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We all glanced at Smoky and Shade to see how they’d take that statement. But both of them nodded in agreement.
Smoky spoke up. “My wife speaks correctly. My people are avaricious. Especially the white dragons. My father’s kin are among the worst of the lot, and they will stop at nothing to attain power and treasure. For now, when you return to the Dragon Reaches, keep silent. And you must hide this scroll.”
Venus paled. “Where, though? It must be protected.”
“Carter. Carter could protect it, couldn’t he?” Vanzir stopped short as soon as the words left his mouth. “Never mind. No, you do not want a demon having that much information in his grasp. Not even a half-demon. I’m amazed you spoke of this in front of me, considering my nature.”
“You are not out to destroy this world,” Venus said.
“There is a place,” I said, mulling over every word, trying to decide if what I was thinking was actually a good idea or not. “What about your barrow, Smoky? It’s sealed off from the rest of the world more tightly than just about any place we know of.”
Camille nodded. “Yes… of course! The barrow. There are spaces deep within the chasm there that we could hide the scroll in—no one would ever find it unless they first destroyed all of us, then decided to go mucking about in there.” She turned to Smoky. “Can we hide it there, my love?”
A strand of his hair reached up to tickle her and then he nodded, his eyes gentle. “You may hide it in my barrow. But we’d best do it soon because once my mother and her helpers arrive to take Venus and the others back with them, they’ll sense anything this old in the house. Shade, stay here. Menolly, you and Rozurial—bring the scroll. I will go with you to help you through the barriers. You can find a place to hide it that even I will not know about.”
“You’d best go quickly.” Shade cocked his head. “I sense a stirring on the wind. The dragons will be here soon.”
“Then we go now, and will return as soon as we finish.”
And with that, we scurried to gather our things, and to go hide the scroll.
Chapter 7
Traveling through the Ionyc Seas wasn’t always the most pleasant thing but it got the job done. And really, considering I was already dead and that it took one hell of a lot to knock me out of commission, the shifting waves of energy rolled over me like water on a duck’s back. I closed my eyes and leaned close to Smoky as he sheltered me in his arm.
Dragons smelled different than humans or Fae. Their pulses ran differently, too. The steady beat of his heart was similar, but it echoed a different rhythm, deeper, like the ancient pulsing of drums in the darkness. I’d noticed it before. As Smoky stepped off the Ionyc Seas, it felt as though we were exiting from a womb, breaking through a psychic amniotic fluid sac. We stepped through, with a sucking sound, and were once again on solid land, in the physical world.
We were standing in front of his barrow, which was out near Mount Rainier. When Camille had first stumbled on the hillock and met the dragon who now claimed her heart, Smoky had been embroiled in a dispute over the ownership of the mound with Titania, the Queen of Light and Morning. But at that point, she had not regained her powers, and had been a pale drunken shadow of her true self. She had been arguing with Smoky over who owned the barrow, while living in a cave inside it.
Now there was no issue. Titania ruled with Aeval and Morgaine in their sovereign nation of Talamh Lonrach Oll, giving up all pretenses to owning Smoky’s land.
Not far from the barrow, through the forest along a wooded trail, was a snug house where Smoky had offered refuge to Georgio Profeta, a man who believed he was Saint George. His childlike vision allowed him to see through the trappings and to know that Smoky was a dragon. For years he had sought to destroy the beast, dressed in his plastic chain mail, with a rubber sword. When his dementia grew too strong, Smoky hired a caretaker for him, and now Saint George and the dragon lived in a peaceful truce.>As he stepped forward, it seemed odd to see him without a limp, but then I remembered. The spirit seal he had carried in his leg for so many years had caused that limp. Now the fire opal was hanging around his neck, sparkling in a way that was almost frightening. It seemed a part of him—and he a part of it.
Venus the Moon Child had been the shaman for the Rainier Puma Pride, until he’d been conscripted by Queen Asteria for the Keraastar Knights. I wondered how the grizzled and crude puma had fared among the regal elves. Chances were, he could strike any one of them down without a problem. The man wasn’t just a Were; he was magic incarnate.
He held out his arm and pulled Delilah to him, kissing her on the cheek. With his other arm, he motioned for Nerissa to join him and he squeezed her to his chest, kissing her soundly on the lips. He had taught my wife how to handle pain, how to translate it into pleasure and use it as a healing force. And he’d taught her well.
Camille let out a shout and ran over to Trillian and Smoky. The dragon caught her up, whirling her around, kissing her soundly as he set her back on the ground, for Trillian to take his turn.
I turned to Hanna. “Can you fetch Amber and Luke? They’ll want to say hello to Venus.”
She nodded and took off for the parlor as Venus motioned for room.
“Let an old man have a chair, would you?” His eyes sparkled, though. As ancient as he might be, he was far from old.
As he dropped into the rocker, Venus gave us a long look before leaning his head against the back of the chair and closing his eyes. It was then that I could see the weariness below the surface that seemed to ooze out of his pores. Smoky and Trillian looked beat, too. So did Roz.
“Trillian, Smoky—why don’t you two go shower and change? Roz, use Delilah’s bathroom.” Camille motioned to Vanzir. “Meanwhile, somebody fix a plate for Venus. Soup and biscuits… whatever we have. Unless you’d like to wash up first, too.”
As Vanzir vanished toward the kitchen, Venus shook his head. “I took a shower at the Elfin camp this morning. I’ll bathe after eating. I know you have many questions for me and I’ll do my best to answer.”
At that moment, Luke and Amber entered the room. They greeted Venus in an odd dialect, one I knew I’d heard before but wasn’t conversant with.
But Camille touched her nose. “You speak in Melosealfôr?”
Venus nodded. “Queen Asteria ran us through an intensive course. It’s a rare dialect, and not many goblins or other miscreants would speak the tongue.”
She nodded. “It’s said that if the language falls from the tongue of an enemy, it will burn their lips with every word. Most of the powerful Cryptos—the ones who are of relatively good nature, that is—know it. And all of the Moon Mother’s witches and priestesses are schooled in it.”
