She didn’t know if he was so stunned that she’d surprised him or if her anger had given her a surge of strength, but he fell to the side. She rolled and swung her legs over the edge of the bed. His hand clasped her shoulder, stopping her before she could get out of bed. He pulled her back onto the soft mattress. He rose onto one elbow. She glared at him.
“I just don’t want to hurt you.” His hand cupped her cheek.
The only reason she didn’t smack his hand and stomp out of the room was that she saw the sincerity in his eyes.
“You didn’t hurt me. Have you ever hurt a lover when you bit them? I’m not fragile and if you ever did you’d know about it. I’d blast you across the room.” She folded her arms across her chest resisting the urge to touch him.
“No, I’ve never hurt anyone.” He looked absolutely insulted.
“Well, why did you think you’d hurt me? I don’t pretend to know much about vampires but I’m sure there was something behind the urge besides the fact that I have a very nice throat.” She smiled trying to lighten his mood.
“You have a beautiful neck. I’m not sure what it was, but it might have had something to with our discussion about whether you were my mate or weren’t.” His mouth twisted. “I told you I was possessive.”
He fell onto his side and rolled over to his back, pulling her across his chest. She put her chin on an arm and stared at him. He didn’t seem entirely satisfied with the answer.
“I’m just glad you’re not entirely contained. I want the man I’m with to enjoy himself as much as I do even if he can be a little controlling.” She drew a finger up his ribs.
“That wasn’t controlling, Meagan.” He laughed. “I could show you how much you’re going to enjoy control, but I think Samiel will have a few things to teach you about that.”
“If he tries to be so controlling that he’s not enjoying himself we’re going to have something to talk about.” She scowled. One man going nuts because he did something he hadn’t planned was as much as she could handle.
“Not controlling like that. Tie you up controlling.” He drew his hand down her back.
She titled her head. The thought of being bound by them wasn’t as scary as she’d have imagined. For some reason she trusted Samiel and Jaeson. She had no idea how it happened. She had barely even met them and they hadn’t done anything to show that she could trust them.
“That sounds interesting. Do I get to tie you up too?” She drew her finger up his ribs again. When her finger found a spot under his arm that made him laugh and wriggle, he captured her hand.
“You may get to do it, but pushing could get you into trouble, especially with the dragon. Now close your eyes and get some rest. I have a feeling you’ll be back to work early tomorrow.” His fingers threaded through her hair and his eyes locked with hers.
She relaxed. His guess was right, but she wasn’t worried about the accuracy. She’d said enough to show an idiot how important the search was to her. It would be strange if he hadn’t expected her to want to go back to work. Just a little sleep and then she’d return to the sect house.
Chapter Seven
Samiel strolled into the sect house. A couple of younger witches gave him an annoyed glance, but he ignored it. His woman was here and he wanted to see her. As he walked down the hallway he noticed that the flowers in the vases were fresh and the floors clean and polished to a shine. The fact that the witches were keeping to the regular schedules assured him that most of them were still coping well. Now he just had to see how their witch was doing after last night.
He’d half-expected to find her with Jaeson at the inn. The sun had been up for a while, but he knew if he had her in bed with him, he wouldn’t let her out of his arms. Jaeson hadn’t been at the inn, but the innkeeper had told him that Meagan had left before the sun had touched the horizon this morning. He knew she was searching for a reason behind the attacks so he looked first in the library. She was at the same table she’d been at yesterday.
Her glossy black hair was confined in a long braid. The jewels along the upper curve of her ear glinted in the light. He liked that flash of color. She didn’t even look up as he walked through the rows of shelves toward her. The neck of her flowing cream shirt dipped low revealing the valley between her breasts. He licked his lips at the sight of that beautiful, creamy brown skin.
“Find anything?” he asked. He tried to ignore the hardening of his body. She was right. They did need to find out why the sorcerer was so fixated on this area.
She sighed heavily as she lifted clear green eyes to meet his. “Too many things. Without any way to narrow down what he wants, this could take forever.”
He smiled and took a seat beside her. “Let me help. We might be able to narrow some of it down.”
“Some of what I’d considered to unbelievable might even be their goal.” She gestured to a stack of papers on the end of the table. “There are a few references to mystical weapons. I was going to discount them because the books say they can only be used for protection but…”
“Dark Sorcerers are persistent and not inclined to accept something just because it’s been written.” Samiel nodded understanding her doubt. “Anything to do with the weapons or possible power shouldn’t be discounted.”
“There are references to treasure, to some legends. Now that I’ve begun to find things, I can’t think of any way to narrow it down.” She shut one of the books. “There are too many possibilities. We’ll never find out why he’s targeted these two cities.”
“We’ll narrow it down after we learn a bit more about the Dark Sorcerer. We’ll learn what he wants. It’s probably not wealth, because he could steal that during attacks. Unless there’s something else along with the treasure, a weapon, lost books of some sort, he wouldn’t need to search for it.” Samiel knew just how frustrating the waiting could be.
“What kind of revelation do you think you’re going to make about the Dark Sorcerer? He’s been attacking us for months. If there was a pattern or the minions were searching for something, you can bet we’d have noticed it.” She folded her arms and glared at him.
