Chapter 10 #2
As Serafina took in the broad facade of his razor-sharp teeth, she paled, forcing a strained smile of her own.
It was almost painful to watch.
I waved a hand to catch Alaric’s attention, pointed to my mouth, and gave a subtle shake of my head. Understanding flickered in his eyes, and he made an effort to tuck his teeth behind his lips—though the result was still more menacing than friendly.
“Good morning, Serafina,” Alaric said, his purring tone a neck-snapping change from moments before. “I simply desired to see if you were well.”
“I am well. May I go now?”
“Sit. Eat.” Alaric nudged his head toward the table.
She stiffened. “Is that a command from my master?”
Alaric exhaled a puff of smoke. A sign his patience waned. I pressed my lips together, holding back laughter.
“Consider it a request from a concerned friend,” Alaric said.
Serafina cast a narrow-eyed glare at me, and I wiggled my fingers at her in a mockery of a greeting. Pert nose jutting in the air, she faced the dragon. “I believe I’ve lost my appetite.”
“Witch,” I muttered under my breath.
“Bastard,” she mumbled back.
Alaric’s tail flicked in irritation, but he kept his composure—barely. “Very well then,” he grated between clenched teeth. “I was most concerned to hear you were exploring the hidden passageways last night.”
Serafina’s gaze whipped to me, betrayal blazing in her eyes, and I couldn’t help the broad grin that split my face.
“Those tunnels are dangerous,” the dragon continued, voice a warning rumble. “Several have collapsed due to neglect. I want your word that you will not enter them again.”
“No,” she said flatly, not even pretending to give his words consideration.
“No?” Alaric snarled with barely contained rage.
I resisted the urge to belt out a laugh at my brother’s attempt to temper his anger. I hoped he failed. Then maybe we could get the hell out of here and on with some plan that may actually help him.
Serafina struck a defensive pose, blind to how close Alaric was to snapping. “I’ll make no promise that prevents me from leaving this place and finding my missing friend.”
The dragon cleared his throat again, mustering up a level tone. “Before you dare to deny me, it’s important you understand your position here, Serafina. Just as Thorne does.”
“Excuse me?” I balked as Alaric shifted his wing. The movement caused him to wince, and he turned his nose to his flank, lapping at his injury.
“Ack!” Serafina threw out her arms. “What do you think you’re doing? Don’t lick it!”
Before Alaric could utter a word of protest, she marched across the tile. With firm hands, she tugged on the wing the dragon had tucked into his side to protect his vulnerable wound.
When he wouldn’t release it, she stomped her booted foot. “Stop being a baby and let me see.”
The sudden change that had come over her was astonishing. From defiant captive to demanding caregiver, she slid perfectly into the authoritative role. As if she couldn’t help herself. Maybe she really was a healer. Either that or completely insane. Probably the latter.
Alaric glared back, and for a moment I held my breath, certain I was about to watch the girl go up in smoke. My muscles tensed. To do what I wasn’t sure.
Instead of setting her on fire, he relented, shifting his leathery wing.
So much for putting her in her place. Witch one. Dragon zero.
At the sight of Alaric’s injury, Serafina uttered soft words of sympathy. “This is even worse than the last time I saw it. I imagine you’re in a great deal of pain.”
As her head swiveled in my direction, those soft sounds became a low grunt of anger. “You.” She thrust a finger my way.
“Me?” I hiked the sausage that I’d stabbed up to my chest. “What did I do?”
“You should have told me Alaric was suffering.”
My mouth opened and closed, forming words that didn’t take shape. “Don’t look at me. If you hadn’t been slinking around in places you don’t belong, you’d have seen it for yourself.”
“You’re insufferable.” Her cheeks darkened as she turned to her patient.
Alaric watched our interaction with a smug expression, then quickly smoothed his features into a picture of suffering.
Clever bastard. He’d used the oldest trick in the book to gain Serafina’s sympathy. And yet he claimed to need my help.
Rather than fall into his eager claws as the dragon hoped, Serafina stepped away, folding her arms. The stubborn pose, one I was becoming all too familiar with.
“Alaric’s wounds are infected. He’ll continue to worsen if not treated properly.”
I tensed, not liking the dark gleam in her eyes. “And you are a self-proclaimed healer. So treat him.”
She winced, as if battling some instinct that urged her to help, then forcibly lifted her chin. “I will, but only on one condition.”
“That condition being?”
“Help me find my friend, Speck.”
Movements predatory and measured, I rose from my chair, stalking closer. “Or option two. I toss you off the side of the mountain unless you treat him.”
To my delight, she backed up a step, the waver in her voice belying her bravery. “Do so, and I’ll be dead along with your dragon.”
I aimed my curled fingers at her throat.
“Hold,” Alaric ordered, staying my hands.
The girl’s expression hardened. “You’ve made it clear you’ve no intention of releasing me, and I refuse to stay here while Speck is in danger. I believe a compromise is in order.”
Alaric huffed a smoky breath, saying to Serafina, “If I were to help reunite you with your friend, this would please you?”
“Immensely,” she was quick to answer. “You would have my eternal gratitude.”
“And this healing you speak of. That would require you to spend time in my company?”
She frowned, perplexed, unlike me, who knew exactly where the manipulative dragon was going with this question. “Your wounds will need multiple treatments to heal the damage.”
“I agree to your terms,” Alaric said before I could object.
“The hell you do,” I barked.
Alaric’s dark glare swung in my direction. “Not only do I agree, but Thorne agrees as well. Since I am in no condition to fulfill my half of this bargain. Thorne will assist you in my place.”
“Hold on. Don’t I get a say in this?” The last thing I desired was to spend more time with the wench. Given the bond we shared, it was far better for both of us that we spent as much time apart as possible, lest our connection deepen.
“No,” my adversaries snapped together.
“Remember, though,” Alaric added, not taking his eyes off Serafina, “this bargain changes nothing between us. Should you make any attempt to run, I will hunt down this friend of yours and end him myself.”
Ah, well played. As far as threats went, it was a good one. Hopefully, it would make my job easier.
A muscle twitched in Serafina’s jaw. “Understood. I’ll need my herbs.” She scanned his massive form with a critical eye. “And lots of them. Would the trogg have medicine here?”
“It’s unlikely,” I said. “When they tended you, they had limited supplies.” And fewer skills. If they’d been more adept, maybe I wouldn’t have been forced to give her my flame.
“Then I’ll have to visit the manor.”
“Absolutely not.” This time, I’d not be overruled by the pair. “Mere spans ago, it was completely overrun with wendigos. Who knew if they lingered?”
Alaric’s green eyes turned contemplative, and I clenched my jaw, growling, “You cannot possibly be considering this.”
“Take her to Rottbarry,” Alaric said. “She can search for this Speck fellow on the way.”
“Are you mad with fever? Only someone with a death wish would set foot in Rottbarry.”
“The faster Serafina gets her herbs, the faster she can begin my treatments.”
Ah, so this was the reason for his poor judgment. Like a lot of males with an attractive woman, he wasn’t thinking with his brain.
Fool.
“The wendigos are nocturnal,” Alaric’s voice interrupted my musing. “If you leave immediately, you should have plenty of daylight to see the job done. I’ll have Myrna prepare a pair of horses for you. She can tell you which of the remaining trails are safest to take down the mountain.”
Serafina beamed up at the beast, unconcerned by the danger. “Wonderful. We can search the pasture first before heading to Rottbarry.”
While I would use the opportunity to uncover the real Serafina hiding behind that pretty face.