Smoke and Flame (Rise of the Dragons Trilogy Book 2)

by N. R. Hairston

  “Shhh.” She wiped more hair away, her eyes shining. “You... didn’t.” A sob escaped her, and she turned away, her shoulders shaking.

  I closed my eyes, but I couldn’t block out the sound of her cries. My sister and father entered the room, each carrying something in their hand.

  My sister had a cup, and my father carried a bowl. My sister placed the mug on the nightstand beside the table. “This is tea and dad has soup. Todd and I used healing herbs from Vilion to make them.”

  Now either she was delusional or I was. Todd allowed no one in the kitchen when he cooked, so I didn’t know what Vonda was talking about. I tried to picture it and let out a laugh that quickly turned into a hacking cough.

  I rose up in the bed as blood and other fluids came flying out of my mouth. Reid grabbed the wastebasket, and pushed a few strands of my hair out of the way, as I threw up everything I’d ever eaten.

  He grabbed a few tissues from the box by the bed and wiped my face. He was so gentle in his touch, and though his eyes held patience, there was worry there as well.

  My mom cleared her throat and turned back around. “Vonda told us you have herbs that help you heal faster. I want you to drink this.” She picked the teacup up. “Drink it and let it help you get better.”

  I didn’t want it. My stomach felt raw and open, but I’d do just about anything to remove that sad look from her face. I struggled a bit until I was in a sitting position, my back against the headboard.

  My father stood, still holding the bowl in his hand. His lips were tight, his eyes a haze of confusion and worry. He didn’t say anything though, and I was grateful for that.

  Reid lifted my hand to his lips, placing a quick kiss on the back of it. His lips were chapped, and rough, but still felt like heaven to me. I smiled at him, thankful he was there, and kicking myself again for bringing him into this mess to begin with.

  My mom took a seat in front of Reid and brought the cup up to my mouth. I took a few careful sips, and my eyelids grew heavy, as my body begged for rest. “Just a little more,” she said.

  I sipped two more times, then my head lolled to the side, and I was out.

  I AWOKE TO A QUIET and dark room, Reid sitting in a chair by the bed. The bowl and cup were gone, and I did feel just a little better.

  I looked at Reid. Even in sleep, his brows were drawn tightly together, and I wondered if it was worry for me causing his restlessness. He hadn’t been tended to either. He still had gaping wounds, dried blood and open sores covering the whole of his face.

  I sighed because I wanted him to take care of himself, not neglect what he needed for me. My bladder pressed down, and I knew if I didn’t get to the bathroom soon, I’d go all over Todd’s smooth silk sheets.

  I eased my hand from Reid’s and carefully made it to the side of the bed. My head was spinning, and I took a second to catch my breath, before coming to my feet.

  My legs were still a little wobbly, but they felt better than when I’d first come through the portal. I held onto the wall as I felt my way through the unfamiliar place. Most of Todd’s guest bedrooms had their own bathroom, as was the case with this one. I went slow, but thankfully was able to make it to the toilet in time.

  When I came back into the room, Reid was just coming to. He wiped a hand down his face and looked around. His features softened when he saw me, and he immediately jumped up to help me make it back to the bed.

  With one hand braced on the wall, I held up the other one. “Let me do it.” He stopped mid-stride and stepped back, knowing me well enough to know that I meant it and how important my independence was to me.

  I didn’t like to depend on others, and Reid not only knew that, he understood where it came from and respected it. He didn’t say a word as I made my way to the bed. I crawled inside, then scooted back and rested against the headboard.

  He sat on the edge of the bed beside me. “You hungry?” he asked, concern lighting his eyes.

  I reached out a hand and touched an angry mark on his face. “You know better,” I said.

  He shrugged. “Doesn’t hurt,” he said softly.

  I rolled my eyes. “Sure it doesn’t,” and that caused him to laugh, before placing his hand back in mine. He was worried. I could see it all over his face, and I wanted to kiss him for that, for always having my back, for always being there when I needed him.

