Page 56 of Dragon Fire

The two women climbed ever higher on the wide stone staircases, one behind the other. Livia realized they must be in one of the many towers that made the keep look so formidable from outside. The towers, she’d been told when she was first admitted to her guest suite, were off limits to all but a trusted few. It seemed Gryffid liked to work at height, and he used each tower for a different secret purpose, known only to him and his select friends.

They were very high in the tower now. In fact, the next staircase was a spiral. Livia held back. There was no way she could follow unseen on a spiral staircase.

“Seth? Where are you?”she sent desperately. “She’s on the last staircase that leads to the pinnacle of the tower.

“I’m right behind you. Stay out of sight. I’ll be there in a few minutes.”

His voice in her mind was reassuring, but there were too many doors leading from the spiral staircase into hidden rooms. Livia would have to try her best to see where the woman was headed. If Livia missed the correct room, she could blow right past the traitor and either lose her completely or be trapped at the top of the tower with her below.

And Livia was unarmed.

The first thing she’d do after this, she vowed, was to get a weapon that she could conceal on her person at all times. Gowan could teach her how to defend herself, surely. Livia shook her head at the distracting thought. None of that would help her now.

“Why are you following me?”

The demand was made in a strong voice, similar in tone to Lilith’s, but not exactly the same. Still, the air of command about this woman was very similar, but she carried a disdain in her bearing that Livia knew, firsthand now, the captain did not.

Was the woman bluffing? Livia would bet the confrontation was all bravado, because clearly, this woman wasn’t where she was supposed to be. Nobody was supposed to be up here in this deserted tower without the wizard. Not now. Not after everything that had happened in the past few days.

Livia decided to challenge. “Why are you skulking around in this tower, when the last I heard, Gryffid had sealed access to every tower in his keep until further notice?”

“I’m the Captain of the Guard. I go where I will, when I will. Who are you to question me, human?” Livia heard the fear and falsehood ringing in the woman’s voice.

“Oh, so you’re Captain Lilith?” Livia couldn’t help the cunning smile that crept over her face. “Lilith Eliadnae?”

“Of course. Who else?” The impostor’s tone rang with affront, but it wasn’t convincing to Livia’s ears.

“Funny thing, I just left Lilith and two of her brothers sipping wine with Gwen. If you truly were her, you would remember meeting me not an hour ago. So, tell me, impostor, who are you, really?” Livia tried to be nonchalant, leaning against the stone wall, but inside, she was quaking.

Especially when the woman cursed and drew her blade.

“None of your damn business, human. I didn’t want to kill you, but you’ve left me no choice.”

The traitor started walking toward Livia, menace in every step. The wide hallway behind Livia was empty. She knew help was on the way, but would it get there in time? Livia began praying, even as she backed up, keeping pace with the swordswoman in a dance as they moved back down the arched hallway that was the top level of the keep proper before the circular stair to the tower.

They were almost to the stairway Livia had climbed to get to this hall when the swordswoman stopped in her tracks. Livia didn’t dare look behind her, but she felt the heat of a dragon’s presence on her back.

“Hrardorr? Is that you?”

“I am here, Livia. Seth is on my back. He guided me to you. Come to me and touch my neck so I know where you are. If I must flame, I want you under my wing, protected.”

“Thanks be to the Mother of All. I really think this woman was going to try to kill me!”

“Not on my watch. Seth is keeping me informed of her movements, but I need to know you’re safe if I let loose with my fire.”

Livia didn’t need to be told again. She backed up until she was standing with her back against the dragon’s chest, her hand on his shoulder. She could duck under his wing if he flamed, just as he’d told her to do. She cast a quick look around and saw Seth on Hrardorr’s other side, his sword drawn.

“You draw steel in the wizard’s house?” Seth challenged the woman, who now looked as if she was calculating her chances of getting past the blind dragon.

“You’re the trespasser here, human. You and your scaly friends. This isGryphonIsle. It is not meant for the likes of that.” She cast a disgusted glare in Hrardorr’s direction.

“Tell me,” Seth said, almost conversationally. “How is it that you can wear another woman’s face? Are you bespelled?”

“I need not answer your questions!”

The woman darted forward as if to speed past Hrardorr, but Seth must’ve given Hrardorr the word, and the dragon let off just a lick of flame that stopped the woman in her tracks. She backpedaled away from the line of fire, her gaze furious…and scared.

“Try that again, and he won’t just fire a warning shot,” Seth drawled, seemingly unfazed by the dragon’s flame.

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