Chapter Twenty-Eight
Fiona
Scotland – 1429
We rolled among thefurs in a tangle of arms and legs. After making love twice already, we still were not sated. Duncan’s mouth was on my neck while he squeezed my breasts. Instinct took over, and I rolled him onto his back, straddling his waist and grinding out a rhythm against his hard, silky member.
I threw back my head and moaned. “Ahh.” It felt so exquisite as the friction from his staff coaxed more fluids out of my slick entrance. Never had I imagined lovemaking could feel so erotic, so powerful.
Despite the cool night air, his forehead was beaded with sweat as he dug his hands into my waist, his hips matching my rhythm.
The full moon shone from a small window, bathing our nude bodies in its glow. His pale eyes sparkled like starlight, and the tilt of his full lips was a cross between pain and pleasure. He panted as I coated him in my essence, the sensation building between my legs one of blissful torture. This was madness. I couldn’t stop, yet how could I go on? I knew little of this lovemaking, only that my desire begged to be sated.
“I must be inside you,” he rasped.
Inside me? Aye! “Please,” I begged.
With a growl, he flipped me over. The air whooshed from my lungs as I landed on the furs. I spread my legs, welcoming his entrance.
He seated himself between my thighs, and in one fluid thrust, buried himself deep inside my slick sex.
I met him with raised hips, as he captured my cries with a heat-searing kiss while he slowly tunneled into me.
Momentum built until we couldn’t stop the climaxes that claimed us. I knew not where my ecstasy ended and his began, as the crests that held me carried him to his own release.
We panted into each other’s mouths, alternating between crying and moaning. Our bodies throbbed to the tempo of each other’s heartbeats, slowing as the waves of pleasure heightened the sensation of each caress, nip, and kiss. As one, we melded, reveling in the joy of our newfound love.
He cradled me in his arms while rolling onto his side, taking me with him. After one languid, long kiss, he pulled back, his lips swollen and his eyes sated and heavy. “What is this spell you have over me?”
I froze, feeling as if his embrace was a noose. Did he think I’d bewitched him? “I-I didn’t.”
“Easy, lass.” He flashed a satisfied smile before stroking my lower lip with the pad of his thumb. His pale eyes darkened. “Let me make love to you again. This time more slowly. Forgive my impatience the first few times.”
His member, still inside me, surged as if it had a life of its own, pressing against my insides and teasing me with the promise of more pleasure.
I flushed with shock and then desire. “You are forgiven.”
He rolled me over again, thrusting deep before capturing my mouth in another kiss. “I think I’ve found heaven inside you,” he breathed against my lips. “I never want this to end.”
“Neither do I.” If only, I thought, I could bottle this moment and live within the sanctuary of his arms for an eternity.
* * *
Fiona
I WOKE WITH A STARTand sat up, chest heaving, sweat dripping down my brow, and my dress wet from the thick moisture that pooled between my thighs. I took a moment to take in my surroundings. The moon’s pale light shone across my bed, illuminating my bedroom in Galveston. I bent over, clutching my stomach as I was overcome by a wave of nausea. Such a powerful dream could only mean one thing.
“Oh, Almighty Mother!” I cried into the stagnant air. “Duncan is near.”
* * *
Gabriel
I HUNCHED OVER SAFINA’Sscaly spine while the wind whipped my hair into a frenzy. My eyes widened when I saw we were flying toward a massive wall of brick-hued clouds.
“Where are you going, Safi? Galveston is the other way.”
I wish to see this storm for myself. Her answer reverberated in my mind.
My heart fell to the pit of my stomach as we neared the hurricane. It roared like a thousand steam trains, wind and debris flattening everything in its path like a heavy curtain of darkness and destruction falling across the landscape.
What is that?Safina asked, the echo of her fear rattling in my skull.
“Cuba’s death knell,” I answered flatly.
I have never seen anything so frightening.
Strong words coming from a dragon with talons the size of butcher knives. I clutched her scales as a wave of sadness and despair washed over me. They were Safina’s emotions. In my mind I heard her crying, and deep in my soul, I felt her heartbreak.
Safina’s wings strained as the approaching storm gained momentum.
