Page 20 of Cast By Flames (Dragon's Breath)
He gripped her hips so she couldn’t move them anymore. “You will be careful on your mission? No unnecessary risks?”
“Whatever you want,” she said through gritted teeth.
He hoped she wasn’t only giving in to the moment and spoke the truth. She couldn’t possibly comprehend how much she meant to him, though he tried to express the words as best he could. Aidan needed her safe more than he needed air.
“You are everything to me, Bailey. I cannot afford to lose you—now or ever. Do you understand that?”
His mate peered up at him. “That goes both ways, pendragon. I love you.”
She understood Aidan needed to hear those words often, especially since her return.
“I love you too, slayer,” he said, and he held back no more.
Chapter 6
Aidan
The air in his office was hot and stifling. Aidan had summoned more than a dozen people after the midday meal, and they filled the room now. He opened the window behind his desk. Relief filled him and the others as a surprisingly cool breeze blew into the crowded space.
While the entire castle had an anti-magic ward in place, making it difficult to spy on by seers, his office had multiple layers of security to prevent even the most powerful individuals from penetrating their defenses. The most sensitive discussions occurred here or in the sorcerers’ tower, where their library had been fortified with strong blocking spells. Thankfully, an open window would not negate their power.
The gathering before Aidan included many important supporters of his cause, including his mate standing with him behind his desk. Across from them, Phoebe, Xanath, Morgan, Kade, Falcon, Ruari, Donar, Freya, Sabryn—his cousin who he’d brought into his circle—and Skylar waited for him to speak. The elders' council sat in a comfortable sitting area to the side. They’d been alive for nearly a thousand years, seen many wars, and had vast experience with pure dragons. Aidan had made a point of asking for their input on any important discussions.
As a precaution, the guards outside had inspected everyone first to ensure the Kandoran had not found a way to infect them with dark magic. They did not need a repeat of what happened with Nanoq and some of his loyalists. Their due diligence had averted a few disasters over recent weeks as spies tried to infiltrate the fortress and nearby town in an attempt to discover what the Taugud and their allies planned for the war.
“Time is running out,” Aidan said, gazing across the many faces before him. “These meetings will take place every few days from this point forward, and I expect to hear progress on your respective tasks each time. We cannot afford any delays. Kade, you should go first with your report.”
His uncle stood at the side of the gathering. He had light olive skin and long, wavy black hair streaked with gray that ran to his shoulders. His black camrium pants and tunic fit snuggly against his stout frame, but signs of aging had begun to appear now that he was in his ninth century of life. Lines creased his forehead and around his yellow eyes.
At first glance, one might not think Kade was different from other shifters, but once he began speaking about prophecies, that quickly changed. They were often ill-timed and complicated. Never mind that he often delivered them with a crazed fanaticism.
He clasped his hands before him. “I’m afraid there isn’t more to say now. I feel I am close to finding the rest of my missing tome—all of it—but the location still eludes me. Sometimes, I think it must creep about the library to escape my clutches.”
Visions of his uncle chasing a book with little legs filled Aidan’s head. At this point, he wouldn’t even be surprised if he caught Kade pouncing on a runaway tome. The older shifter hadspent years looking for it and only found select pages. It was all rather mysterious and more than a little annoying.
“Do you know when the attack might come other than sometime inthe next few weeks?” Aidan asked.
Kade cleared his throat. “I get the sense it will be sooner rather than later, especially with the recent assault on the Shadowan. There is only one sign left of the three before war is imminent. Having said that, I suspect we don’t have to worry until you’ve received further instructions on how to use the orb.”
That was a point Aidan had forgotten with everything else occupying his mind. The orb was a dark weapon created thousands of years ago. In the hands of a powerful sorcerer with malicious intent, it could control dragons, shifters, and slayers in mass.
After it had been used in the worst possible way by its creator, a group of heroes from all the races stole the magical device. They fractured it into three pieces and transported them far from Europe to the central part of North America. The wisest among them knew it would be needed for a greater purpose someday, so they couldn’t simply destroy it.
Six years ago, a recovered page from Kade’s missing tome surfaced and directed them to gather those fragments, reforge the artifact, and secure it until such a time as it would be needed. They had a clue as to where to begin the search, and there was a spirit guide at each location to help direct them further, along with an explanation of its history.
There were no further details on when they would need it or why, but they realized it must be for the Kandoran threat when everyone received the “call” a few months ago by one of the spirit guides to reconvene in the Norman area. It was partof an oath they swore for them to receive the final piece. Aidan, his mate, Conrad, Phoebe, and Bailey were the designated protectors and the ones who would use it as a weapon against their enemy when the time came.
“Wait.” Bailey held up a hand. “Have you learned anything else about the orb?”
“Unfortunately, no. While I was not privy to what the guides told you during our quest to acquire it—rather absurd they left me out, I might add—I can surmise they intended for you to receive some instruction before implementing its use. That has not happened. Therefore, you need not worry about an attack until it does becausethe powers that bewill want you prepared.”
Aidan couldn’t argue the logic, though he hoped his uncle was right. “But who arethe powers that be?”
Kade shrugged. “The ones that gift seers with visions of the future. That is just what I call them, for lack of a better name, but you are free to call them something else. I’m not particularly fond of the term.”
Aidan supposed it didn’t matter what they called them, if they even existed.
Keeping in theme with sorcerers taking a turn first, Aidan addressed Xanath and Morgan next. They’d worked closely together over the last two months on their projects.
