by Beverly Rae
“I wish you hadn’t given my phone number to the Society.”
Jenn motioned toward Partner, who was busy communicating with Mini-Pam through a special cable Kaine had given her. The two devices had been virtually and often literally inseparable for the past hour. “Can I help it if your Mini-Pam seduced Partner and made him worthless? Besides, shouldn’t you be more interested in the fact that we know where Sabrina is?”
Kaine gripped the arms of his chair. “Where is she?” He jumped up, ready to spring into action.
“Does she have the scepter with her?” I followed my hubby’s lead.
“One of the Atlanta’s Protectors said his source told him that Sabrina is at a downtown theatre.”
Huh? “A theatre? You mean instead of getting the hell out of Dodge, she’s out for a night on the town? That doesn’t make any sense.” I could see by Kaine’s expression that the news had thrown him too.
“If I remember anything at all about Sabrina, it’s this. She doesn’t always do what makes sense, and she’ll lie whenever she can. Even when lying doesn’t make sense.” Kaine slipped his phone into his pocket and headed to the door.
Thirty minutes later we were in downtown Atlanta and standing outside a small neighborhood theatre. The name of the play on the marquee caught my attention. “I do not believe this.”
“What is it, Chrissy-doll?” Kaine scanned the area around us, trying to see what I saw.
“I know this play.” I still couldn’t believe it.
“Magical Mayhem.” Jenn shrugged her shoulders. “So?”
I motioned for them to follow me to the ticket office. “This is Thad’s new play.”
“Does your pal know Sabrina?” Kaine handed the ticket taker the money and took the stubs.
“Not that I know of. Besides, just because she’s attending the play doesn’t mean she knows Thad.” Once inside, I could hear the voices coming from the stage. “Your source said he saw her outside the theatre, right before she went inside?”
Kaine nodded. “That’s right.”
“Then we’d better get in there.” Fortunately for us, it being a small theatre meant no ushers or doormen to stop us from entering while the play was going on. Leading the charge—why the hell am I leading the charge anyway?—I pushed the door open, sending a shaft of light stabbing into the darkened theatre. Several patrons turned to glare and Jenn quickly shut the door behind us.
The stage, drenched in dim lighting, boasted a medieval scene. Three actors, two men and one woman, were center stage. The two men, dressed in knights’ costumes, were battling each other to win the fair lady’s heart. The knight in black, who I assumed was the villain of the story, thrust an extremely fake-looking sword against the chest of the good knight wearing white. The white knight fell to the ground and the lady screamed. Unfortunately for my friend, Thad’s new production wouldn’t win any awards. Gees, Thad, how corny. I guess I’ll have to play the ever-supportive friend and say the play was terrific. Sometimes ya just gotta lie to spare feelings.
“Whew. Thank goodness we didn’t find out about Sabrina being here early. I’d hate to have sat through the entire play.”
I elbowed Jenn in the ribs. “Shush. My friend wrote this play. Oh, and there he is.” Thad, dressed in a flowing white robe, stepped from behind a cardboard rock.
“He has the Scepter of Fire.”
I heard Kaine’s whisper and followed his gaze. Thad may have skimped on the set decorations and props for everything else, but the scepter he held was magnificent. Towering well over Thad’s five foot five inches, the golden staff was encrusted with elaborate ornamentation. Glowing at the top of the staff was a fierce dragon, his claws extended to strike his prey. His wings were spread, ready to lift him skyward.
I know sometimes I’m not the brightest bulb in the fireplace (yeah, whatever!) but I had to look at the scepter several times before Kaine’s words finally settled into place. “No way. Are you telling me that that’s the Scepter of Fire?”
His tense body language and hardened features said it all. Could Sabrina have told the truth when she said someone had taken it from her? Did Thad steal it from her? But then she’d reversed herself, acting as though she had it and Kaine would never be able to find her or the artifact. To say I was a bit puzzled was an understatement.
“How the hell did Thad get the scepter?” No way would my friend steal something. At least I didn’t think he would.
