Persuading the Dragon (Stonefire Dragons 9)

Zain shook his head, and her hope vanished. He replied, "No, not yet. Whilst Daisy may be overly forgiving and see the good in you without batting an eyelash, it's not the same with the adults. It's better if you go through me for now."

She suspected he wanted to be the only main contact she had within the dragon clan. While she wasn't trying to deceive anyone, no doubt the dragons were still on alert regarding anything to do with her.

However, Ivy wanted more than just talking with an interrogator. She yearned for some kind of contact, to remind her that she was alive and might, just might, find a way to avenge her brother and do some good instead of harm in the world.

Yes, Richard deserved justice. It was the very least she could do considering his patience and accepting her back without a word. It was partly because of his suggestion to ask the dragon-shifters for help that she’d gathered the courage to venture north to Stonefire.

Using her brother’s memory for courage, Ivy blurted, "Then let the children visit me again. Agree to that, and I'll dictate the step-by-step instructions on how to access the police-related files."

Zain raised his brows. "That's not what I thought you'd ask for. But all the same, it's up to their parents. If they agree, I'll bring them. If not, I won't force them."

She bobbed her head. "I'll take what I can get."

Zain took out his mobile phone, tapped it a few times, and moved closer to her bed. While she knew he was standing, which of course, made him taller, she had to strain her neck to look at his face.

And as he leaned over, his heat and scent washed over her. She should be bothered about his nearness, but his closeness just felt…right. As if he should be by her side as often as possible.

What? He's a dragon. That's crazy. The comfort vanished, replaced with the desire to race to the other side of the room. Just because a few kids had made her at least question some of her beliefs surrounding dragon-shifters, she wasn't about to jump into bed with one.

Not that she would be sleeping with anyone for quite a while, if ever. But a dragon-shifter would be at the bottom of that list.

Zain grunted. "I'm going to record you. Are you ready?"

She finally met his gaze again and did her best not to gasp at his flashing pupils.

The slits gave him a reptilian appearance, and at one time the sight would've stirred a mixture of fear and hatred.

But now, she watched the change with curiosity. Inner dragons were supposed to speak to their human halves. However, she had no idea what they talked about. The Knights have always said it was instructions for the human halves to find women to impregnate or to kill any human who challenged them.

Given how the dragonman stood next to her bed, holding his phone out and waiting to record her voice, she had a hard time believing that was the truth.

Without thinking, she asked, "What is your dragon saying?"

He frowned, and his pupils turned round and remained that way. "Nothing of importance. I don't know how long I have before the medical staff return, so tell our team how to access the files."

So much for finding out more concerning inner dragons. Maybe the kids would tell her more, if they ever came to visit again.

And while she was ready to give Zain the instructions, there was one more thing they all needed to be careful of. "Just don't share this information with the DDA, okay? They aren't as trustworthy as you think they are."

His eyes flashed again before he grunted. "Fine. Just hurry up and tell me what I need to know."

Her instinct was to dig in her heels and say nothing. However, Ivy forced herself to give the instructions on how to decrypt and read the police-related files.

Once she finished, Zain tapped his phone a few times and left without another word.

All she could do now was wait and hope Zain shared the information right away. Both she and the dragon-shifters would benefit if he did so.

Not that she could order the man to do anything. So she leaned back against her pillows and exhaustion set in, making it hard to sit upright.

However, Ivy hated going to sleep and tried to fight the heaviness of her eyelids. Even now, after how many days of waking up without a problem, she worried about falling into a coma again. One she might not shake off the next time.

And given everything the doctors had shared with her about being poisoned by the Knights and how fragile her health was, she didn’t take being awake lightly.

Fighting the heaviness of her limbs, she managed to reach for the scrapbook and opened it. There was a picture of Freddie, Daisy, and another little girl holding up their paintings. While none of them were very talented, Ivy could tell they were paintings of dragons.

But the art wasn't what caught her eye. No, she focused on their smiles. They were so happy.

Would she ever achieve that sort of easy happiness again? To have fun and not worry about the next deadline or risk being put into isolation until she met it.