Chapter Twenty-Nine
We left Weisha way ahead of the Hunter and docked in Hidzi that same evening. Hidzi, the very same town in Tabaa I had fled to.
Even before we docked, my crew and I were prepared.
I'd already spoken to Captain Tev and instructed him to send some men to pick up several crates of corn from my usual distributor in Hidzi.
We needed a reason to be there and to dock for as long as necessary.
Once we arrived, we acquired a cart large enough to transport us and two horses to pull it.
I posted Sion and Behez on the dock with the cart and our things as if they were loading it. And then we waited.
No more than fifteen minutes later, the Hunter docked a few berths down from us.
We waited longer as they went through the process of docking and setting out the gangplank.
Men were sent for carts, and then those carts were loaded with crates.
As the cargo was unloaded, a large group of mounted Hulfrin rode up, heavily armed.
They formed a protective circle around the carts before setting off.
We followed them closely through the city, but then backed off at the gates to follow at a distance.
It helped that it was well after midnight by the time we left Hidzi.
We traveled in the dark, with only moonlight to illuminate our path.
Up ahead, the Hulfrin cavalcade was a beacon, their cart lanterns guiding us down the well-tended road.
After a few hours, we came to the gates of the crown city of Ahanu.
Vasren was not pleased by our destination.
“You'll need to be careful here, Vas,” I said as we entered the walled city. “If you see another Dragon, pull up your hood.”
“You're not going anywhere near that randy king without me,” Vasren growled.
I rolled my eyes. “We're not going to see King Raventar. We need to stay as far away from him as possible.”
“I will watch over you and ensure that.”
“Oh, for fuck's sake,” I muttered. “You're the banished one. If he sees you, we'll be arrested.”
Now that we were in a city, the Hulfrin had to slow their progress.
So, I sent Navin to track them while the rest of us looked for lodging.
Luckily, with it being a crown city, several hotels were still open for visitors.
We found a clean but modest establishment, and I pulled our cart around to their stable.
Ruspo saw to our horses while the rest of us went inside.
In the entry, we were greeted by a single clerk on late-night duty who registered us and took payment for several rooms. He kept eyeing Vas, but that was just because he was a Dragon.
It's not as if King Raventar had posted images of Vasren around his kingdom with a warning to report any sighting of the Dragon knight.
As long as we didn't encounter another Dragon, we should be able to conduct our investigation and leave without the Dragon King ever knowing we were there.
After we got settled, I sent Sudar out to find Navin and let him know where we were.
Then I asked for meals to be delivered to our rooms and went upstairs with Vasren.
Our room came with a single bed, as opposed to the other double-bed rooms I had rented for the rest of the crew.
It was clean, with an attached bathroom, and had a window, although the view was of the street since we were only on the second floor.
I went straight to the bed, yanked off my boots, and fell onto the mattress.
“Is this how it was when you were in Kochan?” Vasren sat down on the bed and stroked my hair. “All this investigating and chasing leads.”
“Worse.” I sighed, enjoying the calming feel of his hand in my hair. “Back then, I had to pretend to be your Kat in between running my operation as Hallaxgral.” I opened my eyes to meet his gaze. “Well, that wasn't all bad, just stressful.”
“You told me there was a lot of waiting and watching, but it seems as if there's a lot of movement too.” He kicked off his boots and stretched out beside me. “Come here. I just want to hold you for a little while.”
I went into Vasren's arms and curved into his side as if I was made to fit him. Laying my head on his chest felt equally natural. I would have fallen asleep if a knock hadn't interrupted us moments later.
Vasren growled, but I sat up and called out, “Enter.”
It was a maid with our dinner on a tray. As she set it on a small table for us, Navin and Sudar entered the room. The Deldin woman flinched, her long, furred ears flattening against the back of her head, and hurried out. The men smirked at her as she passed by.
I would have said something about their behavior, but I knew it was a front. Instead of feeling insulted, they claimed her fear as a trophy. I understood that well enough, so I wasn't surprised when their smug looks vanished shortly after she did.
“Close the door.” I nudged Vas to get off the bed and then followed him to the little table near the window. “What did you find?”
Navin leaned against the wall. “They took the crates to a fancy house. Not as nice as yours, but still impressive. In a good neighborhood. All the crates went to the one location. I saw a Hulfrin man inside.” He leaned in to whisper, “And a Lelurra.”
“A Lelurra?” Vasren asked. “With a Hulfrin?”
“Interesting,” I said. “Very interesting. Hulfrin are aggressive, and Lelurra are gentle-natured. Complete opposites. I'm shocked a Lelurra would be brave enough to be with a Hulfrin. It was a woman?”
“No, a very pretty man.” Navin grinned. “Even prettier than you, boss.”
“Not possible,” Vasren said in a way that sounded less like a compliment and more like a statement of fact.
I lifted my eyebrows at him. As did the Raltven. But Vas was busy inspecting the food.
I cleared my throat and refocused on Navin. “Did the pretty Lelurra man appear to be there willingly?”
“Oh, yeah. But it was weird.” He leaned forward again. “Like kinky.”
Vasren looked up.
I rolled my eyes. Of course, that would get his attention. “In what way?”
“The Lelurra was barely dressed. All he had on were some transparent pants and a lot of beads.” Navin waggled his eyebrows. “While the Hulfrin supervised the delivery, the Lelurra sat on a golden swing and just, well, swung.”
“How is that kinky?”
“Oh, I haven't gotten to the sex part yet.”
“You watched them have sex?” I gave him the look that deserved.
“I couldn't look away! It was so fucking bizarre. The Hulfrin told the Lelurra to strip and bend over the swing, and the Lelurra did this pretty dance while he undressed. It was actually very stimulating.”
