Dangerously Fierce (The Broken Riders Book 3)

by Deborah Blake

  “Not just anywhere,” Beka said, furrowing her brow. “If he’s the one who has been controlling the kraken, and I think he probably is, then we know he has been sighted in a certain area. It’s a big ocean, but we can narrow it down a little bit.”

  “You said something before, about how it wasn’t impossible that he was Blackbeard’s ghost,” Alexei said. “Want to explain that?”

  “Not Blackbeard’s ghost,” Beka said, a small smile playing at the edges of her mouth as she dropped her bomb. “Blackbeard himself.”

  “What?” Calum sputtered. “Blackbeard lived and died hundreds of years ago. Are you suggesting this guy is some descendent of the original pirate?”

  “Not at all,” Beka said. “Let me start at the beginning. When I got to the Otherworld, I started asking questions about how it would be possible for a Human to control a kraken. There were a few folks who had vague memories of hearing about something like that, but they were long enough ago that no one was sure where they’d heard them.”

  “I’m not sure it is a Human,” Alexei interjected. “When I confronted this guy who calls himself Blackbeard, or Blackbeard’s ghost, he knew who I was. So he had to have connections with the Otherworld. I’m pretty sure he was a Paranormal, because he didn’t look happy when I threatened to tell the queen he was here.”

  Beka waved her hand at him. “Oh, I believe it. I’m getting to that part. Give me a minute.” She waited for him to settle back down.

  “So I finally tracked down a slightly shady centaur who specialized in growing exotic herbs for, shall we say, less than savory magical users. He told me that years ago, he traded some herbs to a witch for a handful of gemstones and a golden goblet. Kyler, that was the centaur’s name, still had the goblet, and he showed it to me. It was definitely from this side of the doorway. Spanish, maybe.”

  “What does this have to do with our supposed pirate?’ Alexei grumbled. He’d never had much patience with long stories, unless he was the one telling them.

  “I’ll tell you, if you let me finish,” Beka said. “I asked him what the witch wanted the herbs for, pretending that I didn’t believe she would have trusted him enough to have told him.” She grimaced. “Centaurs have huge egos and they are so prideful. Anyway, he swore that the witch bragged to him about being hired by - wait for it - a dragon.”

  “What?” Alexei sat up straight. “You’re kidding.”

  Calum’s eyes grew even wider. “A dragon? Seriously? How is that possible?”

  “It’s possible,” Beka said. “They used to live on this side of the doorway, long ago. There’s a reason there are stories about them in just about every culture. But most of them retreated to the Otherworld long before the queen issued her decree forcing all the other Paranormals to move there, because it is a lot harder to hide a twenty foot dragon than it is a two foot tall sprite.” She shrugged. “Of course, they can change shape, so in theory they could have lived among Humans as long as they wanted to. But they’re much more comfortable in their own skin, for the most part, and even more proud than centaurs.”

  Calum blinked a few times, digesting this. “Alexei told me that your dog, I mean, the one you travel with, is really a dragon. But I thought he was kidding.”

  Beka laughed. “He is. But he’s a Chudo-Yudo. They’re dedicated to spending their lives living here and traveling with their own chosen Baba Yaga. You might say they are a breed unto themselves. And they’re used to staying in disguise most of the time, either as extremely large dogs, like mine, or occasionally a really, really large cat like my sister Bella’s Koshka.”

  “Never mind that,” Alexei said, impatient to hear the rest of the tale. “What does this dragon and his witch for hire have to do with Blackbeard and Bethany?”

  “According to Kyler, the dragon in question had hired the witch to create an enchanted amulet. One which could be used to control a kraken. Mind you, this was before the queen’s edict, back when Paranormal folks lived on this side of the doorway and traveled back and forth freely between the worlds. Kyler said the witch, who was apparently a regular client, bragged that this dragon was famous for taking on the guise of various Human pirates, including…”

  “Blackbeard!” Alexei and Calum cried in unison.

  “Exactly so,” Beka agreed. “The witch said that this dragon wanted a way to control a kraken so he could use it to attack ships carrying treasure. Dragons are big on treasure,” she explained to Calum. “It’s kind of their thing. They’re seriously into shiny objects.”