  He must have read as much on my face because he chuckled and shook his head. “Whatever you’re thinking, put it out of your mind. That’s not going to happen anytime soon. Not until you’re better, and your parents are nowhere in sight.”

  I laughed and immediately regretted it as a sharp pain hit me in the side. “I’m going to warm you up some soup.” He tried to stand, but I wouldn’t let his hand go. He sat back down and looked at me as if asking what I needed.

  “How’s Coen?” He’d been hurt a lot worse than I had.

  Reid let out a breath. “He’s getting there. Iago performed some kind of healing magic or something on him, and he’s a little better, but I think there’s a ways to go. He asked to do the same for you, but I told him the decision was yours.”

  I let him go after that, thinking of my mother’s tears and my brother’s stricken expression. We’d rode back through that last portal on the tail of the abyss, but there was nothing to do for now, but rest and get better because we still had more hunting to do.

  Chapter 6

  It was three more days before I felt well enough to walk around. Iago had come into my room and placed his hands where the bruises were.

  He’d said a few words under his breath and that blue light I’d seen before had seeped into my body. It’d traveled the length of it, spreading warmness throughout and making me feel tingly inside.

  After he’d finished, I’d felt a lot better and began to heal at a more rapid pace. He did it twice more over the next few days and that, combined with the herbs from Vilion, had me feeling like a brand-new person.

  My mom, or someone, had gone to my house and brought over a small bag with a few of my clothes in it. After my shower, I decided to enter the living room, glad to be away from the same four walls, and happy I could now walk without feeling like my legs were on fire.

  Todd’s living room was large like everything else in his house. The walls were grass cloth and a warm taupe gray, they blended perfectly with his light gray furniture. He had two long couches sitting opposite each other, both on top of a gray and black area shag rug. End tables rested beside them, both holding skinny and tall silver lamps.

  A love seat sat just in front of the bar that led to the kitchen and beside it was another end table. The bar itself was silver and gray padded and held just about every drink known to man.

  In the corner, beside the sixty-inch flat-screen, was a black and silver bookstand filled with vases and ornaments he’d ordered online from all over the world.

  My brother’s place was sleek, modern, classy, and the complete opposite of my own. He stood at the bar now, making himself a drink, Coen beside him, whispering something in his ear.

  My sister was in the kitchen rifling around, and I was surprised my brother hadn’t run her out of there. My parents sat on the couch beside the door, and Iago and Trout sat on the one opposite them.

  Reid was on the love seat by himself. None of them noticed me at first, and my eyes strayed back to Coen, who now had a drink in his hand as he and my brother whispered softly to each other.

  Relief warmed my chest, and I was glad to see him up and around, feeling better. He’d saved my life back there when the Graven had started to swarm me. He’d even helped me to my feet.

  We’d fought as a team, all of us had, and with more training, I hoped we could continue to do so. His eyes turned my way, and I crossed the room and flung myself into his arms. He stiffened at first, then patted me on the back and gently pushed me away, raising a brow in the process, as if asking me to explain myself.

  “Thank you,” I said.

  He rested h
is elbows on the table looking at me like he thought I was still sick. “It was Iago who healed you, and your sister who kept making you soup and tea.”

  “I’m talking about back there. You saved me back on Graven.”

  Comprehension dawned on his face. “Give me a million dollars, and we’ll call it even.” He looked at Todd. “A million dollars, I keep hearing that on that thing there.” He pointed to the TV. “So, I figure it’s a lot.”

  I scoffed and turned away.

  Trout looked at Iago. “Now that she’s better, can we go back to our own house? I don’t think I could handle being around Coen another minute.”

  Coen downed some of his drink then turned to his friend. “No one’s holding you hostage. You could have left a long time ago, it’s Iago that does the healing.”

  Ouch. Iago stood. “Yes, we can go.” He turned to Coen, his tone exasperated. “Stop being a dick.”

