Bridges Burned (Entangled Teen) (Going Down in Flames)

by Chris Cannon

  “I love it. Thank you.” Without thinking about it, she leaned in and kissed her grandmother on the cheek and then did the same thing to her grandfather. He appeared embarrassed, but something in his expression softened.

  Were they not supposed to do public displays of affection? She didn’t care right now. “You’ll probably think my gifts for you are lame. I can tell you what they are if you want, or you can be surprised.”

  “What did you buy?” her grandfather asked.

  “Since you seem to like food as much as I do, I bought you a dessert-of-the-month-club membership.” She shrugged. “You’re kind of hard to buy for since you seem to own everything already.”

  He grinned.

  To her grandmother she said, “I knew you loved gardening, so I bought a plant-of-the-month-club membership for you. I hope that’s not stupid.”

  “I think it’s thoughtful,” her grandmother said. “And we can take care of the plants together so I can teach you how to garden.”

  “I’d like that.”

  “I’m not sharing my dessert,” her grandfather said in a deadpan tone.

  Bryn laughed. For a moment, all was right in her world, or if not right, at least not bad.

  Waitstaff rolled in silver carts covered with steaming china cups of hot cocoa. Half of the drinks had a large marshmallow floating in the chocolate-colored liquid. The others were plain.

  The scent of chocolate mingled with the fresh-cut-pine scent of the trees and created a happy smell.

  “Cocoa?” her grandmother asked.

  “Yes.” Bryn headed toward a cart and arrived at the same time as Jaxon, who actually wore a genuine smile on his face.

  “Was Santa good to you this year?” she asked.

  He held out a set of car keys dangling from a key fob with an emblem she didn’t recognize.

  “You got a car?”

  He looked at her like she had two heads. “Not just a car, it’s a Bugatti Veyron. There are only three hundred made a year.”

  Okay. So it was a fancy elite snobby car. “Oh, that’s great.” She tried not to laugh, but he continued to glare at her.

  “I’m sorry. I don’t know anything about cars. I’m sure yours is the best car ever invented and everyone will be jealous. There, is that better?”

  “That’s what you should’ve said the first time.” He reached for a cup of cocoa with a marshmallow and offered it to her. “I assume this is what you want.”

  “How did you know?”

  “I’ve seen you eat. ‘Less is more’ isn’t an adage that applies to your diet.”

  She opened her mouth to argue and then stopped. “You’re right.”

  “Your grandmother takes hers plain.” He handed her another cup, which she accepted with her left hand. He didn’t let go of the cup.

  “Are you planning on taking it back?” she asked.

  His breath caught. “That’s a Vanleigh.”

  “What’s a Vanleigh?”

  “Your bracelet is a Vanleigh.” He released the cup and then pointed to the bracelet. “See the signature V on the clasp?”

  She set the cocoa down to look at the mark he indicated. “Does that mean this is a limited edition one-in-three-hundred bracelet that your friends will be jealous of?”

  “No. It means it’s a one-of-a-kind bracelet that most of the women in this room would kill to have. And you had no idea.” He shook his head like he was astounded.

  “Do you know what I see when I look at this bracelet?”

  “I hate to ask.”

  “I see a pretty bracelet that sparkles when I do this.” She moved her wrist back and forth so it caught the light. “The person who made it, or how much it cost, doesn’t matter.”

  Jaxon dramatically touched his forehead. “Take that back before my head explodes.”

  Boom!

  The teacups on the tray rattled. The Christmas trees shook, and everyone froze.

  “I don’t suppose that’s fireworks?” Please, please, please let it be fireworks.

  Kaboom! Boom. Boom.

  “It’s lightning,” Jaxon said. He set his cocoa back on the cart and scanned the room. Bryn shoved her china cups on the cart and ran to her grandparents.

  “Is this another attack?” she asked her grandfather.

  “So it would appear. Marie, take all the women and children into one of the stormproofed rooms. I’ll gather our forces and launch a counterattack.”

  “It’s Christmas Eve, damn it.” Bryn said to no one in particular.