Samiel tried to hold back a smile. She was practically radiating fury. If she got any angrier, she might just try to hit him with one of those books. He didn’t know if she was always that quick to anger or if it was just this subject. Regardless, the thought of finding ways to soothe that fiery temper excited him. His mind automatically pictured her naked, beneath him as he drove into her or made her so wild with desire that she couldn’t think about why she was angry.
“Well, since I can fly, if he’s been searching for something in the mountains, I might see some evidence that would be missed on the ground.” He shrugged unwilling to get into an argument about it. She wasn’t going to be rational about it. Along with probably every other witch here, she was too close to this situation.
She glared at him. Her fingers drummed on the cover of one of the books. He could see that she was trying to calm herself down. Her beautiful green eyes swept over him as if she was trying to decide what she was going to do to him. He had a few suggestions in mind if she really needed help.
“Jaeson said you were out finding a temporary lair as well as scouting. Did you find what you need?” She took a deep breath.
He nodded. He’d found the perfect place in the mountains. As to the temporary part, he wasn’t sure about that. This area needed at least one dragon in the area, since there wasn’t a pair of wizards anywhere near this region. Then there was Meagan. She had definite protective feelings toward this region and would be worried as long as they were away from it.
“I found a lair. I didn’t find any sign of merdanons in the mountains or near the town. Tell me about some of the legends.” Samiel leaned back in the chair. He shifted, trying to get comfortable in the hard-backed wooden seat.
“You’ll have to conjure some cushions. These chairs weren’t made for extended stays. You’re supposed to find what you need and get out,” she to
ld him with a smile.
He laughed and stood, doing as she suggest and creating cushions. “The legends…”
“Well, there’s one about Goren Delisi, an ancient warrior wizard. He appeared in the area suddenly one day. There’s not a specific date but they do mention the merging of the two moons which would be thousands of years ago, before the first Kings.” She picked up one of the books to her right and flipped it open.
“I’ve heard of him and he wasn’t a simple warrior wizard.” Samiel pulled the book a little closer to him.
“What? Is he supposed to be some kind of dragon because a mere wizard couldn’t have accomplished anything great?” She turned in her seat and scowled at him.
“He was a vampire, not a dragon. Wizards can do great things. I was just pointing out a fact. Don’t get snippy on me, woman.” He smiled. “Your bad mood might just need some adjusting.”
She sniffed and turned away from him. “Even you’re not big enough to do that.”
The woman showed absolutely no fear of his greater strength. Maybe she didn’t know just how much stronger he was than her. Or maybe Jaeson had simply made love to her. Samiel knew that easing her into their life might just be the best way to do it. She might not get scared and try to run from them if they moved slowly.
“The legend?” He raised a brow.
She laughed softly. “Goren Delisi supposedly fought and defeated a Dark Sorcerer in these mountains. From the stories in here, this wasn’t a Dark Sorcerer as we know them. This guy would make ours look like apprentices.”
“What did this guy do that made him so different from the other Dark Sorcerers?” Samiel titled his head. If this guy had done something so unusual, so effective, then that could very well be why the Dark Sorcerer was searching for here.
“The stories tell of creatures worse than merdanons. Intelligent, fast. He created those beasts. They were called tandini. There are pages of stories about the death and destruction the beasts caused. There’s something about them drawing power from those they kill.” She put her finger on a drawing.
He leaned closer and looked at the illustration. A slender reddish-brown-skinned beast stood among destroyed buildings. Its face was vaguely human, but that was almost the only thing that seemed familiar. The yellow hair on its head flowed in every direction, some even seeming to stand up in spikes. The beast appeared to have fur of the same yellow sticking up along its arms and legs. Armor covered the beast’s chest. Just judging by the size compared to the building, the beasts looked to be smaller than the merdanons they regularly faced. If this was the goal of the Dark Sorcerer, they had to stop him before he found a way to make these beasts.
“Did the story say what happened to the Dark Sorcerer’s hold?” He looked up catching her eyes moving over his face.
“Not specifically. Just that he destroyed all the beasts and leveled the Dark Sorcerer’s hold. My guess is that he destroyed what could be and hid what couldn’t as we do when we stop a Dark Sorcerer.” She shrugged. “If there was anything left, it could be anywhere.”
“Maybe not anywhere. Just like witches, vampires and dragons are trained. There are patterns and techniques that are common.” He sat back thoughtfully. “Are there any other interesting legends about this area?”
“I already told you there were more than I ever expected.” She glared at him.
“Tell me about a few of them,” he invited.
“Most of the stories I’ve found are mere mentions. I’ll have to go back and try to find the specifics on each in different books, but there’s more than enough to worry me.” She took a deep breath.
“Like what?” He reached over and lifted her hand into his. He wanted to pull her into his lap, but knew she’d resist that. At least here, she might be a little shy about being so open within the coven.
“There are mentions of a weapon used to defend a village in this area. I have no idea what it did, but it supposedly kept an army of merdanons away from the village. If that’s true, I’d hate to see what it could do in the hands of a Dark Sorcerer.” She looked down at his hand but made no move to free herself.
