He moved on to Rosa, the eldest sister and then to her new husband, Aden. Both lived and breathed Marylebone, yet they chose to live in Rose Cottage situated across the road from his temporary home of Lavender Cottage. But all was quiet. In fact, no one was home at all. He surmised they were at Marylebone.
It had to be Alanna. She was the troublemaker in the family. Not an intentional one, but a troublemaker all the same. He closed his eyes, went inwards to find his center and focused on the Gallery. It came into view in his mind and instantly he knew that was where trouble lay. So. It was time. Finally.
He called his familiar to his side. Within seconds, there was a quick puff of brilliant light and his miniature dragon, Clarissa, appeared. “We have a disturbance at Greenwood Gallery and I need to investigate. I have a message for you to deliver to Grand Dragon Anton.”
⢠⢠â¢
“What do you want?”
Goran supposed he should have expected Alanna's less-than-warm welcome. He was the one who should be sneering at her. “I think you know,” he said, hoping to trick information from her. He wanted to see her squirm.
What warmth there was in Alanna's cheeks fled, leaving her pale and obviously rattled. “Know?”
Oh yes, something was definitely up.
Where was her smart repartee? “The wards around the Gallery have been reworked.” He stepped back onto the pavement outside the Gallery entrance and looked upwards.
Alarm flared in Alanna's eyes and her gaze followed his. “Reworked? How?”
“I was hoping you knew.”
Much as she didn't want to admit it, she needed his help.
“Rosa would have felt something if the wards had all been broken.”
“She's at Marylebone. The wards were reworked quickly, and she would only have felt a twinge if anything at all. I can see changes because I've been studying them.” He had grudgingly admitted to himself weeks ago they were an amazing network of spells crafted by all three sisters. The Maori Blessing, though, was something else altogether and all of Marylebone were in awe of its strength and intricacy. No doubt it was one of the main reasons his superiors had chosen the Gallery as a safe haven for Gregori.
Alanna shrugged, her hands deep in her jeans pockets, her shoulders hunched. “Being Earthbound must have addled your mind. There's nothing much going on here.”
Goran voiced his disdain. “Gregori is free. Don't even bother to lie to me.”
She was silent for several long seconds. He could almost see the cogs ticking over, weighing up the pros and cons of confiding in him. He saw the moment she decided it was futile to hide the truth from him.
“No one should have been able to rework any part of that blessing and get away without repercussions.” She palmed her arms and he noticed red welt-like marks on the surface of her skin. “But he did, and he's free and he's in my studio.”
“And you're not afraid.” He could see her aura. She was agitated, irritated, and puzzled, but he saw very little fear. Her expression wavered from indecision to resignation. She poked her head out the Gallery door and looked up and down the street. It was early, but there were a number of pedestrians and cars on the road. The sisters were well known, and he knew that if he was caught so early outside the Gallery door with Alanna, tongues would soon be wagging. He'd wager there would be a rumor about how he'd spent the night with Alanna on everyone's tongues before sunset.
She reached out a hand, gripped Goran's arm and tugged him inside. “Quick. Get in before anyone sees you.”
“It's possibly too late for the gossipmongers,” he said, but stepped inside and waited while Alanna locked the door. “And since when did you care what people thought of you?”
“Usually I don't! But life is more complicated than ever. I don't need to add to my current problems by having the town think I'm having an affair with you!”
“The feeling, believe me, is mutual,” Goran shuddered. He walked through the Gallery behind her, noting the courtyard door swinging on its hinges. He detoured over to it to view the damage. “What a mess.”
Alanna stopped on the stairs, watching him. “Is Gregori his real name?” She palmed her arms again and winced.
“It is.” Goran strode over to her, grabbed her hands, lifting them away from her forearms, a look of real concern in his eyes. “Are you all right? Did he hurt you?”
She shrugged herself out of his grasp. “My skin hurts from the wards breaking. I thought Beth might have felt them and that Rosa definitely would. Other than that, I'm fine.”
