“Normally, I would be open to hunting with you, providing we could season and cook the prey once we caught it, but Freysha is setting up traps, and I’m going to try to capture the thief.” I glanced warily at him, expecting him to tell me to stay in the booby-trapped house for my own good.
“The thief who attempted to trap you in another world and take your sword.”
“Yeah, I’m a little irked with her.”
“You are a superior warrior and will capture and defeat her,” Zav murmured, shifting my braid aside so he could kiss the back of my neck. A trickle of magic zinged down my spine and lit every nerve in my body.
“I appreciate your confidence.” I appreciated a lot about him. My hand strayed to his bare thigh to stroke him before I thought better of it. “I also want to know what the link is between her and the creatures she sent after me in the artifacts room and the creatures that attacked us on the dwarven world. Zoltan says they’re from the same place.”
“Nagnortha is a place that is not governed and where few visit. The undead roam free there. I had thought the winged creatures were made from scratch with magic, but it is possible they were captured on Nagnortha and taken to Dun Kroth. This would not be the first time in the history of the Cosmic Realms that someone has gathered minions from there to use to further their power.”
“You think the half-dwarf thief is responsible?” My mind boggled at the idea of someone like me figuring out how to gather undead minions. I couldn’t even get the upper hand dealing with the vampire in my basement.
“Unlikely. She may be a minion herself.”
I blinked. “You think she’s undead?”
I’d seen pictures of her. She’d appeared to be living and breathing.
“Not necessarily, but she could be allied with whoever is behind establishing a presence on Dun Kroth.”
“I told you that she claims she’s a descendant of the dwarf who made Chopper, right? Since she’s a thief, I assume she’s lying, but there’s a part of me that worries she isn’t.”
“You believe she may be the rightful heir to your blade?”
“No. I mean… probably not. What are the odds, right?”
Zav paused in his ministrations and considered me. I didn’t think he was judging me, but knowing about his honorable nature made me feel guilty.
“If I find out she is the proper heir to the sword… what do you think I should do?” I knew what I would feel obligated to do, but I also knew how much harder my job would be without Chopper. If not for its ability to cut through magical armor—not to mention dragon scales—I would be dead by now. Dead a dozen times over. Fezzik was useful, but this past year in particular, I’d run into a lot of magical beings who could deflect the bullets.
A lot of magical beings who were criminals and who were dead or imprisoned now, thanks to the work I’d done with Chopper. What would this thief do with the sword? Break into the National Museum of Natural History and steal the Hope Diamond?
“When the time comes, you will know the right thing to do,” Zav said, “and you will do it.”
It wasn’t an order. It was a statement of his belief in me. Hell, after that, I’d have to give the sword to her. But only if she proved it was rightfully hers. I wouldn’t fall for some scam.
“I guess if I have to, I can borrow one of the magical swords in Willard’s artifacts room. After all, I put a lot of them there.” I forced a smile, though I knew none of the weapons in her basement could pierce dragon scales. There probably wasn’t another sword on Earth that could.
“Yes. You are a strong warrior with or without that sword. Regardless, you will find a way to defeat your enemies.” The corners of Zav’s eyes crinkled. “And vex them while doing so.”
His faith in me stirred up my emotions, and I leaned forward and kissed him before remembering that I shouldn’t. He made a pleased noise of contentment as I slid my fingers through his hair. We wouldn’t have sex in here, but a little cuddling couldn’t hurt. Cuddling with kissing and stroking.
“Are you not hot in all that clothing?” Zav slid a hand under my jacket, fingers trailing across my stomach, teasing me through the fabric of my shirt. “You will feel better once you remove it.”
I was breaking a sweat, but… “That could lead to us doing inappropriate things in my mother’s sauna.”
“Inappropriate?” Zav sounded offended, and I almost laughed. “It is never inappropriate to have sex with one’s mate.”
He peeled my jacket off my shoulders, and my body disobeyed my wishes to be proper, shifting to let him remove it.