  Coen snorted. “And if you’d ever been able to see past his, we wouldn’t be having this conversation.” He frowned. “No, wait a minute. I got that backwards, because you’re the one—”

  “Coen.” My brother’s voice held a warning.

  Coen looked at him, and my brother nodded toward where my parents sat on the couch. My mother looked amused and my father like he’d rather be anywhere else but here. That made two of us because, like Trout, I was ready to go home as well.

  Coen seemed undaunted. “How do you think you were made? You think they never...”

  My brother hit him with a glare while my sister snickered from the kitchen. Coen held up a hand. “Okay, you make the rules.” He sipped his drink again, and I figured the only rules he lived by were his own.

  My father stood. “Now that you are all feeling better. We’ll be going as well.” He turned to me, his face a mixture of anger and relief. “I trust this has put an end to all of your hopping around? Now that that’s settled it’s time for you to...”

  I tuned out as he listed all of the things I now needed to do with my life. I felt a small headache coming on and turned to Reid. “Take me home.”

  My father’s voice grew louder. “This conversation is not over, Alisa. Had you listened to me in the first place...”

  My mom put a hand on his arm. “She’s still recovering, dear. Let her heal, and we’ll talk to her later.”

  That stopped him, and he straightened his tie as if he didn’t quite know what to do with his hands. “Glad to see that you’re better. You gave us quite a scare there. If you’d just...”

  My mom opened the door and led him to it. I walked behind them, and she placed a kiss on my cheek. “We will talk later,” she said, before ushering my father outside.

  Once they were gone the tension in the air lifted, and I could breathe again. I looked to Reid. “I’m going home.”

  Chapter 7

  Being back under my own roof and resting on my favorite yellow couch was a feeling like no other. I lay stretched out, a glass of water on the floor, and a big bag of salt and vinegar chips in my lap. “I never want to leave home again.”

  Reid sat on the floor, back resting against the couch. I think it was his favorite spot. His legs were stretched out in front of him, and he had a beer at his side. “In the mood for a little adventure myself.”

  I sat up a little and gaped at him. “You haven’t had enough in the last couple of days?”

  He took a swig of his beer and looked at me. “Nope.”

  I laughed and sat up on the side of the couch. “Have you turned into a thrill seeker?” He came up to his knees, positioning himself between my legs. “Probably.”

  He placed a tender hand on my face, and our lips came together in a soft kiss that quickly turned hungry. He grabbed me by my waist and laid me on the floor, straddling me.

  I put my arms around his neck and pulled him closer, eager for another kiss. There was something about almost losing your life that made you assess the things that meant the most to you.

  Reid was one of those things. He always had been. We kissed again, as he removed my pants as well as his own. He tasted like beer and garlic, two things I loved.

  “You want this?” he asked, looking down at me, his lips swollen, his eyes hungry.

  “Don’t I always?” I asked, and that was all the confirmation he needed.

  We awoke sometime afterward, and I saw that at some point he must’ve gotten up because there was a cover draped over us. I sat up and placed a small kiss on his temple, causing his eyes to open.

  He threw an arm around me and tried to pull me back down. “No.” I laughed, pushing his hand away. We had to get up. “We’re due at Todd’s in an hour to talk over strategy for the next world we enter.”

  He moaned and came up to his elbows, blinking sleep out of his eyes. He looked so good first thing in the morning, not fully woke, with his black hair tossed all over his head. It’d grown out just a bit, as he usually kept it short.

  Our days had been long and hard lately, so he probably hadn’t had time to cut it. His lips were juicy and delectable, and I couldn’t help leaning over and giving them a small nip. “Come on. We have a breakfast meeting with the others.”

  His hand played loosely on my naked thigh. “If this is too much... If you don’t want to go... I can...”

  “No,” I said, stopping him from continuing. I needed to explain this in a way that he would understand. The other day had been a close call for me, and I’d been frightened, but something inside me had craved the fight, welcomed it, and was eager for more.

