My Heart Is Yours: The Absolutes, #1.5

By Chace Verity

Ever since the man he loved disappeared, soldier Edwyn Hendricks a'Prim has been trapped in a soul-crushing rut. The monotony of heartbreak gets shaken up when an affable thief claiming to be a dragon beseeches Hendricks for help with his sick mother. It might be dangerous to help the thief, but Hendricks is weak before a compassionate man. Fortunately, no group is more capable of performing miracles and saving dragons than the Absolutes.

The captain of the Absolutes, Salter Taffy, has been unable to forget the family he was forced to abandon ten years ago. When his trusted comrade, Hendricks, insists on helping a sick dragon, Taffy jumps at the chance to visit someone who can talk to dragons—his ex-wife. Taffy aims to keep the visit cordial, but when he sees his old love, he can't help trying to win the dauntless woman back.

When they learn the sick dragon is more important than they ever suspected, Hendricks and Taffy's friendship is tested—to preserve a part of their world's foundation, one of them is going to have to sacrifice his happy ending.

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My Heart Is Yours is a complete, standalone novella in The Absolutes series.
 

• Language: English
• Publisher: Chace Verity
• Release date: Nov 23, 2018
• ISBN: 9798223693383

Book preview

Chapter One / Hendricks

The thief in Valor palace had the gall to be the most beautiful man Hendricks had ever laid eyes on. Hendricks clung to the shadows and watched the man with black horns and ruby red lips rummage through the Absolutes' discarded pieces of armor. His shaggy hair matched his mouth perfectly, and his skin put alabaster statues to shame. The intruder’s green eyes sparkled with magic and intent.

Too bad this thief was clearly clueless.

Hendricks hid under a table and watched the thief traipse over to the slab of birch wood without a care in his steps. The thief cooed with delight as he picked up something; Hendricks resisted the urge to growl when he realized what it was.

The intruder was beyond foolish. Not only had he failed to notice the grizzly bear of a man under the table, the thief had also made the mistake of looting Hendricks's most prized possession.

As the thief turned away, Hendricks reached out and grabbed him by the ankle, causing the intruder to yelp.

The intruder hardly had any substance to him—despite being about six feet tall, he was incredibly lanky. It would’ve been so easy to snap his bones. Instead, Hendricks jerked the thief just enough to cause him to fall with a loud thud.

Oh! It’s you. The thief had a pleasant voice—and tiny fangs. Where did you come from? I checked every corner of the room when I entered.

The intruder scrambled to his knees. Hendricks slid out from his hiding spot and pinned him back down with one arm.

Did I hurt you? Hendricks winced. Why did he even ask that of a thief? Please don’t fight me right now. I don’t want to hurt you, but I have to stop you.

The thief smiled.

Shouldn’t a thief be a little more cautious? Agh, why did Hendricks care?

Hendricks used his free hand to take back his stolen object: a golden gauntlet once worn by the first man to steal Hendricks's heart.

Is this your first time robbing a palace? Any important room has at least six ways to get in, not including the door. When Hendricks snuck in, he had to dump his gilded armor to squeeze through the shaft not built for his broad frame, and he scarcely could believe the thief hadn't heard him worm his way into the armory.

But there's no door to this room. Dearth sighed. I thought I was clever, sneaking in through the opening in the ceiling.

Hendricks's first instinct was to chuckle, but he kept his stern glare fixated on the thief's wide eyes. He couldn’t let this intruder think it was acceptable to steal even a single gauntlet. Especially a single gauntlet.

Bright red wool decorated the outsider’s neck, and he wore a burgundy leather jerkin instead of the breathable cotton tunics most citizens in the kingdom of Valiance wore. The thief was not from anywhere near here, for sure. Not enough clothes to be from the frigid lands of Banasta or Exalted. He had the right skin tone to come from the Windspun Empire, but he didn’t roll his r's like the Windspunites.

Maybe where the thief came from didn't matter. Those eyes, like unripe olives, kept grabbing Hendricks’s attention, as did the small, black horns. What kind of magic did the thief have coursing through his bloodstream?

Dearth squirmed while Hendricks inspected him, causing his horns to tilt.

Wait.

Hendricks studied the horns closer. They were attached to a headband. Fake horns? Was the intruder a Dragon’s Friend?

Hendricks’s eyes roamed down the thief’s neck and stopped at a silver chain poking out from the scarf. A white pearl with a pink hue was nestled in the fabric. Hendricks had seen that necklace before. He bit back his gasp as he hooked his finger around the chain.

Yes, the deceased Queen Lunas once wore this necklace with pride.

Robbing from the dead, are you? Hendricks lifted the necklace up, peering further into the folds of the red wool.

