by Ann Gimpel
“Och aye, and ye are a wee bit late, but welcome.” Fionn grinned.
Perrikus’s form wavered.
“Hey, there. Not so fast, you old pirate,” a Celt cried and made a grab for one of the dark god’s arms. Another Celt closed to help. Magic sizzled as they wove a spell to force Perrikus to remain where he was.
Tokhots’s body made a bubbling, whooshing sound and burst into flames.
Aislinn stared at it. “Die, you bastard,” she muttered, glad something had finally happened.
Tokhots had lain there groaning for so long, she’d started to wonder if Dewi had lied to her. Maybe the seeds of dragon’s fire took time to percolate. She drew back a foot and kicked him hard in the groin through the flames. If felt so satisfying, she did it again.
“Kick him some more,” the dragon in her arms crowed.
Aislinn smiled grimly and cradled the green male against her chest.
“Ye can leave, MacCumhaill,” someone said. “We’ve got things covered.”
“There are a bunch of Lemurians you might want to chase down, as long as you’re here,” Aislinn said.
“Gladly.” A Celt with dancing blue eyes and black braids looked enthralled by the prospect. “They’re naught but trouble.”
Fionn strode to her side. Bella flew to them and landed on his shoulder. Rune padded over, snout stained with Lemurian gore. Aislinn bent to pet him. “You didn’t bite Tokhots, did you?”
“No, not after what happened to the baby dragon. Even without that, I remembered what Fionn told you earlier about the dark one’s blood being poison.”
“I know better,” Bella cawed.
Aislinn looked at Fionn. “How come only two of the dark gods have poison blood? Or do you even know?”
He nodded. “Tokhots’s blood wasn’t always poison, but he challenged Perrikus a verra long time ago, and Majestron Zalia cursed him.”
Aislinn rolled her eyes. “I suppose they would have their own internal struggles. Sharing power probably isn’t something that comes naturally to any of the dark ones. Majestron Zalia is sort of like their de facto queen, right?”
Fionn nodded. “None of this is verra pleasant, but ye would do well to remember.” He hesitated. “If Tokhots had fucked you like he wanted to, he would have killed you.”
“Hmph.” Aislinn held the dragon close. It blew steam onto her hands, warming them. “That’s quite a curse. Bet he has a hard time coming up with bedmates.”
“’Twas the idea.” Fionn shot her a grim smile. “What good is a curse if it doesna ruin something special?”
“I’m free now. Take me to Mother and Father.” The little dragon hesitated, and then added, “Please.”
Fionn furled his brows. “Mayhap he’s learned something from all this.”
“We can sort that out later. I’m going to jump Rune, myself, and little no name here outside.”
“We’ll be right behind you.” Fionn’s smile was laced with tenderness and hope.
Her heart swelled, overflowing with love and gratitude. Tears were close to the surface. “Thanks for sticking by me. I know I’m prickly and not the easiest—”
“Hush, leannán. Ye needn’t apologize for who ye are. I love you.”
Joy blazed bright inside her. It began in her belly and traveled all the way to her fingertips and toes. She pulled magic, visualized Dewi and Nidhogg, and asked her casting to take them there.
CHAPTER THIRTY
The two dragons sat nose to nose on a broad expanse of unkempt lawn in front of Castle Trim. The rain had stopped, but gray clouds hung heavy in a gray sky. Dewi and Nidhogg keened in archaic Gaelic over the small body stretched between their forelegs. Aislinn’s happiness winked out. The youngling must have died. She hurried over with the one in her arms and Rune at her side.
“Dewi. I have someone here. He’s missed you.”
The dragon shook her head. Tears flew everywhere; they turned to gemstones where they landed. A small fortune in rubies, emeralds, and diamonds surrounded both dragons. “Don’t bother me. I am in mourning.”
Nidhogg raised his whirling green eyes and drew in a breath. “One yet lives. I hadn’t dared to let myself hope. Beloved, Aislinn has saved our other child.”
Dewi twined her long neck so she could look at Aislinn. Bottomless dark eyes, so like the Lemurians’ that it was unsettling, zeroed in on the green dragon in Aislinn’s arms. She felt the dragon’s magic, tentative at first, sweep over the youngling.
“I really am all right.” The green dragon pushed away from Aislinn’s chest and sat on its haunches, still balanced in her hands.
