Salem looked at Bryce and Bryce shrugged. “It could be their mate bond?” Bryce suggested.
“We are not bonded,” Tegan snapped.
“I think you may have to accept that you are,” Salem rested back in his chair. “But that’s a discussion for another day. Right now, you are in breach of direct orders from your superior, you put yourself, a visitor to this House and my Headquarters in peril. I shall leave it for your commander to discipline you.”
Tegan nodded and glanced quickly at Commander Bryce; he was looking at her thoughtfully. “The Great Council told me that you were exceptional, that your fighting skills and your strategizing where second to none,” Bryce stood as he watched the young Sentinel stand proudly before him. “I think they may have told you and your father the same thing, and I think that’s the problem.” A quick glance at him from Tegan but she said nothing. “You are arrogant. You think you are better than your peers and that you know better than your superiors, you do not.” Bryce’s harsh words were loud in the quiet of the room. “I know there are Drakhyn out there, I know they are watching. Keeping a small patrol on the perimeter while we organised an ambush inside Headquarters was purposeful.”
Tegan felt her shoulders slump.
“No female Akrhyn were going on the mission because I am not a fool. I do not know what I would be leading my team into and given the threat, I most certainly was not taking any females on a raid when I wasn’t sure what would be waiting for me.” Bryce exhaled heavily. “I was not discriminating against the females in my team, I was protecting them. My female Sentinels are some of the best warriors that we have, not one of them complained. Yes, they would like to be there, but they would prefer not to be breeding cattle for Drakhyn also,” he watched as Tegan fought to keep her stare steady. “If these were normal circumstances, I would have no issue sending an all female Sentinel patrol to raid a nest, but these are not normal circumstances. The assumption that this will be a normal nest, cannot be made. You saw the way the Drakhyn presented themselves, organised, disciplined, united… I’ve never seen anything like it,” Bryce admitted. “So, no. I was not giving the order that females should be on this mission.”
“You were protecting them,” Tegan said softly.
“It is my job as commander to ensure the safety of all my Sentinels and this Headquarters, I was protecting themandyou.”
“I’m sorry. I didn’t realise,” Tegan looked at him quickly, before turning away from his frown.
“I do not need to explain myself to you, Sentinel Tegan, I am your commander.”
“Sir,” Tegan nodded.
“You will be assigned to the surveillance room for one month, you will attend lessons in basic Sentinel training to remind you of the chain of command. You will train an additional three hours each day with the younger Akrhyn to remind you there are others who depend on you and your actions.”
“I am not to patrol?” Tegan asked quietly.
“No, you cannot be trusted.” Bryce’s voice was cold as he replied. Hot shame flooded Tegan, her cheeks burning with humiliation. “I will alert the Great Council of your disciplinary action.”
Tegan stood still as Bryce resumed his seat. “You are dismissed, Sentinel Tegan.”
With a quick glance to Salem, who had remained silent throughout, Tegan turned and left the study. As she walked quickly back to her room, she prayed to the Ancients that no one would see her and if they did, they would leave her in peace. How had she been so reckless? She was a Sentinel now, a member of the Elite Guard, she didn’t need to be taught discipline. Her father had trained her so well that he used to say she was the personification of discipline. Now? Now she was being reprimanded and rightly so, for being thoughtless and careless.Her? Careless?Her father would be so disappointed in her.
Once inside her room, Tegan quickly crossed the room to close and lock the adjoining room door – she wouldn’t know what to say to Sloane and didn’t want to see the disappointment in his eyes either. Lying down on her bed, Tegan closed her eyes, finally releasing the emotion she had been holding so tight inside. As the tears slipped out and ran down the side of her face into her hair, Tegan prayed to the Ancients that she could do better.
* * *
“What were you thinking?”Marcus demanded as he stood and glared at Cord.
“You needed a Drakhyn, I got a Drakhyn, no one was harmed.”
“She’ll be disciplined, is that what you wanted?” Marcus looked at the Castor who shrugged dismissively.
“She’ll be fine, she’s an Elite Guard Sentinel, she’s tough enough to endure whatever Commander Bryce throws at her,” Cord sat down on the small couch in the room.
“You amaze me.”
“Thank you,” Cord dipped his head.
“I wasn’t being complimentary,” Marcus snapped. “Talk me through your thought process.”
“In general?” Cord asked.
“Stop being a son of a Drakhyn!” Marcus snapped. “Tonight. What were youthinkingtonight?”
“This bores me now,” Cord sighed. “Tomorrow we were to go for a nest hunt on the hope we can question a Drakhyn. Sentinel Tegan said she knew they were out there in the woods, watching us. She’s been claimed to be exceptional, extraordinary,” he shrugged, “so I decided to test it.”
“You didn’t know if there were Drakhyn in the woods?” Marcus asked sceptically.
“I suspected,” Cord admitted.