Breath of Fire (19 page)

The wind cut through me like a knife, and I wished I’d worn a heavier jacket. The gardens were massive and lush with winter greenery. A bricked path snaked throughout, and I followed it until I came to the last row of hedges. The stone fence that surrounded the chateau was probably twelve feet high, and it was hard to ignore the cameras perched in various locations. At least there was no barbed wire. That was always a pain in the ass.

I took a running start and felt the muscles in my legs stretch as I pushed off the ground and jumped straight over the obstacle. I couldn’t help but give the cameras a little finger wave as I landed on the other side.

Freedom had never felt so good.

I started up the street at a jog, intending to catch a cab into the city, but as I got to the corner a car I’d never seen before screeched to a stop inches from me. Like everything of Julian’s it was black and sexy as hell.

But it wasn’t Julian who rolled down the passenger side window. “You don’t think I’d let you go shopping without me, do you?”

I sighed in irritation. Of course Eunice would know exactly what my plans were. I opened the door and slid across the buttery leather seat.

“What kind of car is this?” I asked.

“A
Bugatti Veyron
. And there’s not another one like it in the entire world.”

“That figures. I wouldn’t expect Julian to be like anyone else.”

She smiled and said, “Come, one of our clan members owns an exclusive shop close by. I know he has something that will render Julian speechless.”

“Well, that would certainly be a nice change.”

I held on to the door handle as she pushed her tiny foot to the floor. The car took off with a squeal, and the scent of burnt rubber permeated the air. I prayed to the gods the people of Belgium had enough sense to stay out of her way. She weaved through traffic like a maniac, and when the street became too congested, she moved to the sidewalk. If Cal thought my driving was bad, he’d better hope he never had the chance to ride in a car with Eunice.

I added this car ride to my list of things I hated, right under flying and Julian.

She screeched to a stop in front of a small store on Avenue Louise—a long street filled with exclusive shops in the middle of Brussels. My body slammed against the seatbelt and then back into the seat again.

“I’m going to have to get one of these someday. There’s nothing like it. I’ll let you drive on the way home if you’d like.”

“Thank gods,” I muttered under my breath.

“Let’s get you something to wear and get back. Julian doesn’t want you out of his sight for long.”

I decided right then I was going to take my sweet time. Julian be damned. The dress shop was squeezed between a
pâtisserie
and a store that made handmade leather items. Discreet gold lettering on the front window labeled the store in Bulgarian as
бърлогата
—
The Lair
. Cute.

And in the front window was the exact dress I wanted. I couldn’t imagine anything more perfect.

“I knew it would be perfect for you,” Eunice said. “Let’s go in. I want you to meet Luuk and his family.”

I felt terribly underdressed in my jeans and T-shirt once we walked through the front doors of the sophisticated dress shop. I’d been to Versace in Rome and Chanel in Paris, and neither of those stores held a candle to this one. And neither did their clothes. Whoever designed these was a true artisan.

“Out! Get out of my shop,” an angry voice screamed in French before my eyes could locate where it was coming from.

A mountain of a man, probably a full foot taller than me, whirled like a tornado to the front of the shop to keep me from progressing any farther. His dark hair was slicked back from a high forehead, and square glasses framed menacing black eyes rimmed with red fire. His slacks were grey silk and fit perfectly, and his white dress shirt was unbuttoned at the throat and rolled up to the elbows. He had a tape measure draped across his shoulders and a pencil stuck behind one ear.

“I could smell your peasant stench a block away, Dragon. You are not welcome here.”

He pushed at me with his power, and I absorbed it, rolling the intricacies of his magic through my body like an undulating wave. My dragon turned her back on his scent. He wasn’t the dragon she wanted.

The man I assumed was Luuk grabbed my arm, and I let my power unleash. I hit him with a wall of psychic power that made him gasp and brought him to his knees.

“Don’t touch me,” I said, no louder than a whisper. Luuk dropped his hand away from my arm obediently and stayed in a submissive position on the ground.

“Now, Luuk,” Eunice said, coming around from behind me. “You know better than to touch a strange dragon. Someday you’ll let your brain make decisions rather than your temper.”

“I apologize, Eunice.” Luuk glanced at Eunice, and I felt the relief move through him at the sight of her. “I will take responsibility for my mistake, but I ask that you spare my daughter. She is in the sewing room today.”

I opened my mouth to assure him that he’d done nothing wrong, but Eunice touched my hand slightly and I let her handle it.

Eunice moved with the startling speed of an Ancient. She grabbed Luuk by the throat and raised him above her head so she had to look up to see his eyes. Luuk’s skin mottled and flames danced in his eyes. I could smell the sulfur of his fire as he fought to control it. Fighting Eunice was futile, and he knew it. She was much too strong.

“You have done Julian’s honored guest a great disservice.” Her voice wasn’t full of rage like I expected it to be. It was the same smooth croon that she’d used when she’d first greeted me earlier that morning. My dragon responded to its power and nudged impatiently against me.

“She is welcome in our lands, and you will treat her as you would treat your master. Have I made myself clear?”

Luuk nodded since he was unable to speak, and Eunice released her hold on him. He fell to the ground and composed himself before he stood to face me again. He made eye contact, which surprised me, and it was obvious by his smoldering eyes that he was less than happy at having to follow her orders.

“What do you want?” he asked.

“I’ll take the dress in the window.” I took a step forward, and found satisfaction as he stepped back. I had to show my dominance now, or he would test me every time we ran across one another. “And you’ll answer my questions.”

He nodded and went to retrieve the dress for me. Eunice was on the other side of the shop, looking at a black dress that would barely cover the pertinent parts of her body. I knew she would be able to hear the questions I asked, but I didn’t have much choice in having an audience.

“Do you know what I am, Luuk?” I asked.