Dewi’s eyes whirled so fast, it was hypnotic. She folded Nidhogg’s forelegs around the youngling they’d lost and bent to take her living child from Aislinn. “Thank you, MacLochlainn.” Her tone was formal. “In the end, you did not fail me.”
“Any success we had is because you helped Fionn and me and the animals kill so many Old Ones. Setting fire to Tokhots helped, too.” Aislinn bowed her head. “I am sorry for your loss.”
“As am I,” Rune said.
Fionn walked to her side, Bella on his shoulder. He, too, bowed. “My condolences to both of you. If it weren’t for Tokhots and his lethal blood, we would have saved them both.”
“I should have taken care of that bastard millennia ago,” Nidhogg growled; flames blasted skyward. “He came by a few times while Perrikus held me prisoner and did his court jester routine, mocking me.”
“We may have killed him.” A spear of hope flared in Aislinn’s mind. “I saw him burst into flames.”
Nidhogg shook his head. “He’ll be back in some other form. You cannot kill them any more than you can kill these Celts. They go to the Dreaming. I don’t have any idea where the dark gods go to mend themselves. We can incapacitate them, sometimes for centuries, but they always pop back up again.”
Dewi crooned to the green dragon in Gaelic. He wriggled in her arms.
Nidhogg held the dead youngster against him. “I will lay her to rest. At least she named herself before she died. That is important for our kind.”
“Will you tell us?” Fionn looped an arm around Aislinn’s shoulders.
“That is something she can tell you, even in death,” Dewi replied. “Show them, Nidhogg.”
The black dragon unfolded his forelegs. The youngling still had red scales, but many had turned to gold. As Aislinn watched, the transition rippled slowly down her body. “Her name is D’Or,” Nidhogg said. “No matter how many younglings we produce, she will always be my golden child.”
Aislinn met Dewi’s gaze. “If you want to go with Nidhogg to bury your youngling, Fionn and I will see that your son gets back to Inishowen safely.”
“It is kind of you to offer.” Dewi bent her head to the child in her arms. “Would you promise to behave if we did that?”
The green dragon’s head bobbed up and down. “Yes. I like Aislinn.”
“What about me?” Fionn furled his brows.
“I don’t know you,” the dragon piped up, “but I like the wolf.”
Rune whuffled in an approximation of lupine laughter. He headbutted Fionn. “Beat you out again. Must be my handsome coat and—”
“Enough.” Fionn untangled himself from Aislinn and buried a hand in Rune’s ruff.
Aislinn held out her arms. The green dragon spread its wings and floated down to her.
Nidhogg glanced at Dewi. “Are you ready?” She nodded.
The black dragon turned to Aislinn. “Just so you know, we do not bury our dead. They return to the fires where we were first forged. I cannot tell you where that is, only that it will be two days before we return.”
“We’ll make certain the others are safe.” Fionn stroked the dragon in Aislinn’s arms. “He looks like he weighs over fifty pounds. Would you like me to carry him?”
“Sure. It’s amazing. One of them is as heavy as four were a few days ago.”
“No one asked me.” The green dragon scented the air.
“Maybe I want to ride on the wolf.”
“Good to know we haven’t totally quenched his spirit,” Aislinn murmured. She placed a finger beneath the dragon’s snout. “You can ride on Rune after we’re back in Inishowen. For now, Fionn can carry you.” She raised her gaze to Dewi and Nidhogg. “Safe journey. I look forward to your return.”
Dewi’s jaws parted. Steam rolled upward. “I believe you mean that.”
“I do.” Aislinn stepped closer to Dewi’s bulk. “It’s like any partnership. We just had to get used to one another. We’ll still have our misunderstandings, but I think we trust one another now.”
The dragon nodded thoughtfully. “Yes. It makes all the difference. Say…” Her whirling gaze caught Aislinn’s golden one and held it. “I will lay another clutch soon. Perhaps you’d be willing to tend them for me from time to time. It takes nearly a year before they hatch. Egg nannies are worth their weight in gold.”
Aislinn thought about the piles of treasure in the dragon’s cave. Once upon a time, before the old world fell apart, she would have been entranced by the gold and gemstones. They didn’t mean much anymore. “I am honored you’d trust me to watch over your eggs. I’ll help any way I can.”
