Page 48 of Here Be Dragons

“How much farther can we go?” Carly asked. “I mean, the Hawaiian Islands are already in the middle of the Pacific Ocean.”

“There may be smaller islands. The artifact could be on any one of them, or even in the ocean. But it might start to look a little suspicious if we keep going in a straight line.”

“What if we made a pit stop somewhere off the line to triangulate?” she suggested, leaning close into me. “Get a better idea of where this thing really is. I’ve been enjoying our ‘vacation’, but we haven’t gotten any closer to that artifact.”

“I’ve been enjoying my time with you too, but that’s a good idea,” I said, cupping her cheeks. “And I know just the place.”

It was time to show my little mate my hoard. I was excited to see her reaction to it. I’d never revealed it to anyone before. I’d displayed some of the pieces at the museum, of course, but up till now, I was the only soul who’d stepped into my cave and exited…alive, that is.

“Yeah?” She leaned into my palm, closing her eyes.

“Yes. Somewhere very special.”

I bent to nuzzle my nose into her hair, the auburn strands almost glowing with fire. Despite having only spent a week together, our scents were starting to mingle, and she smelled like me. It was glorious.

“We’re going somewhere no one else has ever been.”

“Where?”

“You’ll see.”

An hour and ahalf later, we were back at the resort and inside our luxury villa.

I drew the blinds closed before double checking the wards placed around the two-story dwelling. As much as I would have loved to carry her there by air in my dragon form, I was also damned fucking sure that we were currently being watched. There was only one safe way to get to my hoard: by portal.

I rubbed the ring on my right pinky vigorously, polishing the already gleaming emerald-cut ruby. The spell on it had been cast a long time ago by a wizard who had then promptly had his memory wiped. The spell only responded to me, and the magic had to be recharged every half-century or so. It opened a portal directly to my cave. The portal wasn’t trackable and was unique in that it never left a trace of magic.

I uttered the words to trigger the spell, and a portal appeared in the middle of the room. Unlike the ones that connected to my library, this one showed the inside of my cave. A pile of gold coins gleamed on the right, a dozen racks of priceless weapons stood on the left, and straight ahead were several crowns that had gone missing through history, some belonging to human kings, and others to monster rulers.

Carly’s sharp gasp was precisely what I was listening for. I hoped that meant she was impressed.

I took her by the hand and, for the very first time in my centuries of existence, escorted a living being into my most precious and private place.

I gave her a quick tour, showing her the main chamber as well as the dozen or so smaller ones that held more specialized collections. Magical tomes. Staves and wands. Talismans and amulets. I had one chamber containing nothing but musical instruments.

She walked through the rooms, her eyes bright and curious, asking questions which I was more than happy to answer. She was careful not to touch anything; I figured it must be because of her talent. It must be jarring to have items show her visions andfeelings all the time. And these were most definitely the type of artifacts that would have had much to say.

At the end of the tour, I brought her to the chamber with my nest. I’d spread out the softest, silkiest sheets and blankets I owned, overlapping many of them to cover the giant nest. But we’d get to all that soon. First, I took her over to the ornate wardrobe.

“Open it,” I said, eager to see her reaction. “See what’s inside.”

Chapter 25

Carly

I opened the giantwardrobe, not having any idea what to expect. Inside hung a colorful collection of sumptuous gowns and dresses. Velvets and satins, leather and lace. All the garments were in pristine condition, despite the fact that some of them had to be centuries old. They must have been magically preserved.

But what caught my eye the most was the gorgeous jewelry on display on one of the shelves. Unlike the huge pieces I’d seen around the cave, these were more delicate and feminine.

“Ooh!” I instinctively reached out to a beautiful glittering necklace but then snatched my hand back.

“Go ahead, try it on,” Desmon urged.

“Everything here is so priceless. I’m afraid to touch it.”

“Don’t be. Treasure is meant to be enjoyed.”

When I didn’t immediately reach for the gorgeous necklace again, Desmon did so for me, removing it from the display and fastening it around my neck. He stood back and took a look, then shook his head.

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