Magic Nights (5 page)

“Try again, pumpkin.”

Naomi’s magic flared up. “What did you call me?”

“Temper, temper. Daffodil,” he added with a smirk. “You half-fairies are a hormonal mess.” He licked his lips. “Tasty.”

Sera caught Naomi before she could electrocute herself on the restraints. “Enough,” she told the vampire. “You’re going to answer the question now.”

He met her stare without fear. “Or what?”

“Or I’m going to hit you a lot harder than the last time.”

He snorted. “You do that, little mage. But you know what I think? I think you’re all bark and no bite. So why don’t we just cut straight to the end of this charade? We both know that no matter how much you tantalize me with promises of punishment, you’re too soft to go through with it.”

“Is that so?”

“Yes, it is. A little girl like you isn’t cut out for this. Why don’t you just turn around and scurry off home before you get hurt. Before we do to you what we did to those helpless, sniveling children over th—”

Magic erupted from Sera, slamming into the vampire. The concrete wall behind him sneezed dust and cracked with tiny fissures. Fury burned through her veins and simmered on her skin.

“Where are the children?” she ground out through clenched teeth.

Blood splattered against the magic bindings like fat hitting a pan of oil. The vampire’s eyes glowed with crimson rage.

“Where?” she said, her head swimming. Her magic pounded in her head, demanding to be unleashed. “You will tell me!” Her control crumbled, and her magic blasted out. It slammed into him so hard that she could feel his mind crack open.

The vampire’s shoulders slouched. “Two hours ago,” he said it a dead-tone voice, almost like a robot. “The others brought them to Pier 41.”

“Are they taking them on a boat?”

“No idea,” the vampire said. “That’s the meeting place where we’re supposed to hand them off to the Princes of Twilight.”

“Pirates?”

“Yes.”

“Sera,” Naomi said in a hushed voice. “How are you doing this?”

Hell if I know.
She did not voice the thought. Instead, she pressed the vampire further. “What do the pirates want with these children?”

“I don’t know.”

His thoughts were slipping through her fingers. So was his life force. Whatever she was doing to him was killing him.

“I don’t know,” he repeated. “I don’t know.”

The sentence spilled out of his mouth, over and over again, each time faster. His magic bubbled like an awakened volcano; his body convulsed like it was caught on an electric fence. He shook a final time, then fell limp. His magic winked out.

“He’s dead,” Sera said quietly. “I…I don’t know what happened.”

“I do,” Yarran said, gliding up behind her. “I’ve seen it before. Mind Breaker.”

“Mind Breaker?” Naomi asked.

“Only the strongest Magic Breakers can do it.” There was a spark of recognition in the ghost’s eyes. This was the most lucid she’d ever seen him. “Only the Dragon Born,” he said in an awed whisper.

“Dragon Born,” Naomi repeated, gaping in shock at Sera.

CHAPTER FIVE

Secret

DREAD FLOODED SERA—a cold burn that froze her fear solid. Forcing down the rising bile in her throat, she turned her back on Naomi. Her friend hadn’t moved since she’d uttered those two damning words, and she didn’t look like she’d be making a move anytime soon. Sera figured she still had a minute or two to deal with the vampires. Pasted to the wall with her magic, they couldn’t move a muscle. Their magic, on the other hand, was crashing and whirling with the force of a hurricane. For the first time since she’d burst into the garage, fear speckled their auras. No, not fear. Complete and utter terror. They were afraid of her. Of what she was.

They were right to be afraid.

But not because she was Dragon Born. For some reason, the Magic Council considered her kind abominations, but Sera didn’t feel like a monster. At least not any more of a monster than any other mage in this world. Maybe the Dragon Born were the vampires’ boogie man. According to Alden, the Council had condemned the Dragon Born to death because of their magic. Because they were different. Of course, Alden might have been lying. He’d been trying to manipulate her at the time.

The whys and hows didn’t matter, though. Not here. What mattered right now was that her secret had been exposed. Sera drew her sword as she paced in front of the vampires. Damage control. That’s why the vampires should be afraid. She couldn’t let them leave to spread tales. Her life was on the line. The life of everyone she cared about was too. Still, she hesitated.

You have to do it,
her dragon told her.
 

I know.