“That question and its answer can wait until later.” Kaine pointed toward the right side of the theatre. “I think the important question right now is…how do we keep the scepter out of Sabrina’s and Tuo’s hands?”
Jenn and I followed his direction. Tuo and Sabrina rose from their seats, both of them enraged to see us.
“I do believe we better get our butts in high gear.” Jenn was off and running toward the stage with Kaine dead on her heels before I had time to register what she’d said. I was, however, quick enough to notice that Tuo and Sabrina had started their own mad dash for the stage.
“Hey, wait up!” I sprinted down the aisle.
Onstage, the actors continued with the scene unaware that five people rapidly approached them. The audience, thinking our appearance was part of the production, darted their attention between the stage and the race in the aisles.
Have I mentioned how fast Kaine is? The man, using his dragony powers, makes an Olympian sprinter look like an octogenarian with a walker. He passed Jenn in no time. Had he gotten an equal start with Sabrina I have no doubt he would’ve made it to the steps leading onstage before her. But life isn’t just. Or whatever they say.
Sabrina hit the stairs running, taking two steps at a time, making it to the top seconds before Kaine did on the other side. Unfortunately for our team, Thad and the Scepter of Fire were closer to Sabrina.
I slammed to a stop, waiting to see what my hubby and his ex would do. Kaine glared at Sabrina, opened his mouth and let out the loudest bellow I’d ever heard. Audience members clapped their hands over their ears but kept their mesmerized stares on the action.
The black knight, showing his true colors, let out a girlish scream and fell to the floor. The white knight, using his part as the wounded hero to full advantage, huddled next to him. The actress was the only performer with any real balls. She stomped her foot and shouted for all the non-union actors to get the fuck off the stage.
I couldn’t help but admire her spunk. Or at least I did until Kaine jumped—flew?—across the stage, aiming directly for Sabrina with the fair lady directly in the line of fire. She squealed and joined her fellow thespians on the floor. Poor Thad, standing stock still with a horrified expression on his face, was the only actor left in a vertical position. But not for long.
Sabrina’s lips curled into a snarl and she hurled her body toward Thad. She struck him, grabbing for the scepter at the same time. Thad, never one to let anyone upstage him for long, regained motor function and grappled with Sabrina for possession of the scepter. By this time, Tuo had made it to the first step of the stairs and stood scowling at Jenn who was at the top of the other steps. They paused, waiting for the other to make the first move.
Call me a coward if you will, but I didn’t see any reason to join the others on the stage. Besides, obviously being the slowpoke in the bunch, I wouldn’t have made it there in time anyway. (That’s my story and I’m sticking to it.) Still, I wish I would have tried. Maybe then I could’ve saved Kaine from what happened next.
Kaine, seeing Thad wrestling with Sabrina, landed a few feet away from them. “Sabrina, let go of the scepter or suffer the consequences.”
Yep, that’s my guy. Even when he isn’t in a position to shout orders, he’ll do it anyway. I know it’s so not women’s lib, but I rather liked his machismo.
Sabrina, however, had her own set of cojones. With one hand wrapped around the scepter, she lashed out with the other, striking Thad in the head. He fell backward, letting go of the staff and demolishing the cardboard
rock.
“Hey, you can’t get away with hurting my friend!” I pushed through the crowd of people who had finally figured out that the chaos on the stage was real. People shouted and pushed toward the back of the theatre.
Sabrina sneered at me and cackled. “Very well, my little bitch. If I can’t harm your friend, then I’ll kill your lover instead!” With a gleeful screech, she thrust out her arm and pointed the golden dragon head at Kaine.
A blazing ball of fire shot out from the golden dragon’s mouth, spitting sparks outward like a meteor hurtling through the earth’s atmosphere.
“Watch out, Kaine!” But I hadn’t gotten the words out of my mouth soon enough.
Kaine threw his body sideways. Even as fast as he was, he couldn’t dodge the orb of flame completely. The ball missed his chest (and his heart!) and struck him in the leg. The fireball disintegrated, leaving a large gaping hole. Kaine fell to the floor. He clutched at his wound, ready to stem the flow of blood, but no blood came forth. Instead, a cloud of black smoke billowed out of the wound.