  “They don’t appear to care. Come with me,” her grandmother said.

  No way. She wasn’t a sit-on-the-sidelines-and-let-the-men-fight-for-her kind of girl.

  “Bryn.” Jaxon grabbed her arm and spun her around. He placed his white-lipped mother’s hand into Bryn’s hand. “Take care of my mother.”

  Double damn it. “Sure.” She looked at Lillith’s terrified face. “It’s okay. We’re going somewhere safe.”

  “I can’t lose this baby, too.” Lillith’s eyes were huge.

  As if by some unspoken word, all the women gathered in the center of the room while the men stalked the perimeter.

  “If you’d all follow me, we’ll head into the storm shelter,” her grandmother announced in an “Isn’t this a lovely change of events” voice.

  Bryn put her arm around Lillith’s shoulders and guided her along behind her grandmother. She wanted to ask questions, like, is this a storm shelter or some kind of bunker they’d had built in case of attack? Asking that question might upset Lillith even more. What had Lillith meant when she said she couldn’t lose this baby, too? Had she lost other babies? How far along was Lillith and how delicate was a dragon pregnancy? She knew humans had to be careful to avoid certain things during pregnancy, but she had no idea how their dragon counterparts worked.

  She itched to join the men in the ballroom, to help plan a counterattack. Even if she didn’t fight, she wanted to know what was going on. Damn Jaxon for putting her in this position.

  Chapter Thirty-One

  They walked down a hallway toward the library and then turned down a smaller hall, which led to a set of enclosed stairs.

  “Be careful on the stairs,” her grandmother called out. “They aren’t very wide, and we don’t want anyone to fall.”

  The steps ended in a well-lit room, or rather, many rooms which flowed into one another through giant archways. There were several sets of couches and chairs in various areas. Floor-to-ceiling bookshelves covered one wall, and a row of shelves contained toys for children of all ages. At the far end of the room, wait staff set trays of cocoa out on what looked like an enormous buffet table. Platters of cookies and bottled drinks were also set out along the buffet.

  “Is this some sort of bunker?” she asked her grandmother.

  “It’s a shelter that can keep out weather or enemies, as the need arises.” She cleared her throat and spoke in a loud voice. “Please help yourself to cocoa or snacks and make yourself comfortable. Children, help yourselves to the toys. We have our own fully stocked kitchen. If you’d like anything besides what is being served on the buffet, just ask.

  “Bryn, come with me,” her grandmother said in a normal tone of voice.

  She followed, bringing Lillith with her. They stopped at a set of cream-colored couches. Once they were seated, her grandmother took Lillith’s hand.

  “This shelter has enough food and provisions to last six months. The walls are designed to be earthquake-proof so that even an Orange dragon can’t blast through. You and your baby are safe.”

  Lillith blew out a shaking breath. “Thank you. I know it’s ridiculous, but twice before this I lost—”

  “No need to explain,” her grandmother said. “I understand better than you know.”

  Her grandmother had lost a baby, too? What the hell?

  “Can I get either of you anything?” Bryn asked.

  “Why don’t you bring us some cookies and cocoa,” her grandmother said. />
  Bryn did as she was asked. After she approached the buffet, other women did the same. Had that been her grandmother’s plan?

  Back at the couches, Bryn kicked off her shoes, which made her grandmother’s eyebrows shoot up.

  “If it weren’t for my current obligation, I’d be up there helping with the counterattack. Consider shoes off to be a small rebellion by comparison.”

  “Then it’s good Jaxon asked you to take care of me,” Lillith said. Her color seemed to be returning.

  “If he hadn’t, I would’ve dragged you down here kicking and screaming,” her grandmother said. “And I could do it.”

  “I have no doubt about that.” Bryn laughed. “Now I know where my stubborn streak comes from.”

  The sound of women talking and eating drifted through the room. Bryn glared up at the ceiling. “We can’t even hear what’s going on, can we?”

  “Sonic wave–proofing has the side effect of soundproofing. Which isn’t bad.”