“Beth didn't sense anything. I checked. Gregori is powerful. I don't know anyone his equal. I figure he crafted a spell to prevent any damage in the network of spells around the Gallery being broadcasted. I'm astonished you weren't knocked unconscious. I understand Rosa was when Aden accidentally breached the web surrounding Gregori a few weeks back.”
“I felt the wards snap,” she admitted and palmed her arms again.
Goran reached out with his senses, sending a healing spell to her aura. Within seconds, he knew the pain had dissipated. “Is that better?” he asked.
Alanna nodded but didn't thank him.
Ungrateful wench.
“So where is he? Upstairs?”
“He might be formidable,” she said, “but right now he's weaker than a newborn dragonette. Tell me more about him.”
“I'll explain who he is later. Right now, I need to see him so I can gauge how much danger you're in. I'm going to craft a spell to protect us both just in case.”
“If he was going to hurt me, he would already have done so.”
“Never go into battle without protecting yourself first. First rule of the Dragon's code of conduct.”
Alarm flared in Alanna's eyes. “Surely, as apprentice Dragon, you've enough power to overwhelm him?”
“He's far older and more wily than I,” he told her. “I'd be a fool not to protect myself.”
“Two powerful warlocks in my personal space is two too many. Follow me, then, and don't worry. He doesn't appear to be dangerous at all.”
Goran huffed his disbelief.
She narrowed her eyes and her mouth twitched. “Anyone would think you cared about me.”
He scowled. “I wouldn't go that far. So let's see what mischief you've managed to brew up this time?”
“Trouble seems to have a way of finding me even when I don't try.”
“Hard to argue with you there.”
Alanna batted his arm. “Don't be mean.”
“I'm only stating the truth as I see it.”
Goran dug deep, closing his eyes, tapping into all the resources he could, harnessing the power of the earth. Anything could be upstairs but he was confident he was about to confront one very pissed Dragon. Not exactly his idea of a good time.
His eyes snapped open and he called “Clarissa.” Within seconds, his familiar appeared in a burst of flame at his side.
“Clarissa is here,” the dragon puffed.
“No kidding,” Alanna drawled.
“Gregori is free as I suspected,” he told the little dragon. “Did you advise Anton?”
“Anton says he will be with you shortly.”
“We won't wait for him. Alanna stands unscathed. She says he's weak and I believe her. Just stay at my side and await my command. He's been encased in stone for a long time and who knows what that's done to his mind.”
“I will turn him to a pile of soot,” Clarissa muttered in a plume of smoke.
Goran chuckled. “Not yet. We will go in, ascertain his mental state only. We will not attack unless instructed by Marylebone.”
“The situation is not that dire,” Gregori drawled from the top of the stairs.
He noted the swirl of authority in Goran's aura and wished he wasn't so weak. His apprentice had grown in power and stature over the past few years. Better to lure him and that little dragon of his into a false sense of security, as he currently didn't have the wherewithal to elude the smallest dung beetle.
Goran climbed the stairs, his eyes not leaving his. “You have less than two weeks before the final bell tolls for you. Will you hand yourself over to Marylebone until the time is right?”
“Who says the time isn't right now? My beloved is of age. I am free to mate with her.”
“But does she know who you are?”
“Who are we talking about?” Alanna muttered as she trailed Goran up the stairs.
Gregori stared over Goran's head at the woman who could save him. “I can't tell you.”
She frowned. “Why not?”
“I must redeem myself first,” he said. “I cannot bind my magic with a woman who would also blame me for a crime I have not committed.”
“The same crime you were ensorcelled in stone for?” Alanna was suddenly wary. She turned to Goran. “Bind him up so he doesn't get away. Do it while he's weak.”
“We will await Anton's instructions,” Goran said. He snapped his fingers at Clarissa who was sending out a continuous stream of sparks from her mouth and puffs of smoke from her snout. “Go back to Anton. Report Gregori is sane and that everything is under control.”
Gregori nearly laughed at the look Clarissa shot her master. “You're Earthbound. You cannot follow him if he jumps between the earth's ley lines and that of Marylebone,” the little dragon said.
