Lord of Destiny (The Dragon Demigods #6) - Charlene Hartnady Page 0,82

He kicks West in the head numerous times, his near-lifeless body jerking with each hard kick.

What has gotten into Stephan?

What did West say to him?

I can’t blame him for retaliating like this. It was fight back or die…still... Stephan stands over West. I see West’s chest rising and falling. His eyes are small slits. I’m not sure whether he’s conscious or not.

“Don’t!” he says, the blood trickles from his mouth. “Pl…ple….ase.” West is begging Stephan not to kill him.

“No!” I yell. I can’t bear it. I can’t.

“End him!” Tarek shouts.

Stephan stands there, looking down at West. His hands are still clenched into fists. I can hear his ragged breathing. I am praying. I’m not sure what I’m praying for. A miracle. We need a miracle right now.

“Kill him now!” Tarek tries again.

“No!” Stephan says. “I can’t…I won’t!”

Tarek’s face turns red. He hates it when anyone disobeys him. “Kill him, or the girl stays. I will give her to—”

“You’ll do nothing of the sort, Tarek.” The voice is loud and true. A woman steps forward. She is beautiful. Her black hair glints in the sunlight. It is streaked with some gray, which works for her. There are delicate lines around her eyes, giving away her age. She’s wearing a long dress. I recognize her instantly.

Tarek frowns. “Be quiet, Isa,” he warns her. “If you can’t stomach this, then leave. That goes for all of you.” He looks around him. No one will leave because if they do, they’ll be punished for it later in some indirect way.

“I won’t be quiet. I have been quiet for too many years,” Isa says. Gasps of surprise rise around us, followed by whispered conversation.

“That’s insolence, and I won’t stand for it. Not from anyone, but especially from my own mate.” Tarek’s face is red. His whole stance has changed. He looks ready to kill.

“I’m sick of hearing you say that word.” She sighs.

Tarek makes a noise of utter rage and disbelief. “You listen here—!” he booms.

“No! You listen to me for once. We’ve been together for thirty-eight long years. I’ve never once asked you to hear me out. I’ve never once refused you. Never once disobeyed. I kept hoping that things would get better. That you would somehow,” she shrugs, “realize what a horse’s ass you were being, but—”

Tarek yells something. I’m not sure what it is. It’s too garbled. He’s so angry he can’t form coherent words. I’m a little in shock myself. I see shock on the faces of those around me.

“I’ve waited and waited, and it hasn’t happened, Tarek. I’m sick of waiting for you to come around. I’ve swallowed your nonsense year after year. I’m sick of watching you treat people like objects. You treat women like we’re possessions. Just because we were born with something different between our legs does not make us inferior.”

“Isa, I swear to god, woman!” Tarek shouts. “Stop this right now, or I’ll have you locked up.”

“No, you won’t!” Isa shakes her head. All around us, the women start to shift. Children are running for their homes. “Today, we take a stand. All of us…the women of this weyr collectively. We stand against you. We stand against oppression. We stand for one another. For equality. For love. For respect. Most of all, we stand for our children. For change for them.”

I wish I could shift too, but these ropes are preventing it. My heart bursts with pride when I spot my mother as she steps forward in her dragon form. She roars as Isa finishes. I know that the roar is for me. My mother has never stood up for me. Not once. Then again, she has never really stood up for herself, either. Not really! She holds her head high right now. That stops today. I am crying all over again. I am crying with joy…with hope.

The men are shuffling around. They are looking bewildered and unsure.

Tarek throws his head back and laughs. “You…them?” he sneers. “A bunch of women against warriors? You don’t stand a chance, Isa. We will take you down. Is that what you want?” He looks his wife in the eyes. The men stand taller. “I don’t want to have to hurt you…”

I notice that the women stand taller too; that their eyes fill with determination.

“I’m talking to all the men of this weyr.” Isa looks around her. “Think long and hard before you act against us. We are not going to stand down. We refuse. Enough is enough! We want