Flashfire (25 page)

“Why change now?”
Sigmund asked with a smile.

Erik exhaled with irritation. He might have paced again, but Sigmund cleared his throat.

“Come on, Pops. Have a bit of faith.”

Pops? Erik glanced back to find a woman standing beside his dead son. She was no more substantial than Sigmund, although she was beautiful. She was richly dressed, her red-gold hair coiled in elaborate braids and a pearl as big as his thumb hanging from each ear lobe. Her décolletage was as creamy as ivory, her lips as red as blood.

“Meet Angelina,”
Sigmund said.

“Dead like you,”
Erik guessed.

Sigmund nodded.
“Dead like me. She wants to tell you something, but I know you don’t speak Italian.”
Sigmund arched a brow.
“Venetian, actually.”
Angelina looked back and forth between then, her fingers toying with her rings in agitation.

Erik caught his breath and guessed again.
“Lorenzo’s mother.”

At the sound of her son’s name, Angelina’s features lit up.

“The very same,”
Sigmund confirmed.

“What does she have to tell me?”
Erik demanded.

“Hey, don’t go falling all over yourself thanking me for my help.”

“What does she have to tell me?”
Erik asked again, his old-speak even more emphatic than it had been.

Angelina confided in Sigmund, her words spilling in her haste to be heard. Within moments, Erik was verifying that he understood everything when Lorenzo’s old-speak unfurled in Erik’s mind.

“I need your help.”

Erik was so stunned that he pivoted and looked in the direction of the sound of Lorenzo’s voice. Was it a trick? He glanced back to find Sigmund grinning.

“Lorenzo wants my help,”
Erik echoed in amazement.

“Well, who says old dogs can’t learn new tricks?”
Sigmund asked and Angelina smiled.

“Is he sincere?”
Erik had to ask.

Angelina nodded, her eyes shining, and gestured for him to go. Erik checked the power of his dragonsmoke barrier, kissed his partner and his child, then went to his old friend.

Just before he left, Erik glanced back toward his son and found Sigmund standing alone. His son was looking into the distance, a slight smile on his lips. Erik followed his gaze and saw two shadows. One was Angelina, and she was laughing up at a dragon that hovered over her.

The dragon shimmered blue, the glimmer of change sliding over his body from snout to tail.

One last time.

Erik knew he was glimpsing the future, his gift of foresight telling him what would be. He understood that he would soon feel the fading of one
Pyr
in the great network of dragons in the world. There was no doubt in his mind which
Pyr
it would be.

If anything, that just made Erik’s mission more imperative.

Chapter 13

T
o Lorenzo’s relief, Erik came quickly, and he wasn’t laughing.

Although that didn’t mean Lorenzo was home free.

Lorenzo sat on the summit of the rock in his human form and watched the onyx and pewter dragon descend out of the night sky. The moonlight gleamed on Erik’s dark scales, illuminating how he moved with powerful surety.

It had been a long time since the two had first flown together, since they had lingered together in Venice. Lorenzo smiled at the longevity of their friendship, regretting that he had turned his back on it in recent years.

Erik landed beside Lorenzo and shifted to human form. He sat down beside him, his gaze sweeping over the site. Lorenzo kept silent, knowing that his old friend was checking for foes.

“Surrounded by your smoke,” Erik said, as if surprised. He slanted a look at Lorenzo, one that seemed to see right through to his heart. “Help with what?”

By way of reply, Lorenzo recounted the prophecy.

“Flashfire lights the solitude

Of the
Pyr
with most to lose.

Firestorm plus an ancient spell

Fuels lust that sees his sense dispelled.

Flashfire’s promise is a lure

To cheat the
Pyr
of his true power.

Will he see through the disguise

Forget the song, seize the prize?

The future hangs upon his choice

Between life and love, or sacrifice.”

He watched Erik think about it, ponder its references. He handed Erik the piece of parchment. “Is it genuine?”

“Where did it come from?”

“Cassie got it from Angelina, in a painting at my lair.”

Erik blinked but recovered himself. He almost smiled. “Darkfire,” he murmured, then nodded. “I had heard that a prophecy about you had been entrusted to your mother. That was long ago, when Salvatore was considered to be less than reliable.”

“Who made the prophecy?”

“Sophie, who was Wyvern then. She feared it would be lost if she entrusted it to Salvatore but refused to give it to me. She said it was rightfully yours. She believed that Angelina should be its custodian, which was in defiance of everything I believed, but Sophie insisted upon her way. I assumed it had been lost along with Angelina.” He slanted a look at Lorenzo. “I wasn’t sure why she consulted me, since she was not prepared to discuss it. Perhaps she saw your mother’s future and wanted to ensure that one of us knew.”

It should have been destroyed in the fire that ruined his mother’s home. Somehow darkfire had enlivened the painting and made it possible for the prophecy to pass to Lorenzo.

Darkfire had changed everything.

Lorenzo frowned.

“What is flashfire?” Erik spoke idly, as if the question were unimportant to him. “Do you know?”

Lorenzo wasn’t quite ready to surrender all of his secrets. “Don’t you?”

