Winning Skyhunter (Stonefire Dragons Universe 1)

Her dragon's voice was soft when she said, That's not a bad thing. He is a survivor.

Yes, but I'm also concerned about his mental health. I want to believe Asher is a good candidate, but it's only been six months since Marcus was deposed and the prisoners were released.

All the more reason to seek him out later and talk.

I'm sure talking is all you're thinking about.

I wouldn't mind some release. It's been too long.

I'm not going to feel guilty about that. I had to get everything squared away back in America before coming home to England.

Her dragon grunted and curled up into a ball inside her mind, closing her eyes to feign sleep.

The DDA human, Penny, returned alone and called out Asher's name. Honoria watched him walk out the door for his one-on-one interview. While his stride was confident, she wondered what it could be masking deep inside.

Maybe once she was done with her interview, she would seek him out. After all, one of the marks of a good clan leader was talking with clan members and judging how things were going.

So talking with Asher would merely be practice, in case she won. Yes, just practice. It had nothing to do with her own curiosity.

Her dragon snorted. Liar.

Ignoring her beast, Honoria sat quietly and practiced her breathing techniques once more. Doing well in the interview was more important than anything. And to do her best, she needed to purge her mind of Asher King and the scars on his jaw.

Chapter Two

As Asher walked into one of the Protector offices being used by the DDA for the day, it took every iota of strength he possessed not to think of another interview conducted in the same building. The one nearly six years ago which had sealed his fate, when he hadn't denied wanting to overthrow Marcus King.

His dragon growled. This will determine our future, and one of our choosing. Don't fuck it up.

I don't plan to. Now, shut it. I need to concentrate.

Sitting down in the chair across from Penny, Asher waited patiently for what happened next.

The human female cleared her throat and looked at the paper on her clipboard. A second later, she met his gaze. "So, Mr. Asher King, tell me why you want to be the leader of Clan Skyhunter."

On the surface, the question was easy. However, the way a person answered could reveal a lot about one's character. Torture at the hand of his bastard cousin had at least taught him that.

He replied, "I want to make Skyhunter respectable and trusted again, like it was when I was a young child. I've done my best over the last few months to catch up with everything that happened during my imprisonment, and I'm confident the future lies with working with the other British dragon-shifter clans."

Penny cleared her throat again. "Ah, yes. Your imprisonment. To be honest, that concerns everyone at the DDA. No matter how honorable your intentions, they will mean nothing if you suddenly become unstable as a result of your, ah, your…"

Her voice trailed off, so Asher finished the sentence. "Torture."

The human female shifted in her seat. She was clearly uncomfortable about the topic.

However, tiptoeing around the issue wouldn't help his case. Asher spoke again. "I've been seeing the counselor here on loan from Clan Snowridge." Snowridge was the dragon clan in the North of Wales. "You can speak with Dr. Allonby about my sessions, if you wish. However, I have control of both my mind and my dragon. I wouldn't have put my name in the running if I didn't."

The human shuffled through a stack of papers. He wished they would've sent someone with more experience, or at the very least a human with the confidence needed to oversee the trials. Those vying for clan leader wouldn't be meek, silent, biddable individuals.

Of course, most humans acted strangely around a dragon-shifter. It was ridiculous, really, since it wasn't as if he was going to suddenly shift and make her his supper.

His beast grunted. Dragons haven't eaten humans for over ten thousand years.

Shush.

Penny must not have noticed his flashing dragon eyes and carried on as normal. "I will check in with the counselor later. Now, let me test your knowledge of both DDA policy and the laws concerning dragon-shifters in the United Kingdom."

As the human asked one question after another, Asher answered them without thinking. He'd always had the knack of memorizing something once he'd read it. The skill had helped stave off boredom and madness during his imprisonment since he could remember a book almost word-for-word and replay it inside his head.