by Denise Lynn
The ease in which he fed her, the flow of his strength rushing into her, chased away any concerns about the future. The only thing that mattered was right now, this very moment. One way or another, tomorrow would take care of itself.
Chapter 8
Like a pesky gnat, something small and irritating kept teasing at her ear. Caitlin batted a hand toward the irritation.
Her unsuccessful attempt to rid herself of the pest drew a groan from her as she became fully awake. Anxious to escape, she pulled the blankets up and rolled away, intent on falling back into her dreams before the lingering thread beckoning her to return disappeared.
It had been such a long time since she’d found her dreams welcoming. This last year or so they’d been more of the nightmare variety. She didn’t appreciate being torn from a pleasant one of her, Sean and their son enjoying a family outing. Since something like that would only ever happen in a dream, having the idyllic situation disturbed was even worse.
The tickling against her ear returned, and she batted at it once again. But this time she made contact with something definitely more solid and much larger than a gnat—it felt more like a face. From the stubble beneath her fingertips, it was a face in dire need of a shave.
She patted the cheek, muttering, “Go away, Sean.”
He ignored her suggestion and instead slid beneath the covers to rest against the warmth of her back. “That isn’t going to happen. But as much as I would love to spend the rest of the day in this bed with you, we have to get up. My brothers will be waiting for us in Braeden’s office soon, if they aren’t already.”
Caitlin’s stomach tightened, and her mind whirled her fully awake. She desperately wanted her son back safely in her arms, yet her gut instinct told her that involving the Drake family would somehow be dangerous.
She frowned at the thought—it was illogical, considering that deed had already been committed the moment she’d come to Sean. Besides, how could it possibly be dangerous when more help in this matter—help from beings far more powerful than she and Sean—would be beneficial, not dangerous?
Regardless of what the Drakes may or may not think about her family, they would combine forces to rescue one of their own. It was natural, instinctual at a basic level for any form of beast to protect their own kind—more so when the being in question was a baby.
A vision formed in her mind, clouding over her rationalizations. A vision so strong that it forced her eyes shut. Dragons—not one, but three—lay bleeding in the agony of their death throes on the stone floor of a ruined castle.
Standing over them laughing, with Ascalon in his hand, was Nathan. Neatly trapped in his free arm, her son wailed.
Caitlin gasped. No. She couldn’t—she wouldn’t let them help. Not if it meant leading them to their death. Especially when in the end, her son still wouldn’t be free from the demonic wizard holding him.
The warmth of Sean’s lips against her neck startled her out of her dire musings. How was she going to do this on her own? As much as she longed to explain, or to discuss this with him, she knew that telling Sean would be a mistake. For one thing, he would never back off. In fact, it would most likely prompt him to act on his own without any assistance from his brothers.
“What’s wrong?”
“Nothing.” She took a deep breath to calm her riotous emotions before rolling over onto her back to look up at him as he leaned over her.
His eyebrows shot up at her lie. “Are you upset about last night?”
It would be so convenient to use that as an easy excuse to explain away her obvious discomfort. After all, his initial love play had been rather...forceful.
A tremor of desire rippled down her spine. Oh, yes, forceful and very focused on her satisfaction. By the time they’d made it to the bed, she’d been more than just satisfied; her life force had been filled to the brim and then some.
But she didn’t want to cover up a lie with another lie. Doing so would only become confusing. Instead, she ignored his question to ask, “Any food in your kitchen?”
“Hungry?”
“Famished.” On cue, her stomach growled.
Sean traced a fingertip down the length of her nose then sat up. “It would be rude to let you starve.” He patted her leg. “I’ll go find us something to eat while you get dressed.”
She watched him leave the bedroom without another word. He’d acquiesced too easily. The tone of his voice had changed from playful to...noncommittal—flat. He knew something was up other than her simply being hungry.
Caitlin threw off the covers with a sigh. It didn’t matter. He could think, wonder and suspect all he wanted, but until she told him of her plan, he wouldn’t know for certain. And since she had no intention of telling him anything, he’d simply have to keep wondering.
She hadn’t figured out how she was going to rescue her son without help from the Drakes, so it would be a bit difficult to discuss it with him. Besides, it would be better this way. Not only would she be sparing his and his brothers’ lives, she could then prevent Sean from trying to take her son away from her, as well.
That wasn’t going to ever happen regardless of what he thought. She’d never had any intention of letting her parents or the High Council give her son away, so she wasn’t about to let Sean take him from her, either.
It wasn’t going to be easy. But what she needed to figure out right now was how to get possession of the items Nathan demanded without Sean or his family finding out. That wasn’t going to be easy, but she knew where the grimoire and pendants were located.
Sean poured a cup of coffee and sat on a stool at the kitchen bar. She was up to something; he sensed it in the change of the air surrounding her. It had flashed warm when he’d awakened her, then cold as he’d reminded her of the meeting with Braeden and Cameron, and then hot.
Since she hadn’t seemed angry, at least she’d claimed not to be, and they hadn’t been engaged in any sexual act, he could only surmise that the heat came from racing thoughts.
