Tamed by the Fire

by Maxine Mansfield

  A big warm arm suddenly engulfed her, and Kitrina smiled up at Zander. He wasn’t smiling, though. A look of confusion marred his handsome face.

  “Though a cute but strange little pussy you are, you’re not who I expected to find in my bed this morning.”

  He rubbed her back and Kitrina frowned. It was on the tip of her tongue to ask him who he had been expecting when his rubbing caused a purr to escape her throat.

  A purr?

  Kitrina gulped and looked at herself. Not now. Not this morning?

  Zander sat up. “Where’s your mistress, in the shower?” He kicked off the covers and rose. “Kitrina…Kit,” he yelled as he stepped into the legs of his breeks.

  The door opened and Talon stuck his head through. “What are you bellowing about in here?”

  Zander grumbled. “Kitrina, where is she? Where’d she go? To class? Have I really slept half the day away and not even known it?”

  “Kitrina hasn’t gone anywhere.” Talon shook his head. “She couldn’t have. She has to be in here somewhere.”

  Zander made a production of looking under the bed and even throwing open the curtain surrounding the private bathing alcove. “Well, if she is, then she’s learned the art of invisibility. Other than the two of us, the only living, breathing thing I see in this room, is her stupid cat.”

  Talon took umbrage “I know my duty, Zander, and I’m telling you she didn’t get past me.” He fisted his hands at his side. “Do you really think I’d let Kitrina go wondering around The Academy unguarded, especially after what happened yesterday? No one, and I do mean no one, has left this room since you and she entered it last night and closed the door. And no, it’s not that late. It’s midmorning, and there aren’t any classes today. It’s the holy day before the Yulemass break, remember.”

  “I don’t care what VoT day of the week it is.” Zander didn’t simply speak or yell this time, he roared as he gestured about the room. “What I do care about is, where is Kitrina?”

  He paced. “You had one job, Talon, one simple job, and that one job was to watch out for that stubborn-assed woman’s well-being while I slept. You’ve failed her, and you’ve failed me.” Zander grabbed up his tunic and slipped it over his head. Not bothering with boots, he headed out the door.

  Talon followed. “Now just a minute, Zander, you aren’t being fair or reasonable. I’m telling you, no one, especially not Kitrina, not even that stupid cat of hers, came in or out of that door during my watch last night. I swear it.”

  “Well, she’s not here now, is she? And she certainly didn’t walk through a wall or disappear into thin air, did she? Perhaps I should’ve appointed the stupid cat to watch over her while I slept. It couldn’t have done a worse job.”

  Kitrina cringed at Zander’s reply as both men stalked off together, and all she wanted to do was cry. God Draka, what an idiot she’d been.

  Shame filled her to overflowing, suffocating her with guilt. What was wrong with her? She should’ve had the courage to just shift back into human form right then and there in front of them both and prevent their horrible argument from starting in the first place, but she hadn’t. She’d lost her nerve.

  After yesterday’s fiasco, she couldn’t bear to see the added hurt and disappointment in Zander’s eyes when he realized she’d been holding out details about herself that, she had to admit, he had every right to know. And not simply withholding the knowledge she had the ability to shape-shift into a…stupid cat but that she had also utilized that stupid cat form to willingly become a sounding board to confidences he thought he was sharing with a creature he could trust not to divulge his secrets.

  Kitrina shifted back into human form and sat cross-legged in the middle of the bed, tears stinging her eyes. What was she going to do? Somehow, she had to make this right, but how? The moment both men walked away, the chance to tell the truth was past and the damage done.

  She shook her head. Even if she followed them this very moment and told Zander she was a shape-shifter, he’d hate her for making him look like a fool and so would Talon. And the worst part was, she couldn’t blame either one of them if they did.

  But then simple hate she could live with. She’d deserve it. But there was a big difference between warranting someone’s hatred and living with the knowledge Zander would realize she’d broken his trust. A trust he’d given her freely and without question. Being untrustworthy was unacceptable. To guard the secrets of those in one’s care was the single true quality a rogue valued above all others.

