Page 97 of Triumph at Pemberley

“Do you think he cares?” the Prime Minister said bitterly. “He has conquered all of Europe. Who is left to protest?”

“It would be barbaric!” But he knew better; using dragonfire on troops had been equally barbaric. Napoleon would not care about the suffering of civilians.

The Prime Minister’s face twisted. “He says we will get one warning. The day after tomorrow he will flame Mayfair. The area around Darcy House in particular. If you do not appear by then, he will burn the entire city.”

Jack’s heart thudded in his suddenly tight chest. Mrs. Hartung and the children. The staff who had cared for him. Their neighbors. He had no choice. Somehow he dragged out the words. “Then I guess I will be meeting with him.”

Jack studied the field before him. An ornate blue-and-white striped tent decorated with red fringes dominated the far side, a table sitting on an enormous rug in front of it. French soldiers in those despised blue uniforms surrounded it, watching him, rifles at the ready.

He turned back to the captain of the hussars who had escorted him. “Stay here until I am a few feet away, and then retreat.”

The officer said, “Our orders are to accompany you.”

“If I have to use the Bond to defend myself, you will only be in the way. And if they decide to shoot me, you cannot stop them. Do as I say.”

“Yes, sir,” the captain said unhappily.

Jack took the white flag from him and strode forward. This was it. Even if he had no idea what Napoleon wanted of him, surely not even the French emperor would violate a flag of truce.

But would a mad dragon do so?

He shoved that thought away, crossing the empty grass with his best military bearing. His Bond was there for him; he could feel it under his boots. He could cause an earthquake if he needed to. Otherwise, he was alone. Even Gentiane, who was otherwise always with him in his mind, had walled himself off magically. They had agreed on it in advance, just in case Napoleon could somehow track Gentiane through Jack. But right now the security of knowing his dragon was only a thought away would be reassuring.

He stopped six feet away from the table and waited. Napoleon had demanded this meeting; let him come forth and speak first.

One of the soldiers ducked inside the tent. A minute later, Napoleon himself appeared, in his neatly pressed uniform and bicorne hat. His gold epaulettes glittered in the sun. “Ah, Captain Jack Darcy. We meet at last.” His English was slow and heavily accented.

Not for nothing had Jack been a prisoner in France for over a year. He responded in fluent French. “We have met before. My mother took me to a military review, and then invited you to dine with us.”

“Ah, yes, Lady Anne Darcy,” His voice turned cold as he said the name. “How could I forget, when she attempted to bespell me?” He pulled out a chair and sat down at the table, waving to the one opposite. “Pray sit.”

Jack took a moment to consider before he did so, making clear it was his decision. He kept the flag in his hand rather than handing it off. Which was just as well, since Napoleon waved away his troops until they were out of earshot.

They were alone.

Jack fixed his gaze on Napoleon’s chin. His brother had warned him of the danger of meeting Napoleon’s eyes. He had no intention of being intimidated, though, so he said with heavy irony, “I must congratulate you on your excellent use of the human form. I have never seen better.” There; now Napoleon would know Jack was aware of the truth, that he was a dragon in disguise.

“And you are a dragon companion. Interesting. My sources did not tell me that, but it is for the best. We are on the same side, you and I.”

So it was to be a charm offensive. “Unless you are abandoning your invasion, we will never be on the same side.”

Napoleon leaned forward. “I speak of the side of the dragons, my friend. Everything I have done, all these decades of work, is to free the dragons.”

Jack could not help the bark of laughter that escaped him. “Do you often free people by selling them into slavery under the Wicked King?”

“That is your mother’s work. It is the most unfortunate price I must pay for putting that bespelled ring on my finger.”

It took Jack a moment to realize he meant Lady Anne Darcy, not Lady Catherine. So Napoleon’s efficient spies had not discovered his true parentage.

Napoleon continued, “It allowed the High King to demand a tithe of me. But those dragons will not suffer in vain, since soon all the dragons of Europe will be able to come out of hiding and take their rightful place in this world. Not like my former Nest on Corsica, which was destroyed by greedy thieves hoping to steal their silver and Artifacts.” He practically spat out the last words. “I swore they would be avenged, and no other dragons would ever have to hide as they did.”

Could a mad dragon lie, unlike normal dragons? He had never thought to ask. He battled to keep his eyes down. “Instead you have made the Nests go even deeper into hiding.”

“Only for now, until my conquest is complete. Once all Europe is mine, I will change the laws. Harming or stealing from a dragon will be an immediate death sentence. Dragons will make the laws, not humans. Do you not wish your dragon to be free, to be able to show himself whenever he chooses, to be part of the greater society?” he coaxed.

Jack was done cooperating. “You called this meeting before you knew I was a dragon companion. What did you want to tell me?”

“I wanted to get your measure, to find out how a mere gentleman’s son held the King’s Bond. And, of course, to demand England’s surrender.”