  “So the witch made this amulet for a dragon,” Alexei said. “Dragons don’t leave the Otherworld much these days, although the queen gives them a little more leeway than most of her other subjects, as long as they stay within the rules. Did your new centaur pal know where the amulet ended up?”

  “No,” Beka said. “He barely remembered the entire transaction until we started talking about it. That’s one of the downsides to a very long life. Lots of memories, and it is easy to misplace ones that aren’t important. The last he knew, the witch had given the dragon the amulet, gotten paid in gemstones and treasure, some of which she used to pay the centaur for his herbs, and that was it. And before you ask, he said the witch died years ago, so we can’t ask her either.”

  “Crap,” Alexei said. He thought for a moment. “So according to the centaur, the amulet that controlled the kraken belonged to a dragon who perhaps used to disguise himself as a pirate. Is it possible that our Blackbeard is this dragon? They can do small magics, so that might explain the illusion of a ghost ship.”

  Beka shrugged. “This is the Paranormal we’re talking about here. Anything is possible. You met this ah, person. What do you think? Could he have been a dragon in Human guise?”

  Alexei clenched his fists. He just wanted to get his hands on whoever this guy was and make him give Bethany back. “He was arrogant enough. Could have been. I’m sorry, I just don’t know.” He grimaced. “If I’d known it was a dragon, I wouldn’t have provoked it. Dragons aren’t exactly known for their even tempers.”

  Beka laughed. “Alexei, you would have provoked this creature if it had been the queen of England.” She sobered. “But if it is a dragon, that does put a different spin on things. We’re pretty tough, but we’re not really equipped to take on a dragon in a direct fight. Especially not in the middle of the ocean, where my powers are at their weakest.”

  “What about your dog?” Calum asked. “I mean, he’s a dragon, right?” He grunted. “I can’t believe I’m having this conversation.”

  “He is,” Beka said. “But although Chewie is a very large dog, he is actually a pretty small dragon. All the Chudo-Yudos are, since they have to be able to take on reasonable size forms. If our mystery pirate really is a traditional dragon, Chewie would be way out of his weight class. But I sent word to an old friend - well, an old friend of my sister Barbara, to be more exact. We’ll see if he shows up. In the meanwhile, we’ll just have to do the best we can, and pray that the dragon who commissioned the amulet lost or sold it years ago, and it is currently in the hands of someone more manageable.”

  “And what do you think the odds of that are?” Calum asked, sounding discouraged.

  Alexei and Beka exchanged glances. “Not great,” Alexei admitted. “It would be out of character for a dragon to give up anything valuable. But you never know. Denizens of the Otherworld do a lot of barter and swapping, so anything is possible.” He ground his teeth. “Either way, it doesn’t matter. I’m going after Bethany.”

  “We’re both going after her,” Beka said, crossing her arms and looking determined as only a Baba Yaga could. Even one who was blonde and perky.

  “I’m going too,” Calum said. “I know I probably won’t be much help in a fight, what with these.” He patted his useless legs. “But she’s my daughter, and if there is any chance she might need me, I’m not staying behind.”

  “Neither am I,” said a deep voice from the doorway. An extremely large black Newfoundl
and stood there, the door still swinging behind him. “If you’re up against a dragon, and Beka’s backup doesn’t show, I’m your best chance at coming out on top.”

  “Chewie,” Beka said, affection and admonition warring in her voice. “How many times have I told you that it isn’t polite to eavesdrop?”

  The dragon-dog gave a barking laugh and came the rest of the way into the room. “About as many times as I have told you not to leave me out of important discussions. So which one of us isn’t teachable?”

  Calum’s jaw was open so wide, Alexei thought he might accidentally unhinge it.

  “I can understand what he’s saying,” Calum said with amazement. “Holy shit. I’m hearing a dog talk. Have I lost my mind? Or have I caught whatever it is that Alexei has that lets him understand animals?”

