“You should take the garrote to one of our sorcerers and see if it has been spelled,” Aidan suggested.
Phoebe glanced over at the murder weapon on the desk. “I’ll do that.”
“Do you guys have any more questions for me?” Kayla glanced between them both. “I don’t want to stay here too long, or people might figure out I’m helping.”
Aidan’s sister cast him an accusing look. “You use that young girl as a spy, don’t you?”
“I volunteered after he saved my life,” Kayla said, defending him.
Aidan shrugged. “It was Donar’s idea.”
Phoebe sighed and shook her head. “I should have known he was involved in this as well.”
“So can I go?” Kayla asked.
“Yes.” Phoebe waved a hand.
The teenager escaped out the door without a backward glance.
“I must take my leave as well,” Aidan said after the door closed. “There is much to do before I depart for my trip tomorrow.”
Phoebe’s shoulders slumped. Their father’s task weighed just as heavily on her as the one Throm had given Aidan, perhaps more so. She had to find the murderer of one of the toriq’s most popular shifters, or she would lose all respect. He, on the other hand, had cultivated an image of not being all that responsible. They wouldn’t think much if Aidan failed. It had been to prevent his brothers from seeing him as a threat, but he could not keep up that charade much longer.
His sister came over and embraced him. “Thank you, Aidan. I’m not certain I could have gotten this far without you. Our brothers would hold it against me if they knew how much you’ve helped with my task.”
He stepped away and gave her a serious look. “The mark of a wise leader is not in how much they can do on their own, but whether or not they know when to ask for help. I’d follow you anywhere, sister.”
“I appreciate that.” She bowed her head.
Chapter 17
Bailey
An eight-foot long green tail swung toward me. Before I could leap out of the way, it struck my thighs and sent me feet over head into the air. I crashed into the asphalt on my butt, sending zings of pain through my tailbone. Damn, that hurt. Aidan had taught me to watch out for tails, but this dragon fought scrappier than any other one I’d encountered. The beast would have made a great cage fighter, if dragons were into that sort of thing.
The creature didn’t waste any time coming at me again. It lumbered across the parking lot, limping on its right front leg where I’d stabbed its toes a couple of minutes ago. At this point, I wasn’t picky about where I injured him as long as it slowed the damn beast down.
I leaped to my feet and raised my sword. Come on, you little bastard, get ready to taste my blade.
It let out a bellow of fire that enveloped me like a steamy cloud. I couldn’t see a damn thing except orange and red, but I had noted the beast’s trajectory. Aiming my sword to swing at about hip height, I struck out. The blade connected with solid flesh. When the flames died down a second later, I found my sword stuck sideways in the dragon’s open mouth. It chomped down, but the zaphiriam blade was too strong to break. I jerked back and forth on my weapon, slicing through the beast’s cheeks. It growled and spat the sword out. I felt like someone who’d just won a tug of war contest with their dog—except this was a much more gruesome version of the game, and there was a dragon involved instead.
The beast tried to back away, blood pouring from its mouth, but I was on it in an instant. I sliced and stabbed as fast as my body could move until my opponent was too weak to fight any longer. The slayer part of me wanted to draw the creature’s death out, but the human in me found that idea repulsive. Working with Aidan to improve my control was paying off. With each successive battle I fought, I enhanced my ability to focus and not let my rage take over. The killing instinct was definitely still there, but it didn’t rule me quite as much as before.
I kicked the beast onto its side and brought the sword down, sinking the blade through tough flesh and into its heart. The dragon’s body twitched a few times before expelling its final breath. I pulled the sword back out, wiped it against the grass to get the worst of the blood off, and sheathed it.
Conrad ran up, holding the container the sorcerer had given me. He also had a zaphiriam knife so he could help me shave the scales off.
“Damn, girl. That fight was some crazy shit,” he said, grinning at me. “I was sitting there watching and wishing there was a bookie nearby cuz I was about to put my money on the dragon. He almost had you there for a second.”
I gave him a deadpan look. “Your concern and support are very touching.”
He bumped his shoulder into mine. “Just calling it like I see it.”
Despite the gravity of what we were doing, I appreciated that Conrad kept some levity. This job would be so much more difficult without it. There were times when I feared fighting fire-breathing beasts every day would eventually take too much of a toll, and I would lose part of myself in the process. So far, I had managed to keep the slayer side of me separate from the compassionate woman who wanted to help people. Conrad was a big help with that.
“Next time, you can fight the dragon,” I said, holding out my sword.
“Nah, that’s your gig.” He pressed a finger to the flat of the blade and pushed it away. “I’ll stick with the crossbow—which you suck at.”
He was never going to let that go. “Thanks for the reminder.”
We kneeled down and worked fast to get as many scales as we could. The dragon had roared several times during the battle, and it was only a matter of time before one of its clan members showed up. I wanted to be long gone before that happened.
“So what was she like?” Conrad asked, dumping a handful of scales into the container.
“Who?” I asked.
He scowled at me. “Aidan’s sister.”
Oh, right. I’d just been telling him about my meeting with her when we ran into the latest dragon. He’d gotten most of the story, but not all of it.