Erik shrugged. “I know it is specific, provoking change for a single dragon. Darkfire, in contrast, introduces unpredictability for all of us.” He eyed Lorenzo, who avoided his gaze. “I thought you might know more.”

“Why?”

“Just a feeling.”

Lorenzo admitted a different truth. “You should know that I had the third darkfire crystal in my hoard for centuries.”

Erik’s gaze brightened at that. “Had?”

“It’s gone.”

“You
lost
it?” Erik was incredulous.

“No!”

“You gave it away?”

“No.” Lorenzo decided he would have to tell Erik all of his suspicions about the crystal’s disappearance. “On that day you came to ask my help, during Rafferty’s firestorm, another
Pyr
came to my lair. I smelled him, couldn’t identify him, but that was when the crystal disappeared. My father gave it to that
Pyr
.”

“Describe the scent.” Erik wasn’t even blinking, he was so intent upon Lorenzo. Lorenzo did, trying to put into words how evocative that
Pyr
’s scent was of the past. Erik nodded. “Drake. It could only be Drake. The Dragon’s Teeth Warriors would not have come without him, although their scents are similar.”

Lorenzo met Erik’s gaze. “I thought my father was feeble and hibernating, but it appears that he has been meddling.”

“He had access to the hoard,” Erik guessed.

“We kept our treasures together.” It pained Lorenzo to admit the truth. “He has been incapable of breathing dragonsmoke for a number of years. I breathed the perimeter mark where it was necessary but allowed him permission to cross it.”

“You have cared for him.”

Lorenzo shrugged, disconcerted to hear the pride in Erik’s tone. “I had no choice.”

“Did you not?”

“He is not what he was.”

“We always have choices,” Erik said with resolve. He nodded and looked over the site again, but Lorenzo could sense that his mood had improved. “So the crystal is in Drake’s possession, wherever he has gone.”

“You’re relieved.”

“I have been unable to sense them since the darkfire was released. I have been worried.”

“Marco came to me. He seemed to know where the crystal had gone and left in pursuit of it.”

“Interesting.” Erik frowned. “It seems I must delegate this concern, at least for the time being.” He turned to Lorenzo and smiled slightly. “So,
Slayer
or
Pyr
? What’s your choice?”

Lorenzo averted his gaze, not willing to confess all of his intentions just yet. “First explain the verse to me. What ancient spell?”

“Dragon Bone Powder,” Erik said without hesitation. “The
Slayer
Chen used it during Niall’s firestorm, to heat the flames of the firestorm and distract Niall from pending attack.”

“But my firestorm was sated.”

Erik shrugged. “It fires the lust in all of us to some extent, feeding that primal desire to mate. So close after your firestorm’s spark, it could fuel yours more.” He spared Lorenzo an inquiring glance and Lorenzo frowned.

“Yes. That must be it.” He hated the idea that his desire for Cassie had been manipulated and might be false, but Erik seemed to anticipate that concern.

“Niall says the distraction ended but not his desire for Rox. He says without the Dragon’s Bone Powder in his nostrils, he can defend her as he should.”

Lorenzo was relieved. And here was proof that the experience of the other
Pyr
wasn’t entirely useless to him, as he had preferred to believe. He still felt vulnerable, as if some dragon had targeted him as prey. Could Erik and the
Pyr
truly help him out of this closing trap? Or was he simply paranoid because of his love for Cassie?

“What’s the threat?” he asked.

Erik considered him. “Have you been attacked?”

“Pursued,” Lorenzo allowed.

Erik nodded. “Chen had a brand, which he used to enslave the shadow dragons���those dragons raised from the dead by Magnus to be his slaves—and force them to his will instead. The brand was broken and the shadow dragons destroyed, but he is not one to accept defeat. I believe he has a plan to put himself in charge of all of us, with the use of that brand. It is ancient magic. He has targeted Thorolf in the past, although I’m not sure why. It is possible that he has similarly targeted you. I would not be surprised if he possessed some ancient magic unknown to us. He is far older than any of us.”

“Like the Dragon Bone Powder.”

Erik nodded again.

Lorenzo considered the vista spread before them, then decided he had more to lose by
not
confiding in Erik. “Balthasar is here.”

“I know.” Erik was unruffled by this news.

“He attacked the house last night.”

“I know.”

“He had offered to give me the keys to claim Magnus’s most treasured artifacts if I joined the
Slayer
side.”

Erik’s eyes gleamed as he watched Lorenzo. “You declined?”

“And he attacked last night, presumably to change my mind.”

Erik drummed his fingers on the rock, deep in thought.

“There is another
Slayer
here, named JP.”

“The brother of Lucien,” Erik said. “Long slumbering and indifferent. I smelled him here. I wondered who or what had roused him.”

“I met him when he was with Cassie.”

Erik was surprised by this. Lorenzo knew by the way he turned suddenly. “You have had many visitors.”

“Including you.” Lorenzo shrugged. “Grand Central Terminal.”