  Beka laughed. “You’re hearing a dragon talk. That’s completely different. Only Alexei can actually hear dogs talk, as far as I know. It’s probably something to do with the huge dose of The Water of Life and Death he got.” When Calum looked like he was going to ask her what she meant, she waved a hand in his direction to stop him. “Sorry. We don’t have time to get into that. Chewie can make himself understood by anyone he chooses. Obviously, he has decided it will save time if I don’t have to constantly translate for him.”

  “Speaking of time,” Alexei said. “We should get going. We don’t know what that bastard is doing to Bethany while we’re standing around talking about who or what he might be.”

  “Going where?” Calum asked plaintively. “We don’t even know where to look.”

  “I have a couple of ideas about that,” Beka said. “Do you have a map of the local waters?”

  “Of course,” Calum said indignantly. “I’m a fisherman.” He pointed Alexei toward a drawer in the living room, and Alexei went to fetch it. He unrolled it on the table in front of them and Beka grabbed a pen.

  “Alexei, do you have any idea where this so-called Blackbeard’s boat was when you confronted him?”

  He nodded. “Around here somewhere,” he said, circling a spot on the map.

  “I see what you’re doing,” Calum said, holding his hand out. “I should be able to add in most of the spots where the local fishermen saw the kraken, or said they spotted this pirate.”

  When they were done, they had about a dozen places indicated on the nautical chart, in a rough triangle.

  “That narrows it down quite a bit,” Alexei said, tugging on his beard. “But it still leaves us a lot of ocean to cover.” The thought of Bethany waiting for him to come and rescue her, while her captor was doing who knew what to her, was making him crazy. He wanted to tear the room apart with his bare hands and acid churned in his stomach.

  “I had a thought about that too,” Beka said. “Once we get close to the area where this mystery ship might be, hopefully we can find a dolphin or a shark or some other sea creature who has seen it, and can direct us to where it is.”

  Alexei took a deep breath. “Oh. That might even work.” It had never occurred to him that his new gift might end up being so vital.

  Calum blinked. “I forgot about Alexei being able to talk to sharks. It’s such a bizarre thing.”

  “It’s an Alexei thing,” Beka said. “He’s still figuring it out. But it may come in very handy under these circumstances.” She stood up decisively. “Well, if we’re going to do this, I should go out to the bus and get some supplies. No point in going up against a pirate without a few swords.”

  She grinned happily at Alexei, who gave her a ferocious smile back. Beka might look like a harmless California surfer girl, but the walls of her reconditioned bus were decorated with an extensive and completely usable sword collection. Along with the shells and driftwood, of course. The Baba Yagas didn’t much like guns, but they were quite fond of sharp pointy objects.

  “Uh, I hate to point out the obvious,” Calum said, gesturing at his chair. “But we’re not all going to fit on the back of Alexei’s motorcycle. Or in my truck, even if it weren’t still parked in front of the bar.”

  “Hmmm. Good point,” Beka said. “Besides which, we want whoever left that note to think that Alexei might have done what he was told and left town.” She turned to Alexei. “You should probably put the Harley away in Calum’s garage, out of sight.”

  “How are we going to get to the boat then?” Calum asked. “Call a taxi?”

  “I think a taxi driver might object to a bunch of people carrying swords, accompanied by a talking dog,” Alexei said. “I’ve had problems with things like that before.”

  “Of course you have,” Calum said in the tone of a man whose credulity has been stretched to its limits for one night.

  “We’ll just have to take my bus,” Beka said. “It’s not exactly inconspicuous, what with having mermaids and ocean scenes painted on the outside, but once we get to the docks, I can use a ‘don’t look over here’ spell to make it blend in better. And it will carry all of us, plus Bethany once we get her back.”

  Alexei heard the words she wasn’t saying: no matter what kind of shape Bethany was in when they found her.

  “What are we waiting for, then?” he said, grabbing up the map.

  Beka bit her lip, looking at Calum’s wheelchair. “The bus might be magical, but it isn’t exactly handicapped accessible. Sorry,” she said to Calum.

  “No problem,” he answered. “This big bear has been carrying me around for weeks. He can carry me and the wheelchair onto the bus, and back off of it onto the boat.” He swallowed hard. “I might have let my pride get in the way of my pulling my weight around here up until now, but I’ll be damned if it is going to get in the way of my going to rescue my daughter.”