“It is when you’re in other people’s houses. Or outbuildings.” I attempted to sound stern. We weren’t going to do this. Not here.
“You wish to go outside?” He shared an image of us pressed against the back of the sauna, grass under our bare feet as we writhed naked together, and warm excitement flooded me at the thought. I wasn’t sure if it was my idea or he was sharing his excitement, but either way, it made me forget some of my inhibitions.
Surely, this place could be hosed down, right? I could clean it for Mom afterward…
“It would be cold out there.” I shifted toward him, sliding a hand down his chest and letting myself gaze into his smoldering eyes.
That was a mistake. They flared violet, and his power flowed over me, heating my body in a way that had nothing to do with the sauna.
“Inside is better.” Zav kissed me and pulled me into his lap, and I lost all interest in protesting his affection.
You’re a bad influence, I thought, my lips too busy now for talking.
I am a dragon.
Is that supposed to be an explanation?
I am your mate, and we have not joined in the nest for ages. I will have you now. He pushed my shirt over my head, fingers exploring my sensitive flesh even as I let my hands roam over his.
Yeah, he would. After he’d helped Sindari, I wanted to reward him, and his touch and his magic felt so good, as it always did.
Until he paused, pulling his lips from mine and frowning toward the wooden ceiling.
“Zav,” I groaned. His hands were cupping my bare breasts—I didn’t even remember my bra coming off—and had been sending the most delicious waves of pleasure through me. “You can’t stop now.”
Someone had to be coming—someone important. Then I sensed the aura of a familiar dragon. His sister Zondia was flying this way. I groaned again, for another reason, and thunked my head down on his shoulder.
“She has come to retrieve me to appear before the Ruling Council. An emergency meeting has been called. I did not expect my people to come together to address this problem so swiftly.”
“Can’t she wait twenty minutes?”
Leave it to Zav to convince me that I wanted to have hot randy sex in a sauna only to stop once things got heated. I slid a hand down his abs to stroke him in case he could send her away for a while. I wanted the dwarves to get their home world fixed as much as the next person, but what difference would a few minutes make?
His gaze lowered to mine again, and he growled deep in his chest. “Yes. She will wait. I have informed her that we will mate first.” He pulled me against his chest, kissing me hard. Far too many nights have passed since we mated.
It had only been a week, but maybe that was a long time to a horny dragon. Admittedly, I’d missed him, too, and waves of pleasure surged over me as we returned to kissing. I just had to get the rest of my clothes off…
But Zondia didn’t do the polite thing and fly away. She kept coming, her presence ringing my senses like a gong. What was she doing? Coming to have coffee with Mom and Gondo?
Her approach didn’t seem to bother Zav. Didn’t dragons think it odd to have sex with their siblings nearby?
I tried to enjoy his ministrations, but Zondia glided over the trees and settled right atop us, talons scratching overhead as she settled onto the roof of the sauna.
I drew back from Zav. “You’ve got to be kidding me.”
“What?”
“Your sister.” I jabbed a finger upward. “Can’t you send her somewhere?”
“She will not enter while we are mating.”
“Yeah, but she’ll be right up there, sensing and hearing everything. What if I scream?”
Hell, Mom and Gondo and Freysha—and Rocket and Sindari—would hear that too. This wasn’t going to work.
“I like it when you scream.” He smiled and slid his hand up my side. “A superior mate ensures that his female has intense pleasure before taking his.”
“Yes, yes, and I do appreciate your thoughtfulness, but not with an audience.” I squirmed off his lap and grabbed my shirt and jacket, turning a circle before finding my bra dangling over the heater.
“My sister is indifferent to our sexual activities.”
“Oh, I’m positive.”
“Val!” Mom called from outside. “There’s a dragon on my sauna.”
By that, I trusted Zondia hadn’t shifted into her human form yet.
“We’ll spend a whole weekend together once everything is resolved,” I promised Zav, patting his knee as I tugged on my clothes.
