Chapter 47
ROARK
“We should have flown,” Evander says.
“Hard to take a human woman back to the castle without a car.” And people think he’s the smart one.
I pull the Rolls into the very empty for a Friday night car park outside one of the village’s two pubs.
I haven’t been here for a while. Ten years.
The last time I was here, it wasn’t Mary’s English Pub but Die Kneipet.
It’s not so much of a dump now. The car door vibrates from me closing it.
I smell the air. My head snaps to Evander.
“Firested,” he growls.
“Indeed.”
They’re coming out of the bar. We round the corner to the front entrance. I don’t recognize the two of them, but they stink of lava.
“Crest Wing,” the taller of the two of them says.
“Firested.”
“You’ve left your toy inside,” the other one says.
There’s a cracking of bones next to me. Fuck. Evander shifted through his clothes. And I’m the hothead?
Both the Firested shift. My dragon bursts from me.
Skin to scales. My tail smacks a parked car across the road in the process, and it tumbles over into a fucking ditch.
The four of us shoot into the sky. Up above the clouds.
Evander’s throwing fire at the two of them.
He’s leading them away from Raine. Away from the village.
The two Firested are focused on Evander, their red wings flapping in the air.
Get Raine. I’ve got this. Evander’s tail smacks the darker red one across his face, and the Firested tumbles across the sky before surging back up into the air.
I flip around and dive to the earth. I pick up Raine’s scent coming from the back of the bar. Three figures run down the block.
I shift before my talons hit the road. “Raine,” I yell and take off after them.
Raine skids to a stop. The wolf guard drags her a few inches before she realizes it’s me. I’m sure I’m a sight. Smoke trails out of my nose. My dragon’s still at the surface of my skin. It itches so much it burns. The mark on my right arm tingles.
“Stop,” Raine says. The wolf lets her go, and Raine runs to me. “Are you okay? Are you?” Her little hand lands on my arm. Peace zips through to my bones.
“Yes.”
“Where’s Evander?”
“He’s taking care of things. Let’s get you home.”
Raine looks back at her sister.
“Wren can come too,” I say. “The bodyguards can pack your things.”
“No one’s touching my things,” Wren says.
“I . . . It’s Wren’s birthday. I . . .”
Fuck me. I’m the one who told Evander we have to give her space. “It’s—”
“I’m fine, Raine,” says Wren. “I’ll get our things and meet you at the castle later. I’ve already had a wonderful birthday with you.”
“You’re sure?” Raine asks her sister.
“It was memorable for sure. Yeah, you and your naked boss . . .” Wren turns to me. “Wait, how are you taking my sister back to the castle?”
I can’t help but smirk. “Car.”
“Well, put some clothes on or you’re going to stick to the seats.” Wren smiles.
“It’s safe to go back to the bar?” Raine asks.
“Yes, Duchess, it’s safe,” I say.
Raine takes my hand and leads us back to the bar. But instead of going in, she heads to a small cinderblock shed in the back. “Mary, it’s safe.”
The door opens slowly. “Bloody hell. That’s the most scared I’ve been in my life. I thought I was going to be burnt to a crisp and lose my pub too,” an older woman says. “You.” She points a finger at me.
“We will pay for all damages and loss of business tonight.” It doesn’t take much to connect the empty parking lot to the fact that Evander and I were coming to pick up Raine.
“Yes, you will.” She holds out a hand, and Raine helps her over a set of croquet mallets.
“I’m so sorry. But we did have a really nice time.” Raine is still holding Mary’s arm.
“Where’s your sister?” Mary asks.
“Oh, the bodyguards took her back to the inn,” Raine says.
“Good, good.” The proprietor is still giving me the eye. We follow her into the bar.
Raine picks up two purses and a light blue bag. I find a pen and matchbook on the bar top and write down a number on the inside. “Call Leopold. He will take care of any damages. And if you know the owner of the red coupe outside, give this number to them too.”
“I think that belonged to the other dragons. I heard some locals talking about how they saw them drive up in it. Do you want me to give the number to them? I don’t want them back in my pub.” She glares at me. She most definitely doesn’t want me back in her pub, either.
“Well, don’t give the number to them, then.”
“You think I’m daft? I don’t want problems with anyone. And I’m not taking a side. But if need be, I’ll be going with those up at Cloud Rift.” Mary inclines her head.
“I appreciate that.”
“Thank you for not burning down my business.” Mary gives a single nod. From beneath the counter, she takes three clean bar rags and hands them to me.
I look from her to the rags, then back to her.
“To keep the chafing down,” she explains.
Raine laughs, and it echoes in the empty pub. I can’t help but join in.
We head out through the front door.
“Whoa.” Raine’s eyes bulge. “This is a lot of damage.”
I survey the area. The Firested car, a fence, some bushes, some flattened flowers. “It could have been a lot worse.” My dragon is pushing at me to get Raine out of here, but also to shift and turn their car as flat and flexible as a crepe.
My skin itches to get her out of here. I open the car door for Raine. From the boot I grab a pair of jogging pants, tossing the rags inside before slamming it shut. And then we’re on the way up the mountain.
Raine carefully studies her knees. “You doing okay?”
I’m doing my best not to speed. My attention’s split between the road, Raine, and the sky.
Evander’s too far away to hear. He’ll take care of them.
It’s not a real battle; we don’t have real battles on this side of the Thessari.
Our dragons are more powerful at home, and the Earthbound have a treaty, one that has to stay in place or the humans won’t have much of a planet left.
“I’m good.” Smoke puffs from my nose, declaring me a liar. I don’t care. “Are you?”
“Yes . . . No. Why did you have secret bodyguards on me? You could have told me, ‘when you go into town, we want you to be protected.’ Those guys, the big ones—”
I scoff. Because the Firested dragon shifters are a lot smaller than me. In my peripheral, Raine’s glaring at me. “Continue please.” I turn the corner out of the village and start up the mountain.
“Who are they?”
“Firested, one of the five clans and a longtime enemy of Crest Wing.” There’s no point holding back now.
We’ve told her more than any other candidate.
It’s like we can’t keep things from her.
I don’t want to keep things from her. “They’re up to something.
We normally keep our battles out of the human realm, but lately Firested has been doing crazy things.
Coming to our village . . . I don’t know if they found out about you or just scented us on you.
But yes, I wouldn’t put it past them to take you. ”
“But why?”
Fuck, this definitely isn’t a conversation I want to have with her right now. “Because our mate will be the next queen of Crest Wing.” If she can survive the challenge.