  Chapter 18

  Bethany was dozing lightly when she heard the hatch door swing open with a slam, jolting her fully awake. Her wrists jerked, making them sting where she’d been trying to work her way out of the ropes. All that her efforts had gotten her were bloody wrists alas; the ropes were too thick and tied too well. Note to self: never get kidnapped by sailors. They really knew how to tie knots.

  She was hungry and tired and thirsty, although she had tried to make her water bottle last. She hoped they were coming down to let her go. Barring that, she hoped it was time for breakfast. Or lunch. She wasn’t sure what time it was.

  But any hopes she had of a semi-innocuous visit were dashed when she looked up and saw the strange bearded man. Red, the other one had called him. He was wearing a strange pirate costume, for some reason, although she had to admit it suited him.

  The skinny guy who had given her the water skulked behind his so-called partner and didn’t make eye contact with her. Instead, he carried a bulging, lopsided bag that clanked like it was full of some kind of metal, which he deposited against the side of the hold with a number of other anonymous and similarly odd-shaped parcels. The smell of fish was faint, as if the hold hadn’t been used to store its usual cargo for a while.

  “What ya got there?” she asked, probably unwisely. “Lost pirate treasure?”

  The big man laughed, the sound booming in the restricted echo chamber of the hold. “Exactly that, my lady,” he said, strolling across the floor to stand over her. He held a large pipe in one hand, puffing on it contentedly and wreathing his head in smoke.

  “I do apologize for your less than stellar accommodations,” he said. “I am not usually so bad a host. My name is Hayreddin. Welcome to my ship, Miss McKenna.”

  His less impressive companion came over to join them. “I think you mean my ship, don’t you Red?” He looked at Bethany’s bloody wrists and winced, but didn’t say anything.

  “Of course, of course. This fine ship actually belongs to my friend Len here. Both he and it are quite indispensable.”

  Bethany saw a glint in his eye that made her think that neither boat nor man were nearly as valuable as Len might suppose. There was something about this Hayreddin that made her skin crawl, although she couldn’t have said what exactly it was. Some atavis
tic instinct that screamed “danger” at her, despite the fact that he wore an old-fashioned sword buckled around his broad waist, and Len had a gun tucked into the back of his pants.

  “Not that I don’t enjoy the smell of old fish and tar as much as the next girl,” she said. “But I don’t suppose there is any chance of getting out of this hold.” She hadn’t been able to find anything within reach that could help her escape. She hoped that there might be more opportunities up on deck in the open.

  Hayreddin shrugged. “I do not see why you should stay down here. I have merely been waiting to see if your paramour the Black Rider would be sensible and leave town as I suggested, or if I would have to drag your dead body out to show him the error of his ways, should he be foolish enough to ignore my directions.”

  There was so much wrong with that sentence, Bethany didn’t even know where to start. The dead body part, of course, but also, Alexei was most definitely not her paramour, and really, who the hell talked like that anymore? As for the possibility of Alexei being sensible? She ranked that up with little green men living on Mars and the fact that the polar ice caps were melting being a fluke that had nothing to do with global warming. Alexei, sensible. Ha. And also, HA. If he hadn’t shown up yet, it was only because he hadn’t been able to find her.

  But if her host hadn’t figured that out yet, she wasn’t about to enlighten him. Probably it wouldn’t be smart to tell him that she meant nothing special to Alexei, either, since her value to her captors seemed to depend on that misconception.

  She liked to think that their friendship would be enough to make him come after her. But she sure as hell wasn’t going to sit around like some damsel in distress and wait to find out.

  “Thank you,” she said meekly. “I’m a little claustrophobic. And I think I might have heard a rat.” She gave a fake shudder and tried not to laugh when Len glanced around a little wild-eyed.

  Hayreddin reached down and hauled her to her feet with no discernible effort, although she noticed he didn’t offer to untie her hands. He left it to Len to undo the rope around her ankles and then help her up the ladder to the deck, although once up top Red offered her a mug of tea, which she gratefully accepted.