“She looks badass and a little scary, but I get the feeling she’s pretty cool with the people she likes.” I sighed. “I’m not sure I’ll ever fit in that category.”
Conrad made a clucking sound with his tongue. “Wish I could have been there to meet her.”
“Trust me. It’s better you weren’t there. When she figured out what I was, and that Aidan had been working with me, things got pretty intense.”
Conrad dumped another handful of scales into the seemingly bottomless container. He was faster than me at peeling them off, which had all sorts of frightening implications. I made a mental note to keep paring knives away from him.
“You should let me stay with you,” he said, his tone turning serious. “It’s all work and no play back at the neighborhood. Folks there are driving me crazy. It’s all ‘Winter is coming’ like this is an episode of Game of Thrones or some shit. Oklahoma don’t get that damn cold. I’ll be surprised if we have more than three days of snow on the ground.”
“Sorry.” I shook my head. “Aidan specifically told me you could visit but not stay. He was very adamant about that.”
“That jackass,” Conrad cursed.
“He’s just trying to be…” I paused when the hairs on the back of my neck rose.
I looked up and found a man in jeans and a plaid shirt standing across the street staring at us. He looked like he was probably in his fifties with long black hair, leathery skin, and dark eyes that pierced right into me—even from two hundred feet away. I was fairly certain he was Native American, though I couldn’t be certain at our current distance.
“You see that guy?” I asked.
Conrad followed my line of sight. “Yeah. Is he just standing there watching us?”
“Looks like it.”
He frowned. “Should we do anything? Talk to him or something?”
“I don’t know. He’s kind of creeping me out.”
Occasionally, we had observers when I was fi
ghting dragons, but something about this felt different. Maybe it was the way the man stood there with no expression on his face—like he’d made it his mission to weigh and judge me, but for what? I didn’t think the Olympics would be holding an event for dragon slaying anytime soon.
“Maybe us shaving these scales is what attracted his attention,” Conrad suggested, dumping a few more into the container. “Don’t see folks doing this very often—or at all.”
It was a good thing the beast’s heat lowered considerably after it died, or Conrad wouldn’t have been able to help. I was working as fast as I could, but not fast enough. The container appeared to only be about a quarter full. I estimated it would take at least ten dragons to get all we needed.
“I don’t think it’s the scales that have interested the guy. He’s staring right at me. Maybe I should talk to him and see what he wants,” I said, standing and wiping my hands. We’d just about shaved all the easy to remove scales off anyway and needed to do a final cleanup.
“You sure he ain’t planning to kill you or something?” Conrad asked.
I gave him an incredulous look. “After he just watched me slay a dragon?”
“Maybe he’s a shifter,” he suggested.
“No.” I shook my head. “His eyes are dark. Shape-shifters have yellow eyes.”
“It’s your call.” He grabbed the container holding the scales. “I’ll go get the lighter fluid and torch this place.”
“Good idea.”
Conrad headed for my truck. The dragon body wouldn’t burn, but we’d come up with a new method of hiding our scents from any others who might come across the scene. A little lighter fluid and some flames wiped out any other odors. Of course, we could only do that when I killed the dragon on pavement since starting a fire on grass would create new problems. The beast’s flames might extinguish the moment they stopped blowing them, but human-made fire still followed normal rules—except that it didn’t burn me, either.
I started walking toward the street with the full intent to confront the man. He lifted a brow, then turned his gaze upward to the sky. I followed the direction he looked and caught sight of a dragon heading our way. Dammit, talking to him would have to wait. I pulled out my sword from its scabbard and glanced one last time at the man. He nodded curtly, as if he’d just given me his permission. This was just getting weirder and weirder by the second.
Turning around, I was relieved to find Conrad had caught sight of the dragon and had taken cover behind a nearby dumpster. It wouldn’t protect him from fire, but as long as the creature didn’t see him, it was unlikely to attack in that direction. Plus, I would be keeping the beast busy.
I came to stand next to the dead carcass, knowing that would be all the incentive the creature needed to focus its attention on me. It let out a strangled cry and dove downward toward the parking lot where I stood. I gripped my sword, watching the dragon’s descent and planning my opening strike. The more I fought them, the more I learned their attack strategies and could anticipate their moves. This one flew low, but it didn’t slow enough to land. Predicting how it would attack, I didn’t move.
Keep coming, keep coming, I silently willed it.
The red rage in its eyes grew as it closed the gap between us. The flames came next, engulfing me. At the last moment, I dropped to my knees, counted to two, and thrust my sword upward. It struck against ribs, grinding against them. Dammit, I should have counted to three—too late for that now. Gripping the blade handle tightly, I let the tip drag along the dragon’s torso and cut into its scales as it continued its flight over me. Outstretched claws from its hind feet skimmed my head, pulling at my hair. I winced as it yanked a few strands out and cut scratches into my scalp. Then the shadow of the beast passed.
I swung around, still in a crouched position, and used my free hand to brush my loosened hair from my face. It had grown just past my shoulders in the last few months—a good hair stylist was hard to find these days, and I had no idea what became of mine—so I usually kept it in a short ponytail or braid when battling dragons.
