His eyebrows rose at my flip tone. "They do not believe you
directly caused the deaths of the Guardians, Aisling, but they do very much
believe that the killer was either summoned by you or drawn to your proximity
involuntarily."
I started to protest my innocence, but the memory of the
night I had been swarmed by incubi flitted through my mind. I hadn't summoned
them, yet they appeared. I couldn't help but wonder what an incubus's stamina
was like—that, and whether or not they left physical traces of themselves.
"We're just going to have to agree to disagree on that
point," I said. "What exactly do you expect me to do? You guys are investigating
this, so I don't see where I come in."
"You have powers that the watch does not. You have the
ability to see things that are hidden from us. We will continue to investigate
the murders as best we can, but we are limited in scope. That is why the
committee agreed to not pursue their course of action with you— they recognize
that although you have the power to raise the being that killed the Guardian, if
you are innocent, you also have the power to discover the source and identity of
that being." He paused, sending me a hard, unbending look. "If you wish to have
a future in the L'au-dela, Aisling, I urge you to use every means possible to
locate the murderer. Quickly. The committee is not known for their patience."
The two men stood, and after wishing me well and giving me a
cell phone number where he could be contacted at any time of the day, Monish
left, Paolo trailing after him.
The door to the conference room closed with an almost silent
shush.
I sat alone, fingering the amulet, wondering just how the
hell I was supposed to find a sex fiend murderer when I couldn't even do
something as simple as deliver an old piece of crystal or find a mentor without
running into trouble.
At least Paolo hadn't divined anything horrible for me in the
near future, At least he hadn't—
I turned at the sound of the door clicking open. Paolo stuck
his head in. "You will befriend a pigeon while contemplating plunging to your
death."
"I've got something important to tell you," I told Drake as I
rushed past Pal, who was holding the door open for me. I'd forgotten to take the
room key he'd left for me earlier.
Drake, clad in an absolutely mouthwatering long green tunic
that shimmered with a faint gold pattern every time he moved, cocked a glossy
black eyebrow at me and silently looked at the clock.
"It's just now seven, so you can stop giving me that annoying
male 'waiting for a woman who's always late' look."
"I said we needed to leave at seven." Drake's lips pursed
ever so slightly as he let his gaze wander down me.
"Yes, I'm going to change, hut what I have to tell you is
important."
"You say green dragons not important?" Istvan asked in a
belligerent tone. He moved to stand beside Drake. Both Pal and Istvan were
dressed similarly to Drake, in long forest green tunics and matching pants, but
the material on their clothes was different, minus the faint, elusive gold
pattern in the cloth of Drake's.
"No, I don't mean that. All I'm saying is—oh, all right! I'll
go change and tell you in the car."
I had brought one formal dress along with me for the ending
banquet, which the GODTAM registration packet had said was black tie. My dress
was a simple black matte floor-length sheath, nothing terribly fancy but of
sturdy travel material. It was not the dress I found laid out on the bed along
with a pair of stiletto heels that I knew just by looking at them would probably
cripple at least three toes on each foot.
I thought at first the dress was black, but closer inspection
revealed it to be a dark, dark green-black. Even draped over the bed, the lines
of it made my mouth water. A simple, elegant ballerina bodice flowed down into a
long, sweeping chiffon formal-length skirt, the bodice heavy with an intricate
beaded vine embroidery. The tiny little beads swept serpentine paths down the
skirt, causing the whole thing to glitter and sparkle with a thousand little
green lights as I held it in my hands.
I had to give Drake credit—the man knew how to pick clothes.
When I emerged from the bedroom, he didn't even comment on
the fact that I was now twenty-four minutes late. He just rose slowly from an
armchair, his head tipped to one side as he looked me over. A long finger tapped
his lips for a moment, then he drew a little circle in the air.
"Hum." Obediently, I did my best to mimic a model's graceful
turn. Drake nodded. "Yes. I was correct in the choice of that gown. Come. The
sept awaits."
"Hey!" I said, dropping my arms from my model spin. "Less
congratulating yourself on your fashion sense and more complimenting me would be
a good thing right now."
"I should not have to compliment you. You are my mate. You
will always look the part."
"Yeah, but it would be nice if you could break down and tell
me that I look nice in this admittedly gorgeous dress you found."
Istvan snickered. Drake gave me an impassive look. "Wyverns
treat their mates with respect at all times. They do not give effusive praise."
"You remember that rule that says you can't kiss me in
public? That's not the only one that's going to be changed," I said as I
gathered up tny evening bag and the thin black silk wrap I'd brought.
Pal grinned as he and Istvan went out the door. Drake stood
by the open door, waiting for me. As I neared him, he wrapped an arm around me
and pulled me close. "Kincsem, do you know what I would do if we did not have to
leave tonight?"
"Compliment me? Fork your tongue and kiss me the way I
deserve to be kissed?"
His breath was hot on my ear, his lips even hotter as he
pressed a wet, steaming kiss licked with fire to the spot behind my ear that
never failed to make me shiver. "No. I would press you against the wall, slide
that expensive dress up, part your soft, delectable thighs, and plunge deep
inside you."
My entire body quivered as a result of his heated words. I
had to lick my lips in order to get them to work, and I noticed with dismay that
my voice cracked when I spoke. "I bet if we tried we could work that into our
schedules."
Drake chuckled, his eyes leaving me in no doubt that although
his wyvernly code of honor might forbid him from pursuing those activities that
my body ached to pursue, he would satisfy both our desires later.
