For the Heart of Dragons (24 page)

Byrd groaned in pleasure as his eyes rolled back. “Mine,” he growled one last time before retreating and leaving Noah slumped over her, panting.

Gathering his head in her arms, she hushed him. “You’re all right.” The scales that had tried to work their way out had receded. “Just breathe. A bonded dragon is a protective dragon.”

“A bonded dragon is a grumpy dragon,” Noah snarked back.

Kara laughed but was glad to see that his color was returning to normal. “Sometimes.”

“Someone said they saw a dragon land,” the man at the door said as he stepped into the barn, “but I wasn’t expecting this.” He kept his distance as he walked over to the shelves. “You look like you have a bit of a situation on your hands.” Picking up a blanket, he turned back to face them. “Is there something I can do to help?” He shook the blanket out and held it in front of him as he approached. A warning rumbled up from Byrd, but the man ignored it as he held the blanket out for Kara to take.

“Easy,” Kara said, touching Noah’s chest. She reached out and accepted the blanket from the man.

He squatted down so he was eye level with Noah. “I’m Brigs. Is there someone I can call for you?”

Unsure how to answer, Kara turned back to Noah.

His eyes were back to brown and flashed with recognition. “Daniel. Can you get me Daniel Callaghan?”

“Aye,” Brigs said, standing up and stepping away. “But it’ll take him a minute to get here.” He paused at the door and looked back. “Who should I tell him is calling?”

“Don’t,” Noah answered.

Kara’s head jerked around to look at him, shocked that he wouldn’t answer.

“Just tell him to come alone and don’t tell anyone. Eternity’s been compromised.”

Kara turned back to look at Brigs.

He stood at the door with a serious look on his face. “I’ll find you some clothes while you wait.” With that, he turned and disappeared back through the door.

Kara’s mind reeled as she turned back to Noah. “What?” There was no way she could have heard him right.

Noah swallowed before looking down at her. “Someone at Eternity is responsible for Raven’s death.”

That was a blow she hadn’t seen coming. Kara sat in his lap, completely lost for words. Eternity was the only hope they’d had of stopping these people. What were they going to do now?

***

This day just keeps getting better and better.
Kara cuddled into Noah’s side, trying to process the tale he was spinning. It was unbelievable that someone who’d sworn to protect dragons was out trying to kill them and harvest their dragons.

Daniel sat on the other side of the booth, quietly absorbing the information. As Noah finished, Daniel leaned back. “I see.”

Kara bristled with anger. After being given all of this damning information, all he could say was ‘I see’? Noah’s arm squeezed her against him, keeping her from blowing up.

“What are we going to do?” Noah asked.

Daniel let out a long sigh. “Well, first, we need to get you and Miss Rose somewhere safe. You obviously can’t go back to your place.”

“Yeah, about that,” Noah interrupted him.

Daniel held up his hand, stopping Noah. “I’m already on it. The fire department called me when they responded to your alarm and found a dead body. We were all very relieved to find it was not you. Laurence is going to see what he can do to save your flowers.”

Kara felt Noah go rigid.

“Did Laurence drop my keys off at Kara’s office?”

A concerned look crossed Daniel’s face. “No.”

“Then who’d you send?”

“I didn’t.” Daniel frowned. “We couldn’t find your things at Raven’s, but Laurence assured us you had spare keys at home. Your wallet, however, is still missing.”

“No, it’s not,” Kara piped up. “I have it. It was with the files you sent over yesterday.”

Daniel went very still.

Kara’s heart skipped as Noah held her tighter to his side. Something told her that Daniel was not responsible for pulling Noah’s records.

“I think it’s best if we get you both out of here.” Daniel slid out of the booth. “Now.” He went over to the bar and rapped on it. “Brigs!”

Noah stood and pulled Kara up with him. He wrapped the blanket Brigs had given them around both of them.

Standing in the curve of his arm, Kara looked out over the pub. The warm tones of the wood lit by hurricane lamps should have made the mostly empty room feel safe, but after hearing Noah’s tale, Kara’s eyes checked every corner for enemies. The only other people in the bar were two old men tucked into a corner, but they were deeply involved in a conversation and paid them no mind. But even they made Kara nervous.

“All right,” Daniel called, bringing Kara’s attention back to him. “Go with Brigs.”