“He's too weak for any kind of translocation.” Goran studied Gregori's aura. “His energy is depleted. It will be several hours, perhaps a day or two, before it is restored.”
Gregori arched an eyebrow. “You're far too confident for your own good. I told you that when you were a cocky neophyte and it seems you're still too cocky to be competent.”
Clarissa hissed out a length of flame that arced all the way up the remaining stairs to Gregori's face. He ducked, avoiding being burned and backed up into the studio. “You're going to have to do better than that.”
“No.” Goran followed, holding up a hand when Clarissa would have attacked once more. “He lives for now.”
“So very generous of you,” Gregori drawled.
“Lives for now?” Alanna squeaked and scooted over to her workbench and picked up a sculpting tool in one hand and a hammer in the other. “What exactly was this crime you're accused of?”
Gregori paused, staring intently at Alanna as he considered his response. She wasn't ready to hear the truth. “I'd rather not say.”
Alanna stepped further away from him, the tools in her hands poised to strike if she needed to. It pained him to see fear in her eyes.
She spoke to Goran. “He had the strength to rework our wards surrounding the Gallery. How can you be sure he's too weak to escape before Marylebone gets here?”
“I'm not. But there are reasons for his presence in Raven's Creek you're not privy to. He won't go far and if he does, rest assured, we will track him.”
⢠⢠â¢
Gregori's former student was remiss in sending Clarissa away. Yes, he might be weak, but he wasn't stupid. It was unfortunate Alanna was less comfortable with him now that Goran had arrived and filled her head with fear. He'd planned to eat and leave, and he'd guessed she would have been happy to see him gone.
Still, he'd felt that tug of
something
when she'd touched his skin with hers. That sliver of a connection, despite her lack of magic. Some of her energy had siphoned itself into his body as if sensing his need for strength. And that gave him an idea. He pursed his mouth as he thought it through. First, replenish his energy. Second, find clothes. Third, escape.
It was apparent to him the bells had not tolled for Alanna, and it was just as well they hadn't, given she was without magic. What a complete mess it all was. But he felt this time it was different. With Alanna fully grown into a desirable woman, it was possible he would be given time to build a relationship with her as well as the opportunity to clear his name.
There was no doubt he could evade capture, provided he remained one step ahead at all times. “Come,” he said to Goran, and held out a hand. “We were friends once. Will you not greet me as a friend now also?”
Goran eyed him with suspicion. “You were my mentor. Perhaps your memory has been affected by your incarceration. I seem to recall you instructing me that a mentor is not the same as a friend.”
“I've had time to ponder many things,” Gregori paced around the pedestal where a lump of stone sat waiting for Alanna to turn it into something. “Sitting on a lily pond without anyone to talk to makes one regret many things. The lack of companionship, mainly. My voice might be rusty, but it feels good to be conversing after so long.”
Goran had good reason not to trust him. Gregori had, more than once, pummeled and pounded him into shape when teaching him to spar physically, as well as with magic. He'd been a tough taskmaster.
If Gregori failed to secure Alanna as his mate, to help balance his increasingly uncontrollable power, he would have to sacrifice his magic. If he did not, Marylebone would be forced to hunt him down and take his magic from him. Such action would ensure his death.
But there were few who could best him. He stopped in front of Goran and held out his hand. “Come. Let us be friends.”
But in that second, Anton appeared at Goran's side. “No. Don't touch him.”
Alanna remained silent as she mentally assimilated the oddest morning she'd ever lived. The good news was, Anton knew Gregori was free. Thank the Goddess she didn't have to break another witch law. All she had to do was get rid of all three warlocks from her studio and she'd be a happy witch.
“Why don't you three take your argument somewhere else? Perhaps the haloed halls of Marylebone would be more suitable?”
“Can't,” Goran growled, his attention solely focused on Gregori. “I'm Earthbound if you recall.”
Alanna felt herself blush.
Damn it.
Her mistakes were always coming back to haunt her. “Anton can.” She looked hopefully to the most senior Dragon of Marylebone, the one who had charged her with caring for Gregori.