dragons breath 02 - dancing with flames (16 page)

Donar glared at Aidan. “This plan of yours is getting more dangerous by the second.”

“There is no turning back,” Aidan reminded him. “And he will never tell anyone what happened because of the shame it would bring him.”

“Fine, then let’s get this started.” Donar gestured at Bailey. “I don’t want to be away from the fortress any longer than necessary if Ruari knows someone is helping a dragon slayer.”

“Calm yourself, cousin, or you will be of no use here.” If Donar didn’t compose himself, Bailey would only feed off of his mood once they started.

“Of course, you are right.” His cousin took a few deep breaths and relaxed his shoulders. “I’m good now.”

Aidan walked halfway down the field to shift into his dragon form. The first step was to get Bailey used to seeing him at a distance since she seemed to have more control that way. Then he’d come closer as time passed. He prayed to Zorya that the control she had managed with Ruari would be even greater with him.

As he shifted, the scents in the air became stronger. Aidan could identify which animals had crossed the field in the past few days, and he caught the faint scent of Kayla from when she’d recently visited. Bailey had told him when he arrived today that the visit went well. She’d had a rather pleased expression on her face when she said it, which worried him. What had that human girl told the slayer? He would have to remember to ask Kayla when he found the spare time.

For now, Aidan had to ignore those things and focus on Bailey. Even across the field, he could see her brown eyes watching him. She didn’t move, which was a good sign. Her legs were splayed out in front of her, and her forearms rested against her sides. He’d purposely left some of her lower half free so he could better gauge her mood. The more she kicked and struggled, the greater the indication she’d lost control.

When she didn’t twitch, he took several slow paces forward. Bailey stiffened a degree, but nothing more. He overheard Donar speaking to her.

“Breathe, relax,” his cousin said in a soothing tone.

“I’m trying,” she replied through gritted teeth, then closed her eyes.

“No, open them,” Donar ordered. “You’ve got to be able to do this while seeing the dragon.”

Aidan did his best to appear harmless, but it wasn’t easy while wearing the beast’s skin. His inner dragon wanted to run to her. Not to attack, but to assure her he would not harm her. The beast did not understand why she could not accept his true form. Some of the hurt he felt affected Aidan, though he tried not to let it get to him.

He took a few more steps forward. Bailey’s knees jerked, and he stopped. She was breathing hard now and a solitary tear ran down her cheek. The beast wanted to go lick it away.

“It’s getting harder,” she said, straining and looking away.

“Think of Aidan as a man,” Donar suggested. “Remember the way he looks when he’s not a dragon. Shape-shifters are people too, with hopes and dreams just like humans.”

Bailey expelled a breath and turned her gaze back to Aidan, studying him. She stared into his eyes as if she could truly see past the beast to the heart of him. He began to lumber forward again, encouraged with each step when she didn’t change expressions. There was a softness in her gaze that made him wonder what she thought about to keep herself calm. He would have paid dearly to find out.

Aidan didn’t stop until his nose almost came level with her legs. She lifted a hand with wonder—just barely able to touch his face—that reminded him of the first time they’d been this close prior to her becoming a dragon slayer. It had been in this very field, though without her chained. It was only after her rite of passage that her full instincts had taken over and she couldn’t control herself anymore.

A smile stretched across Donar’s lips. “She has done it.”

I believe your instruction helped, cousin. I thank you for that.

Donar gave him a short nod, then his gaze shot to the sky and he cursed. “Shifitt, we’ve got incoming.”

Aidan swung his body around. Just above the tree line, a red dragon with a silver underbelly approached—Phoebe. How in Zorya’s name had his sister found them? And what was she doing out here anyway when they weren’t due to meet for almost two hours?

Bailey began to thrash, kicking her foot into Aidan’s jaw. The glancing pain jolted him into action. He leaped forward and put himself between the slayer and his sister. Somehow, he had to protect the women from each other, or this could end very badly.

Keep Bailey as still as you can,
Aidan ordered Donar.
I’ll handle Phoebe.

