Tempting the Dragon (18 page)

And this was Rance. Until now she could only wonder what kind of dragon he’d become.

He groaned, the sound echoed by Libby’s feminine voice. Startled, Jade glanced from one to the other. They were both dear to her, and she didn’t want to miss a thing, but if she had to make a choice, she’d watch Rance. As Libby’s Guardian, she’d seen Libby numerous times in her other form, though she’d usually been in the water. All Jade had been able to see was part of Libby’s other form, never her entire body.

And she’d never seen her change, either.

Yet Jade couldn’t tear her eyes away from Rance. There were no dancing pinpricks of light surrounding him as his body writhed, just a puff and a swirl of smoke while his bones lengthened and changed.

And then, while she watched, a huge beast with a fierce triangular head and sharp teeth stood where Rance had been. Curious, fascinated, Jade moved closer. His scales were iridescent, gray one moment, pearly shimmers of multicolors the next.

He reared up on his hind feet and spread his wings. Those things were massive; the wingspan had to be thirty feet or more.

Turning his head, he fixed his gaze on Jade. Unbelievably, she could see Rance inside the alien eyes.

As he lowered his head to the forest floor, she remembered his instructions and walked over. Even though her heart felt about to pound out of her chest, she reached out her hand and stroked his muzzle.

His skin felt soft, not leathery as she’d expected. As she touched him, his giant eyes half closed and she could have sworn she heard him give a low purr.

“Get on,” Breena urged. “I’m going to go mount Libby and take us through the portal. My people will be waiting for us on the other side.”

Though she felt awkward, Jade held her breath and climbed up on Rance’s massive neck. She gripped the finlike protuberances and used them to climb. When she reached a relatively flat area right between his wings, she sat, gripping a smaller knob that appeared to be designed exactly for this purpose.

“Now!” Breena shouted, and Jade realized the Fae woman sat astride the other dragon—a beautiful creature with misty multicolored scales who had to be Libby. As Jade stared, the dragon turned and looked directly at her with Libby’s soft eyes.

Then, as Jade marveled, she took a deep breath. A second later they went plummeting into the darkness of the portal.

* * *

Wildness coursing through his veins, Rance spread his wings and dove into the air. He’d heard stories of this sort of thing all his life. He’d seen the old illustrated books, traced the intricate miniature paintings with his fingers. But until this instant, he’d never known what it felt like to fly with the weight of a rider on his back.

That the rider should be Jade made the experience much more intimate. Surreal, even. Despite the thickness of his hide, the heat from her body warmed him all the way to his heart. He swore he could feel every breath she took, every tremor that shook her small body as she clutched his.

In his dragon form he’d always been able to sense human emotions such as anger or fear. He knew Jade felt a bit uncomfortable, then stark terror as they blazed through the portal. But when they emerged on the other side, shooting up into the impossibly blue sky like a bullet, he shared her exhilaration; the pureness of her wonder and joy fueled him, warming him to parts of his dragon body that had never felt such heat.

This warmth, this sense of oneness, gave him a deeper sense of being alive than he’d ever felt. Right then, he knew. No matter what happened from this moment on, he knew he could never let Jade go.

As he and Libby wheeled high in the sky, skimming through clouds, he spied the pearly marble castle up ahead. Breena said something to Libby but the wind snatched it away and Rance couldn’t hear.

Libby altered course, overshooting the castle and heading directly for the small village that lay beyond it.

As their shadows blocked the sun, people looked up. Those outside called for others, and soon it seemed as if every person there had streamed into the street. All looking up and pointing.

From this mass of Fae, Rance picked up a sense of awestruck wonder. No animosity or fear, just amazement. He glanced over at Libby and saw Breena sitting straight and proud, her expression both regal and full of warm greeting.

They landed in the open meadow between the village and the castle. In a few moments, they were surrounded by the villagers. Love radiated from them, all beautiful Fae who placed their hands on Rance and Libby. No one hung back; instead, they all seemed eager to touch and exclaim over the dragons in that beautiful lilting Fae tongue that Rance wished he understood.

After several minutes of this, Breena finally spoke. Everyone stilled at the sound of her voice. Faces upturned, they took in the sight of her on the majestic yet docile dragon. Libby saw him watching and grinned, exposing her sharp pearly white teeth. A few gasped, but most continued to study Breena.

At her command, Libby lowered her head so the Fae princess could dismount. As soon as her feet touched the earth, flowers of every color began to spring from the green grass.

