Chapter 3: Dinner Out

Kerrigan ordered a few dishes for Conor to try and he was excited to let her show off her city and its wonders.

The first course was apparently a Velyki special, though Conor wasn’t quite sure what was special…

Small rolls of bread the size of his fist were served with cheese and a very creamy butter.

“Its yak cheese. They are hard to raise but there are a few farmers who have managed to raise them. You will not find a better flavor in all of Targu province. The butter is also cured with a sage that is only grown in the southern slopes of Velyki.” Kerrigan explained as she happily served herself and piled samples onto Conor’s plate.

When the main course came, Conor took the opportunity to savor the hearty stew with fresh venison before he broached the dragon in the room.

“Kerrigan, Dragon Corporation is a fascinating beast. I have been studying the notes Mr. Nuri and miss Quinn had prepared for me and it seems your nest is surrounded by predators. In such a hostile terrain, how is one dragon to survive without allies?”

Kerrigan eyed him quietly as the ever attentive waiter drifted by to refill her wine glass. She allowed a small, almost imperceptible smile to touch her lips as she considered him.

"The thing about dragons, Conor, is that they never bow. However, if a fellow predator wished to hunt in their territory, it might be permissible to let them help reduce the populator of squabbling nuisances. Of course, such a partnership would have to be...mutually beneficial.”

“Naturally,” Conor replied, leaning back in his chair, his eyes never leaving those emerald gems that had captivated him all those months ago.

“A lone dragon can become outnumbered, but two… I hear that is the start of a thunder.”

Evelynn nearly choked at the table behind them, quickly trying to clear her through with a drink of water.

For her part, Kerrigan had a light blush coloring her cheeks but managed to keep a straight face.

“When such a storm hits, perhaps together they could weather any challenge—maybe even reshape the landscape to their liking,” She replied smoothly.

Conor took a sip of wine, his mind blanking for a moment as he simply took in the beauty before him. Her hair had a hint of gold as the last rays of sun vanished behind the western mountains and the candle light sparkled against her eyes. How had he been so blessed to be here in this moment?

“Conor?” she asked.

He brought his focus back to the topic at hand. “I have a few ideas.”

Kerrigan looked around the room furtively and said, “Back at the hotel. We can discuss things in more detain in private.”

It was Reilynn’s turn to splutter, “If you two just want to share a room, the rest of us can spread out a bit and give you all the privacy you need.”

Kerrigan looked at her slack jawed before slapping her across her bicep. “REILYNN! NOT what I meant! I don’t want to talk in PUBLIC you bunch of horny numpties! BUSINESS, Reilynn. I need to talk Business with him!”

“Of course you do… back in your room. We know exactly what kind of business you want to discuss. Its called pillow talk for a reason dear!” Reilynn retorted, a smug grin plastered across her face as she took a bite of her dessert.

She aimed her fork at Kerrigan, “You know, the lot of us have been waiting for you two to get down to business for months now. Go figure you wait till we are back here in the frozen north to make a move. But who I am to tease you about having someone warm your bed. Truth be told, it would be nice to have some extra heat if we are going to have to suffer through another winter here.”

Kerrigan’s face was flushed bright right now, her freckles on full display as she struggled to find words. All she managed was “Its almost summer, Reilynn. You don’t need a bed warmer in summer.”

“Its still nice though,” Evelynn said from behind her.

“UGG!” Kerrigan said, slumping in defeat. “Nothing to say, Conor?”

Conor had a dumb grin on his face watching the antics, “Nope I am good. Just here for the show apparently.”

“Thanks,” Kerrigan said dejectedly. She took one last bite of her own dessert and stood up. “Reilynn, you can pay the man when he comes. Conor, perhaps we can discuss actual business later.”

Reilynn tried to protest in mock indignation but Conor patted her on the shoulder, “I think you won this round.”

“Didn’t realize winning meant paying the bill,” Reilynn said, trying to signal the waiter.

As they made their way down the stairs, an elderly gentlemen with a managers nameplate pinned to his chest spotted Kerrigan.

“Miss Lokir? Why were you and your guests on the third floor?”