What few audience members were still running from the theatre ran faster. Thad and the other actors kept to the floor, terror making similar masks of their faces. At last, Jenn and Tuo began to move.
“You bitch!” I darted around the end of the orchestra pit and dashed up the steps. Kaine tried to struggle to his feet, but fell down, yowling in pain. Jenn rushed to my husband’s side, catching him before he hit the floor. Sabrina, laughing, whirled on Tuo, knocked him off his feet and scurried past him. Taking only seconds to recover, he rushed after her.
“Kaine, Kaine.” I slid next him like a baseball player sliding into second base. “Kaine.” Somehow, I couldn’t get any other word out of my mouth. The rest of them were trapped behind the boulder of fear stuck in my throat.
Remarkably, he raised his hand from his wound and pressed his palm to my cheek to comfort me. Smoke trailed out of the wound again and I had to fight the urge to upchuck. “I’m okay, Chrissy-doll.” He grimaced against the pain. “Or at least I will be.” Waving his hand at her, he beseeched Jenn, “Go. Get Sabrina. Don’t let her get away with the scepter.”
Jenn shook her head. “Sorry. I stick with my friends and take care of them first. But don’t worry. We’ll find her.”
He grumbled, displeased at her for not following orders. “Are you women always this stubborn?”
Thad, having herded the other actors off the stage, knelt beside us. “What the hell was that thing? I had no idea when I—” His eyes grew round as his mouth grew smaller and closed up shop.
Jenn and I exchanged a look. A blind man could see that Thad was holding something back. But Kaine was the priority right now. “Come on, C, let’s get your man to a dressing room and sort out this wound.”
Together, Jenn and I wrapped his arms around our shoulders, putting him between us. Although it was slow going—partly because my hubby complained about not needing help—we finally made it to Thad’s tiny dressing room, a converted storage room. Gently, we lowered the glowering Kaine onto the fuchsia chaise longue.
“You should have gone after her. Now that she has the scepter, she’s not going to hang around. She’ll hop on her ship and head for the next galaxy as soon as she can.”
The next galaxy? As in The Final Frontier? I checked Jenn’s face to see if she’d heard the same thing, but she didn’t seem fazed by his declaration. Funny thing, though, when I did the same with Thad, he had the same un-surprised face.
Since I was apparently the only one who’d heard Kaine’s outlandish statement, I had to ask. “What are you rambling about? Did you hurt your head?” I reached up to part his hair and examine his head, but he slapped my hand away.
My hubby definitely wasn’t the best patient. Note to self: when Kaine gets hurt or sick, stay the hell out of his way. Or better yet, make Fitz the target of his grouchiness.
“Chrissy…”
I frowned, unhappy at the sudden loss of the doll part of my name. “What?” Sure he was injured and all, but my tolerance for his attitude had run out about three minutes earlier. “So she really is an alien? Like from outer space-type alien?” I laughed. Yeah, you’d think by now that nothing could surprise me. After all, I’d gone from a solid skeptic of anything out of the normal to having encounters with strange beings, werewolves, mice-turned-humans, and best of all, running with dragons. What was a little alien compared to all that? Besides, I’d heard someone say she was an alien several times before this. Although, admittedly, I’d never really believed it until now.
“He’s right, C. I wasn’t sure at first, but I kinda thought she might be an Off-worlder.”
Thad, still playing hide-and-seek with my glances, busied himself with cleaning Kaine’s wound. Amazingly, the leg already looked better with the hole not as large as I remembered it. Was super-healing a dragon thing?
Kaine sighed and gave in to the situation. “Her Earth name is Sabrina Stellina because we don’t have the physical capabilities to pronounce her real name, her Zeiwacian name. When she and I were together—” He paused to gauge my reaction, but I kept a straight face “—she was an intergalactic trader dealing with unusual artifacts from hundreds of planets. After we parted ways, I’d heard she’d gone rogue and teamed up with that traitor, Tuo, to steal the Scepter of Fire.”
I sat next to him on the lounge, needing more than my own legs to support me. A real alien. I met a real alien. “But if you knew, why didn’t you get it back from her sooner?”