  Unless you wanted to know what was going on. Bryn tried to focus on what she could do, which was talk to Lillith and keep her calm.

  “Have you picked out a theme for your nursery?” she asked.

  “Theme?” her grandmother said. “What do you mean?”

  Okay, so she’d never decorated a nursery herself, but she’d seen nurseries on television and seen the things for sale in the stores. “You know, some people decorate with ducks or Disney characters.”

  Lillith pressed her lips together like she was trying not to say something.

  “Most of the nurseries I’ve seen are decorated either blue or pink,” her grandmother said, “None of them had a theme.”

  “Jaxon’s room had the cutest teddy bear theme,” Lillith gushed. “Ferrin didn’t think it was masculine enough but I loved it.”

  Bryn filed that information away for later. For right now, she’d keep Lillith talking to keep both their minds off the attack. “Have you picked out something for Asher yet?”

  “I can’t decide. There are so many cute things but I can’t ask Ferrin, because he’ll say none of them are masculine enough, and Jaxon practically runs from the room whenever I ask him to look at anything baby-related.”

  “I’d be happy to look at baby things with you. It sounds like fun.”

  “Really?” Lillith grinned like she’d just received the best Christmas present. “That would be wonderful. Maybe we could go shopping one day and have lunch.”

  “I’d like that.” The funny thing was, she meant it. Lillith was fun to hang around with and she laughed at Ferrin’s pretentiousness. How she lived with the man without killing him was a mystery.

  Lillith leaned back on the couch and sighed. “Would it be all right if I closed my eyes for a bit?”

  “Of course,” her grandmother said. “There are bedrooms down the hall if you’d like to lie down.”

  “Thank you, but this will do just fine.” Lillith kicked off her shoes and tucked her feet up underneath her.

  “I’m going to make the rounds and check on all my guests. Bryn, why don’t you stay here with Lillith so I know you won’t wander off.”

  “Yes, ma’am. I can do that.” Her grandmother floated from group to group, checking on the women and children scattered throughout the shelter. Through all of it, she remained calm and composed, projecting confidence like there wasn’t a thing to worry about. How did she do that?

  Lillith’s breathing became regular. Now that she was asleep, could Bryn run upstairs to check on the situation? Not without her grandmother finding out and kicking her butt. So she stayed where she was, working her way through the plate of cookies.

  Were Clint and Ivy having a fun Christmas Eve? They lived next door to each other, so they were probably celebrating together. Valmont was probably knee-deep in homemade food. What else had he told her they did on Christmas Eve? Some kind of tournament. Ping-pong, that was it. His family had a ping-pong tournament. Which was kind of strange, but in a fun, wholesome family values kind of way.

  What she wouldn’t give to have Valmont here right now. Not that she couldn’t stand on her own two feet, but having backup in the form of a handsome knight would be a bonus.

  Boredom and a full stomach made her eyelids heavy. How long had they been down here? An hour? Women and children slept on the couches. Her grandmother sat across the room speaking with the ladies who’d shared their table during dinner. They looked to be the same age as her grandmother. Maybe they were her friends.

  Falling asleep on the sidelines while Jaxon fought upstairs was not an option. Time for caffeine. Standing up, she made her way over to the buffet and asked for coffee. While she was there, she grabbed another plate of cookies.

  Now what? Polite conversation with strangers would be awkward. She walked over to a bookshelf and spotted a sudoku book. Maybe that would keep her mind off how little control she had at the moment.

  Five completed puzzles later, a phone rang. Everyone turned toward the sound. The phone, which Bryn had overlooked, hung on the wall by the entrance into the shelter. Keeping a sedate pace, Bryn’s grandmother crossed to the phone and answered it as if it were any other phone call.

  Bryn moved to the edge of her seat, clutching a throw pillow while she watched her grandmother. The set of her jaw and her relaxed stance gave nothing away. After hanging up, she turned to face everyone.

  “The attack is over. The Directorate has everything under control. Even though they feel it’s safe to return to your homes, you are all invited to stay the night. We have more than enough bedrooms for everyone’s comfort.”