Sudar looked at him.
Navin cleared his throat. “You know I only like women, but this guy was, well, he was really womanly.”
“Womanly?” I sat down beside Vas. “Do you mean effeminate?”
“Yeah, that. Pretty enough to make me reconsider, if you know what I mean.”
“Yes, we know what you mean, Navin. Anything else?”
“Well, the Lelurra bent over the swing, and the Hulfrin fucked him while those feathered wings pumped and—”
“Not the sex! I don't care about the sex, no matter how strange it was. I want to know if you saw anything else pertinent to our investigation?”
“Oh. Uh, no. But, boss, you should have seen this big, furry Hulfrin with his big Hulfrin dick just slamming into this little Lelurra guy, and the guy barely made a sound.
At one point, the Hulfrin bit the Lelurra's wing, and still, there was nothing!
No fucking reaction at all. That Lelurra just braced himself and took it.
I've never seen anyone have such wild sex and show no reaction to it. Not even a moan. His expression was blank the entire time.”
“You watch a lot of people having sex, do you?” Sudar drawled.
“As if you don't.”
Sudar made a considering face and then nodded. “You're not wrong.”
I rubbed my forehead. But then something Navin said slipped through my bubbling annoyance.
“A blank expression,” I murmured. I had worn one of those myself when I was pretending to be Kat for Vasren.
The feeling of being wanted but not for who I truly was returned to me.
You can't fully enjoy sex when you feel like that.
So, either that Lelurra wasn't a willing participant, or he'd been coerced. “I need to speak to that Lelurra.”
“I knew it was relevant!” Navin pointed at me. “It's too odd, right? People don't fuck like that.”
“Yes, it's odd. Now, did you see anything else in that house?”
“Bones,” Navin said.
“Gods damn it, Navin!” I growled. “Why didn't you start with that?”
“Sorry, I was distracted by the Lelurra. Uh, yeah, there were a lot of skeletons on display in his house. But they were all animal skeletons.”
“Animals? Anything else that was unusual?”
“Uh, I mean, the Hulfrin is rich. There were a lot of nice things. But I didn't go inside cause you didn't tell me to, and I wasn't sure about the security. So, all I got is what I could see through the windows.”
“You were right not to go in. Better to watch a little first and see what kind of protection he has on his property.”
“Should I go back?” Navin asked eagerly.
“What the fuck, Nav?” Sudar asked.
Navin cleared his throat. “You don't understand how pretty this man was. I wanted to touch his wings. Just a feather. He was . . .” Navin sighed. “He was like something not from this world. A creature of the Gods.”
“That's why the Lelurra prefer to keep to themselves,” I said. “They have an air about them that makes them fascinating to the other races. I've heard it's because of their religion. Something to do with their meditation practices.”
“An air about them.” Vasren chuckled.
“Why is that funny?”
“Because they have Air Magic.” He bit into a steaming roll and then held it out to me.
“Oh. Yes, that's right.” I took a bite, chewed, and swallowed. “All right, you two. Go get some dinner and rest. We can start spying on Lord Bara tomorrow.”
“It would be better if I went back tonight, boss,” Navin said. “It's harder to hide in daylight.”
I frowned at him.
“I can go, boss,” Sudar said.
“Fuck off, Su. I'm going!”
I grimaced at Vas as he chuckled.
They kept arguing—something I'd never seen the Raltven men do. It was surprising enough that I let it go on longer than I should have. When they reached for each other, I finally intervened.
“That's enough! Both of you go. Gods damn it, you're behaving oddly. Maybe I should send Cesha instead.”
“No, we can do it.” Navin hurried to straighten and stand back from Sudar. “Do you want us to go inside?”
“No! I want you to inspect Bara's security. Check on his guards, any spells on the entry points, and if he has traps laid. Once we know what he has guarding the house, we can plan around it.”
“It's Tabaa, boss. There isn't going to be anything too advanced.”
“Never underestimate people, Navin.” I pointed at him with my fork. “They may not be as advanced, but they still have magic here. And stop being a nasty freak. If they have sex again, look away!”
Navin nodded. “Yes, boss.” He grabbed Sudar by the arm and yanked him out of the room. “No problem.” As the door closed, I heard Navin add, “Wait till you see this Lelurra. I'm telling you, you're gonna go gay.”
“Fuck off, no man's that pretty,” Sudar scoffed.
“Just wait. You're not gonna care that he has a cock.”
Their voices trailed off.
I sighed again and looked at Vasren. “They're going to watch those men have sex, aren't they?”
“Oh, yes. They most definitely are.” Vasren slid his hand over my thigh. “I have to admit the thought of you on a swing excites me. I may have to purchase one when we return.”
A flush came to my cheeks as I imagined lying on my belly while I swung back and forth, the motion taking me on and off Vasren's cock. It didn't sound at all kinky to me. There were far stranger things than swings.
“A swing it is.” Vasren squeezed my erection. “Until then, I'll just bounce you on my lap.” He leaned over and nipped my ear. “How does that sound?”
I stood up, went to the door, and locked it. As I returned to the table, I unbuttoned my pants and stepped out of them. Vasren hurried to undo his pants and part the fabric. His cock sprang forth. Naked from the waist down, I straddled Vasren's lap.
“That sounds like something I need more than dinner.” I reached behind me to the tray and dipped my finger in the butter dish. Then, holding his stare, I stood to hover over him and buttered his cock.
“Great Gods,” Vasren whispered. “I'll never look at butter the sa-a-a-a-me!” He groaned out the last word as I slid down on his buttery shaft. Then he grabbed my hips and started to bounce me.