He should have reached inside her mind to investigate, but he’d decided he was going to gain her trust. After all, she was the mother of his child and his beast’s mate. So if they were to have any semblance of a relationship they had to share something more than sex.
He wasn’t looking for love, or any declaration of her heart. But they would be partners in raising their son, so some type of shared bond, a friendship maybe, would prove useful. Perhaps learning to trust each other would lead them in that direction.
The only thing he could do now was to see if it was possible to get her to talk to him. His dragon grunted and rolled his eyes. Sean ignored the beast’s obvious doubts. One way or another he would see this through.
“Did you find us something to eat?”
At her question, he rose to get her some coffee. “More or less. I normally eat down in the dining room.”
She accepted the cup and after a swallow, took a bagel from the plate of pastries he’d offered. “Right now anything is fine, thank you.”
He took a seat and pulled out the stool next to him. “Join me.”
She did so, asking, “Have either of your brothers called with any news yet?”
“No. But that doesn’t mean they don’t have any to share. They could just be waiting for us to arrive below.”
“How do you think they’ll be able to help?” Picking at the bagel, she continued, “I mean, what can they do that we can’t?”
Sean leaned closer, his shoulder resting against hers. “What are you thinking, Caitlin?”
“I don’t like this waiting. If we just took the items we have to Nathan, maybe it’d be enough. Then this would be over.”
“You know, I get it. I can’t blame you for being impatient. But if we went to Nathan with less than what he demanded, our son would be left without parents.”
She leaned away. “Yes, but if we keep dragging this out, I could be left without my son.”
His beast rumbled as her voice rose. Sean t
ook the opportunity of swallowing more coffee to gain control of his dragon and temper his response. Certain both were in check, he set his cup down and took one of her hands between his. “Look, first of all it’s our son. Ours. You aren’t in this alone. Besides, I thought we discussed this yesterday. It’s safer to confront Nathan with strength.”
“You mean magic.”
“It doesn’t matter what you call it. The force and power of three beasts will succeed far better than you and I ever could.”
She paled at his statement and closed her eyes. Sean slung an arm across her shoulder and pulled her close. “Tell me what’s wrong.”
Caitlin shook her head, but he could feel her cold fear as it seeped into him, chilling him to the bone. “What are you so afraid of? Tell me, let me help.”
She jerked away and moved to the glass doors. Staring out at the mist-shrouded forest, she said, “You can’t help.”
He remained where he was, ignoring the urge to enfold her in his embrace and protect her from whatever had her so worried. “And why would you say that?”
Not saying a word and not moving away from the door, she shook her head.
This wasn’t like her. This odd, discomforting nervousness. At least it wasn’t like what he knew of her. Trying to talk to her, to reason with her, was getting him nowhere, and he wanted to know what had frightened her so between last night and this morning.
Uncertain which tactic to use, he fell back on what was familiar to him. He rose and headed toward his office saying, “Don’t tell me, then. But it changes nothing. Cameron, Braeden and I will get our son back with or without your input.”
Caitlin spun away from the door with a gasp. “No!” When he didn’t pause, she followed. “You’ll just die in the attempt.”
Die? What was she talking about? Why would she suddenly be so certain of that happening?
A shimmer from his desk caught his eye. Sean frowned then stopped in the doorway and turned to face Caitlin. She bumped to a stop against his chest.
He grasped her shoulders and asked, “What did you see?”
She looked away for a heartbeat then turned her attention back to him. Fear etched her features, leaving her looking more pale and drawn than she had upon her arrival at the Lair. “The three of you dead. And Nathan laughing over you as he held Sean.”
“He can’t kill all of us.”
She glanced toward the safe. “With Ascalon he could.”
He swallowed a curse before asking, “When had you planned on telling me this?”
“Never.”
A kick in the gut wouldn’t have taken his breath away as fast. Releasing her, he stepped into his office. “So you were content to let me go on a mission you were convinced would end in my death?”
So much for building any trust with her.
“No. I had planned on going alone.”
Now his beast gasped for breath. “Alone? You’re convinced that three beasts will fail, yet you believe you would succeed?”
She was either far more brazen that he’d ever assumed, or she’d lost the ability to reason. It had to be one or the other, because nobody in their right mind would think like that.
“What made you believe for one second that I would ever let you do that alone?”
She shrugged. “You couldn’t stop me if you didn’t know.”
“Right. Because I’m completely clueless and wouldn’t notice you weren’t here.”
“I hadn’t thought that far ahead yet.”
“Obviously.” It was impossible to keep the biting tone from his voice.
Was she always this impetuous?
If so, they were going to be in for a rockier road together than he’d ever imagined.
As it was, his beast was already gnashing his teeth at the mere thought of her traipsing off to Nathan’s stronghold by herself.
Sean sat down before his desk and waved her to the chair on the other side. “Show me where you saw this warning.”
She glanced at the grimoire. “It wasn’t in the book. It was more of a mental flash.”