Zav’s eyes glinted with displeasure at this delay, and I worried he would use his magic to seal the door, but all he said was, “Then I will ensure it is resolved extremely quickly.”
“Good. I look forward to it.”
“Yes. You will.”
His smoldering gaze had returned, almost making me rush back over to kiss him again, but then Mom added, “It’s a huge purple dragon!” and the spell was broken.
I stepped outside, the cold air battering me unpleasantly after the warmth of the sauna. Mom and Gondo stood on the covered porch, gaping at the roof of the sauna.
“I believe she’s a lilac dragon,” I said.
Zondia’s head came into view, lowering on her long neck. She looked at me, but only briefly before turning that serpentine neck to peer into the sauna.
Your mate is less foolish than you, Zondia spoke telepathically to Zav but included me. It was an unexpected compliment, though it was doubtless meant as more of an insult to Zav. She knows the importance of maintaining order in the Realms and not allowing races that we rule to be harmed, nor delaying for the disgusting carnal pleasures of this species.
I expected Zav to tell her to sod off, but he sighed and walked out, draping an arm over my shoulders. Yes, she is a good mate.
I patted his naked abdomen. “Is your robe ever going to reappear?”
“Yes. It is most chilly and damp out here.” He released me and poofed the robe into existence, neat and tidy and unwrinkled as always. Even more impressive, it arrived on his body.
“Dragon magic is truly amazing,” I said.
His eyes glinted. “I am amazing.”
Zondia made a hawking noise deep in her throat, like a giant owl about to regurgitate a wad of mouse bones.
“That’ll kill the moment,” I muttered.
Fortunately, she didn’t spew anything out. Maybe that had been the equivalent of a teenager saying gag me.
Freysha strolled out of the forest and must have spoken telepathically to Zav, for he nodded and opened a portal.
“I’ve built several traps in places I think a spy would perch,” Freysha informed me, then shared images of certain trees in my mind. “I believe they are quite crafty, and the magic is well hidden—I have learned a few things about mechanics and physics from goblins and my engineering class—but they are not sophisticated enough to be selective about whom they ensnare, so do not walk near those particular trees.”
“I’ll stay out of the woods. And tell Mom to keep Rocket inside.” An image of a golden retriever hoisted into a tree by one ankle came to mind. Mom wouldn’t forgive me if that happened.
“Good. You may also want to remove your sword from your person, so its aura is more noticeable. It tends to camouflage itself when it’s on your back.”
“Most of the time,” I said.
Freysha hadn’t been involved in the fae adventure, but she’d seen my sword when it was tainted, so she nodded, knowing what I meant.
“Thank you, Lord Zavryd.” She bow-curtseyed to him. “Val, I will speak with my parents and make sure no further elves pester your mother or come question any more of your family.”
I hadn’t even imagined them going to see Amber. Ugh.
“Thank you.”
Freysha sprang through the portal. Mom and Gondo, coffee mugs in hand, watched this without comment. Apparently, seeing someone go through a portal wasn’t as alarming as opening the door on a nude dragon.
“We will also go,” Zav told me as the portal to Veleshna Var faded, and Zondia created another one, presumably to the hot, sauna-like dragon world. “I believe you can best this thief, should you get your wish and the opportunity to face her, but if she is like you, you must be careful and not underestimate her.”
Even though I’d been thinking of the woman as similar to me, because we were half-human, being compared to a thief still made me twitch. I knew Zav didn’t refer to our professions, but I couldn’t help but think of Chopper and how he expected me to do the right thing if the rightful owner was found.
“I won’t,” was all I said.
“Good. I look forward to finishing planning our wedding festival and mating with you when I return.” Zav kissed me, keeping it much more chaste than our earlier kisses. Maybe he didn’t want to inspire more gagging noises from his sister.
