Wynn strolled through the narrow pathway, pretending a casual confidence that was at complete odds with the nausea rolling through her stomach and the sweat trickling down her spine. Right now all she wanted was a dark hole to crawl into so she could sleep in peace for the next month.
Reaching the front of the apartment, Wynn was pulling open the front door when she heard Hexx call out.
“Hey. Where’s my donut?”
Wynn rolled her eyes. “Men and their donuts.”
* * * *
Azh spent the next hours searching through the ancient scrolls stored in a forbidden area of the library. They weren’t kept off limits just because they were fragile. Many of them contained prophecies and omens that a cunning dragon could use to terrify and bully the others into submission.
Dragons like his mother.
Azh wasn’t a believer in prophecy. He understood that there were clairvoyants who claimed to have glimpses of the future, but they were so vague that any attempt to use the vision was a wasted effort. But among the scrolls was the earliest history of the dragons.
Many of his brothers and sisters dismissed them as myth. They didn’t believe that dragons had once roamed another world, or that they’d been forced to flee, becoming refugees in this place. They were too proud to consider the possibility that they could be anything less than conquerors. And unfortunately, their violent past meant that the dragons who’d written the scrolls had been destroyed during various battles.
Translating the text without adding in his own prejudices to make it fit what he wanted to believe was a necessary but tedious task. A task that he was eager to put aside the second he felt the crack forming in the barrier.
Yes. He knew the opening would return. Not that he was happy that the Watcher hadn’t managed to end the danger, he sternly told himself, scurrying through the silent lair to the outer courtyard. But he was increasingly convinced that the dragon magic wasn’t a new threat. Instead, it was a very old enemy that had been lurking and waiting for a chance to strike.
It was going to take a dragon to piece together the clues from the past and stop the mysterious adversary from destroying them.
And if he was being honest, he was eager to track down the female who’d first lured him from his sleep.
Wynn and her mysterious dragon magic.
Stepping through the barrier, Azh tilted back his head and breathed in the muggy air. It was early evening and the backstreets of New York City were ripe with the scent of street food, potted flowers, and the trash cans overflowing onto the narrow sidewalk.
It should have assaulted his sensitive senses, but Azh felt pleasure rush through him. Unlike many dragons, he didn’t disdain humans. Or even the demons who lived hidden among them. If he was chosen to become king, he intended to discover a way to live in harmony with the fragile creatures once they left their hibernation.
A worry for later.
Catching the unmistakable tingle of magic, Azh cut through the maze of alleys, at last locating his prey hidden in a mundane ranch-style home with a For Sale sign stuck in the front yard. He circled the property, searching for any hidden traps before he stepped onto the cement porch and boldly yanked open the front door.
He braced himself for a torrent of furious magic. Or even a physical attack. Wynn might not have the power of a dragon or vampire, but she was far from helpless. When nothing happened, he cautiously inched his way through the empty living room to the bedroom at the end of the narrow hallway. He felt a brush of magic as he stepped through the open doorway, but as far as he could tell it was nothing more threatening than a shield to keep out any nosy human who might be wandering around.
His wariness was replaced by genuine concern as he silently crossed the yellow shag carpeting to study the delicate form curled into a tight ball in the corner.
Was she hurt? The thought sent a blast of fury through Azh. If anyone dared to lay a hand on this woman he would...
The murderous thoughts were abruptly interrupted by the sound of a groggy voice floating through the darkness.
“Dammit. Are you back?”
“Like a bad penny.”
Azh should have moved forward to tower over her huddled form. He needed to know how Wynn had crossed paths with the dragon magic. And every second that passed might put his people in danger. Instead, he remained in the center of the floor.
He told himself that it was no use forcing the information out of her. Not when her skill with magic was only surpassed by her skill in lying. He didn’t trust a word that came out of her mouth. He had to find a way to convince her to tell him the truth.
But there was also a part of him that refused to treat her as his enemy.
Until she proved she was a threat to the dragons, he intended to savor the fierce attraction that sizzled between them.
With an obvious effort, Wynn shoved herself into a standing position, her back braced against the wall.
“More like a bad dream.”