  As ghastly as it sounded, and in spite of everything that had happened, I was now excited about the prospect of a new world. Hopefully, it wouldn’t be anything like Graven or Litvan, but we’d only know once we got there.

  He watched me, a knowing look on his face. “Gets the adrenaline flowing, doesn’t it?”

  I went down to my elbow so that we mirrored each other. “Is that bad?”

  He shook his head. “We don’t know what this thing is inside of us. It’s a waste of time feeling guilty about things we can’t control.” He looked at me. “You didn’t drag me into this. I was there with you that night because you needed me, and I always want to be there when you need me.” He shook his head. “Don’t feel guilty about that ever, okay?”

  I swallowed hard, still wishing I could go back in time and change things so he wasn’t involved, knowing that dragging him into this was something I’d probably never stop feeling guilty about.

  “Besides,” he said, coming to a sitting position. “I’m having fun. I mean, I miss the PI business a little, and I’m sure I’ll go back to it once this is over, but for now, I’m enjoying the ride.”

  “Me too,” I said, startled when I realized just how true that was. I hadn’t felt this way before, but somewhere over the last couple of weeks, I’d started to enjoy myself, even if the thought of what would happen when we finally met up with the Yango did weigh heavy on my mind. “Are we dragons?”

  He thought about it for a second. “Would it be so bad if we were?”

  I looked at him, surprised. “So, you want to become a whole other species?” I wasn’t sure I agreed with him on that.

  He wrapped a warm hand around my leg and begin to massage it. “No, and I don’t think that we are. We have traits from the dragon, no doubt, but once we find Brad and Melinda, we’ll find out more.”

  “Like if we’ve been exposed to certain diseases and other things like that.”

  He let out a light chuckle and removed his hand. “Talk about a mood killer.”

  I laughed and tapped him playfully on the back. “Since my mom is sure to ask, are you going to pay my rent or not, I need to know what to tell her.”

  His face lit up with a smile that reached his eyes as he pulled me closer and flipped me on my back. He straddled my hips, and I figured we’d just have to be a tad late to my brother’s house.

  Chapter 8

  We entered into Todd’s a lot later than I’d planned. Even still, I smiled
when I thought about it, figuring we probably should have taken separate showers.

  Todd’s dining room space was huge. The walls were curved and black-accented. The ceiling was an oval-shaped skyline that easily let in the morning light.

  The large black table in the center of the room was rectangular and could fit twenty. It sat on top of a black area rug and had twenty black rounded chairs surrounding it.

  A minibar sat behind the dining room table, along with a small fridge to keep things cool.

  It looked expensive, and I shook my head, knowing I would never spend money like this. But my brother liked what he liked, and he made a good living, so I was happy he was able to design his home the way he wanted.

  We walked toward the dining room and saw Todd and Coen removing items from a small rolling cart. Todd had on black jeans and a black sweater. His black hair was neatly combed, and he looked like he’d been up for a while. Coen on the other hand still wore his dark-blue pajamas. His azure-colored robe hung loosely on him, and his short dark hair was tousled in a way that said he’d only recently rolled out of bed.

  They worked in sync, reaching over each other, passing dishes back and forward and sharing a kiss here and there.

  My brother’s eyes shined, and he genuinely looked happy. Something I don’t believe I’d ever seen from him. Even when he’d opened his first restaurant, it hadn’t been that happy of an occasion, because he’d wanted to open a nightclub and the restaurant had been to please my father.

  Watching the two of them, I noticed they seemed to actually like each other. Neither my brother or Coen seemed to like anybody so that in itself was amazing.

  I let out a sigh. Todd was so happy now. He’d been alone for so long, and Coen was slowly bringing him out of his shell. What would happen when it was time for Coen to go home, or worse, if he didn’t come back from one of our world hops?

  Reid placed a hand on my back and leaned over, his voice tickling my ear. “You’re thinking too much. Your brother knows how to handle himself.”