“You are of Alasdair’s clan.”

“Yes, but I am also an Enforcer.
The
Enforcer.” He paled at the title, and I moved closer to him, circling him like prey. “Drakán law states you must answer my questions under penalty of death.”

He swallowed and nodded as he carefully took the dress and laid it out on black-and-white striped tissue paper.

“Have you heard of the Drakán who have gone missing?”

His hands faltered as he folded the tissue over and moved the dress to a long white box. “Yes, my cousin is one of those who are missing. He’s been gone almost two weeks.”

“Do you know how he disappeared? How it happened?”

“All I know is that we went hunting one night, twelve of us from my family. There was a great pop in the sky, and Eliyan disappeared in front of our eyes. There was nothing left of him. No sign he’d ever been there at all. All his belongings were still at the house, and there was nothing we could do except put the problem in Julian’s hands. He promised he would find him, and I know he will. Julian always keeps his word.”

Luuk’s faith in Julian was absolute. There was no doubt in his mind that Julian wouldn’t do what he’d promised.

“Do you know of any others?” I asked.

He put the lid on the white box and wrapped black ribbon around the corners. He stuck a card with the name of the shop in bold letters under the ribbon.

“I’ve heard rumors that the ashes of many Drakán have been found. More of my clansmen, and a few of the Russians and Irish. It’s strange I haven’t heard of any American Drakán who have disappeared. Maybe you should be asking your own clansmen these questions, yes?”

I let the insult pass as he wrote the amount I owed for the dress on a ticket and pushed it across the counter at me. The price was outrageous. Probably ten times the amount of its actual cost. But a dragon was never one to let such a one-of-a-kind item pass by. I pulled out my credit card and had just handed it over when Eunice snatched it from his fingers.

“Luuk,” she said, her voice filled with warning. “You will be properly compensated for your cooperation. She is the mate of your Archos, and this is your gift to welcome her to your clan. Tell our people of this news, and make sure they welcome her warmly tonight at the
sfara
.”

Luuk’s mouth dropped open in surprise at the exact moment mine did. I started to stutter a protest, but she grabbed the box and my elbow and ushered me out the door. I was still speechless as she shoved me back into the front seat of the
Bugati Veyron
, peeled out with a U-turn in the middle of the street, and scared the hell out of a bunch of tourists on our way back through the city.

Chapter Sixteen

The dress on the mannequin in the window looked vastly different than it did on me as I stood in front of a floor-length mirror and cringed at the sight of exposed flesh. I wasn’t an exhibitionist on my best day. I’d never really been comfortable in my own skin like others of our race. And this dress definitely qualified me for exhibitionist status. The only good thing about it was there wasn’t a lot of extra material to get in my way if there was a fight.

The top half was blood-red leather and fit like a glove—better than a glove. The straps were finger-width and hooked at the back of the neck in a halter-style. The neckline plunged, terrifyingly so, and I knew the only reason my breasts didn’t spill out was because they had no place to go. The back was open to my waist and showed the multitude of scars that crisscrossed on my lower back. The red skirt was gauzy and flowed to the floor, and the red satin of my underwear could be seen through it. The icepick heels that finished the outfit made me a full four inches taller.

I grabbed the cell phone on my desk and hit speed dial before I could talk myself out of it. I needed to hear Noah’s voice. I needed an anchor; someone who could keep me grounded in reality and remind me who I really was. Or at least the person I wanted to be. My dragon didn’t like the idea and nudged against me hard.

But the phone rang and rang and finally went to voicemail. I didn’t leave a message.

“Tsk, tsk, Rena. You fool yourself if you believe he has the power to help you. I am your true lifemate. You should come to me with your needs.”

“Stay out of my head. And I wouldn’t go to you for my needs if you were the last dragon on Earth.”

“You’ll regret those words. Your fire is already burning for me, just with the sound of my voice. Your passion speaks the truth, while your brain tells you lies.”

“Leave me alone.”

“You know I cannot. The party has started and we are without a guest of honor. Olaf will escort you down.”

A soft knock sounded at the door. I checked myself in the mirror one last time before going to answer it. I’d left my hair down, so it covered my shoulders and helped alleviate the nakedness I felt. I opened the door, and just as Julian said, Olaf was waiting for me. He followed closely behind me as I maneuvered down the stairs in my heels.

Julian stood at the bottom, and the look of desire and possession in his eyes made me want to turn around and run back to my room. The black tuxedo fit him to perfection, and he looked even more devastatingly handsome than the last time I’d seen him. Lack of attraction between us definitely wasn’t the problem. His hair hung long and loose against his shoulders, and his eyes were fierce and penetrating as they looked me over from head to toe. I stopped where I stood.

“You’re not a coward, Rena. Come to me.”
He took a step forward and held out a single red rose.

“Stay out of my head,” I said again. I accepted the rose with a gracious nod. Tonight wasn’t the time for pettiness.

“I see your disobedience this afternoon was well warranted if this is what you escaped my walls to buy.” His lust-filled gaze was enough to start the glow of blue fire just under my skin.

“Stop it,” I hissed. My own angry fire ate at the gentle blue flames until they were completely gone. “I’d prefer to meet your people without my clothes turning to ashes.”

“Very well,” he said, obviously disappointed. “Has anyone ever told you how magnificent you are when you’re angry?”

I growled and my anger escalated. But then something incredible happened. My rage physically jumped from my body to Julian’s. It then dissipated and fizzled into nothingness. I felt as calm as I ever had.

“Relax, little one,” he said.

My mouth hung open from how easily he’d taken away my anger. There was a link between the two of us, almost like an invisible thread that attached our emotions. I thought back to what Eunice had said about absorbing others’ powers, but I hadn’t realized he could do the same with emotions. He leaned down as if he were going to kiss me.