Page 57 of Knight of the Sword

The surface rippled again as the mammal approached the surface much closer to the boat. Its head broke through and people started screaming.

“Sea monster!”

“It’s Nessie!” a college kid with a long, brown ponytail yelled.

“Sea dragon,” a woman screamed as the creature dove beneath the surface again.

Michael turned away and looked at Sophie. Her face was unusually pale in the sunlight.

“Sigurd,” he said.

Chapter Sixteen

Balor flicked the ashes off his illegal Cuban cigar, depositing them in a Waterford wine goblet. Damn hotel wouldn’t provide ashtrays, saying they discouraged their patrons from smoking in the rooms. Like Balor cared when he was paying over a thousand dollars a day for the suite.

“What the crap is going on with that dragon?” he asked Lucifer when his brother finally answered his cell on the third attempt to reach him. “The AP is having a damn field day with the sightings in Charleston and now the Keys. They’re clamoring to know where the vet went, too. Sigurd is going to blow our cover. Can’t you control him?”

“Hey, bro,” Lucifer said in a deceptively mild tone. “All I did was defrost him.”

“He’s supposed to be zeroing in on our quarry, not exposing them to the entire world. The fewer people who know what we’re looking for, the better. Have you explained that to him?”

“Yep. Sigurd says he wants to have a little fun after being in the frozen tundra for fifteen hundred years.”

“Well, maybe you could show him how hot hell can be.”

Lucifer laughed. “He breathes fire, remember?”

Balor flicked another ash and wished Morgan were there to relieve some of the tension that was building inside him. He forced himself to sound calm. “How close are you and Landon getting to them?”

“Landon was within twenty feet of them on Church Street.”

“And you?”

“Church Street is a place I’d rather not be. Bad memories,” Lucifer said. “Besides, I’m staying under the radar for now. I had Landon following them in Charleston and on the boat over to Fort Jefferson, as well. We’ve got them in our sights. They just don’t know it.”

“Good. Is the kid behaving for you?”

Lucifer laughed again. “Of course. He’s willing to do anything to keep me from having my way with him.”

Balor didn’t return the laughter. “Keep me posted and try to keep that damn dragon in line.” He hung up the phone, still feeling strangely frustrated. Why weren’t things working out like they should?

****

“What good am I to you if you keep making me stay in motel rooms while you two go looking for the Sword?” Pendragon grumbled from the back of the SUV as they turned onto the Tamiami Trail through the Everglades. “Twice now, Sigurd has shown himself. He’s playing with you. Let me shift back and I can destroy him.”

Michael glanced at him in the rearview mirror. “Maybe because he doesn’t scent you with us he’s not really sure. Have you thought of that?”

Pendragon rumbled something unintelligible.

Sophie turned in her seat to look back at the dragon and smile. She had grown quite fond of him, partly because his very presence was a deterrent for any kind of amorous advances on Michael’s part. She let her gaze sweep sideways at Michael. His dark eyes were fixed on the road, allowing her to take in the high set of his cheekbones, his straight nose and strong jaw. His T-shirt pulled taut over his shoulders and the muscles in his forearm flexed as the car rounded a curve a little faster than the speed limit. She sighed. If she were going to be honest with herself, it wasn’t Michael’s advances she feared. It was her reaction to having those strong arms around her, pressing the soft parts of her body against the hard parts of his.

He slanted a look sideways. “Your shields are slipping again.”

She felt herself blush furiously and looked back at Pendragon. The dragon’s lips were curled back from his sharp teeth in what looked like a lecherous grin.

“Stop it! Both of you. I was only thinking about how many more nights on the road before we get back to Dallas.”

Michael’s eyes glittered with amusement. “You still have time to ask me.”