The Dragon's Daughter

Chapter 17

Soon enough, Sy's goons returned with not only a chair for my feet but a proper one to sit on too. There was also a cushion for my back and one to go under my feet.

"Sy," I protested, embarrassed, "This is a bit much."

"It's really not enough. Everything on this old ship is run down. Just wait till you see the council hall. That place is a palace. And you will make a beautiful queen."

My stomach rolled as Sy rubbed a thumb along the back of my hand. Couldn't he tell I didn't want his touch? Couldn't he see I didn't want him like this at all? For all the years we'd been friends, I had thought we decided we weren't compatible romantically. We were just two people who got along and enjoyed each other's company. Any other time, under any other circumstances, I would have just said, "no." But it felt like I had to accept these little unwanted touches for the sake of my mom and even Hector.

I felt a pang when I thought of my mother. She had said nothing this whole time. I could only imagine she was in shock.

"Hey, Hector," I thought, "is your leg OK?"

"Yeah. They did some kind of magic on it to stop the bleeding. I'll be fine."

I sat in silence a while before bothering him again.

"Hey, Hector...."

"You're mom's alright too. I've been talking to her in her mind as well. She wasn't overly fond of it at first, but it made her feel better once I let her know I was listening to you and you were alright. She was really, really worried about you."

"Hector..."

"No. I haven't told her about your dad. I couldn't bear to be the one."

"I understand. Thank you." I acknowledged sadly. Besides, I needed her calm here. If she panicked or freaked out, what if they shot her? Shot her beyond the point of magical saving?

The night dragged on, and Sy called for a radio to play some music to help keep himself awake. I knew I needed it as well. It had been one of the most trying days of my life, and adrenaline can only take a person so far.

Shortly after midnight, a song came on, a slow one, and Sy asked me to dance. I refused at first, but he refused to take "no." for an answer. I felt filthy as he led me out onto the middle of the ship's deck. His hands slid to my hips, and we began to sway to the music. Near the end of the song, he put two fingers under my chin and tilted my face to look at him. I was terrified he was going to try to kiss me again. I would have bitten him had he tried. There was only so much I could take in the name of peace and patience. But thankfully, he just stared into my eyes.

"Raina, I know you don't get it now, but us being the only two like us, it really does connect us in a way nobody else could ever understand."

I nodded. Keep the psychopath happy.

Sy smiled and sighed, then led me back to my chair. "You will come to love me in time. You'll see. I'll never lie to you, and I'll give you everything."

I wondered to myself how he considered hiding the fact that he'd killed his father and pretended to be my friend, not a lie. I also wondered how Gabe would see this conversation between us now as "not a lie". Sy was a liar, a filthy, horrible liar, but I kept quiet. Calling him out wouldn't help my cause. Nobody was coming to save me. It was up to me to be smart and save myself. Hopefully, the rest of us, too, if my plan worked at all. I had come a long way in just one lousy day. There was a time, i couldn't have handled the kind of change Sy was throwing at me now. But now I got it. There was no black or white, only shades of gray, but Sy was the sort of gray that was inky and left smudges on everything he touched. I didn't want to be around him. I wasn't going to be pushed around. I was going to be the one making the choices from here on out.