She continued to speak, her arms outstretched. Even among a people known for beauty, Breena glowed with a brilliant sort of radiance.

The villagers began to ask questions. Breena answered, and even though Rance could not decipher the meaning, her rich voice rang of authority and love.

Still on Rance’s back, Jade shifted her weight. Like him, she understood nothing of what Breena or the other Fae said. From the intent way Libby listened, he wondered if she understood the language.

Breena spoke out—something that sounded like a command. The people cheered, their combined voices lifting to the sky.

Breena said something to Libby. At her command, Libby opened her immense mouth and roared a great cry of fire and smoke.

The crowd went silent. Then, one by one, Breena’s people dropped to their knees in front of her.

Only then did Breena turn to face Rance and Jade. “They have agreed,” she said happily. “They will march upon the castle. My people will approach from the other side. And we—” she grinned “—we’ll attack from the air.”

He felt Jade stiffen. Praying she didn’t question Breena, he tried to adjust his own attitude. In the history of his people, war had never ended well for their kind. Still, he knew in order to rescue Eve, he’d have no choice.

From the castle, a horn blared. A second later, another. The village Fae shifted uneasily, but continued to stand their ground. Breena shouted out some sort of order, and as the people began to march toward the castle, Breena mounted Libby and they lifted into the air.

Figuring he should follow, a second later Rance did the same, praying Jade had a good grip and wouldn’t fall.

As they soared over the pearly stone, the turrets mere feet beneath their wings, below them the startled soldiers pointed and stared. A few dropped their weapons. That was when Rance realized Breena’s plan just might work.

Circling, Rance and Libby set down in the middle of the courtyard. They’d barely landed when Cai appeared, surrounded by his usual retinue of men.

“What’s the meaning of this?” he called. Rance saw how, once the prince had glanced around and took in the reverence in the faces of his people, his own expression hardened.

“This isn’t going to be easy,” Jade warned Breena. She nodded and looked at Rance. The sadness behind her brilliant smile told him she’d never thought it would be.

“I’ve come back to claim my rightful throne, brother,” Breena called out, still seated on the back of her dragon. At her words, several of Cai’s soldiers muttered to one another.

“Go ahead and try,” Cai sneered. “Not only are you greatly outnumbered, but my soldiers are not afraid of your dragons.”

At his words, Libby opened her mouth and roared again. A rope of fire flared out, tendrils licking at the feet of the soldiers and no doubt singeing some of the hair on their heads. The men—save Cai—jumped back. Feet apart, hands clenched into fists, he never wavered in his stare at his sister. If looks could kill...

While Rance didn’t like Cai at all, he couldn’t help but feel a grudging admiration for the way the guy stood his ground. The Fae prince was either brave as hell or really stupid.

As if Cai heard his thoughts, he turned and directed a swift glare at Rance before focusing back on his sister. “I don’t know where you got the dragons,” he said. “But soon I will have one of my own.”

Rage filled Rance as he realized Cai was speaking of Eve. Shuddering, he tried to throttle the emotion, but a snort of fire escaped him. This time, the blast had Cai taking a step back.

Which pleased Rance inordinately.

“The one you have is not grown yet,” Breena declared. “Not only has she not come into the ability to change, but she’s gravely ill. I fail to see how she will be of any use to you at all in the current situation.”

“How do you know this?” For the first time since they’d appeared, Cai appeared discomforted. “No one except my closest advisers...”

“Enough,” Breena roared, sounding more like a queen than she ever had. “It does not matter how I know, only that I do. The only thing that matters is how you want to do this, Cai? Because that’s up to you. You can surrender gracefully and peacefully, or declare an all-out war.”

“War?” He raised an elegant eyebrow. “With what army? All I see is you, a human girl and two mangy dragons.”

This time, both Libby and Rance bathed him in fire, making sure the heat blasted him. This time, he staggered back, falling to his knees as he attempted to extinguish the flames.

“Consider this your final warning.” Breena shook her head, her long tresses swirling around her as if they’d taken on a life of their own. “In fact, my patience has worn quite thin. You stole from me what is rightfully mine. Do you intend to give me back my birthright peacefully or must I take it from you?”

As Cai climbed slowly back to his feet, for a heartbeat Rance thought the fool would continue his defiance. As a demonstration of his support for Breena, Rance reared up on his hind legs, unfurling his massive wings.

Cai barely glanced at Rance, and his face revealed nothing. Staring at his sister, he finally nodded. “You win. You may have your kingdom. But be aware, this is not over.”

