“We could use the dragon,” Bathin said.
“For a dead body?” I asked. “I don’t think so.”
“What?” He pushed off the wall. “No. I mean for getting information about my father’s plans.”
“Sending a dragon into hell would be a little obvious, don’t you think?” Myra asked.
“It might be able to go undetected.”
I knew the tiny pink pig wasn’t really a little pig. I knew it was a ferocious dragon, practically indestructible, and feared by all manner of creatures including demons.
But just the idea of sending that little squishy piggy to the Underworld, made all my protective instincts kick in.
“I don’t want to do that,” I said. “I don’t want to draw that much attention.”
“Plus,” Jean said, “it’s just a sweet little piggy dragon. What if it got lost? What if it got hurt?”
“The sun going nova wouldn’t hurt that sweetpiggy,” Bathin said. “It’s a dragon, Jean. Adragon.”
“But also a squooshy little oinkie oink,” she said.
Bathin shook his head. “Well, if we’re not sending it to hell, then we should put it to work here. You were worried about the wards keeping demons out. The dragon would have sensed the possessed had it been somewhere other than sleeping in your living room.”
Myra gave him a hard look, maybe not liking his blunt tone, but I was nodding.
“I can’t believe I didn’t think about that,” I said. “Maybe a patrol? Have it keep an eye on Ordinary’s borders so we can strike before being attacked?”
“Aerial support?” Myra said. “It flies. It has vision, speed, and range.”
“Oh, my gods,” Jean breathed. “A flying pig!”
“No,” I said. “No flying pig. We don’t need another thing to have to cover up. It can take another shape.”
Bathin grunted, and Rossi chuckled. “Good luck with that,” Rossi said.
“What? It was a dragon in a cave just a couple years ago. It can be a…I don’t know. A bird. A drone. A kite.”
“A kite,” Bathin nodded. “Sure, Delaney. Convince the dragon to be a kite.”
“Hey, I can be very persuasive.”
Both my sisters, the vampire, and the demon had themselves a good laugh about that.
Ryder stoodnear the sliding glass door, his phone to his ear, his arm resting on the frame above his head. “As long as you can get it there by Saturday next week, that’s all I need.”
I shut the door behind me quietly, and gave Spud, who had trundled my way, a soft rub behind the ears. “Hey, Spuds,” I whispered.
The dragon-pig lifted its head and gave me a beady-eyed glare.
I pointed at it. “I need to talk to you Bridge to dragon.”
It tipped its head and one pink ear flopped over.
“But first, I’m going to get food. I’m starving.”
“Yep,” Ryder said. “Sounds good. See you then.”
“Who was that?” I asked from the kitchen.