“Come.” Nidhogg spread his wings. Dewi did the same. In moments, the dragons were airborne.
Aislinn turned to Fionn. “I wonder why they didn’t jump to where they were going.”
“Probably because they want to make certain to keep their destination hidden. No matter how carefully ye shield yourself, magic leaves a trail. Adva, D’Chel, and Majestron Zalia are still on the loose. Mayhap Perrikus, too. He’s wily. Until I talk with the other Celts, I willna know if they managed to corral him for a bit.”
“Shall we go home?” A smile tugged at her lips. She liked the sound of home. Wherever Fionn was would be their home, now and always. It could be his manor house, or it might be a cave, or a deserted building, or an open field. The important thing was they were together.
Bella cawed raucously. “I like that idea. I want to sit on my perch, put my head under a wing, and sleep for hours.”
Fionn brought them out on the rolling green land in front of the gates to his manor. Night was falling. While he felt sad for the youngling’s death, they’d come through nearly unscathed. Relief whooshed through him. He’d never stop worrying about Aislinn, but he knew he couldn’t lock her in a box like a valued treasure. Her spirit would wither and die, and she’d stop being the woman he loved.
A magical net settled over them. “What the fuck?” He batted at its strands.
Rune snarled; Bella quorked. Aislinn just looked exhausted.
“Oh, it’s you. Sorry.” Three humans walked out the main gate and chanted to dissolve their casting. One of them—a tall, slender, thirtyish woman with shoulder-length red hair—shrugged. “Better to be safe than sorry, I always say.”
A dark-haired man eyed them. “We were given guard duty on the north side of your manor.”
“Let me down.” The dragon wriggled out of Fionn’s grasp, spread its wings, and floated to the ground. It craned its neck in all directions and started for the sea.
“No so fast.” Aislinn raced after it, scooped it up, set it on Rune’s back, and said, “Take him inside to where the others are.”
“What if I don’t want to go?”
“Too bad,” Rune mock snarled. “You just became my responsibility. If you even think about getting away—”
“I can fly.” The green dragon smirked.
“So can I,” Bella piped up. “Which means I’ll hunt you down if you try anything funny.”
“You have to land sometime,” Rune said. “When you do, I’ll make you sorry you were ever born.” He trotted through the manor gates with the youngling sitting on his back muttering imprecations.
Fionn looked after Rune’s departing form and rolled his eyes. He extended a hand to the humans. They shook it by turns. “Doona fash about the net. No harm done. I’m glad to see someone’s keeping an eye out.”
“Those little dragons are a mite headstrong.” The woman’s mouth twitched, as if she were suppressing a smile. “We’re taking turns watching them, too.”
“Impetuous, stubborn. Yep, they’re quite the handful. Thanks for standing watch duty. I’ll take a turn once I’ve had a few hours’ rest.” Aislinn shook hands with the three humans. She looked at Fionn. “I need food and then sleep. Right now, I’m about as useful as tits on a boar.”
“Well now, we canna be having that.” He twined an arm around her waist.
She leaned into him, and they walked side by side across the bridge and up the stone walkway.
“Why don’t ye go to our rooms? I’ll just snare a bit of food and some mead from the kitchens. That way, ye willna get caught in whatever drama the younglings are hatching up.”
“Good idea. I’ll run us a bath.”
He grinned. “Even better. I dinna want to say aught, but both of us stink.”
Aislinn laughed. The sound warmed his soul. “Yes, we smell like Lemurians. I smelled like them for years, so long I nearly got used to it.”
By the time Fionn made it out of the kitchen, nearly an hour had passed. Gwydion, Arawn, and Bran had insisted on a full report. While the Celts caught up, the green dragon held court; his version of events was so inflated, it made Fionn laugh. To hear the youngling tell it, the dark gods were ten feet tall and breathed fire that incinerated everything in its tracks. The other six dragons were ringed around him in thrall.
Rune followed Fionn out of the kitchen and up the stairs, muttering about how he wasn’t cut out to tend pups. Bella rode on the wolf’s back and commiserated with him.
“Quiet now,” Fionn cautioned both animals. “Aislinn may well be asleep.”
