Dragon Joined Read Online Free PDF

have its
work cut out for it. He liked to chatter on. “What’s that?”
    “I know I’ve failed you many times, Amanda, and I’m so sorry
for that. Your mom and dad. What happened to you.”
    “The day I took Amanda saved her. Before my intervention,
she could neither read nor take care of herself properly. As you can see,”
Princess stepped back so he might examine her, “she aged much better than she
would have. Filled out.”
    He shook his head. “I’m not talking to you. I’m speaking to
her.”
    “She hears only through me.”
    “Shut up.” He pulled her close up against him. “I don’t want
to hear your voice. I just want you—both of you—to listen to this. Am I clear?”
    “Fine.”
    He rolled his eyes and she stared at them. Human eyes were
considered windows to their so-called souls. What did his tell her? She
couldn’t read him. He guarded himself from exposure. That much she could
understand.
    “You really can’t stop talking. Here’s the deal. I failed
Amanda in all but one way. I saved her brother and sister. I want you to know
that, Amanda. They live with me. In my home, like my own. They’re thriving
except that neither one of them has stopped missing you. When they came in,
some of the elders told me they were so small they’d forget you. They were
wrong.”
    A jolt slammed through Princess’ stomach. She ignored it. Amanda
had loved those children. She’d seen it in her memories. This momentary emotional
distress would pass.
    Maybe she shouldn’t have let the human male speak so much. She’d
always been too soft for her own good.
    “I’m going to take you home to them. I promise. I know you
have no reason to believe me, because I keep screwing up with your family.
Believe this if nothing else—you will be going back to your brother and
sister.” He bent over to whisper in her ear. “And this dragon bitch will rue
the day she took you from me.”
    Princess grabbed Dean by the arm and hauled him with her. If
he gave her much more of a problem, she’d call for help. Her dragons would make
him do what she said. In all her hundreds of years, she’d never had an
introduction go this badly. Hysteria she knew how to handle. Denial could be
managed. Dean’s unbelievable arrogance made the hair on the back of Amanda’s
head itch. What did that even mean?
    She bit down on her lip. The human would be made to comply.
    They arrived at the barracks that housed the human
counterparts when they were not needed.
    She marched in and everyone stood up. Being Princess had
some perks. Respect and obedience from her dragons happened to be one of them.
    The eating room consisted of three long tables where the
humans could eat if they so chose. The whole area always smelled of cooking
food. One of the rules required there always to be food preparation going on.
No matter what time of the night a human got hungry, they were able to feed.
    “All of you sit. He’s a difficult one. But he’ll be made to
be manageable, or we can chuck him out of the building.”
    Koda sucked in her breath. As a human, she appeared to be
about forty with graying hair and broad shoulders, good for carrying large
loads. In her dragon form, she appeared almost white, an excellent camouflage
in battle with other dragons. “Throw out a compatible human? Really?”
    “Yes, really. Believe me, if I decide to chuck him out,
you’ll be glad for the interference.”
    Dean laughed. “I think your leader here is having a bad day.
It’s hard when new members don’t toe the line. Believe me, I know your pain.
Maybe you’ll have to punish me.”
    “Maybe I will.” She kept yanking and finally he went along.
    The bathing room had to be kept clean at all times. Four
times a day, one of the humans, on a rotating schedule, went in and cleansed
the space. Princess stepped around one of the cleaners as she went in.
    “Doon, is all well with you?”
    Her dragon brethren bowed his head. “Princess, all is well.”
    “Good.