“Because so much hangs in the balance.” Erik watched him, and Lorenzo had the sense he knew more than he was telling. He was keenly aware that he had ducked Erik’s question about flashfire, and suspected Erik was, as well. “What of your father?”

“What of him? He is evidently more capable of making trouble than I had believed. Perhaps you know more of his game than I do.”

“Perhaps he is trying to ensure your happiness.”

Lorenzo smiled at the idea.

But then, the prophecy had come from Angelina. Maybe his father knew of it and was helping him to fulfill it.

Or maybe he was helping to propel Lorenzo toward the choice Salvatore—and Erik—would have made easily. He felt his own resistance to the notion of commitment dissolving, because he knew that Cassie was different.

He loved her.

He would do whatever was necessary to defend her.

It was nearly sunrise, the sky lightening in the east behind them. “What are you going to do?” Erik asked softly, and Lorenzo took a deep breath.

“Trust and hope for the best.” He looked at Erik. “I have a plan, but I’ll need your help.”

Erik smiled and offered his hand. “Anything in my power to give is yours, my friend.”

Lorenzo knew he’d been given a gift beyond expectation, maybe one he didn’t deserve.

He could only hope he hadn’t asked for it too late.

Cassie nearly jumped out of her skin when the car alarm beeped softly. She heard the locks disengage but only had time to sit up before Lorenzo slid into the passenger seat beside her.

It wasn’t quite dawn, the eastern sky just faintly tinged with light. He was wearing jeans and a hoodie, dressed more casually than she’d ever seen him.

“Sleep well?” he asked with his usual composure.

“No. You?”

“Not at all,” he admitted, then glanced directly at her for the first time. He did look haggard and his expression was wary. She wondered where he’d spent the night. Watching over her maybe? The idea gave her a thrill.

She remembered her dream then and thought she understood why Lorenzo had such a low opinion of humans. “Is that why you hate humans? Because of the way Angelina died?”

He turned to look at her so quickly that she thought he’d get whiplash. “Who told you about that?”

“I don’t know. I had a dream.”

Lorenzo frowned and looked out the windshield again.

“
Puttana
,” she said quietly and he caught his breath. “
Diavolo
.”

Then he bowed his head and pinched the bridge of his nose.

It was true. Her heart clenched for him.

“It was awful,” Cassie said, wanting to comfort him but not knowing how. “And you were so young. Do you remember it?”

He inhaled and exhaled slowly. She could almost feel him composing himself. When he turned to face her, his gaze was clear. She knew he would tell her the truth. “I have nightmares about fire.” He swallowed. “And about being trapped in darkness.”

“But you use fire in your show,” Cassie protested. “And you do escapes. You’re going to be buried alive here. Doesn’t that terrify you?”

Lorenzo nodded. His eyes glittered and his manner was suddenly intense. “I refuse to have my life and my choices shaped by fear.”

Cassie could relate to that. She smiled. “The best thing to do when you fall off the horse is to get right back in the saddle?”

His smile was cautious. “Something like that.”

“It was my mom’s favorite saying. She told us that all the time.”

“Us?” Lorenzo asked. Cassie was glad he didn’t mention that her mom hadn’t followed her own advice after that last disappointment.

“Three older brothers. We’re not that close.” Cassie looked out the windshield, but felt Lorenzo’s scrutiny.

“They took your father’s side,” he murmured, guessing the truth.

Cassie nodded and changed the subject, knowing she did it clumsily. “Your dad came too late.” She looked up at him. “At least he came. My father didn’t come at the end.”

“Some humans are vermin, then,” Lorenzo said quietly.

Cassie smiled sadly and nodded.

Lorenzo reached out and took his hand in hers. His thumb moved back and forth across her skin. His hand was warm and his touch was comforting. He sighed. “The thing is, the entire incident was his fault.”

Cassie was surprised. “How so?”

“Salvatore taught me to beguile. He’s very good at it, perhaps the best at beguiling ever in all the
Pyr
. He liked to gamble in those days, and he liked to win.”

“He cheated,” Cassie guessed. “With the beguiling, he could cheat.” She was astonished that Lorenzo was confiding in her. Something had changed in him, something was compelling him to share more of himself with her.

Cassie didn’t know why, but she would meet him halfway.

She turned her hand so that their fingers interlaced. She had a new and potent sense that they could be good together.

A team. She’d never had a partner or confidant before, not like this, and Cassie liked the prospect a lot.

Lorenzo’s smile was rueful. “He wasn’t temperate. He always won. Every time. Every
single
time.” He sighed. “If he’d mixed it up a bit, maybe people wouldn’t have become suspicious.” He shrugged. “But he had to win. In those days, anyone who was very lucky was assumed to be in league with the devil.”

“
Diavolo
,” Cassie whispered.

Lorenzo turned to look at her. “He beat the wrong man too many times. It was only a matter of time before someone figured out that he always came to my mother to celebrate his triumph at the tables, and eventually someone saw him shift. When he was seen changing shape on the roof of my mother’s house, the die was cast. He should have known what would come of it. He should have understood enough of human nature to see the future, but no.” He frowned. “He left her alone. Undefended.”