I glanced at him as we went downstairs. "I love the dress,
not that you were in any doubt of it, I'm sure, but I thought you said to wear
something washable?"
"I changed my mind. I like you in this better."
"So do I. Where is this party being held?" I asked once we
had settled into the Hmo. Istvan and Pal were up front again, leaving Drake and
me in sole possession of the back. "And is it far enough away that I can molest
you before we get there?"
"I thought you had something important to tell me," he said,
his arm solid where it rested next to me,
"I do, but I think if I put my mind to it I can fit in both
telling you about the important stuff and kissing you until your dragon eyes
cross."
He didn't laugh, as I thought he would. He didn't even give
me the patented Drake sexy look. He just stroked my arm and remained silent.
"Drake?" I touched his leg. "I've been selfish, haven't I?
I'm sorry I haven't asked you about your day. How did the negotiations go?"
"
They are at an impasse for the moment, but I hope things
will move forward again tomorrow."
"Ah. I hope so, too." I fell silent, waiting to see if he
would say more, but Drake at his most relaxed was never a chatty soul, and now,
with the weighty concerns of dragon politics, he was even less verbose. But
things had changed. He had me now. While I might be no great shakes at being a
mate, at least I could listen, giving him an opportunity to vent if he needed
it. "We've had kind of a rocky beginning, Drake, but I want you to know that I'm
here for you if you want to talk about things. Is there something that's
bothering you?"
He looked downright nervous, his eyes shuttered, his jaw as
tense as the fingers that gripped my arm. "I suppose it would be best if you
were prepared."
"Prepared for what?" Why was I suddenly suspicious? Why did I
have a feeling that something was coming up that Drake didn't want to tell me
about, something to do with me? Something unpleasant. "Just what exactly is this
party we're going to?"
"I wouldn't particularly call the gathering a party," Drake
said, evading the question just as he always did, but I haven't tangled with
demons and doppelgangers and assorted other strange beings without learning a
thing or two, especially about a certain dragon and the way he liked to dodge
giving answers.
I plopped myself onto his lap (carefully, so as to avoid
unduly wrinkling the gorgeous dress) and pushed him back so he couldn't escape
looking at me. "Right, let's have it. What's going on? You said we were going to
a green dragon function. You said it was to introduce me to the sept."
"I said you would be introduced to the members of the sept in
residence in this area. And so you will be." His eyes didn't blink once as I
peered into them. With Drake, the usual signs that someone was lying were
useless. What was, however, a dead giveaway was the way his pupils reacted.
Whenever he was at his most dragonish, his most evasive, his pupils got very,
very narrow. At that moment, his eyes looked like they were set with clear
emeralds. They had almost no visible pupil.
"And?" I poked him in the shoulder to let him know I wasn't
going to be satisfied with half an answer.
He sighed, his fingers digging into my hips as if to hold me
down. "Do you recall last month when you challenged me for control of the sept?"
"That's not something I'm likely to forget."
"Nor I. According to the terms of the challenge, if I lost, I
had to turn myself in to the police for murders I did not commit."
"Right. But you didn't lose, because I knew you didn't murder
the Venediger and Mme Deauxville."
"Which means you did lose the challenge."
I frowned. His pupils were still thin vertical lines. Why
wasn't he relaxing? "I planned it that way, if you remember."
His breath ruffled little tendrils of hair that escaped the
couple of jeweled combs with which I'd pinned it. "Aisling, part of the terms of
the challenge was that if you lost, you would be subject to punishment meted out
by the sept."
Oh, crap. I'd forgotten all about that.
"Punishment?" I asked for the second time that night. Only
this time I was much, much more worried. The dragons took their oaths very
seriously. "I remember. But I kind of thought that since I'm now officially your
mate, that whole punishment thing would be forgotten."
"It isn't," he said dryly.
"I guess not. So that's what's going on tonight? You're
taking me to be punished by your sept? The people who obey every single command
you give them?"
"I seldom issue commands, mate."
I scooted off his lap, sure not only that whatever it was
that was planned for the evening was not going to be fun but that Drake would do
nothing to stop it.
"You know, just when I think things are just about as
horrible as they can get, something like a dragon gang punishment happens. OK.
I'm resigned. I made the challenge, I accepted the terms, even though I'd like
to remind you that I set the whole thing up so you would be cleared and the real
murderer revealed. How am I going to be punished?"
He shrugged, taking my hand.
I tried to pull it back. "I don't want you holding my hand."
"I know you don't." He didn't release my hand, though. He
just stroked my fingers until they uncurled against his.
"I don't want to be punished, Drake. Punishment is never fun,
and right now I have an awful lot of non-fun stuff on my plate. Is there any way
you can order your dragons to not punish me?"
"Yes."
I looked at him, hope burgeoning within me.
"But I won't"
Hope fled. I wished I could go with it.
He turned to face me, my hand caught between his. "Understand
me, Aisling—I could command my sept to disregard the punishment due you, but to
do so would undermine my leadership. It would leave me open to another
challenge, a serious challenge from a dragon who wished to take control of the
sept. Such a challenge would divide the green dragons and result in much
suffering for everyone before it was resolved. As much as I dislike the thought
of you receiving punishment, I will not sacrifice the welfare of my clan for
this."
"I understand," I said, more than a little bit surprised
because I really did understand. Although I doubted Drake about many things, I
never once questioned that he put himself second to the welfare of his sept. He
was a born leader, and even in human form, he wore the mantle of responsibility
well. I accepted that when I accepted him—but that didn't make it rankle any
less. "You didn't answer my question about how I'm to be punished."