Kara turned her eyes to the owner of the bar.

Noah held her in place for a moment. “Do you trust him?”

Kara’s gaze shifted between Noah and Daniel, waiting to see what the man said.

Daniel stood tall as he answered. “With the life of the King himself.”

Nodding, Noah pulled Kara into motion. “Come on.” He followed Brigs out the back door.

Swallowing hard, Kara went with him. Worry ate at her. With Eternity compromised, their only hope lay with a man neither of them knew.

Byrd brushed against her mind, calming her anxiety.

A smile turned the corners of Kara’s mouth and she leaned into Noah, trusting his judgment. If Daniel’s promise swayed Byrd, then she would join them in facing whatever was to come. It was time to let someone else worry about things for a while. Besides, she had the man at her side to worry about. Noah may have found a balance with Byrd for the moment, but they were far from what she would call stable. And she was going to enjoy exploring every detail of his dual personality, helping him through his issues, and taking her time learning all of his facets, both mental and physical.

Epilogue

Scrawling his signature on the bottom of the page, Daniel let out a deep sigh and tucked the sheet into the folder. His report was not going to make Kyle happy. He’d suspected they had traitors in their midst, but to have two discovered in such a short time was horrifying. Now that he had a written account of everything Noah had said, he was going to have to get busy searching through his ranks to see who could be trusted. But that was going to be a monumental task. Eternity employed thousands of people.

Daniel pondered his problem for a moment. The best place to start would be with the maintenance man Noah had killed. Maybe his file would give Daniel some clues as to where to search.
Or maybe I should start with the bureaucrat who sabotaged the necklace.
That was an idea. He was still alive, and Daniel knew about what time he’d been in the lab. He could pull the surveillance tapes and easily identify the man. There were only twenty or so governmental liaisons with access to that lab, and Noah had given a fairly good description of him.

A knock at the door drew Daniel out of his thoughts. Looking up, he saw Kyle standing there, waiting for him.

“My Lord.” Daniel stood up as Kyle came into the room. He froze as another man followed the king in.

“I’m here for your report on Noah Dove,” Kyle said.

Daniel’s hand rested on the folder as he stared at the pair. Something didn’t sit right with him. He had never seen the king’s companion before. “About that,” he said, picking up the completed file and sliding it into the drawer on his desk. “I haven’t finished it yet.”

Kyle looked shocked. “But I thought you said you were working on it?”

“I am,” Daniel said as he turned to pull another file from the shelf next to his desk. “But something more important came up.” He flipped it open and pretended to read.

“What’s more important than stopping these murders?” the man following Kyle snapped.

Daniel looked up from his file. “Things.” He closed the file and set it on his desk. “And who would you be?”

The man stood rigid, on the edge of anger.

“This is Alan Meyer,” Kyle said, holding his hand out to the man. “Mr. Meyer is here as a representative for Minister Driskell.”

Daniel ran the man’s name through his memory. “Minister Driskell? But doesn’t he already have a liaison?” He was definitely sure the senator had another man on staff. A name popped into his head. “Eugene Henderson?”

Alan shook his head. “Eugene is Minister Lewis’s aide. Christopher Turner was Minister Driskell’s aide, but he had a family emergency. I’m taking over for him as of today.”

“Ah.” Daniel nodded his head as he remembered the man. Tall, dark hair, dark eyes, well built. He paused as things clicked into place. Christopher Turner fit the description Noah had given of the man who had been in the lab. Daniel licked his lips as his mouth went dry. “I do hope everything’s okay,” he said, trying to cover his alarm.

“He’ll be fine,” Alan assured him. “He just needed to be with his family for a while.”

Daniel drew in a deep breath as Alan spoke. The only scent of dragon on the air was himself and Kyle. Alan smelled human, but he’d have to get closer to be sure. He cast a quick glance at Kyle, but the king didn’t seem bothered by the new man.

“Enough about Chris.” Alan waved Daniel’s worry away and pointed him back to the conversation at hand. “What can you tell us about Noah Dove?”

Daniel cocked his eye at Kyle, but the king just shrugged. He turned his attention back to Alan. “I haven’t had time to complete my report, but Noah is safe. He’s working through his issues with Miss Rose, and I hope to have a detailed account of what happened in the very near future.”