  Women picked up their children and headed toward the steps. No one ran or panicked. They walked at a leisurely pace. All she wanted to do was race upstairs and demand answers. Was she the only female who’d wanted to fight? How was that possible? Ivy would’ve joined the battle if she were here. Was it a Clan thing or a class thing?

  Who knew? Either way, it was damn irritating.

  A hand touched her arm. “Don’t march upstairs demanding answers,” Lillith said. “Even though the men will appear calm and act as if they have everything under control, they’ll still be on high alert. I’m sure your grandfather is ready to rip someone’s head off over this incident. His Christmas Ball was disturbed by an act of war.”

  “Act of war?” Chill bumps broke out on Bryn’s arms.

  “What else would you call attacking the estate where every single Directorate member is known to be?”

  She hadn’t thought of it that way. “Will you stay the night?”

  “Ferrin will make that decision, and I’ll let him because it will give him the sense that he is in complete control of something. A Blue male with wounded pride is one of the most dangerous creatures on the planet. Remember that in your dealings with Jaxon.”

  “Are you afraid of your husband?” Uh-oh. Boredom must’ve turned off her filter.

  Lillith stared off in thought. Which was scarier than an outright answer. “I never fear for my safety or Jaxon’s. However, I do fear for the safety of others.”

  And suddenly Ferrin seemed scarier than he’d ever been. Great.

  Bryn stood. “The crowd has cleared. We better go find Jaxon before he accuses me of losing you.”

  Chapter Thirty-Two

  As they climbed the steps back up to the main area of the house, a cold feeling skittered down Bryn’s spine. Was the house damaged, or the grounds ripped up like at school? Whoever was behind these attacks seemed to have dragons from every Clan. How was that possible? The first attack on campus came in the form of sonic waves, then they’d used wind, directing tornado-like gusts to attack the theater building. In Dragon’s Bluff, the attack had come in the form of giant hail. Tonight had been the Black dragons’ weapon, lightning. That only left the Reds’ weapon, fire. Whenever the next attack came, would it come in the form of flames?

  On the way back to the ballroom, everything appeared normal. Had they panicked over nothing? The smell of burned wires drifte
d through the air. Lillith’s grip on her arm prevented Bryn from running ahead.

  Inside the ballroom, Bryn found the source of the smell. Christmas trees lay on their sides, with their branches burned and broken. Ice, or maybe glass, glittered on the ballroom floor. Most of the floor-to-ceiling cathedral windows were missing their panes or were left with jagged remnants of glass.

  Had the attack been centered on the ballroom? If it had, that meant the attackers knew when and where everyone would be at a certain time. Men stood in groups with their heads together, talking heatedly. Blood spotted their dress shirts, and in a few places it puddled on the floor.

  She approached a man she didn’t know who was seated on the floor, clutching his arm against his body. Blood soaked through his shirtsleeve.

  “If you’re hurt, I can help you. I’ve had some training as a medic.”

  Indecision showed in his eyes.

  “Jaxon Westgate trusted me to heal his classmates.” Maybe that would sway him.

  He pulled the sleeve of his shirt up, revealing a jagged tear, like a talon had ripped through his skin. Bryn sat on the floor next to him and focused her life force, visualizing it as a small sun glowing in her chest. Then she directed the flow of Quintessence through her right arm and out of her fingertips. Tracing her fingers back and forth over the torn skin, she visualized the raw edges pulling together, the muscles knitting themselves back together.

  Concentrating on healing the young man, she didn’t pay attention to anything else. When the cut was healed, she smiled up at him.

  “Thank you.” His words were sincere.

  She nodded and pushed to her feet. That’s when she noticed everyone staring at her. And she did mean everyone, even her grandparents. Nothing like a captive audience.

  “Does anyone else need help? I can’t heal broken bones yet, but I’m good with flesh wounds.”

  You could have heard a leaf hit the grass.

  “Over here.” A woman pointed to her son.

  “I’m fine, Mother,” the young man protested.