The beast twisted about midair and landed twenty feet across the parking lot, positioning itself to charge me. From the corner of my eye, I caught the strange man still watching me from across the street. He hadn’t budged an inch or bothered to take cover. Did he have no sense of self-preservation?
I refocused my attention on the dragon, whose belly dripped blood onto the ground. Allowing my slayer instincts to drive me, I sprinted toward it. The beast pivoted and sent its tail flying. I leaped upward and tucked in my knees, getting about five feet of air beneath me. The tail arced high and came within an inch of my boots. After it passed, I landed with a jarring thud. Ignoring the pain in my knees, I ran up the creature’s back. It bucked like a bronco at a rodeo. I fell and clutched its shoulders to keep from sliding off, then I straddled the enraged beast, hugging its body with my thighs. Who knew helping my stepfather break horses would come in handy for fighting dragons?
Though it wasn’t easy to attack from that position, I’d recently discovered the spaces between a dragon’s ribs were farther apart near its shoulders. I aimed for the spot I’d found once before and stuck down with the sword tip. The blade sunk straight through the flesh and into the body.
The dragon made a gurgling sound as I twisted and worked my way toward its heart. I could only guess I hit one of its lungs. The beast pushed up with its hind legs, attempting to buck me off again. I tucked the tips of my boots under the curve of its belly and held on tightly to my sword. Wrenching the hilt, I cut back and forth, searching for the heart. It was somewhere close, dammit. When the dragon jerked and groaned underneath me, I knew I’d grazed the organ.
I pushed the hilt forward, forcing the tip in the direction I guessed the heart to be. The beast slumped flat on the ground and expelled a croaking breath. I was certain I had gotten it, but I waited a full minute to be sure it was dead before removing my blade and climbing off. Some of the smart ones faked their deaths to lull me into a false sense of security. I’d nearly lost my leg the first time that happened a few weeks ago. If Aidan hadn’t been there to push me out of the way, I would have been in trouble. I kind of missed him not being around to help anymore.
Conrad raced up to me, holding the gas can. “You’re gonna be sore after that ride!”
“No kidding,” I said, sighing.
My body was much stronger than before I’d become a slayer, but fighting battles every day without a break still took its toll. These last two dragons had worn me out even more than most, and I just wanted to be finished.
He reached out toward my head, pulling a few locks of hair away. “Duck lower next time.”
“I was as low as I could get without lying flat,” I defended. It was always easier to judge a person’s fighting tactics while watching from the sidelines.
“Yeah, yeah. Excuses.” His gaze ran past my shoulder, and he frowned. “That guy is gone.”
“What?” I spun on my heels. “He was still there halfway through the battle.”
“Guess he’d seen enough.”
Well, that was weird. Maybe I’d given him enough entertainment for one day. “Let’s get the scales off this one and get out of here. I want to leave before any more dragons show up.”
We kneeled down and got to work.
Chapter 18
Aidan
“Is that it?” Donar asked, referring to the river up ahead as he flew on Aidan’s right.
“Yes,” he replied.
Donar had not been this far south yet, but he’d been anticipating the trip ever since Aidan had asked him to come along. He knew there would be competitions, which fueled his enthusiasm. They had always avoided contests of strength and prowess at the fortress so as to avoid drawing notice from Aidan’s brothers. Even when they did battle in duels, they usually held back. This was a chance for his cousin to let loose and give the competitions all he had.
“Lorcan and two other dragons are waiting for us o
n the ground,” Falcon said, having the sharpest vision of them all. He flew on the left, dipping and rising to coast with the wind.
In essence, Falcon and Donar were there to act as advisors and guards for Aidan—not that the three of them had any chance of making it out alive if things didn’t go well. They would be severely outnumbered among the Faegud, but they didn’t believe it would be an issue anyway. Dragon honor dictated that emissaries to treaty negotiations could not be harmed beyond the usual activities required of such processes. The only reason it was even a consideration was because the last Faegud pendragon had not been one to follow such long-standing traditions.
Aidan led the way, soaring down low as they approached the river. Lorcan and his two clan members watched them from the opposite bank. They did not move until Aidan landed and approached them on foot. Despite the jovialness of their last meeting, there was tension in the air this time. One never knew how a treaty negotiation would go, and the first day set the tone for the rest—however long that might be.
It is good to see you again, Lorcan acknowledged, dipping his head. I trust the weather was favorable for your journey?
This was the most formal Aidan had ever seen his friend. Indeed, Zorya favors us this day.
Lorcan turned to Donar. You have grown large over the years. It is clear you take after our side, cousin.
Aidan would have said the use of “cousin” was stretching it a bit. Lorcan and Donar shared a great-great-grandfather who had died over fifteen hundred years ago. It had been because of that alliance that their two clans had maintained good relations for as long as they did, but Aidan considered it ancient history after all that time.
I believe it is my mother’s cooking that has helped me the most, Donar replied.
Lorcan laughed, unable to hold the formality any longer. Ah, I’m glad to hear she is well and still watching after you.
Nagging would be more like it. Donar let out a puff of steam.
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