“You don’t have that information already?” Alan pressed.

Daniel glared at the man. “Pushing a dragon who’s experienced a catastrophic rift the way Noah did can cause them to regress in their treatment.”

“Very true,” Kyle said, backing Daniel up.

Alan’s spine went rigid. “When do you think you will have his report?”

“Soon,” Daniel said vaguely.

Indignation made Alan bristle. “Don’t you care that an Ancient was killed while she was in this man’s care?” he snapped. “What did he see? What does he know?” The man’s eyes narrowed. “What aren’t you telling us?”

“I will get you my report as soon as it’s ready,” Daniel said as smoothly as he could.

“We cannot wait for your report!” Alan demanded, “Where is Noah now?”

“He’s in the care of a qualified psychiatrist who is helping him reconnect with his dragon,” Daniel answered in a very even tone. “He will be available for questioning when she deems he is stable enough for it.”

Kyle raised an eyebrow in question at Daniel.

Daniel locked eyes with him for a moment before looking back at the upset aide.

“Where is he?” Alan tried again.

“Can you get me some kind of report by this evening?” Kyle asked before Daniel could answer Alan’s question.

Daniel gave the king a sharp nod. “I will have something for you by this evening.”

“Very good,” Kyle answered before Alan could protest. “Then I will expect a report on my desk by midnight.” He turned and ushered the angry aide out.

Pausing in the doorway, he gave Daniel a knowing look. “And I need you to be available for a flight later. I need to stretch my wings.” With that, he followed the aide out and shut Daniel’s door.

Daniel let out a sigh of relief. Kyle knew something was up. His request was proof that he understood Daniel was holding back. A flight would give them time to talk alone.

Moving the file on his desk back to the shelf, Daniel took out the file he’d finished on Noah. He couldn’t turn this in to the king. It would end up in Eternity’s records, where anyone with the right security clearance could find it. He set the file on his desk and went to his safe.

Opening the door, he considered the contents. He had planned on giving everything to Kyle and letting the king decide what to do with it, but Alan had changed that. Taking out the files he had on Michael and Alex, he placed them on the desk with Noah’s. He pulled out the heart and added it to the pile. They would have to be removed from the building. This case was no longer safe within the walls of any Eternity location.

Making a decision he knew would get him in trouble, he shoved everything into his bag and slung it over his shoulder. Shutting off his computer, he went to his door and checked the hall.
Clear.
Moving quickly, he made his way towards the main gate. It was nearly quitting time, and no one but Alan would question Daniel leaving a little early.

A quick nod to the guard at the gate saw him out of the building and away. Now, he just had to make sure he wasn’t followed. He had to get this information somewhere safe, and he could only think of one location. The Dragon’s Wing. Brigs would know where to hide this stuff away until Daniel could figure out what to do with it. Then, for the safety of his men, he had to find a way to falsify all of the documents pertaining to the biggest case they’d ever had and pray that Kyle would understand and not have him court-martialed and hung for treason.

Acknowled
gements

It’s always hard when I come to the end of a book. I’ve fussed with it for weeks, lost sleep over it, chopped whole sections out to rewrite, and added thing in I never intended. It’s been bounced to betas and editors so many times, by the time I get the finished manuscript back before formatting I want nothing to do with it. But when the book ends and the characters are finally done arguing in my head, it lonely.

My friends have gone off and told me what they wanted me to know and left me to deal with my real life again. I don’t know what to do in those days after the final words are typed. Should I take a break and finally do those dishes that have piled up in the sink? Or maybe slay the laundry monster that’s creeping down the hall? But before I can do any of that, I have to take a moment and thank all of those people that make a book possible.

So many people have helped me along the way. My mom and Aunt Laura are still my best beta readers. You make sure I stay on track. Kathy-Lynn and Ethan have both listened to me and encouraged me when things haven’t gone the way I wanted. Krys and Karl, the loves of my life, need to be thanked for putting up with me while I slave away on my computer (No I’m not just playing on Facebook all day). The ladies of CTP have always been outstanding and encouraging. My editors are wonderful and put up with me when I’m difficult, and for that I need to thank them. And of course I need to thank my readers. Without you this book would not have happened. Thank you for supporting me and I hope you all have enjoyed the ride as much as I have.