At his words, all of his soldiers knelt and bowed their head in homage to their new queen.

Too easy, Rance thought. But a quick glance at Breena showed her apparent unconcern.

Now, at Breena’s instruction, Libby lowered her massive head. Breena dismounted, striding over to her brother. “Give it to me,” she ordered, holding out her hand.

Jaw tight, he reached into his pocket. Instead of whatever talisman Breena had asked for, a knife flashed in his hand. He leaped for her, either intending to stab her or hold the knife at her throat.

Chapter 18

R
ance couldn’t react—if he tried to burn the prince, the fire would also harm the princess. Libby had the same problem.

But Cai hadn’t counted on his men. His own men, who had already dropped and sworn their allegiance to their new queen.

Two immediately disarmed him, ignoring as he screamed invectives at them. With his hands behind his back, some sort of Fae handcuffs were placed on him. Then, and only then, did Breena repeat her request.

“Where is it?”

Eyes defiant, Cai didn’t respond.

Breena sighed. Waving one hand, she spoke a few words in that lilting Fae language. Immediately a hawk screeched from somewhere above them. One of the soldiers tossed Breena a heavy glove. She slipped it on her hand. Then she spoke again, holding her gloved hand out. The bird dove down like a bullet, slowing at the last minute to execute a graceful landing on her hand.

Fluffing its feathers, the hawk appeared pleased with itself. The bird wore a silken cord with a sparkling pendant around its neck.

“Here we are,” Breena cooed, carefully removing the necklace. Once she’d done so, she placed it around her own neck.

The soldiers cheered. As they did, they were joined by the villagers, who streamed into the courtyard through the open gate.

“And now,” Breena said, facing Rance, “we will find your Eve.”

Rance wanted to change. To him, it would be imperative that he greet Eve and her father as the man they all knew. As he swung his huge head around wildly, looking for a place, Libby spoke inside his head, in the way of all Drakkor.

Not yet, my friend. They will need us to travel back to the portal. You’ll have plenty of time to change back to yourself once we get them home.

Though he could barely keep his frustration inside, he nodded.
Fine.

“Now.” Breena spun to face Cai’s soldiers. “Tell us where we can find the girl.”

Eve. Rance could scarcely contain his impatience. Libby must have sensed this, as she swung her massive head around and fixed him with a clear look of warning.

Throttling his impatience, he waited, to all outward appearances calm. As long as Eve was all right, he would do nothing. But if Cai or his henchmen had harmed one hair on that little girl’s head... Nothing would restrain him.

“What’s she to you?” Cai spoke, his tone subdued and genuinely curious. Still, despite his lack of defensive posture—which might have been only because his hands were still bound behind his back—his sapphire eyes still blazed defiance. “As I’m sure you’ve learned, I have great plans for her.”

Rance hoped Breena didn’t tell Cai the truth about his relationship to Eve. He sensed if the Fae prince had even an inkling that the little girl was important to Rance, he’d hinder her ability to leave Fae out of spite.

“The girl doesn’t belong here,” Breena said, nothing more.

Cai’s gaze narrowed. “So? Lots of humans end up in Fae and never leave.”

“You know as well as I do that she’d not merely human. She’s half-Drakkor. She and her human father need to go home.”

“Her father?” Once again, Cai’s lips curved in that sneer that made Rance ache to reach out a claw and wipe it right off that face. “I’m afraid that’s not possible.”

Rance froze. Breena, too. “What do you mean?” she asked in a deadly calm voice. “Why would that not be possible?”

Cai stared at his feet with studied nonchalance. “Because he died.”

Died? This time, Rance could not ignore the flash of rage. He roared, sending a wall of flame toward the Fae prince. Breena quickly gestured, making an invisible wall to block it. Otherwise, Cai just might be dead, too.

Calm yourself
, Libby ordered, her voice brisk and authoritative in his head.
Focus on what’s most important. Eve. We’ve got to get her out of here first. You can’t go around meting out retribution. Not yet.

Yet. Clutching on to that word, he took heart. If someone had harmed Jim, they would pay. But Libby was absolutely correct. Getting Eve out had to be a priority. The only priority for now.

Stepping back, Rance refolded his wings. Cai looked from him to Breena and back again. “What is it that you’re not telling me?” he asked, his narrow gaze full of speculation.

She ignored him. “Did you kill him?”

“Why would I do that?” Cai’s indignant tone seemed fake. “He had a heart attack and his spirit left before we found him.”