  So, what to do?

  She loved Zander enough to let him go when this situation was all said and done, for he was destined to become the barbarian king someday and she…well, she was destined to be simply Uthiel and Briar Dragonheart’s daughter for the rest of her life. And she loved him enough not to let him see how much losing him yet again would rip her heart into a million pieces and toss them to the wind.

  But did she love him enough not to clear her conscience and protect him from the pain of her betrayal? Kitrina sighed. Yes, she did. After all, what was one more tiny lie at this point? Especially since, when this quest was over, she and Zander would go their separate ways. None need be the wiser.

  She’d didn’t have any clue what excuse she’d come up with, though, but she’d fabricate some feasible reason for not being where she was supposed to be this morning. A reason that would make sense to both men, and in the end, preserve their friendship. After all, the preservation of the bond Zander and Talon shared was what was truly important. Talon would be at Zander’s side long after she was gone.

  Then it hit her, and Kitrina hurried to the medicine bag her mother always insisted she have in her possession. Quickly, she rummaged through the contents until she found the small silver box containing the mixture of burundanga root, henbane, and ground jimson weed, commonly known as the Powder of Forgetfulness.

  Smiling to herself, she sent out a hasty thank you to God Draka and her mother for not only Briarlarn Dragonheart’s knowledge of herbology but also her tenacity for drumming into the brains of her three daughters the use of every VoT twig, leaf, root, bud, and stalk of every VoT plant known to Albrath, whether they wanted the information hammered into their skulls or not.

  Hastily Kitrina dressed and rushed from the room, not considering her safety, not considering that the last commander hunting her—Marquart, could be anywhere, even around the very next corner. And she didn’t waste energy contemplating the quest in her care. There’d be plenty of time to worry about it later.

  But right now, there was no more time to waste. It was imperative she find Zander and convince him of Talon’s innocence in her actions. Yes, she’d find them both, and she’d make this right. And it didn’t matter what cost her lies exacted on her soul. In the end, it would be worth it. It had to be.

  ****

  Marquart Maycee Strumgrund, high commander of a formidable troll army and seeker of the Stone of Anthion, stood in the shadows of the hallway leading to Kitrina’s and Zander’s room. She had watched the scene before her unfold.

  It seemed not all was well and peachy-keen in the confines of the chambers of The Academy of Magical Arts this gray, stormy morning. How appropriate. She smiled.

  She liked chaos, thrived on it even. A peaceful life was dull, boring, and without imagination. And she should certainly know. Hadn’t she lived a marginally sedate existence for the last five centuries of her nine hundred years or so? Always hiding away from prying eyes, always watching from the bleachers so to speak, forever ordering others to do the fun stuff she wished she could openly do herself.

  For to be immortal without those around you learning you were immortal and trying to somehow learn the secret of it in order to take advantage for themselves was a full time job.

  How many times had she caught one of her generals looking at her a little too closely, trying to find a way to take her place? None had succeeded, but that had meant staying in the shadows, never trusting anyone, and changing he
r personal guard long before they had the chance to realize she never aged and never suffered injuries. It really was a thankless, tedious job.

  Why, if one took the time to give much thought to her long life at all, under the circumstances she’d be considered in some circles virtually a saint. After all, she’d hardly executed more than a handful or couple hundred or so pathetic specimens of mortal contention with her own hands, and then only those who gave her absolutely no other choice. Those who had gotten too close to her secret or openly defied her orders or attempted to thwart her plans. It was the only real entertainment she’d allowed herself over the years. That, and the occasional cunt licking from a stable of sex slaves.

  But—she shuddered—she was just like all the rest of them now…mortal and…and…vulnerable. There could be no trusting anyone but herself with the importance of this mission.

