Light My Fire
Page 25
I edged my way out of his embrace, giving him a glare as I did so. “I am not dangerous! I do not burn down buildings!”
“I didn’t say you did,” he answered calmly. “But you yourself admit you can’t control my fire. Whether you acknowledge the fact or not, you are a powerful woman. When you join my dragon fire with your own power, you hold a potential tool for great destruction.”
“Just what we need in the world—another demon lord with weapons of mass destruction,” Jim grumbled. I glared at it. It grinned back at me.
“The likelihood is that the fire was a form of retaliation,” Drake added thoughtfully, watching the firemen poke around the remains of the building.
“The imps?” I asked, my stomach going sour at the thought.
He nodded. “I do not believe that would be out of their scope of retribution. Do you agree, Nora?”
“Absolutely.” She hugged Paco’s carrier even tighter. “Fires are second nature to common European imps. It is one of their favorite weapons. Given the nature of that... er . .. blow against them, they would have lost no time in mobilizing a response that targeted Aisling.”
“All the more reason for you to cease being stubborn,” Drake told me. “Come, mate. You have been on your feet too long. The question of where you will live is now moot. You will live with me.”
“No,” I said, stepping back so he couldn’t grab me. Two fire trucks and an ambulance left, the crowd of people watching the mopping-up process thinning as the excitement ended. “Nora and I are in this together. I’m not going to leave her, especially not now, after everything she owns has been destroyed because of me.”
Drake sent a little smile Nora’s way. “Naturally, Nora will have a place in my home, as well. I shall see that everything possible is replaced. It is not my intention to separate you, kincsem.”
I looked at him, ignoring all the people and noise and general chaos around us. “It’s not? In Budapest, you wanted us apart. You didn’t want me to learn how to be a proper Guardian. You didn’t want me signing up with a mentor.”
Drake shrugged. “I changed my mind.”
“You changed ...” My look turned to a finely honed glare. I couldn’t keep from whapping him on the arm as I hissed in a low voice, “You changed your mind and you didn’t tell me? I left you because you betrayed me—you refused to support my Guardian training. You great big scaly, blue-clawed dragon! You could have mentioned that you’d finally seen the light.”
“I was intending to, but you took the conversation in a direction I had not anticipated,” he answered, glancing down to my stomach.
Nora stepped closer. “I’m sorry to interrupt you two, but I cannot accept your offer, Drake. Paris is a lovely city to visit, but it is out of the question for me to live there. My portal is here, in the city. I cannot leave it unguarded.”
Drake put his hand on my back, gently pressuring me to walk forward, waving his hand for Nora to proceed. She clutched Paco’s carrier to her chest. “I understand. Although it would have made things easier if you could move to Paris, what you ask is not impossible. You may move into my home here.”
“You have a house here in England?” I asked, surprised. Drake didn’t seem like the sort of person who would be happy in England. “In London?”
“Yes. It is a family house, one I seldom use. Fortunately, the family I was letting it to has left for the Middle East. We will take possession of it immediately.”
I didn’t fail to notice the slight inflection on the “we.” “Just a minute—maybe Nora has different thoughts, or friends who can put us up until we find a place of our own. I appreciate you offering your house to us, but if it’s a family home, it’s probably too big and too expensive for the two of us.”
Nora frowned. “None of my friends has room for both of us, I’m afraid.”
“We could stay in a hotel,” I said, aware that I was throwing out objections just because Drake’s domineering manner irritated me. “Somewhere cheap.”
“You are not being reasonable,” Drake said, pushing me gently toward the car. “It would be foolish to spite yourself and Nora just because you have issues with me.”
“But—”
“The house is empty. It is large enough to house all of us in comfort but not so large it will be a strain on my resources. Nora will live there as my honored guest for as long as she desires. You are my mate. My homes are now yours. Does that eliminate all of your objections?”
He held open the car door for us. I was about to get in when a tiny piece of mortar erupted from the building next to me. I looked at it curiously for a moment, touching the tiny little crater in the stone facade. Drake swore under his breath, shoving me backwards toward the sole remaining policeman, shouting for Pal and Istvan.
The latter leaped out of the car.
“There!” Pal shouted and quickly followed Istvan as he raced around the corner.
“What—hey!”
“Stay with Nora,” Drake commanded, his eyes dark. He bolted after Pal and Istvan before I could ask him what was up.
“What on earth is going ...” I looked back at the damaged spot on the building, about two feet from my head. My spine stiffened as I realized I was looking at a bullet hole. Quickly I scanned the people across the street, but no one stood out as a potential sniper.
“Wow,” Jim said, putting its front paws on the building to examine the bullet hole. “Someone shot at you. You’re going up in the world. First a train, then a hit-and-run, now a sniper. I can’t wait to see what the red dragons think up next.”
“I can,” I said grimly, my hands on my hips as I spun around trying to see what it was that Drake and the bodyguards had seen. “Nora?”
“It looks like a bullet hole to me, too,” she said, peering over her glasses at the spot on the building. “What is this about the red dragons?”
“They’re at war with us. Right, I’m not going to stand for this. Come on, we’re going to find whoever shot at me and scare the crap out of them.”
“We are?” Nora looked startled.
