Page 30 of Hot for the Dragon

"Wait." Daphne rose beside him, her green eyes earnest. "There's one more place I want to show you."

"It's getting late-"

"Please? It's important."

Something in her voice made him pause. He gave a curt nod and followed her through the winding streets until they reached a charred storefront. The acrid smell of smoke still lingered in the air.

"This was my shop," Daphne said softly, pushing open the damaged door.

Archer ducked through the entrance, taking in the blackened walls and scorched shelves. Broken pots crunched under his boots. In the fading light, he could make out the ghost of what the place must have been - cheerful displays now reduced to ash, vibrant flowers turned to cinders.

"These were my first roses." Daphne's voice cracked as she knelt beside a burned planter. "I grew them when I was learning to control my magic. And these-" She touched a shelf of destroyed ceramic pots. "Mrs. Henderson brought these back from Italy for me. She said they reminded her of my spirit."

Her shoulders trembled. Archer shifted uncomfortably, unused to dealing with emotions. But as he watched her fingers trace patterns in the soot, something clicked into place. This wasn't just about destroyed inventory - this was someone's dreams turned to ash. Their livelihood. Their passion.

And Carmen had destroyed it without a second thought.

He thought of all the other shops they'd helped today, all the people picking up pieces of their lives. Each attack wasn't just property damage - it was crushing hopes, destroying futures, ripping apart the fabric of people's lives.

"I get it now," he said quietly. "What you've been trying to show me all day."

Daphne looked up at him, a tear tracking down her cheek. "Yeah?"

"Yeah." He offered her his hand, pulling her to her feet. "Carmen has to be stopped. Not just because she's dangerous, but because of this. Because of what she takes from people."

Archer's chest tightened as he watched another tear slip down Daphne's cheek. The sight stirred something unfamiliar in him, an emotion he hadn't felt in years - empathy, mixed with a protective instinct that caught him off guard. His fists clenched at his sides as anger surged through him, both at Carmen's destruction and his own conflicted feelings.

"Damn it," he muttered, running a hand through his auburn hair. The charred remains of Daphne's shop seemed to mock him, a stark reminder of the consequences of his actions. "Look, about the supplies..."

Daphne turned to face him, her green eyes still glistening.

"Maybe I acted without thinking it through completely," he admitted grudgingly. The words felt foreign on his tongue - he wasn't used to acknowledging mistakes. "But we can't just sit back and wait for Carmen to make her next move. That would be just as devastating as what happened today."

He paced the length of the burned shop, his boots crunching on broken glass. The smell of smoke clung to everything, reminding him of battlefields long past.

"Your idea about turning her followers..." He paused, choosing his words carefully. "It's not completely without merit. Dragons respect strength, yes, but Carmen's taken that principle too far. Some of them must see that."

The admission cost him something, but seeing Daphne's shop in ruins, witnessing the aftermath of Carmen's attack throughout town - it had shifted something in his perspective. He might prefer solitude, might bristle at working with others, but he couldn't deny the evidence before him.

Archer watched Daphne's expression brighten, her smile catching him by surprise. The last bit of sunlight filtering through the burned shop caught the green flecks in her eyes.

"Thank you for understanding," she said. "About the town, and about trying to turn Carmen's followers. Maybe we could combine our approaches? Keep disrupting her supplies while showing her dragons there's another way?"

He suppressed a smirk. "Might work."

"And thank you for saving my life earlier." Daphne's voice softened. "Outside the Cauldron & Cup. I feel silly now - couldn't even get one person to safety without needing rescue myself."

Archer's brow furrowed. The self-deprecation in her voice didn't sit right with him. He'd seen trained warriors flee from dragon attacks, yet she had run straight into danger.

"Hold up." He stepped closer to her, his presence filling the cramped space. "You ran out there knowing full well what could happen. That's not weakness - that's guts. Crazy guts, maybe, but still guts."

She blinked up at him, surprise evident on her features.

"Besides," he continued, rolling his shoulders, "you've been... useful these past few days." The admission came grudgingly, but he meant it. "The jewelry store stake-out? That was good thinking. And you kept your cool surrounded by hostile dragons."

A light blush colored her cheeks. "Really?"

"Don't make me repeat myself." But there was no real bite to his words. Something about her earnestness made it impossible to maintain his usual gruff demeanor. "Though next time you decide to play hero, give me a heads up first."

---