Breena cocked her head. “And the child? Did the child witness his death?”

“She was asleep in another room. Though they wanted to be together, we kept them apart as much as possible so the girl could rest.” Cai spread his hands, his effort to appear sincere making Rance wonder what else he might be planning.

If Breena harbored any of the same suspicions, she gave no sign. “Where is his body?”

“In a grave.” Cai shrugged. “We buried it. If I remember right, that’s what humans prefer.”

Though it took real effort, Rance forced himself not to think about the circumstances that must have surrounded Jim’s death. He could only hope Cai had spoken the truth and Eve hadn’t witnessed them doing anything to Jim.

“Do you wish to visit the grave site?” Cai’s silky smooth tone contained more than a hint of mockery.

“No.” Breena shook her head. “Bring out the girl,” she demanded. “Now.”

Immediately, several soldiers rushed off to comply.

Watching them go, Cai shook his head. “A waste of time,” he said. “As you’ve already pointed out to me, she’s of no use to anyone.”

“She has family who love and miss her,” Breena told him. “With their help, she’ll be able to grow into what she was meant to be.”

“If she doesn’t die first.” To Rance’s disbelief, Cai laughed. “She’s still pretty sick. My healers didn’t have much luck with healing her. It’s that same old Drakkor illness. As I’m sure you remember, it usually is fatal. I haven’t seen any reason to think this girl will be an exception.”

Rance bit down hard to keep from revealing his fury. Then, to his shock, he felt Jade’s small hand stroking his hide. She offered her support in the only way she could without drawing Cai’s attention, through touch.

Warmth filled him, along with a sense of calm. Women like her and Libby and even Breena were a rarity and he considered himself damn lucky to have them in his life. He’d make her aware of his gratitude later, when he could.

And also later, he’d need to consider the truth about how Jim had died. If he learned Cai had killed the other man, he’d plan how to avenge his friend and Eve’s father.

As the soldiers reappeared, they brought with them a stretcher, one man supporting each end. On the cot, Rance could only see a motionless form under a blanket.

His senses prickled as a feeling of foreboding filled him. Eve had been pretty sick before. He didn’t want to think about how much worse she might have gotten since she hadn’t been under a hospital’s care. He was all she had now, and he vowed no matter what it took, he’d get her the best medicine money could buy.

And then, as the soldiers carried her over to Breena, she opened her eyes and looked at him. Really looked at him. With a flare of hope, he wondered if she recognized him inside the Drakkor body, even though he knew that would be highly unlikely.

When she turned away without giving the slightest hint of recognition, he swallowed back his disappointment.

“A lake monster!” she exclaimed. “With wings!” Though her voice wavered from weakness, she pushed herself to a sitting position and stared, her blue eyes huge in her pale face. “Oh, my gosh! Not just one, but two of them!”

The excitement in her tone made Rance grin, even though as a dragon it looked more like baring his teeth. Seeing her alive and well, his chest felt about to explode with love.

And then Eve caught sight of Jade, sitting motionless on Rance’s back. “You can ride them?”

“Yes.” Jade’s voice clogged with emotion. “Maybe someday you can, too.”

“Oh, I’d love that!” Sighing happily, Eve’s bright gaze drank both Rance and Libby in before fluttering half-closed. She yawned, and lay back on her stretcher, tugging up her blanket to her chin before falling back asleep.

“I used a sleeping spell,” Breena told him. “We don’t need her panicking when she goes through the portal. That’s scary enough when you know what’s going on. Plus, once you’re home, her slumber will give you both enough time to shape-shift back.”

Rance dipped his big head in a nod of agreement.

Breena strolled around to stand by Libby. With her elegant hand she stroked Libby’s nose. “Once I get things settled here, I’ll come visit you.” She looked up at Jade and smiled. “Don’t forget to call me when your cousin and her friends are ready to deliver.”

“I won’t,” Jade answered.

“Now, Rance.” Breena’s voice turned serious. “If you could contact the other Drakkor—or the ones you mentioned who are protecting them—and let them know the queen of the Fae would like to form an alliance, I would appreciate that.”

Again, Rance nodded. He appreciated that she’d asked instead of attempting to dictate. Breena would make a good queen. The Fae had chosen wisely.

“Are you ready?” Breena asked.

“Not yet,” Rance replied. “What about Eve? You agreed to heal her as part of our deal.”

Breena nodded. “I have kept my agreement. Along with the sleeping spell, I used magic. Her healing has already begun.”