I’m not a grave robber, the thief said. I found this in a bedroom.

And what of this comb? The hair doesn’t match yours.

It was on the floor. Who would miss it?

Hendricks arched an eyebrow. "And the bar of soap you lifted from the king while he was in the bath, effectively letting us know scum had penetrated our palace walls?"

The thief’s nervous laughter rippled through the room. He bared his teeth as he smiled, sweat breaking across his skin.

These aren’t very valuable things, Hendricks said. You wouldn’t fetch much for them on the market.

I don’t need money. I need a different kind of valuable. The thief’s eyes flicked to the gauntlet in Hendricks’s hand. Things that belong to noble people, I guess I should say. The gauntlet is yours, right? I knew it belonged to a noble person.

Hendricks groaned. That word. Noble.

Why do you think I’m a noble? Hendricks asked. Because I’m an Absolute? I’m not a real one.

Salter Taffy and Morgan Sunilian remained the only genuine Absolutes among the twelve men in heavy armor who paraded up and down the halls of the palace. They didn’t need any Absolutes in the palace, but King Luft had begged them to stay and maintain their facade as the most elite guards the kingdom of Valiance had to offer. Hendricks had agreed to join the charade for the boons only.

Once, Hendricks wanted to be an Absolute. To shine as someone noble for what he did, not what he was born as.

Luckily, Hendricks was not destined to be a real Absolute.

Destined to be nothing like Lorris. Or with him.

An Absolute? The thief wrinkled his sharp nose. What’s that? I know you’re a noble person because you’re you.

Hendricks’s heart dropped. An image of the orchard in Louve flashed through his head. His father’s relieved face. The black curls of the friend who helped him from the brink of despair.

How does he know who I am?

A panel of the wall above the birch wood table swung open, and a familiar soldier in golden armor crawled into the room. Hendricks envied his captain for his ability to enter the armory with little fuss. The Absolute didn’t remove his full helmet to reveal his face, but his dark eyes alone expressed his concern sufficiently.

No matter how prominent his jowls or toned his muscles, Taffy rarely showed his dark skin’s peculiar pigmentation. He had an increasing number of white blotches splashed across his face, palms, and torso. Taffy never said if they were painful or tender. In fact, he never said anything about them at all.

But Hendricks would never press Taffy on the matter. They weren’t close, despite working together for a year now. They went running every morning together, but no words passed between them during those idyllic jogs.

Hendricks had picked up morning jogs to distract his heart from the pain of losing Lorris. Taffy wound up joining his regime. Neither of them spoke during the runs, but it was never awkward.

What are you? Taffy asked.

His booming voice always commanded the attention of everyone in any room he spoke in. It was Taffy’s best feature.

I’m a dragon, said the thief.

Taffy and Hendricks’s gazes met, the same question lingering in the air between them.

A dragon?

It was plausible. Dragons had a way of being a nuisance when they left their nests in the mountains, and they did like shiny treasure. But to turn into humans?

A thief and a dragon? Hendricks raised his eyebrow and released his grip on the young man before rising to his feet.

The thief jumped up at once and bolted for the opened panel. Taffy demonstrated his speedy reflexes by grabbing a fistful of the thief’s hair and stopping him in his tracks. Hendricks noticed they were even in height, a little over six feet tall.

You dress more like a Dragon’s Friend, Taffy said.

Oh no.

Hendricks really hoped the subject would change.

The thief blinked a few times before shaking his head. I’m a dragon. If you don’t let me go, I will transform here and kill you both as this room crumbles.

Taffy responded with a blank stare. Hendricks bit back his grin. Taffy’s stoicism was his second best feature.

Go ahead, Taffy said.

The thief closed his eyes and trembled all over. Taffy appeared unconcerned, but Hendricks’s heart skipped a few beats. It would be truly embarrassing to die while calling a thief’s bluff.

An eternity of a minute passed before the thief opened his eyes, his shoulders slumped in defeat.

The thief jutted his lower lip out. May I be honest?

Sure, Taffy said.

I haven’t been able to shapeshift for a while now.

The intruder’s face crumbled. He genuinely believed he was a dragon.

Why? Taffy let go of the thief, and the young man fell to his knees.

I don’t know. His voice shook as he replied. It’s been a few seasons now.

Can dragons get sick? Hendricks asked Taffy in a low voice. Lose their magic or something because of a cold?

"I’m not sick, but I know a dragon who is. The thief, who apparently had good hearing, slowly met Hendricks’s eyes. I really need your gauntlet. Please give it to me. It’ll help, I swear."