“Damn straight we are.” I looked at Jim. “I don’t suppose you’d care to do the dog thing and sniff the path the sniper took?”
“I didn’t say you did,” he answered calmly. “But you yourself admit you can’t control my fire. Whether you acknowledge the fact or not, you are a powerful woman. When you join my dragon fire with your own power, you hold a potential tool for great destruction.”
“Just what we need in the world—another demon lord with weapons of mass destruction,” Jim grumbled. I glared at it. It grinned back at me.
“The likelihood is that the fire was a form of retaliation,” Drake added thoughtfully, watching the firemen poke around the remains of the building.
“The imps?” I asked, my stomach going sour at the thought.
He nodded. “I do not believe that would be out of their scope of retribution. Do you agree, Nora?”
“Absolutely.” She hugged Paco’s carrier even tighter. “Fires are second nature to common European imps. It is one of their favorite weapons. Given the nature of that... er . .. blow against them, they would have lost no time in mobilizing a response that targeted Aisling.”
“All the more reason for you to cease being stubborn,” Drake told me. “Come, mate. You have been on your feet too long. The question of where you will live is now moot. You will live with me.”
“No,” I said, stepping back so he couldn’t grab me. Two fire trucks and an ambulance left, the crowd of people watching the mopping-up process thinning as the excitement ended. “Nora and I are in this together. I’m not going to leave her, especially not now, after everything she owns has been destroyed because of me.”
Drake sent a little smile Nora’s way. “Naturally, Nora will have a place in my home, as well. I shall see that everything possible is replaced. It is not my intention to separate you, kincsem.”
I looked at him, ignoring all the people and noise and general chaos around us. “It’s not? In Budapest, you wanted us apart. You didn’t want me to learn how to be a proper Guardian. You didn’t want me signing up with a mentor.”
Drake shrugged. “I changed my mind.”
“You changed ...” My look turned to a finely honed glare. I couldn’t keep from whapping him on the arm as I hissed in a low voice, “You changed your mind and you didn’t tell me? I left you because you betrayed me—you refused to support my Guardian training. You great big scaly, blue-clawed dragon! You could have mentioned that you’d finally seen the light.”
“I was intending to, but you took the conversation in a direction I had not anticipated,” he answered, glancing down to my stomach.
Nora stepped closer. “I’m sorry to interrupt you two, but I cannot accept your offer, Drake. Paris is a lovely city to visit, but it is out of the question for me to live there. My portal is here, in the city. I cannot leave it unguarded.”
Drake put his hand on my back, gently pressuring me to walk forward, waving his hand for Nora to proceed. She clutched Paco’s carrier to her chest. “I understand. Although it would have made things easier if you could move to Paris, what you ask is not impossible. You may move into my home here.”
“You have a house here in England?” I asked, surprised. Drake didn’t seem like the sort of person who would be happy in England. “In London?”
“Yes. It is a family house, one I seldom use. Fortunately, the family I was letting it to has left for the Middle East. We will take possession of it immediately.”
I didn’t fail to notice the slight inflection on the “we.” “Just a minute—maybe Nora has different thoughts, or friends who can put us up until we find a place of our own. I appreciate you offering your house to us, but if it’s a family home, it’s probably too big and too expensive for the two of us.”
Nora frowned. “None of my friends has room for both of us, I’m afraid.”
“We could stay in a hotel,” I said, aware that I was throwing out objections just because Drake’s domineering manner irritated me. “Somewhere cheap.”
“You are not being reasonable,” Drake said, pushing me gently toward the car. “It would be foolish to spite yourself and Nora just because you have issues with me.”
“But—”
“The house is empty. It is large enough to house all of us in comfort but not so large it will be a strain on my resources. Nora will live there as my honored guest for as long as she desires. You are my mate. My homes are now yours. Does that eliminate all of your objections?”
He held open the car door for us. I was about to get in when a tiny piece of mortar erupted from the building next to me. I looked at it curiously for a moment, touching the tiny little crater in the stone facade. Drake swore under his breath, shoving me backwards toward the sole remaining policeman, shouting for Pal and Istvan.
The latter leaped out of the car.
“There!” Pal shouted and quickly followed Istvan as he raced around the corner.
“What—hey!”
“Stay with Nora,” Drake commanded, his eyes dark. He bolted after Pal and Istvan before I could ask him what was up.
“What on earth is going ...” I looked back at the damaged spot on the building, about two feet from my head. My spine stiffened as I realized I was looking at a bullet hole. Quickly I scanned the people across the street, but no one stood out as a potential sniper.
“Wow,” Jim said, putting its front paws on the building to examine the bullet hole. “Someone shot at you. You’re going up in the world. First a train, then a hit-and-run, now a sniper. I can’t wait to see what the red dragons think up next.”
“I can,” I said grimly, my hands on my hips as I spun around trying to see what it was that Drake and the bodyguards had seen. “Nora?”
“It looks like a bullet hole to me, too,” she said, peering over her glasses at the spot on the building. “What is this about the red dragons?”
“They’re at war with us. Right, I’m not going to stand for this. Come on, we’re going to find whoever shot at me and scare the crap out of them.”
“We are?” Nora looked startled.
“Damn straight we are.” I looked at Jim. “I don’t suppose you’d care to do the dog thing and sniff the path the sniper took?”
