Chapter 29 #2
Alric stepped forward, smoothly cutting her off before she could reach Tori and forcing her to a halt. His Finnish was impeccable as he introduced himself. “I’m Alric Burkhard, King of the Fire Dragons. With me is Rodrigo Valerii, King of the Ice Dragons, and our retinue. Who might you be, madam?”
She stopped, eyeing him with poorly disguised hostility. “I don’t really care who you are. You’re dragons. I know what you did in the war.”
“You’re entirely wrong in what you know,” Tori said. His voice was firm, shoulders squared. “Everyone in this clan is. When I escaped from here—”
“Ran,” she corrected with a sneer.
“Escaped,” Tori repeated with an equal sneer. “I encountered the Jaeggi in Helsinki. You know what they did? They tried to kidnap me. They tried multiple times. I watched them drain another mage of magic. They attacked a female mage, Pormestari. They’re no allies of the Taavi.”
She frowned at him, her expression clear that she wasn’t truly buying it. “Why would they do that?”
“Because their magic is broken.” Evora stepped forward, as graceful as the ice queen she appeared to be.
“When Kaiser Jaeggi enacted the spell to destroy the mage clans, it backfired on him. It killed him and destroyed the mages of his family, damaging their magic line. We’ve all encountered this in varying degrees. ”
“I was kidnapped by them,” Cameron piped up, “about a month and a half ago, and I had to fight free. They’ve been kidnapping mages for generations now and trying to drain them of magical power. You’ve been safe from them only because they don’t know how to find you.”
“I have only your word on that.” Mathilda stared them down, and she did not look at ease with this many facing her.
“And the word of the lost mage clan leaders,” Gunter interjected.
“I have brought the personal journals of Alistair Dandin, Rebecca Vonn, and Abigail Kovel—all the leaders of the Dandin, Vonn, and Kovel clans. Three of the original twelve major mage clans, as I’m sure you know.
They all wrote about Kaiser Jaeggi’s betrayal of the dragons and all the mage clans. ”
For a moment, it looked as if surprise flashed across her face, but she covered it up quickly. She pulled out a phone from her back pocket and typed something rapidly into it, then let it drop in her hand. “Why are you here? To warn us of the Jaeggi?”
“In part.” Rodrigo gave her a charming smile. “In part because we’re excited to know that a magical clan still exists. So few of you do. We wish to make friends, as dragons and mages have always done.”
“What makes you think we’d be interested in that?”
“I don’t know what you’re interested in. That’s the whole point of us sitting down and talking properly with each other. We know nothing about each other except what we are.”
Rodrigo was smooth, Baldewin had to give him points on that. He just wasn’t sure if it would be enough. This woman was very antagonistic. And she kept looking at Tori, as if dealing with him was her real priority and she only wanted to send the rest of them away.
More people came out of the gas station, a wide mix of men and women. Most of them appeared to be in their twenties or thirties. A few teenagers stood on the fringes, seeming to ignore orders to get out of there and leave this to the adults.
Baldewin automatically tracked the growing crowd.
He was ready to shove people to the ground if necessary.
They looked ready to start a fight then and there.
His dragon inwardly snarled and paced in his brain, demanding to be set free.
It would be good to remind them why dragons were known as such accomplished protectors, but he would not be the one to start this fight.
Evora edged in such a way that she kept herself between them and her own group, no doubt with a shield at the ready.
“Tori’s back,” one of the men said with a grunt. “Couldn’t make it out there on your own after all? But what’s with the dragons, eh?”
Tori was quick with a riposte. “I made it just fine, Verner. I’m working full time as a mage now, which is more than can be said of you.
Turns out the rest of the world doesn’t have the same stupid rules that this clan does.
Male mages aren’t discriminated against, not that Mathilda wants you to know that. Or any male of this clan to know that.”
There was a low murmur among the crowd at Tori’s words, but Baldewin couldn’t quite make out what they were saying. Their expressions seemed to be a mix of disbelief and confusion.
Verner’s eyes narrowed in anger, but he was suspicious, too. He didn’t look like much, a homely sort of face to him, and his physique suggested he spent more time physically working hard for a living rather than employing any magical skills. “Who’d hire you?”
“Me,” Alric stated in that mild-mannered way of his that suggested he was seething on the inside. “I’m Alric, King of the Fire Dragons. And I welcome all mages of skill. The Accords did not see fit to deny anyone based on gender—”
“Do not speak of that!” Mathilda cut through quickly, her voice rising in panic. “We do not adhere to the old laws!”
“You should,” Evora informed her flatly. “It was the breaking of them that led to the Dragon War. Using forbidden anti-spells is what destroyed the magical clans.”
“And we follow the Accords.” Rodrigo gave the man a smile that could melt butter. “Don’t you think it would be better if all mages could use the talent they’re born with?”
Baldewin expected that to hit a mark, but it didn’t. Instead, Verner seemed to grow angry. Had Tori’s barb about working as a mage been to a point? Did Verner not have the talent necessary to work as a mage? The way the man flushed and glared hinted that might be the case.
In any case, this wasn’t going well.
Alric tried to get them back on track. “We came out here to meet you. There is much that we need to discuss. Can’t we find a place to sit and at least relay information to each other for the safety of all mages?”
As he spoke with Mathilda—who frankly didn’t look as if she was really listening—Tori returned to Baldewin. He placed a hand on his chest, drawing him down. Baldewin slid an arm around his waist, holding him close as he obligingly gave Tori access to him.
“The only place for them to talk is the little hotel on this street,” Tori murmured in his ear. “But I don’t know if we can get them there. Mathilda’s just trying to get rid of us.”
“She doesn’t look like she’s listening.” Baldewin could read past the mask on her face well enough. She wanted them gone and was trying to give them a cold shoulder so they would leave on their own terms instead of it coming down to a show of force.
Verner’s voice cut through their conversation, closer than it had been before, as he’d stepped near the group. “What’s this? You fucking him?”
Baldewin lifted his head slowly, eyes locked on the man’s face. What had he said?
“Oh, right, dragons like mages as mates,” Verner sneered at Tori, lip curling. “Must be desperate if he’s willing to take you.”
He saw red. Tori was still close enough that he could feel the mage flinch at Verner’s words as if the man had physically struck him. Someone was attacking his mate, hurting him.
Baldewin’s control snapped like a dry twig. Pushing Tori behind him, Baldewin stepped toward Verner, and he welcomed the familiar burn in his muscles as the shift came over him. His human brain sank to the background while his dragon took control of this new, much larger body.