Hendricks brought the item close to his chest. A pang of guilt slapped the back of his neck for being so greedy about his prized possession, especially when the man staring at him seemed so sincere.

I think his story might have some merit. Hendricks looked down at the gauntlet. The items he stole have little monetary value. Maybe we should investigate?

Taffy stared at Hendricks for a long moment before turning to the thief. He cleared his throat. If you really are a dragon, you don’t know much about them. If the sky goddess is not talking to you about your problem, then you need a Dragon’s Friend.

Dread crawled up Hendricks’s spine. Taffy, please, don’t. Let’s not go down this road.

I don’t know what that is, the thief said.

Taffy rested a hand against his hip. The mediators between the dragons and witches when the witches come to challenge the dragons for their rites of passage into adulthood?

The thief shook his head. No, witches don’t challenge this dragon.

Well, a Dragon’s Friend might be just what we need, if you really are a dragon. Taffy rubbed the back of his neck. They can interpret dragonspeak and have a vast history of dragons and solutions to dragon-only problems stored in their heads.

Taffy slowly swiveled his focus to his companion. Hendricks bit his lip and pretended to be interested in his gauntlet.

Taffy didn’t know they had a, uh, friend in common.

Hendricks hadn’t been able to find the courage to tell Taffy.

What’s your name, thief? Taffy asked.

Name? The man stretched the single syllable out into four. I’ve taken to ‘Dearth’ nicely. It’s been said I’m living proof there is a dearth of attractive men with brains.

Hendricks guffawed. He immediately chastised himself in silence while regaining his composure for being so amused by Dearth—by the thief who still wanted his gauntlet.

Feel like a trip, Hendricks? A trembling smile forced its way onto Taffy’s face. I happen to know the world’s finest Dragon’s Friend.

So do I.

This was not going to be a fun trip.

Chapter Two / Taffy

King Luft couldn’t mask his emotions to save his life, and the particular paleness to his already-white face alerted everyone in the throne room to his distress. Taffy had been in servitude to the royal family for ten years now, and he could write a book on the various hues of King Luft’s face. Deep pink when angry, light red when amorous, a shade of plum when embarrassed, and so forth. King Luft wasn’t the perfect ruler, but at least his face was honest.

Taffy liked him quite a lot. King Luft was the most sensitive ruler among the many nations in Galaimara.

If the king said no to their request to investigate Dearth’s story, though…

And you think a Dragon’s Friend will be able to diagnose the sick dragon? King Luft had the stolen pearl necklace threaded through his fingers. What about the unicorns? Can’t they do it?

Iz with hair of honey and Solstice with hair of fire snorted simultaneously. Iz’s sister, Orla, with a gossamer curtain of lavender spilling across her shoulders, closed her eyes and considered the situation carefully. When Orla fell deep into thought, her horn glowed. It currently shined brighter than the chandelier above them.

No, Orla finally said. A Dragon’s Friend must do it.

King Luft worked his jaw. "That’s fair, but why must you go to meet one, Taffy?"

The golden helmet on Taffy’s face hid his smile. Excitement swam in his bloodstream and propelled his heart to new speeds.

The chance to see his ex-wife again threw Taffy back in time to when he was a young man and full of hope.

He couldn’t focus on the conversation between the king and Hendricks. Taffy hardly noticed the concerned frowns of the three porcelain-skinned unicorns in his peripheral vision. He was too busy daydreaming of the daughter he had yet to meet.

The Absolutes ripped Taffy from his wife just days before their unborn child made her debut. She would be nearly ten now. Did she have his small, hooded eyes? Did she get Medi’s flat, wide nose? Did she have blue undertones to her dark skin like him, did she inherit Medi’s rich brown skin, or was she the perfect blend of the pair?

He had envisioned his daughter’s appearance many times over the years, and every image he conjured filled him with a searing mix of bliss and sadness.

Taffy also had vivid visions of his ex-wife’s face he replayed in his head nightly, his love for her never ceasing for a moment. He did not trick himself into thinking he had a chance to rekindle their relationship, but it was going to be a dream come true to see her again. At his insistence, Medi had married again, this time to the son of a Louvian olive orchard magnate.

Couldn’t Hendricks go alone since he is from Louve? King Luft asked. He would be familiar with the city.

Taffy thanked his helmet for hiding his thin eyebrows as they scrambled up to his hairline. He had no idea Hendricks was from Louve.

He hadn’t gotten to know Hendricks very well during the last year. Most of the man’s life outside of the Absolutes was a mystery to Taffy. He knew of Lorris’s crush on the man built like a sequoia tree. And that Hendricks had an irritating habit of being late to meetings since he kept stopping to talk to people. That’s it.

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