He pushed the door open quietly. Bella flew to her perch. Rune padded to a corner and lay down. Aislinn was curled on her side in the bed. Her mouth was half open; she had dark smudges beneath both eyes. Wet hair splayed around her on the pillows.
Fionn set the food and liquor on a nearby table and latched the door. He stripped off his stained and worn battle leathers and left them in a heap. They needed to be rinsed out and hung to dry. He tiptoed into the bathroom. Good. Aislinn hadn’t emptied the tub. He bent and tested the water. It was tepid, which was good enough. He soaped himself, rinsed, and opened the drain.
Fionn wrapped himself in his robe and crept back into the bedroom. A gentle smile curved his lips. He was glad Aislinn was still asleep. She hadn’t had a decent rest since well before they’d arrived at Inishowen. He uncorked the mead bottle. Its rich, pungent scent filled his nostrils, and he drank deep. He looked at the food, decided he wasn’t all that hungry, and took another draught from the bottle before setting its cork back into place. The liquor burned a trail down his throat to his stomach, warming him. The room was chilly, but building a fire would make noise. He compromised by pulling magic to warm the air around the bed.
He slipped under the covers, trying not to disturb her, but the bedsprings creaked. She rolled toward him, eyes at half-mast and held out her arms. He wrapped his around her and cradled her head on his shoulder. “Och, lass, I love you to distraction. Ye are everything I hoped for and waited for all my life.”
She giggled. “Bet you say that to all the girls.”
He snorted. “Not even close. Can ye allow a man—your man—to make a declaration of love without poking fun at him?”
She nodded against his shoulder. “It feels kind of overwhelming.”
“What does?”
“Everything. I’ve never loved anyone before—except my parents and Rune. This is different.”
“See?” Bella cawed sleepily from her perch. “She includes her bond animal when she talks about love.”
“This is a private conversation. Ye’re not supposed to be eavesdropping.” Fionn raised his head off the pillows to glare at the raven. “Sorry.” He gathered Aislinn against him. “Ye were saying?”
“It will sound
corny, but you’re as elemental to my existence as eating and drinking and breathing. When I thought you were lost in the border world, it felt as if my life had ended.” She moved back so she could look at him. “Is it the MacLochlainn bond thing? Is that why you feel so important?”
“Ye know the answer to that one, lass. Look at your mother. She was linked to me through the bond, and she fell in love with another and ran like hell.”
Aislinn grinned. “Oh, yeah. I hadn’t exactly forgotten that, but I’m not firing on all cylinders right about now, either.”
“Probably neither am I. What’s between us is new. ’Twill ripen and mature. Just like with you and Dewi, trust grows in stages. Over time, ’twill strengthen our relationship—and our love. Ye’ll be less, um, prickly.”
“Does it mean you’ll be less protective?”
A laugh bubbled up from his belly. “Nay, lass. Probably not. ’Tis the warrior in me. We shield what is ours. ’Tis hardwired in.”
She dropped a hand between them and curved it around his half-erect cock. It stiffened instantly at her touch. Her golden eyes glowed warmly, her lips parted. She snaked her other hand around his neck and drew him down so he could kiss her.
He settled his lips on hers and ran his tongue across the seam between her lips. She opened her mouth, and he sank his tongue inside, tasting her. Her tongue sparred with his, and then she withdrew it and nibbled his lips. Fionn’s groin tightened in anticipation. He’d never had such an instantaneous response to a woman before; she filled him with insatiable lust. Even so, he held himself back and drew his mouth away from hers. “Are ye certain, leannán? I was going to let you rest.”
She tossed a leg over his hip and pressed her hot, damp center against his thigh. The musk of her arousal nearly drove him mad. Her hand tightened around his shaft. With an inchoate moan, he pushed back the covers and strung kisses down her neck and chest. He maneuvered her onto her back so he could capture a wonderfully hard nipple in his mouth. She had the most beautiful breasts he’d ever seen. High and full, they were tipped with strawberry circles. He tongued one, moved to the other, and then back again. She buried the hand that wasn’t busy with his cock in his hair and arched her back. Little panting gasps told him she was just as hot as he was. Fionn didn’t fully understand why he wasn’t face down and asleep. They hadn’t had enough sleep for a long time, and it had been an exceedingly difficult day. All he could think about was sinking himself inside her wonderful pussy and feeling her close around him.
