed to her.

His signature finalised his decree at the bottom.

"Holy shit." The words flew out of my mouth before I could think about what I was saying. "I mean," I added to Jessie's shock, "I can't believe he changed my title. I didn't think Queen Bethany would actually take my complaint seriously."

Jessie thrust my shirt towards me, a funny smile on her lips. "It hasn't hit you how important you are, has it?"

"I, uh. . ." What was I supposed to say? I wasn't raised to think myself above others.

I snatched my clothes and slipped into them. It appeared they had done more than press and stitch my clothes; the inside was reinforced with a lightweight chainmail, likely to help protect my skin from Raiden's claws. It amazed me that the extra layer had been added, but it didn't look any different on me.

I smiled in the mirror. "Send my compliments to the fabulous seamstress who altered my clothes."

Jessie nodded. "Lady Arlington will be pleased."

My jaw dropped. "Shut up. The Lady Arlington?" She was only the finest seamstress in Histero. People came from all across the kingdom for her designs. If I could have afforded her, I would have hired her to make a dress for me for Camden's unveiling ceremony.

"The one and the same. Come. Raiden has already started his breakfast. I tried to make him wait, but once he caught on to the scent, he went wild and well. . ." She glanced down at her forearm. Her sleeve was freshly stained with blood; she had done a crude attempt to stop the bleeding with a cloth.

"Jessie! What are you doing here? You need to get that looked at."

She blinked. "I was getting your things ready. Your itinerary is full for the day."

"Itinerary? Never mind. That's not important right now. Come with me." I gave her no choice, and grabbed her uninjured arm, dragging her to the informal living area. My wardrobe full of supplies was set against the wall, looking rather drab compared to the rest of the fine furniture. I set her on the couch then rifled through it for gauze and antiseptic, happy to see everything was exactly how I had left it in my apartment.

She gaped, struggling to find anything that would appease me. "Lyla, really, there's no need-"

"There is need. You could get an infection." Arms full, I sat beside her on the couch and went to work on the wound. It was a deep cut and would require stitches. "I'm so sorry this happened."