Page 66 of Cast By Flames (Dragon's Breath)
“Are you calling me a liar?” she asked, lifting her brows and affecting outrage. “Maybe it’s a mother’s club thing, and they took advantage of the nice weather. It wasn’t nearly as hot today.”
“You tell taller tales than I do.”
I’d decided a while ago it was a toss-up between them on that point.
“Anyway,” Rosalie said, lifting her chin. “Bunny was being picky about where I could leave him. He had to inspect every tree before deciding which one I could tie him to. I swear it’s like dogs and peeing.”
My brows knitted in confusion. “Bunny?”
“Oh, I finally settled on a name for the mule. He hated the first few dozen I suggested, and then I thought about how his ears perked up like a bunny and threw that one out there. He said he liked it.”
I started to ask how he could have told her before remembering Rayna lived with them, and she could have asked. That was one of her sorceress talents—telepathically talking to animals. Of course, most only gave her vague thoughts andimpressions, but more intelligent species could “speak” complex views.
“Well, as long as he’s happy,” I said. Sometimes, being around Conrad and Rosalie felt like the Twilight Zone.
“Definitely.” Rosalie winked at me. “Bunny has been a lifesaver, so I’m not trapped at that house or walking forever to get someplace.”
No one drove anymore since we had no way to get fuel, but the mule just showed up at their house a couple of weeks ago. Perhaps it had been lured by Rayna’s horse, who also lived there. All I knew was it came one morning and would only let Rosalie near it. For some reason, the animal loved her and even followed her into the house if she didn’t get the door shut fast enough behind her. Conrad wasn’t overly fond of that trick. I wondered if it would get worse after winter arrived, and the mule didn’t like staying in the small barn they were building.
“Attention, everyone,” a loud female called.
I’d been caught up in the conversation with my friends and missed the room getting full. Nadine Richards stood up front where a judge would be if they still used the courtroom for that purpose instead of meetings. She wore a black dress suit today with gold buttons, and there was no sign of the injuries she’d sustained during her house fire. Nothing kept her down for long. I admired her commitment to the people of this town.
Sitting at a table below her were the rest of the town council members—two women and four men of ages ranging between thirty to sixty-five. Nadine took the lead as a sort of de facto mayor, but a majority vote of the others could overrule her if necessary. The last elections took place a year before I returned to Oklahoma. I felt the head councilwoman was a goodchoice, but I hadn’t gotten to know the others yet and reserved my judgment of them.
“We have a lot to cover today,” she said once she had everyone’s attention. “Let’s start with where we’re at on bunker preparations.”
A male council member stood. He appeared to be in his late forties with gray highlighting his brown hair, trimmed short at the back and around his ears. The man wore dress casual clothes like Conrad, but with more wrinkles and no pop of color. His mustache could have used a trim as well. There was calm intelligence in his eyes that told me he took his work seriously, though.
“They’re nearly complete,” he replied, glancing at her before addressing the audience. “There are a few that still need to be stocked with supplies, but everyone in the city has a place to go should the worst happen. We’ve also repaired the former tornado siren system so that if the shield wall falls, there will be a way to warn everyone.”
I hadn’t thought of that and had no idea they’d been repairing the sirens, but I was glad they’d considered it. Maybe I shouldn’t have skipped all the weekly meetings for the last month.
“On that note,” a forty-something woman with short, black hair said from the same table. “We’ve also finished programming the electrical grid to cut power to everywhere except mission-critical systems when the war starts. The tornado sirens and lights near the border will get priority.”
“And my station?” Hank, the famous radio guy, asked.
He stood near the front of the audience, wearing jeans and a blue T-shirt. The average-sized man hadn’t changed muchsince I left five years before, except for a few new lines on his face. His hair was still shaggy and brown with no signs of gray despite the fact he had to be nearly fifty years old.
“Yes, you will still have power, but remember to keep the lights off.”
He turned toward the rest of us. “I’ll be handing out walkie-talkies and hand-held radios to certain individuals in the days before the war starts. This way, they can keep me updated on what is happening in their locations, and I can report it to everyone else. They’ll have a full charge on them and can be returned to me whenever they need recharging.”
I was glad his gaze didn’t turn toward our group when he focused on certain people because we’d be on the front lines. Walkie-talkies wouldn’t survive what we faced, and we wouldn’t have time for reporting.
Javier, who’d finally returned to town, stood on the opposite side of the room from Hank. He stood and looked at the radio station guy. “Do not forget to bring them to my office so my people can spell them for security. I doubt the Kandoran use modern technology, but they have proven smarter than expected, so it’s always possible.”
Hank nodded at him. “Of course.”
Something about how they spoke told me that was already the plan, but they wanted to ensure everyone else knew it. The discussion continued for several more minutes on electrical and security updates. Then, Nadine called Falcon and Sabyrn forward.
They stopped before the city council’s table and turned to face the audience. Both wore form-fitting black camrium vests and pants, though hers were more feminine and showed offa hint of cleavage with her V-neck design. They looked good together, like a real team, despite having only worked together for a short time.
She ran her amber gaze across the room. “We previously asked human volunteers to donate small amounts of their blood to strengthen the shield wall. Yesterday was our first day, and the turnout was abysmally low. We need hundreds of your people to make a difference, or it will do little good.”
A guy near the back of the audience to my right shouted, “How much of a difference?”
“Perhaps ten minutes per person per stone.” She shrugged. “It might not sound like a lot, but it adds up when you consider that it allows those fighting forward of the shield to kill that many more of the Kandoran forces before they breach the barrier.” She gestured toward me, Rayna, and Conrad. “Those slayers could take down two to three dragons each in that time.”
