"Val! Are you okay? You look white as a ghost," Cosimo said, holding him upright.
"Dad… Dad… I saw her!" Valentine stammered, holding his father by the shoulders. "I saw Auntie Maria in the cellar."
"I felt a magical disturbance in the house. It's why I came in," Cosimo replied, and his face went serious. "What happened? Oh, gods, she's not a ghost, is she?"
Valentine shook his head. "She said she wasn't, but she was like an apparition. I think it was a vision? I didn't have time to figure out the magic. She said to tell you that you need to find her."
Cosimo threw up his hands. "I've beentryingto find her for nearly thirty years!"
"She said that you need to follow her trail," Valentine said.
"Tried that too, but she was so secretive about what she was up to at that time. Probably because it was dangerous, and I would have tried to stop her," Cosimo huffed. "Anything else?"
"She said to watch out for strega," Valentine replied. "That was the whole message."
Cosimo groaned. "Fuck. I told her to stay the fuck away from the witches! Now, I have to go and talk to them and find out where the fuck she is."
"No. Wedo," Valentine corrected him. "Dad, we are Greatdrakes. We stick together, especially when it comes to rescuing family."
"I don't like it, but you are right." Cosimo sat down on one of the kitchen stools. "I don't understand. I've tried to find out what happened to her over the years. I've scryed and done tracking spells too many times to count."
Valentine crossed his arms, and the answer came to him like a smack in the face. "Her dragon. Dad, she has a dragon waking up inside of her, and she has no idea. Maybe it is what has given her the power to reach out from wherever she is."
Cosimo's eyes widened. "Gods, you are right."
"He usually is. It is very annoying," Yelena said, coming into the kitchen. She slipped an arm around Valentine's waist. "What did I miss? What is wrong?"
Valentine pulled her close, needing her warmth to anchor him. "How do you feel about a honeymoon?"
Yelena smiled. "Good. I take it you have a destination in mind?"
"Italy."
"And what would we be doing there?" she asked.
Valentine smiled innocently. "Oh, you know, trying to find a Greatdrakes that has been missing for thirty years and might be a prisoner of hostile witches?"
"We don't know if they are hostile," Cosimo said, getting up again. "I need to go tell your brothers." He hurried out of the kitchen, a determined look on his face.
"They are all coming on our honeymoon, too?" Yelena said and started to laugh.
"Unfortunately, but there will be time for us," Valentine assured her. "And I mean, come on. Saving rogue family members and stirring up other magic users is a Greatdrakes specialty. And you are a Greatdrakes now."
"Damn straight I am." Yelena put her arms around his neck. "And there's no taking it back either."
Valentine pulled her close. "Baby girl, you're mine, and there's no way I'meverletting you go."
"Gods help you if you do," Yelena said, and pressed her lips to his.
Valentine knew his love for her meant that she was wrapped around his soul tighter than any binding spell, but for the first time in his life, all he felt was a sense of freedom.
EPILOGUE
Maria Rosetta Greatdrakes was caught in a time spell. She was like a fly trapped in amber, but unlike the past goddess knew how long, she was now conscious of being in it. She had used the tiny amount of magic she could touch and had tried to get her big brother to come and save her.
And she had somehow managed to get a grown man who claimed to be his son.
Just how long have I been stuck here?she thought miserably. She couldn't move her body, but her mind was always the fastest thing about her.