  She’d hoped to recruit Walaford Titwilder to her side. That hadn’t happened, however. The hand-to-hand combat instructor hadn’t so much as looked her direction without just cause. And he certainly hadn’t succumbed to her vast charms. On the contrary. It was as if the man loathed the very sight of a well-made tusk. Maycee sniffed. It didn’t matter. She didn’t need him.

  What did matter, however, was she needed the VoT stone. She must have the stone, and she must have it soon before one of those underlings of hers realized she’d been weakened by mortality and was as dependent on her next heartbeat, her next breath, as they were.

  She glanced from side to side, letting the quiet fill her, and smiled. Her tusks, comfortingly rubbing the worn skin of her cheeks. The incessant posturing and yelling from the two male barbarian idiots about Kitrina being missing and of all things a stupid cat had finally ceased with their departure and the hall lay empty before her and silent.

  It was finally time to move, time to proceed, time to get a peek in Kit’s room.

  So Kitrina had somehow managed to slip away and elude her guards, had she? How very interesting, and convenient. It would make her plan of searching the human chit’s chamber for any tidbit of useful information so much simpler.

  Marquart bristled. But where the VoT was Asla today? She’d personally taken on the task of retrieving the Stone of Anthion, but that didn’t mean she should waste her time on such a menial task as this one when there were those under her command who should be ready and willing to do her bidding. It was beneath her.

  Asla would pay for her insubordination.

  A commander of her standing shouldn’t have to lurk in drafty hallways and dirty her hands sneaking through other people’s…things, searching for clues.

  So what if she hadn’t been able to ask one of her generals to come along with her and do these little errands because they would’ve been insulted and a little more than suspicious. At least she should’ve been able to put this particular job off on Asla. It was a chore worthy only of a grunt, and Marquart Maycee Strumgrund certainly was no grunt.

  Oh yes, before this little project was well and truly over, Asla would pay, and pay dearly.

  She was almost to the open doorway when Kitrina suddenly rushed from the room and headed down the hallway in the same direction Zander and Talon had taken.

  Marquart jumped back into the shadows.

  How odd. How could Kitrina have been in the room all along and the two barbarians not see her? And if she had been, then why hadn’t she let them know she was there?

  When Kit is Cat the Dragon Heart Opal doesn’t care about her.

  Marquart shook her head. Last night, she thought she’d overdosed the chit and Kitrina had been speaking nonsense. But, what if?

  Marquart made her way through the still open doorway. “Here, kitty, kitty.” She looked under the bed and behind the curtain as her mind filled with the possibility. Could the answer to all her problems really be that simple?

  For good measure, she tried one last time. “Here, kitty, kitty. Come out and show youtself, yout little ball of fur yout.”

  There was no answer, and Marquart laughed as she headed to the library to do a little research of her own. Yes, the old adage really was true after all. If yout want something done right, do it youtself.

  Chapter Twelve

  “I swear, Talon, if any harm’s come to Kitrina, I’ll never forgive myself. Though I trust you with my very life and always will, I had no right to commit her safety to anyone but myself. I’m sorry I put you in that position.” Zander didn’t slow his forward momentum as he hurried down the hall, but he did lower his head. “What was I thinking? I should’ve stayed alert and vigilant for at least one night.”

  He locked gazes with Talon and knew he was going to sound like he was looking for reassurance. He probably was, but, it didn’t matter. Only Kitrina’s safety did. “You don’t think perhaps someone…took her, do you?”

  Talon scoffed. “I already told you, Zander, no one got past me, and I mean no one. Nobody, not even you, can stay awake for hours on end, so stop blaming yourself. I’m telling you, there must be some other explanation. I have no idea what, but something we’re both missing.”

  Zander shook his head. “If no one got past you, then where the VoT is she? The only thing I can figure is, you must have gotten knocked out or something and don’t remember it. Or drugged perhaps?”

  Talon stopped dead in his tracks, and Zander was forced to stop, too.

  “Do you really think I’d forget something like getting punched hard enough to knock me out? With my skills…with my thick skull? Seriously?”

