my body lying in the snow, still and unmoving, while a man stood over me with a blood-drenched sword.
“He killed me, but I’m supposed to avenge his death?” I asked the table at large.
“It does seem rather odd,” May agreed, munching on a grilled tuna, chickpea, and coriander salad. “But like Aisling, that’s the only thing I can think of.”
“It’s just so vague,” I said, feeling a bit overwhelmed. “I wish I knew for certain what it was I should be doing.”
“You could always ask the First Dragon,” Jim said around a mouthful of hamburger.
We all stared at the demon dog.
“What?” it asked, a piece of onion dangling from its lips.
“Just when I think you were only sent to me to torment me, you pipe up with a bit of genius like that,” Aisling said, giving it a hug.
“Does that mean I can have some fries?” it asked hopefully.
“No.”
“Of course,” May said slowly, a smile forming on her lips. “Ysolde can summon him. We can just ask him what he wants her to do.”
“We could . . .” I considered this idea. For some reason, I was hesitant to go to the trouble of summoning the ancestor of all dragonkin, but really, did I have a choice?
“She can’t summon him if her magic is still wonky. I don’t supposed Dr. Kostich has lifted that interdiction on you, Ysolde?”
“No. I sent him a letter telling him that since he managed to blackmail that mage sword away from Baltic, the least he could do was lift the interdict and let me rejoin the Magister’s Guild, but he sent back a bill for the thirty-seven years of training I had while I was his apprentice, so I figured I’d better let it drop.”
“He’s such a pain,” Aisling said.
“A huge pain,” May agreed.
“Just like a sharp stick shoved up the—” Jim’s eyes opened wide when Aisling removed its plate from in front of it. “Hey! Demon starver!”
“Hardly.” Aisling gave it back its hamburger and we all resumed eating our lunches.
“I don’t like summoning him without a very good cause, and I’m not entirely sure I can do it again, since I wasn’t trying to summon him before, but I don’t see any other way to determine just what I’m supposed to be doing.” I took a thoughtful sip of lemon water, then added, “I’ll do it tonight. Baltic is supposed to go down to Burleigh House to eyeball the rough plan Pavel made, so he won’t be in my way when I summon the First Dragon.”
May and Aisling looked at me in surprise. “You know about Burleigh?” Aisling asked.
“Drake’s house in the Sussex countryside? Of course I do.”
“Well, hell. That was supposed to be a secret from you guys. I guess I’ll have to tell Drake that Baltic knows where Thala is being held.”
“As we’re on the subject of Thala . . .” I bit my lip. “I don’t suppose you two would like to help me get her out of there?”
“Ahem!” Jim said loudly.
“Sorry—you three. And Cyrene, of course, assuming she’s back from her water thing by then.”
“You want us to help you break out the weyr’s prisoner?” Aisling was clearly astonished by the idea.
“Yes, I do.”
May and Aisling exchanged a glance. “Let me make sure we’re all on the same page, here. You want us to set free the woman who helped Baltic attack our house the day I had the twins?”
“I realize that she’s no one’s favorite, but yes, I would like your help. In fact, I
“Why?” May asked.
“Why do I need your help?”
“No, why do you want her out?”
“Oh, well, a number of reasons,” I said, putting down my fork and leaning back against the curved settle. “For one, Baltic wants her out, and if we don’t get her out peaceably, he’s going to attack. I don’t think anyone wants more dragon deaths—certainly I don’t.”
“But she’s Baltic’s lieutenant,” May protested. “They worked together to try to destroy us.”
“Yes, but that’s all changed.” I waved away the pesky events of the past. “Things are different now. And besides, she’s Antonia von Endres’ daughter. That might have some significance to the First Dragon’s task.”
“There is that,” Aisling said thoughtfully.
May gnawed on her lower lip for a moment. “Gabriel would be very angry if he knew I was working to free the weyr’s prisoner.”
“Drake wouldn’t be angry,” Aisling said with a wry smile. “He’d go ballistic. It was our house that Antonia helped Baltic destroy. Drake’s still a little cranky about that day.”
“Well, I was kind of hoping you guys wouldn’t tell.”
May and Aisling exchanged another glance.
“We couldn’t do that,” May said slowly, a light of amusement in her blue eyes. “But I think there’s a way we could work out a deal.”
“What sort of a deal?” I asked, suddenly wary.
“Dragons love deals,” Aisling told me. “You wouldn’t believe the things I can get Drake to do if I present it in the light of negotiations.”
“Yeah, like the time you
“It was a medieval girdle, not a chastity belt, and from here on out I’m going to lock your door at night.”
“Meanie. Bet Soldy would never lock me in my room just so she and Baltic could have a kinky three-way orgy with Pavel.”
“I have never had an orgy, three-way or otherwise,” I told the demon, setting fire to its napkin with a flick of Baltic’s dragon fire.
“OK, OK! No need to go overboard! You almost burned my garnish!”
Jim went back to munching on its frilly lettuce as I considered the two women sitting across from me. “What deal is it you want to make?”
“You want Thala free,” May said simply.
“Yes.”
“And you’re mated to Baltic.”
“Yeees,” I said again, slower. “I don’t see where this is going.”
“You want our help to free her.”
“Am I supposed to be seeing something?” I asked, confused.
“I’m a silver dragon,” May pointed out. “And what do the silver dragons have to do with Baltic?”
I shook my head. “I still don’t—Oh! The curse!”
“Yup.” Aisling nodded. “We were going to ask your help with that anyway, but this is the perfect opportunity to get both things done at once. May and I will help you break out Thala, and in return Baltic lifts the curse that he put on the silver dragons when you died.” She paused for a few seconds. “You’d think he’d let the silver dragons find mates now that you’re alive.”
“You’d think,” I said, sighing. “He does like his grudges, though. He still feels that since a silver dragon killed me, it’s only right that none of them should have any mates born to them.”
“Dragons can be so stubborn sometimes,” Aisling agreed. “Where were we? If you get Baltic to take off the curse, then when Drake and Gabriel find out what we’ve done, they won’t be able to be all pissy, because the curse will be lifted. Kind of a ‘you scratch our back and we scratch yours’ situation, only with dragon claws and stubborn wyverns.”
“I’ve asked him a couple of times about lifting it, and he seems pretty adamant that it’s not going to happen,” I said with deliberation. “So I can’t promise you he will lift the curse, but I can swear to do everything in my power to make that so.”
“We need that curse removed,” May said warningly.
