Chapter 3 #4
But he couldn’t let himself get lost in that fantasy now. He wasn’t sure if he could trust every word out of Baldewin’s mouth, either.
At least part of what he said was truth, and Tori had been able to verify that. But the very best liars mixed in a little truth to make the lie more palatable.
And he had been taught so many things growing up that contradicted what Baldewin shared, he couldn’t just accept this new story.
He needed to sit on it, think about it, process all of it.
Definitely do some more reading and figure out how much of what he’d been told growing up was wrong.
A library was his next stop after this. If he was going to start a new life, the life he wanted, then he wanted to start it based on the truth.
Even if he never went with Baldewin to find a dragon mate of his own, he wanted to know the truth as the rest of the world understood it.
Baldewin put the phone away. “Can I ask what clan you came from?”
“I’d…really rather not answer that question. I left them. I don’t want to be associated with them.”
Baldewin’s eyebrows did that twitching-frown thing, as if Tori said something deeply disturbing, but he was trying not to let it show. “You’re truly out here alone?”
Shit. He probably shouldn’t have said that. But it wasn’t like Baldewin hadn’t likely put it together yet, if he’d been following Tori around. “I can still work magic out here, so don’t think that makes me a soft target.”
“I’ve seen that firsthand, but I’m also glad to hear it.” Baldewin’s tone was transparently sincere again but also worried.
Tori eyed him back as he took another bite of the perfectly delicious pie. At least this conversation hadn’t ruined his appetite.
Why was Baldewin acting so worried? Did he really think Helsinki was that dangerous? It wasn’t like Tori was going around the bad parts of town, anyway.
Well, okay, his motel was questionable, but it wasn’t bad. Just rundown.
“You really think I’m in danger? I’m just job hunting.”
“I’d explain, but…” Baldewin broke off in a groan. “It’ll ruin what progress we’ve had this morning. I will say this. There have been several instances of mages being kidnapped, but we’re not sure to what purpose. Just that mages are being targeted. Please, be on your guard.”
Oh. There went his appetite. It was nice to know they could cover some ground that reduced the yummy pie in his mouth to ash. He swallowed the bite and gulped down some coffee to wash away the taste.
Someone was stealing mages. How was that even possible?
Why would someone dare to do that? The one thing his clan and Baldewin seemed to agree upon was that mages were scarce.
He might not care too much if the mages in his own clan disappeared, but he wouldn’t wish that upon anyone else. Or upon himself.
“Who’s kidnapping them? Why? Where are they being taken?”
Baldewin shook his head. “I have very few answers and mostly speculation. I can’t answer most of what you just asked as we’re still investigating it ourselves. But they took Cameron about a month back, setting up an ambush on the road and snatching him. We had quite the fight to get him back.”
Tori was glad he didn’t have either food or drink in his mouth. “Seriously? They took the dragon king’s mate?”
“They weren’t mated at the time; still dating. But yes. That’s how ballsy they are. You see why I’m worried about you?”
Maybe it would be better if he found another mage clan to stay with rather than be on his own. Of course, the kidnappers probably wouldn’t have much interest in a mage who couldn’t use magic effectively. Heh. For once, having crappy magic worked to his benefit.
For that matter, if they knew how crappy his magic was, the dragons would likely pass on him, too. As interesting as this little chat had been, it changed nothing for Tori. Going with Baldewin would only invite another rejection down the road. Better to save himself another dent to the heart.
“Thanks for the warning. I’ll be on the lookout,” Tori muttered.
His fork made a clink as it hit china. It was such a sad, lonely sound that Tori stared down at his empty plate with a forlorn sigh.
He’d eaten that so quickly, so automatically, that he hadn’t even realized it.
His stomach did feel a little fuller, but not enough to compensate for the past three days of inadequate meals.
Baldewin put the Karelian pie from his own tray in front of Tori, still untouched, without fanfare.
He stared at him suspiciously in return. Was Baldewin treating him like a wild animal, trying to coax and tame Tori to accept his hand? “Feeding me won’t make me like you.”
“Eat anyway,” Baldewin encouraged with a crooked smile. “Keep your strength up, ja?”
If it was anything but the Karelian pie, Tori might have refused. He chose to eat it anyway, keeping a weather eye on the dragon the entire time. Maybe the kidnapping talk hadn’t ruined his appetite after all.
Baldewin’s niceness was very hard to fight against. It’d be much easier to blow him off if he was just a little bit meaner.
Damn, why did Baldewin have to be likeable?