  Zander did feel a little silly for suggesting such a thing. In all of his twenty-six years, he’d never once seen anyone big enough or strong enough to knock Talon Starkweather on his arse, let alone rattle his brain so much he forgot it even happened. It was on the tip of his tongue to say just that when the sound of the voice he feared he’d never hear again stopped him in his tracks.

  “Zander, Talon, slow down.”

  He spun so fast he stumbled and lost his balance for a moment. God Draka, this woman was going to be the death of him yet.

  “Kitrina.” His voice broke, and he swallowed back the lump that had been forming in his throat since the moment he awakened to find her missing. “God Draka, where have you been?”

  Quickly, he took in every aspect of her visage. Every hair was neatly in place, her eyes were the same stormy blue they’d always been, her lips still just as kissably lush and pink, and she didn’t appear to be bleeding or bruised or broken in any manner.

  No, on the contrary, Kitrina looked…fresh, vibrant, and completely innocent of any wrongdoing on anyone’s part, especially her own. Which could mean only one thing. The sneaky little rogue had slipped away from him…again…on purpose.

  Rage took the place of worry, and Zander took a moment to tamp it down. There must be a good reason. There had to be. If there wasn’t, he was going to kill her or at least make her wish she were dead. “Kitrina, where have you been?”

  Zander was proud of himself. He hadn’t yelled. He’d spoken in a calm voice, and he hadn’t yet grabbed her up and shaken the life from her like his fingers itched to do. But somewhere close by thunder rumbled. The walls of The Academy shook with it.

  “Um, I thought I’d be back before you woke, sorry,” she mumbled.

  He could feel his right eye twitch, and he fisted his hands at his sides to keep them in place. “That isn’t what I asked you, my lady. Where were you, and how did you get past Talon?”

  She had the audacity to chuckle. “Oh, that part was easy. I drugged him.”

  “You dr—drugged me? Impossible,” Talon howled

  It was all Zander could do, not to choke her that very moment. She’d drugged Talon? And then laughed about it?

  The sudden deluge of rain outside was so loud he could plainly hear it through the walls as the drops hit the cobblestone walkways. He took deep breaths, trying to calm himself. It didn’t work. Instead, he watched what he really wanted to do unfold in his mind. Yes, he could do it. He could and should
choke her to death, if for no other reason than to preserve his and everyone else’s sanity. He’d slowly wrap his big barbarian fingers around her delicate little human neck and squeeze until Kitrina Dragonheart was no longer capable of driving him crazy and making his life a living VoT.

  Instead, he had to ask. “Kit, why would you do such a thing? How would you?”

  She raised her chin a notch and spoke as if she were explaining the art of walking and chewing bubble gum at the same time to an idiot. “I did it because he would have prevented me from leaving, and I didn’t want him to.”

  She held out a small silver box. “Powder of Forgetfulness, comes in handy and works quickly without leaving any nasty side effects. I got it from my mother.”

  Kitrina had the nerve to poke him in the chest, hard. “Zander Hammerstrike, I’m ashamed of you.” She pointed toward Talon. “You didn’t really think your best friend let me go wondering off alone without an incentive he was powerless to resist, now do you? You, of all people, should know him better than that.”

  She stomped her foot. “And I’ll have you know it even took a double dose of this stuff to make him set back down, go back to sleep, and forget he’d even seen me.”

  Zander held his breath. It was that or give into his urge and kill her. When he could no longer keep it in, he let the air out in a whoosh. “I thought we had an agreement, Kitrina. I thought you were not to wander off by yourself anymore, remember? We had a deal.”

  She did look almost repentant. Her eyes lowered, and she hugged herself before starring up at him with pleading in her eyes. “I’m sorry, Zander.” Kitrina pointed to Talon. “I know I promised to take someone with me whenever I go anywhere, but it really was just a quick, simple task. I didn’t want to wake you, and when Talon insisted he accompany me…well…he just looked…so very tired. I simply didn’t have the heart to disturb what little rest he gets on that cold hard floor outside our room every night.”