Zondia flew through the portal, and after patting my butt, Zav turned into his dragon form and leaped through after her. I looked toward the porch to see if Mom reacted to dragons shapeshifting in front of her, but she’d gone inside. Gondo had opened the back door to the Jeep and was pulling out Dimitri’s yard-art guardians to set up.
I headed over to help him. It would give me something to do while waiting for my thief to show up.
Before we got started, Mom reappeared, this time with a stack of towels and a big bottle of some cleanser. She gave me an unreadable look and headed into the sauna.
18
Mom and I sat out on her covered porch, her in a rocking chair and me in an Adirondack chair made from recycled skis. We wore jackets and wool caps since twilight had come, and a mist had started falling. Fezzik rested in my thigh holster, an extra magazine in my belt in case I got in a gun-slinging match with the thief. I also wore the armored vest Nin had crafted for me.
Chopper was in its harness in the front seat of the Jeep. From here, I could keep an eye on the sword, but it wasn’t so close that I could easily grab it. With luck, our thief would think she had a shot at getting to it first. In other words, it was bait.
Mom’s chair creaked softly as she rocked in it, her feet up on the split log railing. She’d deigned to put on slippers, the air chilly even for someone with lots of callouses from walking barefoot. The fuzzy footwear was somewhat at odds with the Glock I’d seen her stick in her jacket pocket. I’d told her I would handle any trouble that came, and had deliberately placed my sword outside, so the thief shouldn’t go into her cabin, but I couldn’t blame her for being prepared.
Rocket sat alertly at the side of her chair, ears perked as we listened to nocturnal critters scuttling around in the brush under the porch while he gazed toward the property across the street. A porch light was visible beyond the trees at the front of the property. I had dismissed Sindari earlier in the day so I could summon him tonight if I needed him. And because he’d been scent-marking trees that Rocket seemed to believe were his.
“You don’t have to stay out here with me,” I said, looking up from my phone.
I’d been texting people and pretending not to be bored sitting out there, but it wasn’t working that well. Everyone else seemed to be busy tonight. I was hoping for an update on the decoy boyfriend, but Amber hadn’t responded to my hints for information. Only my therapist Mary had responded, replying to my query about whether it was normal to be worried about the guests that your fiancé
was inviting to your wedding. She suggested I increase the days I attempted my meditation practice and sent some mantras on positive thinking that I could repeat when needed.
“No?” Mom asked. “I assumed we were bonding.”
Earlier, Mom had been reading, but it had grown too dark. We hadn’t turned on the porch light, though I supposed it was pointless to sit in the dark. I hadn’t activated my cloaking charm, so the thief would sense me. Should I activate it? No, she wouldn’t believe that I would leave the area without Chopper. What I was hoping was that she would see me here and think she was good enough to steal the sword out from under my nose. She had better not be.
“I’m just trying to catch a thief,” I said.
Mom gave me a long look, though I don’t know what she could have been searching for in the dark. Did she think I’d lied about my reason for staying? Did she think I was here because I thought she was too old and helpless to take care of herself?
“It was just a bear,” she said.
Hah, I’d been right.
“I know.” I decided not to mention the elf that had peeped at her from the trees before coming to question her. Hopefully, Freysha would talk to her mother, and nothing like that would happen again. “I really am here trying to catch the thief. A lot of weird things have been going on, and she’s behind at least half of them.”
“What makes you think she’ll show up here?”
“I’m here.”
“How… self-centered.”
I snorted. “She’ll be able to sense me if she’s close, and she may be able to sense the sword from farther away. It’s got a powerful aura for a magical item. It’s also possible she has some way of tracking me with magic. She had no trouble finding me at Willard’s office and setting up a trap in the basement.” Though in retrospect, she might have gone to Willard’s office to steal that book, and it had been a coincidence that I was there. Maybe she’d only set up the trap when she’d realized she had the opportunity. She could have simply had that purple box of doom in her van for emergencies, like normal people carried first-aid kits and flares.
Secrets of the Sword 2 (Death Before Dragons Book 8) Page 15