“That’s another definite possibility. If it wasn’t destroyed or it there’s a way to build another, the Dark Sorcerer could be after that.” He nodded. She was right. It wasn’t going to be easy to narrow down what the Dark Sorcerer wanted.
“And there’s more like that. Every time I open another book, it seems like there’s another possible goal.” She sighed heavily and shook her head.
“I’d tell you to stop opening books, but we both know the more information we have the better we’ll do in battle against this Dark Sorcerer.” He looked over at her noticing the slump of her shoulders.
“I know, but I’d rather be out there doing something.” She grimaced.
“Come on. You need a break. I know just what you need.” He tried not to let the building anticipation leak into his voice. The sight of her shoulders slumping pulled at something inside him. The moment he’d noticed her frustration an idea had begun to form. He wanted to take her out of here and put the smile on her face again. He didn’t know how she’d react but he definitely planned to try.
“You know what I need? Would it involve a full day away from these books and someone catering to my whims?” She raised her brows.
“Not this time. I’ll keep it in mind for next time.” He stood and tugged at her hand, not hauling her to her feet even though he could have easily done it. He wanted her to take a step toward him to accept of her own will.
She rose, her fingers tightening on his. “I’ll expect you to keep it in mind and for it to happen. This had better be good.”
He heard the lilt in her voice and saw a teasing gleam in her eyes. She walked at his side without question as he led her out of the coven house. He liked the feeling of her hand in his. She hesitated when they approached the gates. He saw her glance at him but he just smiled. He wasn’t going to give her any hints. Once outside the gates, he released her hand.
He turned to her and put his hands on her shoulder. “Stay right here. We’re going to fly.”
Her eyes widened. “Fly? Really?”
“Really, just stand there.”
“Can I ride on your back?” She licked her lips almost bouncing with excitement.
He tilted his head. He wouldn’t mind her riding on his back, but he wanted to hold her. “Not this time. Remind me the next time and I’ll let you.”
She nodded. He walked away from her and when he was far enough away he turned to face her. He let the dragon rise inside him. He felt a slight pulling tug and then he was looking at the top of the wall. He looked down, searching for Meagan. She stood exactly where he’d left her. He lowered his head, needing to draw her scent into him. He needed to be able to find her. He saw her straighten, but she didn’t step away from him. She stayed just as she was even as his head lowered. He drew in her scent, a delicious berry scent that tempted him to get closer so he could know more. He wondered if she tasted like berries too.
Chapter Eight
Meagan stared at the huge blue muzzle of the dragon. About the only thing recognizable were his eyes. Those deep brown orbs glittered with interest. A long, thick, forked tongue flicked out and stroked over her neck. A low rumble sounded, startling her. She jumped. Her muscles tightened and she stepped back, but her body seemed to lose all coordination. She almost fell onto her ass. She managed to catch herself and awkwardly stumbled back a few steps. Her fingers traced over the spot where he’d licked her. Tingles ran down her neck where that slightly rough tongue had touched. It hadn’t scared her, but she hadn’t expected that.
The dragon rose onto his back paws. Before she could panic, his large paws gathered her close to his warm body. The scales weren’t hard like she’d expected. They felt a little coarse but supple. The muscles bunched beneath his skin and then he leaped into the air. She heard a soft whoosh of air and flapping wings.
Looking down, she saw the ground moving
by at an unbelievably fast rate as Samiel took her higher. The trees blurred as he flew toward Mount Allian. He circled and glided low over the trees to a treeless, rocky area high on the mountain. The wind brushed over her cheeks and bare arms. It was chilly but refreshing. It was pretty, but she had no idea what they were doing here.
He released her after putting her gently on her feet. She walked away from him giving him room to lower himself to the ground. She had no idea how quickly he could change, but expected him still to be in transition. When she turned back to face him, a black mist was dissipating and Samiel was stepping forward.
“This is pretty. Is there something you wanted to show me here or did you just get tired?” She smiled.
“I’m not tired. I wanted to show you the new lair. Turn around, you’re facing the wrong way.” He put his hand on her shoulder and urged her to turn.
She slanted a glance at him from the corner of her eyes. She had no idea why he’d brought her to see it. She wouldn’t be sleeping away from the village while there were Dark Sorcerers in the area. They could gripe or growl all they wanted. Their convenience wasn’t her concern. She only cared about the safety of the town. To protect it, she had to be there. But she wasn’t going to argue about it right now. She’d deal with his mistaken beliefs later.
Her eyes roamed over the area, trying to find some opening. When he said lair, she immediately thought of a cave, something underground. She couldn’t see anything even resembling a cave. Maybe she was wrong about him living underground, but there definitely wasn’t a house. What was she supposed to be seeing and where was the entrance to his lair?
“You plan to stay here while you’re in the area?” She tried not to sound as confused as she actually was as she walked with him closer toward a rocky shelf that was taller than she was.
“We needed somewhere secure here while we hunt the Dark Sorcerer. This will provide a safe place for us and is still close enough to easily get to the village if we’re needed.” Samiel stopped and suddenly a rounded arch appeared in the rocky outcrop in front of them.
Chosen Destiny Page 7
