My shoulders heaved with another sigh before I bent down and lifted this odd man. I dumped him on my shoulder, holding him there safely, and glared up at the flames. Within moments, they raged hotter than they ever had.
I whispered, “I’ll be watching. Don’t worry.”
I waved my free hand in the air, opening a portal away from here, to a place of rest and safety. The growl that pierced the air was feral as I stepped through, unbelieving I was leaving such a beautiful sight.
* * *
The chains rattled on the bed, capturing my attention.
I peered away from my scrying screen of the battle, leaving the view as it was, not wanting to miss a single detail of Belshazzar and Dorian’s attack of Kapustin Yar. I had purposely removed any sound in case the druid woke up and started screaming—they would have heard that through and through.
Chester’s sleepy eyes glared with such hostility I wondered if I had spelled the chains too tight. He bared his blunt teeth, shaking the chains again, hissing, “Now I know who you remind me of.”
“I’m glad to see you are awake.” I smiled pleasantly at my hostage. “Who is it that I remind you of?”
“A real fucking prick.” He showed me his non-threatening teeth again.Did he think it was?Chester rumbled, “The vampire Belshazzar.”
My blink was ever so gradual. I cleared my throat softly, and then I asked evenly, “That man had you tied up before?”
His head thumped back down on the bed, and he stared blindly up at the ceiling. “Yes. He even uses the same knots as these.”
I preened inside, but I asked evenly, “Was it for torture?”
Chester’s laugh, once again, made my stomach flutter bizarrely. His voice dipped seductively, answering, “The best kind of torture.”
I snapped my attention away from him and looked back up to the scrying screen made from air. My brows lowered over my eyes, entirely uncomfortable with his answer. I resituated myself on my chair, grumbling, “You two were lovers?”
“Yes.”
My face scrunched up in revulsion. “Hmm.”
The bed creaked under him as he bucked, struggling—and failing—to free himself. “Where in the world are we? Other than some cheap-ass hotel?”
“The man at the counter said this was a place called Kansas.” I slumped in my chair, wishing I had just left Chester on that field. “It is safe here if you are wondering.”
“Safe is being chained to a bed with a stranger?” The chains started rattling again. “And what kind of spell is this? I’ve never felt it before.”
“I’m sure you haven’t,” I griped, disregarding his first question. “Be quiet. You are ruining the show.”
A quiet tick passed, then he grumbled, “Well, fuck. Turn it my way a little. I can’t see it from here.”
I flicked an agitated hand in the air, maneuvering the scrying screen so we could both see it. “There. Hush. Or I won’t feed you tonight.”
“And speak of the devil,” Chester mumbled. “King Belshazzar himself…and…wait…”
“You have no self-preservation instincts, do you?” I scratched at my chin, wondering how long I would keep Belshazzar’s old lover chained. “Dorian. The other man is Dorian.”
“Huh. That fucker looks a lot like a dead man.” More rattling of the chains. “Is your spell faulty? Can’t we get some sound? Maybe some popcorn, too?”