“Thank you.” Rance swallowed, struggling to keep his composure.

“Now, are you all ready?”

Both Rance and Libby nodded.

“Jade?”

“I’m ready,” Jade answered.

“Then here we go. Eve will be sent with you.” She looked at Jade. “Hold out your hand.”

When Jade did, a tiny crystal bell appeared.

“Use this,” Breena said. “Whenever you need me, use it.”

“Thank you.”

“You are most welcome.” Smiling, Breena waved her fingers. Everything spun. Rance blinked, and they were back in the woods near the portal.

* * *

After climbing off Rance’s back, Jade gave his surprisingly soft hide one more lingering caress before moving away so he could change back into his human form. She crossed to where Eve still slept, though the stretcher had vanished and she lay on a pile of multicolored leaves on the forest floor.

Moving closer, she studied the little girl, admiring her curly golden hair and delicate chin. Perfect skin, too, which made her wonder what Eve’s mother had looked like.

She looked up to see Libby watching her and smiled. Libby dipped her huge head, her almond-shaped dragon eyes soft.

Simultaneously, Libby and Rance initiated the change. Again, Jade watched for the dance of the pinprick of lights, missing their absence. She wondered why the shape-shifting process seemed so different in dragon and wolf.

And then Rance stood before her, his powerful muscular body completely naked, his mysterious and sexy dragon tattoo emblazoned on his chest. She sucked in her breath, feeling the slow burn of desire low in her gut. Noticing, Rance grinned before turning and scooping up his clothes.

Jade looked away while he dressed. No reason to torment herself any more than she had to.

Stepping out from behind a tree, a fully clothed Libby hurried over to inspect the still-sleeping little girl. She placed her hand on Eve’s forehead and closed her eyes.

“No fever,” she announced. “Let’s get her to my house and I’ll check her out thoroughly.”

“I really think she needs to go back to the hospital,” Rance began. He stopped when Libby fixed him with one of her patented, no-nonsense looks.

“Not yet,” Libby told him. “She’s halfling. I honestly believe the human side of her is helping the Drakkor blood overcome the disease.”

Jade nodded. “I agree.” And if Libby was wrong, Jade had every intention of calling Breena and seeing if Fae magic could help. Honestly, she thought it could.

“All right,” Rance finally agreed. “We’ll give it a shot. But, Libby, if you can’t help her, I’m taking her straight to the hospital.”

“Agreed.” Libby’s radiant smile had him smiling back. Heart full, Jade watched the two of them for a moment before turning away. She didn’t want to take the chance that Rance might see her love for him blazing from her eyes. He had enough to worry about right now.

“Are you ready?” she asked, glancing back over her shoulder in time to see Rance scoop Eve up in his arms.

“Lead the way,” he said.

Jade nodded and started forward. “Crud.” She turned and eyed the others. “We don’t have a car. Breena sent us through with her magic. There’s no way we can walk all the way back to Libby’s with you carrying Eve.”

Jaw tight, Rance considered. “While I’d rather not have to, it can be done. Why don’t you see if you can contact Breena again and have her use her magic to send us back to Libby’s?”

Hesitantly, Jade rang the crystal bell. It made a tinkling sound, like tiny wind chimes in the breeze.

No sooner had she done this when Breena appeared. Rance explained what they needed.

“Just say the word.” Her grin included all of them. “I thought of this issue right after I sent you through.”

Rance gazed down at the still-slumbering child in his arms. “Will she wake up once she’s there?”

“I’ll make sure of it. Here we go.” Breena wiggled her elegant fingers again.

“My back porch,” Libby said, sounding satisfied. “Perfect.”

A chilly breeze blew, stirring up the leaves. Out on the lake, small whitecaps were pushed toward shore by the wind.

Jade blinked, still slightly disoriented. She looked for Rance, finding him right behind her. The dazed and worried expression on his face made her heart ache. “Let’s get Eve inside. I don’t want her to get a chill.”

Once inside, Rance gently lowered Eve onto the couch. Her eyelashes fluttered and she opened her eyes, her forehead wrinkling as she frowned in confusion. “Papa?” She met his gaze and then looked past him. “Where’s Daddy?”

Jade saw the effort it took Rance to keep his face expressionless. At least her question meant Cai had told the truth and the little girl hadn’t witnessed her father’s death.

“He’s...” Rance took a deep breath, his big fingers moving the hair away from her tiny face. “He’s in heaven with the angels, sweetie. Just like your mommy.”