AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Morio joined me, taking my hands in his. Even with his added boost of power, we couldn't pinpoint the nature of the spell they were casting together.
"Okay, that makes me nervous." I glanced over my shoulder at the forest behind us but could see nothing out of the ordinary.
"Don't let it bother you," Smoky said as we entered the clearing near the house that had once belonged to Tom Lane. The place now housed a broken, fragile soul named Georgio Profeta. Or Saint George, as he thought of himself. Saint George was forever trying to slay the dragon. Namely, Smoky. Georgio's plastic chain mail and foam sword couldn't do much damage, but in his eyes, they were the finest armor, fit for a royal knight.
Morio's SUV was parked off to one side, and as he unlocked the doors, I said good-bye to Smoky.
"Call me if you need me," he said, softly nuzzling my face. "For anything."
"Thank you," I whispered back. "Thank you for offering me a glimpse of your life, of your love."
He shook his head. "Don't thank me for that until you accept my invitation."
With a short laugh, I turned toward the car. "Think about it. I cannot bear dragon babies, and you'll want to father children someday, being the ninth son of a ninth son of a ninth son. And you know perfectly well—"
"Yes, yes, I know," he said. "You love Trillian. You love Morio. But Camille, I know you love me, too. For now go and do what you must. You'll return. And I'll be waiting." He winked at me then, waving as we drove off, heading back to the city. Heading back to the reality of my life.
Chapter Eighteen
Morio and I didn't speak much on the way. There wasn't much to say, really, and I wanted to save speculation for when we could talk to Delilah and Menolly so we didn't have to cover old territory.
As we pulled into the driveway, a thought occurred to me. "You didn't tell me the rest of what happened at the rug shop."
"Not much. I tried to poke around, but that djinn was watching my every movement once she figured out that I wasn't really in the market for a carpet. There was no reason for me to hang out, so I left. But I'll bet they have security cameras and now have my picture plastered on their back wall as a 'to-watch' individual."
He opened my door for me, and I slipped out, taking a long breath. It was good to be home. As I stared up at our house, I felt like I'd spent the past eighteen hours in a dream. I grabbed my overnight bag and dashed up the stairs, throwing the door wide as I burst into the house.
"I'm home!" I called, but my words were lost in an uproar.
Iris and Delilah were in the living room, Delilah frantically punching buttons on her cell phone.
"Camille! Thank heavens you're here. I've been trying to call you for the past half hour. We have an emergency." She slapped her phone closed and jammed it in the pocket of her jeans. They were ripped, as usual, and her shirt was a tank top with a pretty white Persian on it. Cat, that is. Not demon.
"What's wrong?" I pulled out my cell and groaned. "Great. Looks like being in Smoky's barrow fried my battery or something."
Morio checked his. "Mine, too. Okay, note: leave all cell phones outside the barrow. Also laptop computers, BlackBerries, and anything else that might get fried."
"No time for that." Iris was pulling on a sweater. "We've got problems. Come on, we'll tell you on the way to the car."
It suddenly occurred to me that she wasn't at the store. "Excuse me, but what the hell is going on? You aren't at the Indigo Crescent, so who is? And where's Maggie? Where are we going?"
Delilah pushed me out the door while Iris shoved Morio along. "We don't have any time to waste. Chase needs us. Now."
"Chase? Why?" I hurried down the stairs, the rest of them following. "Is he hurt?"
"No, but he might be if we don't get downtown," Iris said. She pointed toward my car. "You're the designated driver, since we can all fit in your car."
"Get in," I said, pulling out my keys. "And for heaven's sake, answer my questions."
As I clicked my seat belt into place, they piled into the car. Morio rode in back with Iris while Delilah rode shotgun with me. I started the ignition. "Where are we going, and why?"
"Downtown. Pioneer Square." Delilah bit her lip. I thought she was going to cry, she looked so worried. "We need to get there ASAP."
"Maggie's in Menolly's lair. She'll be fine until we get back. I know you hate to leave her there, but you're going to need my help." Iris fiddled with something in her pocket.
"Chase is fighting a band of goblins who broke through a newly opened portal. They're terrorizing Pioneer Square. People are being hurt, one woman's already reported being robbed and assaulted. These suckers mean business." There was a catch in Delilah's voice. "I'm worried that Chase and his men won't be able to fend them off—goblins have magic. Humans don't."
"Goblins… goblins'? Why the hell didn't you say so sooner?" I slammed on the gas, and my Lexus jumped into high gear as we sailed down the street. "Damn it, I wish Smoky was here."