These vampires aren’t innocents. They kidnap and torture children. And then they turn those children over to pirates when they’re done with them. Look at them.

She gazed across the garage. The children were still tucked inside the truck, way on the other side. She couldn’t even see them from here. For the first time, their magic was calming down. The Dragon Born were the mages’ and fairies’ boogie man too. If they’d heard Yarran’s revelation, they wouldn’t have been so calm. They’d have been downright terrified.

Even if they had heard, I couldn’t do it,
she told her dragon.

I know. But you do need to take care of the vampires. They’re mercenaries of a different kind than you, Sera. They have no honor. Or compassion. If you let them go, they’ll sell your secret to the highest bidder. And if you turn them in, they’ll sell your secret to the Magic Council in exchange for their freedom.

Nodding numbly, Sera tightened her grip on her sword. Then she turned back to the vampires.

The ghost knows too,
her dragon told her later as she cleaned the vampire blood from her sword.

Sera glanced at Yarran. He was floating back toward the truck, humming and muttering nonsensical limericks. Yarran had the attention span of a sieve. He’d probably—hopefully—already forgotten that she was Dragon Born. And she had no idea how to kill a ghost anyway.

That just left Naomi. Her friend. Or was she even her friend anymore? Sweat and blood lathered Sera’s sword hand. Her grip was precarious at best—her resolve even less secure.

“I knew you were different,” Naomi said, watching Sera approach. “You and Alex.”

Alex. Her life was on the line too. And Riley. And anyone else the Magic Council would try to hurt to get to her.

“But I never imagined this,” Naomi continued. “So this is why you were hiding your magic for all these years.”

Sera didn’t want to kill Naomi. She wasn’t even sure she could end her friend.

Naomi looked at Sera’s sword. “Sera, you don’t actually think I’m going to turn you in, do you?” Her voice was dry, free of all fairy magic. Free of tricks or pretense.

“I considered the possibility.”

“I’m your friend.”

“The Magic Council doesn’t care about friendship,” replied Sera. “They care about their rules. And according to those rules, I am an abomination. The sentence for my existence is death. The sentence for helping me or hiding the truth about me is death.”

“No.” Even as the single word echoed through the garage, Naomi lowered her voice to a whisper and added, “There will be no death because I’m not saying anything. The Magic Council won’t find out.” Her magic rang true. It sang of friendship. Of solidarity.

“I don’t know what to say,” Sera said, choking back a tear.

“In this case, it’s best to say nothing,” Naomi nodded toward the truck, where Yarran was amusing the children by twirling in aerial loops. “Well, except…”

“Yes?”

Naomi wrapped her arm around Sera and turned them both so their backs were to the truck. “Does Kai know?”

“No,” Sera said. “And it needs to stay that way. He’s on the Magic Council.”

“Sera, the man isn’t stupid. And not only is he not stupid, I bet he’s much more familiar with the Dragon Born signs—whatever those are—than most mages. He must have figured it out by now. Or he will soon.”

“Maybe. Or maybe not. It’s too risky.”

She’d admitted to him that she had a secret. But that could be anything. Surely, he wouldn’t suspect something as big as her being Dragon Born. What would he do if he found out? Flashes of Kai turning on her—attacking her—pulsed through her head, and she shuddered.

That was all Alden. His manipulations. None of it was real,
her dragon told her.

I know. But I can’t tell him. Just because Alden was showing me my biggest fears doesn’t mean they aren’t true. What if Kai reacts the same way? He’s been told from birth that the Dragon Born are monsters. He’s only known me for a few months. Why would he make an exception?

Her dragon snorted.
Kai Drachenburg has many endearing qualities, not the least of which is his capacity to be a stubborn ass. He has his own mind about everything, Sera. He doesn’t take anything at face value, no matter who said it. And he doesn’t care about stupid rules. Just look at how the man parks.

Sera snorted too, which drew a concerned look from Naomi.

“Sorry,” Sera told her. “Just discussing things.”

“With…yourself?”

“Kind of. It’s complicated. I’ll tell you later.” She looked pointedly at the truck. “Somewhere less exposed. Now, how about we get those children reunited with their families?”

* * *

Sera drove the truck to Mayhem while Naomi rode in the back with the children. The ghost stayed in the back too, which gave Sera a few minutes of quiet. Or at least a few minutes of listening to her dragon tell her that she should fess up with Kai. She was of the opinion that all dragons were trustworthy. Go figure.