“I’ll try, but I think she’s going to rip these chains off,” his cousin said, leaning down to grip the slayer’s shoulders.

“Let me go, you filthy fucking dragon,” she screamed, her eyes wild.

She had lost any semblance of the calm woman who’d been sitting there moments before. It pained Aidan to see her like that. Though he knew she didn’t mean those words, it still bothered him to hear her say them.

What is the meaning of this?
Phoebe demanded, landing half a dozen paces away. She stalked forward, her yellow eyes zooming in on Bailey.
Why is that girl chained and what is wrong with her?

Aidan sidestepped to hide the slayer from her view.
You must leave—now!

I will not.
Phoebe tilted her head around, trying to get a better view.

This is not your business. Go now and I’ll explain later,
Aidan said. Bailey was screaming obscenities behind him, and Donar was cursing as he tried to keep her still.

Why is she wearing warrior clothes?
Phoebe sniffed.
She is not one of us.

A loud snap sounded as one of the links in the chains broke.

Look out!
Donar yelled.

Aidan twisted around in time to see Bailey punch his cousin in the face, sending him flying several paces away. The slayer’s gaze turned to Phoebe next, and she charged. Aidan leaped toward her, tackling the slayer to the ground with his bulky form.

Bailey pounded into his chest. “Dammit, let me go!”

He noted her blows were not nearly as painful as they could have been. Despite everything, Bailey was holding back. Her instincts might will her to attack and kill dragons, but she was somehow fighting that need when it came to him. Each strike felt lighter than the last until she finally grabbed his forearms and clutched them like a lifeline.

“Aidan,” she said, voice desperate. “I can’t…”

Calm yourself, little one. You are safe.

It was the beast who spoke to her telepathically and nuzzled Bailey’s neck. He’d taken over the moment he saw her anguish. Aidan was nothing more than a passenger watching the dragon attempt to pacify the slayer. The beast recognized how hard she fought to get control of herself and wanted to help.

Bailey blinked up at him. “Did you just speak into my head?”

There are many secrets in this world you’ve yet to learn,
it replied, surprising Aidan. He hadn’t known such a thing was possible, though he’d always known his inner dragon had wisdom far beyond what it revealed. It was said a shape-shifter’s inner beast had a direct connection with Zorya herself. This was just the first time it had ever taken over and revealed itself to anyone else. Such a thing was rare, even among shifter mates.

“It’s the dragon talking, isn’t it?” Bailey said, awed. Her fingers came up to graze the side of his head, and the dragon made a rumbling sound similar to that of a cat’s purr.

It is me, little one,
it replied.
I am here—always.

Aidan was beginning to get jealous of his own beast. The dragon was the one who found a way to reach Bailey, and she seemed to respond to it far better than him. Internally, he told it to give him control again. The beast was reluctant and nuzzled Bailey’s neck one last time before retreating.

Dear Zorya,
Phoebe said, stomping closer.
She’s not burning, and it appears your beast is talking to her. What is going on?

Bailey twisted underneath him and screamed at his sister. “You!”

She attempted to scramble out from underneath Aidan. He had no choice except to put all of his weight on top of her. The slayer was small and slippery with sweat from the heat of his body, making it that much more difficult to keep her down.

Stop,
he ordered Phoebe.
Bailey has gained some measure of control, but she does not know you. If you insist on staying here, you must shift to human form.

His sister gave him a furious look.
You’ve got a lot of explaining to do, brother.

To Aidan’s relief, she let the flames consume her and began to shift. He waited until she was finished before doing the same. Bailey quieted underneath him. After finishing the process, he looked down at her, checking for any signs she might still attack.

The slayer glanced at Phoebe for a long moment and then at Aidan. There was a stricken expression on her face. “Who is she?”

He cocked his head. “Does it matter?”

“Is she…is she your girlfriend or something?”

Phoebe let out an ironic laugh. “Oh, this is even more complicated than I thought. Aidan, you’ve really gotten yourself into a mess this time.”

He stood and helped Bailey to her feet. “It is not what you think.”