For some reason, that just made it worse. She’d planned on risking her own life because of some fleeting thought? “You sure it’s not just an overactive imagination?”
“No.” Frowning, she shook her head. “It’s stronger than that.”
His attention was once again captured by the pulsing glow of light coming from the grimoire.
“Apparently, there’s something we need to see.” He flipped open the ancient tome to the last picture they’d observed then turned the page.
Caitlin sucked in a loud breath and shoved her chair back from the desk. “There.” Her hand shook as she pointed at the forming picture. “It isn’t just in my mind.”
Sure enough, taking form on the page was the scene she’d described.
He and his brothers were on a stone floor, broken and bleeding, the vaporous mist of their life forces flowing into Nathan as he stood over them laughing. In one hand he held Ascalon—blood dripped from the blade. In his free arm he held a crying baby.
Then, as Sean stared at the image, a thick chain began to form. One end was shackled to his ankle, and link by link it stretched across the floor to an altar where that end had been secured.
From the items on the altar—the burning candles, the crystal cauldron, jewel-encrusted chalice, dragon statues of emerald and sapphire, along with a wooden, curved-blade athame—it was obvious that Nathan had been casting spells. Ones that apparently included him.
His dragon screamed. The rage made his hands tremble. Sean curled his fingers, tightening his fists in an attempt to stop the anger threatening to overtake him. He needed to focus on the rest of the still-forming image.
On the floor before the altar was the body of a dead woman with long black hair. Thin, bloody stripes, as if caused by a whip, marked her naked body.
As if sensing his attention, the woman turned her head and stared at him.
“Yet a dragon you shall be.”
The words of the curse echoed in his office. Caitlin’s eyes grew large, shimmering against the paleness of her face.
His beast ceased to breathe as his own heart raced, pounding hard inside his chest.
Sean pushed away from the desk, unwilling to witness any more that might be shown to them. He didn’t need further evidence of why he’d been cursed into a changeling. The task he was to complete for Nathan was obvious to him. He’d been so concerned about his urge to kill his family that he hadn’t taken any other scenario into consideration.
He didn’t need to kill them; all he had to do was to lure his brothers to Nathan’s castle. Unwittingly he would do so under the guise of helping him rescue his son.
Caitlin had been partly right—while he would go to rescue their son, Braeden and Cameron couldn’t be permitted to help. He would not be responsible for killing the Dragon Lord and his twin.
“Sean, look!”
He followed Caitlin’s wide-eyed gaze back to the page with trepidation. On the facing page, a dual picture formed.
One half of the page was a desolate image of the world with Nathan in supreme control. The other an idyllic setting with him, Caitlin and their son surrounded by his aunt, brothers and their families.
“St. George will set you free.”
Once again, the confusing promise filled the air.
He moved back to the desk and turned the page, hoping another picture would form, explaining how he could defeat Nathan.
Caitlin moved behind him. Placing a hand on his shoulder she asked, “You don’t think it’ll be that easy, do you?”
Sean reached up and covered her hand with his own, wondering if he should be uncomfortable with the way she’d so easily read his mind. “No. But sometimes it doesn’t hurt to hope.”
His cell phone vibrated, and he glanced at the screen.
“Your brothers?”
He nodded in reply to her question and hit the intercom button on the desk phone, opening a line to the o
ffice. When it beeped, he said, “On our way.”
Sean rose, scooping the dragon pendants from his desk drawer, and slipped them into a front pocket then grabbed the grimoire. He extended an arm toward the door. “Ready?”
* * *
Caitlin paused at the huge metal-studded door that Sean held open for her. She felt as if she were being ushered into a medieval lord’s chamber for an audience that would decide her fate. She supposed that in a way, it would. Together would they all be able to come up with a plan to save her son? Or would they spend their time devising a plan that would only get them killed?
Did she want to be a part of that? She glanced at Sean, who raised a questioning eyebrow at her hesitation. Whether she wanted to be a part of this or not wasn’t an option. She took a breath and entered the room.
Her feet sank into the plush, dark midnight blue carpet. A thin ray of sunlight filtered into the room through an opening between the drapes. The light shimmered off the jeweled hilt of a sword, one of many weapons mounted on the walls, and bounced off the face of a sapphire dragon perched on a marble pedestal. The flicker of light against the dragon’s eyes made it appear as if the gemstone beast was looking at her, watching her, waiting for just the right moment to pounce.
She turned her attention to the two men standing before the desk. Their exchanged greetings were brief since she’d met the men.
Her thoughts drifted to the three pendants—amethyst, sapphire and emerald. She sat in one of the chairs in front of the desk with a glance to each man, once again noting the color of their eyes.
A dragon for each brother—was that by coincidence or design?
The grimoire had shown sisters with eyes the same color as the pendants they’d used. Perhaps these brilliant hues were common in the Drake family. If so, was it possible that the brothers had the wrong pendants?
“Sean?” She thought it worth mentioning. “Do you remember—”
Braeden’s rousing curse cut off her question. He rose to glance out one of the many tall, narrow windows of his office. “What is Baron Hoffel doing here?”