“The theft happened while we were in Vegas.” He suddenly appeared uncomfortable, but kept on. “Besides, the scepter was left in my care. I was ashamed that I’d allowed it to be stolen right out of my home. My former home. The one before the mansion. But I was too busy wooing you and let my guard down.”
Wooing? I did love those old-fashioned phrases. I dismissed the wayward thought and refocused. I had to know if my suspicion was correct. “Did you buy the mansion as a present for me, for our new home? Or because you wanted a new place, a safer place once you recovered the scepter?”
At least he had the decency to look sheepish. “Both.”
First my husband marries me to give him an heir without bothering to ask me if I want children. Then he buys a house because he wants a safer place for his possessions. I had to wonder if I was one of those possessions. I squashed the thought, reserving it for later. “But that still doesn’t answer why you didn’t track her down and get it back straight away.”
“Like I told you before, Sabrina is a habitual liar. Of course she denied having taken the scepter. I stayed up late at night, away from our bed—” he shot me an apologetic smile, “—getting reports from my friends who had tried following her, but they lost sight of her every time. We were lucky when we caught up with her. Unfortunately, they never saw her with the scepter. Finally they did see her with Tuo. He’s always wanted the scepter so he could rule all the dragons in the dynasty. It made sense that he was involved. I had no choice except to wait for them to show me where to find the scepter.” He whipped out his hand and clutched Thad’s collar. “I didn’t know, however, that someone had taken the scepter from Sabrina.”
Thad squeaked, reminding me of Missy. I hadn’t seen my assistant since that embarrassing night Kaine and I had made love on top of my desk, in front of Pam. Since the two of them were so closely connected, I’d assumed Pam had told Missy about the revealing show. Frankly, I’d avoided her. But I’d have to make amends soon.
“How did you get the scepter, Thad?” I checked Kaine’s leg and saw the wound looked even better. Breathing a sigh of relief, I motioned for him to turn my squirming friend loose. “Talk, Thad. Now.”
“I didn’t steal it,” he protested and tried to scoot away from Kaine. Kaine, however, growled a warning for him to stay put. “I, uh, borrowed it from my neighbor’s house.”
“Borrowed it?” Jenn snorted and rolled her eyes. “Since when does a leprechaun borrow anything?”
“Are yo
u kidding me? Is there anyone in my life who is actually who and what I think they are?” I examined Thad from top to bottom. “You’re a leprechaun? A pot-of-gold-at-the-end-of-the-rainbow kind of leprechaun?” I knew my mouth was hanging open, but I couldn’t get it to shut.
Thad’s mischievous smile said it all. “Chrissy, where do you think I get my money? You can’t seriously believe my plays pay for my lifestyle. Shoot, most of the time I have to dip into my own stash to pay the other actors.” He shook himself as though the idea of paying others disgusted him. “Please don’t tell any of my leprechaun friends I play Robin Hood to starving actors. If they find out, they’ll disown me and take away my ability to find gold. Then I really will be a broke actor.”
Jenn patted her buzzing hip pocket. “I wish I’d unplugged Partner from Mini-Pam and left them at your house.” She waved away the irritation. “Never mind. We need to stay on topic here, people. I’ll bet Sabrina’s not sitting around chit-chatting.”
“She’s right.” Kaine centered his frustration on Thad, making him squeal again. “You say you borrowed it from a neighbor. Do you know who the neighbor is?”
“No. I never saw them. I, uh, just opened the door with a little magical dust and let myself in. I found the scepter hidden behind a secret door and knew it was the perfect prop for my play.” That mischievous smile returned. “Besides, who’d expect a leprechaun to pass up a golden staff?”
“Who indeed?” Kaine lurched off the lounge and hobbled toward the door, shrugging off my attempts to help him. “I’m almost entirely healed. If you must come with me, then leave me alone.”
“Where are we going?” Jenn asked, staying in step with Kaine while Thad and I followed behind.
“Obviously, Sabrina is Thad’s neighbor. And since she was staying by the lake, I have a good hunch where we can find her ship. And if we find her ship—”