“Ah, Giovannie! I was wondering if you were still here. The third floor is fine. I understand if you had guests in the Diamond box. I have been away for a while now. Besides, the food was wonderful as always,” Kerrigan replied smoothly, giving the man a winning smile.

“Guests?” he turned to his hostess, “Sophia? What is this about guests in the diamond box?”

The hostess looked terrified, liking fearing she had just offended someone major. “I was told only mr Benedict and his guests were to use it from now on.”

“Bah. Kelan is an ass and a cheap ass at that. Do you even know who this is? It’s bloody Kerrigan Lokir! The dragoness herself,” Giovannie said.

“If she is new, don’t be too harsh on her. Your staff were still attentive and my companions loved the view from the third floor. don’t worry about it, Giovannie. I promise, everything was lovely.” Kerrigan insisted.

“If you are sure, Miss Lokir. I will have a talk with the staff now that you are back in town. Hopefully your return means things at the top will be returning to better times?” he asked.

Kerrigan frowned at the man, “What ever do you mean?”

“I mean, if it was you, I would have expected a visit before rent was doubled for starters. That and you never came here expecting the diamond room for free every night with ten friends.” Giodonnie explained.

Kerrigan glowered, “Kelan?”

“Kelan.” He confirmed.

“He is here tonight?”

Sophia shook her head, “No, miss, but his party normally shows up if they are coming in about half an hour. I didn’t know who you were and that is not a conflict I want to be apart of. Honestly, I was hoping to be on break when he arrived.”

Kerrigan’s thoughts when to Katie and all the trouble Kelan had caused before her trip to Jinstain. She could only imagine what chaos he had been up to in her absence and without supervision.

“I am not in a position to tell you thinks will get back to normal or that they will not get worse first. I can tell you I am back and will work on a solution for our mutual benefit.” Kerrigan said carefully.

Giovannie gave her a small bow, “I am at your service, dragoness. If I can assist in riding our city of such usurpers, I will gladly do what I can.”

He left it as that and saw them to the door.

The ride back to the hotel was mercifully silent but Kerrigan kept glaring at Reilynn and Evelynn. Conor couldn’t help but suppress a grin just thinking about the banter between her and her guards. They had become as close as sisters, with all the ribbing and playful banter to go along with it.

It was clear that all four women cared for each other and that each would do anything to protect the others. On top of that, Kerrigan clearly cared for the people of her town and those in her employ

As he thought that, he remembered that one of their goals while here was to figure out what happened to Breanna, Kerrigan’s missing head of security.

He would have to make sure that any plans included finding her. If she had been hurt or worse… well there were plenty of places around the mountains to hid a body of who ever was responsible.

Back in the hotel suite, Conor and Kerrigan ignored their guard’s playful antics as they fought over bedrooms and night shifts. Instead, they spread out across the dinning room table all the notes they had collected about dragon corporation and Kelan’s plans.

Kelan had been busy in Kerrigan’s absence, but most of his mischief had been limited to small projects but he had managed to muck around in any of dragon corporations business interests that related to food, alcohol, and women.

“He seems to be planning something but I cannot see what.” Kerrigan exclaimed, clearly irritated at the man’s foolish meddling. “He is going to break something that I cant fix or at least ruin years of carefully cultivated relationships.”

Conor spun a tablet around and turned off the Bluetooth link to his headset, “here, listen to this.”

Kelan had held a press conference that morning, telling reporters that he was bringing a fresh set of eyes to Dragon Corporation and would help bring it into the next decade.

“He is a load of hot air.” She said derisively. “If Natalie wasn’t keeping his schedule at least partially in order, he would be flat on his face and dragon corporation would be bankrupt.”

“So lets let him fall, while keeping Dragon Corp safe.” Conor said.

“How? There is only so much we can do to sabotage him without breaking the company or hurting the staff.” Kerrigan asked worriedly, still looking through the notes. “I want to take him down, but not at their expense.”

Conor leaned back in his chair, his sharp mind already formulating a plan as he watched Kerrigan’s growing irritation. He knew better than to interrupt her train of thought, but he also recognized that now was the perfect moment to guide her towards the first step in their strategy.

“He’s digging his own grave, Kerrigan,” Conor said calmly, breaking the silence. “But we can give him a little push to speed things up.”