After arriving at Mayhem, Naomi brought the children inside to sort out how to get them all home to their families. Sera was bloody, dirty, and tired. Between her interrupted dinner and all the magic she’d used that night, she’d need to sleep for at least ten hours to recover. So she stumbled home, ate a few crackers, and fell into bed with her dirty clothes still on.

When she woke up the next morning, Riley was already gone, and her stomach was rumbling like a bear awoken early from hibernation. On the way to the kitchen, she sniffed her shirt and detoured to the bathroom. Shower first, then breakfast. She’d finished the last of the granola yesterday, but if she was lucky, there was still some cereal left.

Ten minutes later, freshly showered and dressed, she looked like one of the living again. And there was cereal in the pantry. Double win. As she poured the flakes into her bowl, she felt him. A smile tickled the corner of her lips, threatening to spread. She set the bowl down on the counter and hurried to the door, not even bothering to suppress the skip in her step. She opened the door before he’d even rung the bell.

“Come in,” she said, grinning.

Not even waiting for his response, she grabbed his arm and tugged him inside. As soon as the door was closed, she pushed him against the wall and gave him a long, languid kiss. She slid her hands under his shirt, scraping her fingernails up his back.

“Sera,” he growled against her mouth.

“Yes?” she asked with a smirk, tracing her tongue across his lips.

Kai’s hands tightened around her arms, and he spun them around and slammed her back against the wall. He returned her kiss, his breath hot and heavy. His tongue slid past her lips, exploring her mouth in hard strokes. The spicy, sweet scent of dragon burned her nose and flooded her body, making it throb with unfettered desire. She wrapped her legs around him, willing him to be closer. His magic poured down her neck and over her body, kissing every curve, scorching every nerve. A soft moan brushed past her lips.

“No.” His chest buzzed against hers, deep and low. “I didn’t come here for this.”

“Oh?” she nuzzled against his ear. “What did you come here to do? Play a few rounds of Go Fish? I have a deck of cards in the kitchen if you’re interested.” She nipped at his neck.

Roaring, he closed his hands around her wrists and thrust them against the wall. Dragon fire burned in his eyes. “No, I didn’t come here to play cards,” he said in a rough whisper. “I came to take you to breakfast since our date last night was interrupted.”

“Maybe I’m only hungry for dragon,” she said, licking her lips.

He swallowed hard, magic swirling in his eyes. “Sera, you’re making it exceedingly difficult to stay focused.”

“Good.” She pushed against his iron grip, trying to break free. His hands didn’t budge. “Let go.”

“No.”

“I want to touch you,” she said, squirming in frustration.

“If you do that, I won’t be able to control myself. And then we won’t be going to breakfast. I promised you a date, and I’m going to give it to you. No matter what my baser instincts are driving me to do.”

“I want to see more of these baser instincts. I don’t care about breakfast. Really.” Her stomach growled, betraying her.

His eyebrows lifted. “You’re such a horrible liar.”

“And you’re a stubborn ass,” she shot back, echoing her dragon’s words from last night. And remembering everything else she’d said about Kai, like how Sera should tell him she’s Dragon Born. She sighed.

“Are you all right?” Kai asked, watching her closely.

“Fine. I guess I’m hungrier than I thought.” She gave him a wobbly smile. “How about that breakfast?”

* * *

Kai brought Sera to a small diner at the southern end of the Presidio. It was called Magic Pancakes. United in their paranoia, they sat side-by-side in the booth, each with a clear view of the only door in or out of the place. She ordered pancakes. He ordered potatoes and sausages.

“How can you go eat at a restaurant called Magic Pancakes, and not try the pancakes?” she teased him.

She knew very well that he didn’t eat pancakes. And he knew that she knew it. They’d had this conversation more than once. It was fun. But rather than banter with her like all the times before, Kai’s face remained serious.

“I chose this place because
you
like pancakes, Sera.”

Her heart flip-flopped like one of those pancakes. She covered it up by quickly cutting off a piece of pancake and sticking it into her mouth. Mmm, buttermilk pancakes. Kai was still watching her with his serious mask on. He’d been doing that a lot lately.