“Then what is it?” Phoebe asked, lifting a brow.

“She did not know she was a slayer until we arrived here. I have been training her to fight the pure dragons and helping her gain control so she won’t attack us,” he explained, knowing that would not be nearly enough to satisfy his sister.

“Oh, right, of course,” she said sarcastically. “Because that was obviously the thing to do. Brother, we do not work with dragon slayers!”

Donar came to stand next to Aidan. “It is not as bad as it seems. Bailey is getting rather good at slaying and helping clear the way for our toriq to take over this region. She also has a connection with the local humans that we lack and will need if we are to have peace.”

“If you believe that, you are as crazy as my brother.” Phoebe shook her head. “The clan is going to banish you both when they find out.”

Aidan crossed his arms. “You are not going to tell them.”

“I don’t know what I’m going to do. If anyone finds out I knew and didn’t say anything, I could be punished right along with you.” She paced in front of them, muttering expletives under her breath in the dragon language. At least she’d had the sense to speak English in front of Bailey—that had to be a good sign.

“I’ve kept many secrets for you. Such as that dragon from the Faegud clan who you were …” Aidan began.

Phoebe spun around and pointed a finger at him. “Don’t you dare say another word!”

He smiled smugly. When relations between their clan and the Faegud broke off all those years ago, Phoebe had continued seeing one of their members in secret. It wasn’t until the Faegud lost the section of territory where their borders met that she was forced to end the relationship. He suspected it was part of the reason she had never seriously courted another male since then. She could very well still be pining for him, and it would also explain why she monitored Aidan’s task so closely.

“Very well, but I only point out I’m not the first to see the so-called enemy in secret. If you would give Bailey a chance, you would see having her on our side is to our advantage.”

Phoebe gave Aidan a rueful look. “You do realize the irony of this when I’m in charge of the next Judgments Day? I should be the one punishing you for this crime.”

“And?” He shrugged. “You’ve got more important matters to attend. Such as a murder investigation.”

“A murder?” Bailey interrupted.

“One of our members was killed last night. I’m helping my sister find out who did it,” Aidan explained, glancing down at her.

“Speaking of which,” Phoebe said, keeping her eyes on him and avoiding looking at the slayer. “I found the garrote used to kill Nanoq. It was in a gutter near the bathhouse with his blood still on it. The reason I came to find you was I wanted you to take a look at it and see if you had any idea who it might have belonged to.”

“A garrote?” Donar frowned. “What a strange choice of weapon.”

Aidan agreed. It was something a human might use, but shifters usually preferred swords and daggers. Aidan couldn’t imagine any of the humans murdering the Captain of the Guard—he was always quick to protect them—which made the case even stranger. It had to have been a shifter, but who? He still didn’t rule out Ruari as a suspect, but if his brother had been injured as much as Bailey had described, it was doubtful he would have been up for killing anyone until he recovered. That would take at least a couple of days, not hours.

“I’ll take a look at it,” Aidan said, then gestured at Bailey. “But my continued assistance depends upon you keeping the secret about her.”

Phoebe stepped closer and studied the slayer. “How many dragons have you killed?”

“Eight,” Bailey answered, lifting her chin.

That was two more than Aidan knew about. She’d said she had been hunting them when she ran into Ruari. He could only guess that she found two of the pure dragons after that and took her aggression out on them. Aidan didn’t like the idea of her fighting on her own now without him, but the fact she could spoke to her increasing skills. She would need to continue training on new weapons, especially the crossbow since she needed something with range. But before long, he expected she would become a formidable warrior any dragon would fear.

Phoebe’s brows drew together. “When was your first kill?”

Bailey glanced at Aidan, then back at his sister. “About five weeks ago.”

“The first was Mirrikh,” Aidan added.

Phoebe’s expression registered surprise. “If she could take him down…yes, she might be useful after all.” She directed her attention to Aidan. “But we must be careful that our toriq does not find out. Maybe someday when the right time comes, but not now.”

“Agreed.”

“And you.” She pointed her finger at Bailey. “Hurt my brother and I will kill you.”