The Dragon Warrior (Lochguard Highland Dragons 4)

Clenching the fingers of one hand, Grant pushed down his anger. He couldn’t allow emotion to derail him from his goal.

His dragon spoke up. I wish we knew more about his deal with the solicitor. After what he did to our clan, Michael McFarland shouldn’t be treated lig

htly.

Not wanting to fall into yet another argument with his dragon over the matter since his beast always wanted to drop their father from a great height, Grant constructed a complex maze and tossed his beast inside.

Without someone questioning him inside his head or devising ways to eviscerate his dad, Grant focused on clearing his mind of anything but extracting information that could help secure Lochguard’s safety.

The DDA guard finally stopped in front of a door and swiped a keycard. As soon as they entered, Grant spotted Michael McFarland sitting inside a cell.

He approved of the chains around the male’s wrists and ankles. His dad shouldn’t be able to shift for a few days because of the concoction Grant had used on him, but even if Michael managed to do so early, the specially made cuffs and chains would break his bones if he tried to change into a dragon. In other words, his dad wouldn’t be able to fly away.

The guard stopped in front of the cell entrance and said, “You have five minutes. We’ll be back after that to let you out.”

“What about the DDA’s solicitor?” Grant asked.

The guard shook his head. “She’s not coming until the meeting is complete. That was part of the deal.”

Grant wanted to lecture the DDA staff about being too cocky in their abilities, but he bit his tongue lest he lose his five minutes of interrogation time.

He stepped into the cell, but his father continued to look at the ground until the guards left and they were alone.

Michael raised his head slowly. Grant didn’t know what to expect, but his father’s expression was blank. The once familiar face now belonged to a stranger.

Grant’s dragon banged against the walls of the mental maze, but it held.

Since his father said nothing, Grant asked, “Well? You made a fuss about seeing me. Are you going to remain silent the whole time?”

Michael finally answered, “I just wanted to take a moment to look at my son.”

“Bullshit. If you’re looking for a way to tackle me or for anything that might help you break out, you won’t find it.”

His father stared for a few seconds before saying quietly, “You have such potential, Grant. Why would you follow Finn and bow down to the humans?”

“We’re not bowing down. It’s called working together.”

Michael shook his head. “Roderick was right about you.”

Grant wasn’t going to rise to the bait. “Speaking of your brother, do you want to make things easy and tell me where to find him?” When his father said nothing, Grant added, “So you’re ready to rot in a jail cell for him, aye? I never would’ve pinned you as the loyal type.”

“There’s too much at stake.”

For a split second, worry crossed his father’s face, but then it was gone. The action reminded him that Michael McFarland was just a regular bloke, with little to any training. Maybe if Grant stirred his anger, he could find out more.

Glad to finally be acting like a head Protector and not a disgruntled son, Grant asked, “You’re aware that if the roles were reversed and Roderick were here, he’d give you up without pause. If anything, you’re a burden to him because of your lack of training or military experience.” His dad remained silent, so Grant pushed harder. “Not to mention the Americans you worked with can verify your identity and add time to your sentence. Your best bet is to talk with me.”

“Aye, and what would you do? Throw flowers over my head and welcome me back with open arms? I doubt it, son.”

Grant wanted to tell the male not to call him son, but managed to restrain himself. He needed to keep a cool head. “Perhaps a shorter sentence. And when you’re finished serving it, the DDA might help relocate you with a new identity. That way you can pretend you don’t have a family and you’ll never bother Mum again.”

“I tried to get your mother to go, but she refused. She made her choice.”

His father still wasn’t riled up enough, so Grant said, “You and she weren’t true mates and time has shown why not.”

“Listen, lad. Some things are bigger than love or family. You left us to serve in Afghanistan, to fight for the British and other humans’ war. You should understand that.”

Grant raised an eyebrow. “Me joining the army and learning the skills necessary to protect the clan is nowhere near the same thing.”