Earth Mother is angry. I can hear the screams of her victims.
“Safi!” The wind lashed my face. “We must go.”
With a heavy groan, she made a slow turn. Once the wind was behind us, I felt the hurricane’s angry sting across my back. My heart broke for the people of Cuba.
* * *
Fiona
MY MIND RACED AS Ihurried down the street to Josef’s home. Mrs. Jenkens had said I’d been asleep for over a day, but my head was still foggy from my dream, making me feel as if I’d been sleeping for ages. There was only one sleep powerful enough to make me feel that way—one induced by the dragon song. Josef claimed to have no other magical powers besides speaking to the elements and healing minor wounds. Who’d taught him the dragon song? My heart ached when I realized it could have been none other than Graechen, the friend I once trusted.
Despite the weakness in my limbs, anger fueled my movements as I climbed the steps to Josef’s front porch two at a time. I was not surprised to find him sitting in his rocking chair, staring vacantly at the clear sky. Was he searching the skies for Safina and Gabriel, or did he already know the young lovers were out of reach? I suspected the latter.
“Josef!” I boomed as I stormed up the last step. “Why did you sing the dragon song?”
There was weariness in his eyes more profound than ever before, a look that spoke of a man whose days were numbered. “You needed rest,” he answered, his voice devoid of inflection.
Had circumstances been different, I would’ve taken pity on the old man, but it was I who’d lost my daughter, my only family, and the only reason I’d not taken my own life so many years ago. Josef still had four grandsons left, four reasons to live.
I crossed the distance between us, jabbing his bony chest. “You lie. You were helping them escape.” He knew Safina and Gabriel weren’t coming back, which was why he’d sung to me, to keep me from ever finding them.
He shrugged, his dull mahogany eyes sharpening to two fine points. “You threatened to harm my grandson. You would have done the same for your child.”
I tossed my hands in the air, angry hot tears threatening the backs of my eyes. “And now my child is so far away, I cannot feel where she has fled!”
I still had a hard time grasping what had happened. My sweet daughter had flown from my bosom, left me alone to wallow in my loneliness and despair, and all for a mortal boy? How was I to bear it, and how could Josef be so indifferent to my suffering?
I clenched my fists as I steeled my resolve. Perhaps Josef had bought them time, but I would fly to every edge of the earth until I found my child. They could not hide from me forever. I would start looking for them soon, but first, Josef had to make good on his word.
I scowled at him, imagining my eyes to be twin coals burning holes through his skull. “I need you to break the bond now.”
He stood slowly, relying on a cane for support. Odd, but I didn’t remember him being so feeble. “Where is your mate?”
“He isn’t far.” I placed a hand over my chest. “I can feel him.”
Josef solemnly nodded. “I will break the bond after he arrives.”
“No,” I growled, “not after he arrives. I don’t want him to find me.”
Josef heaved a weary sigh. “I need him here to break the bond.”
“No, Josef!” I grabbed the old man’s shoulders, shaking him as if he were no more than a leaf tossed about in the wind. “He can’t be here.”
Josef’s eyes widened as he shrank back. “How am I to break the bond? I don’t even know what he looks like. I cannot perform the spell if I can’t conjure his image.”
I looked deeply into his eyes, willing him to see the demons that haunted my soul. “Look into my mind, Josef.” I conjured up the image of Duncan’s pale eyes and seductive smile.
Josef blinked once and then went still, stiffening beneath my touch. His eyes, once brilliant and bright, glazed over as if he were in a dream and then they closed altogether. “Safina has his eyes,” he whispered.
I swallowed hard. “Do you have a clear enough picture?”
“Sí.” He trembled, and his eyes shot open. “But I don’t know if it will work.”
I dug my fingers into his bony shoulders. “You must try.”
He frowned, the lines around his eyes and drawn mouth looking like tributaries on a map. “Mi Reina, the severance of souls is a dark magic. There may be dire consequences.”
I released him, pulling back my shoulders as storm clouds swirled in my vision. “You’ve already told me this, Josef.” My voice was an ominous rumble as I channeled the she-dragon within me. “You will honor your word and break the bond or suffer this dragon’s wrath.”