The Dragon Blood Collection, Books 1-3

  “They were precise with their message—two spies—so I think they found our men, but… it’s possible they’re holding them for questioning and that they’re not dead yet.”

  Ahn nodded grimly.

  “If there’s a possibility that they’re alive, I don’t want to leave them in there.” Ridge looked at Sardelle for a moment. Did he think she could answer as to this possibility? Her senses couldn’t extend more than a few miles. Even Jaxi probably wouldn’t be able to see all the way to the city or outpost where they were being held. “There’s also the original mission,” Ridge went on. “If we leave now, having lost the cargo we were supposed to deliver and take home again…” He didn’t mention the colonel he had left on a road by the sea, but that had to be in his mind as well. “If we leave now, then this entire mission was for nothing.”

  “But we’ve learned some good intelligence, sir,” Duck said. “All about this dragon blood and what it can do.”

  Ridge grunted, clearly not impressed by this tiny snippet of information.

  “If we continue with the mission, we may end up facing a dragon,” Sardelle said. “All of this blood must be coming from somewhere.”

  “Maybe Tolemek has some nice dragon-slaying potion in his kit,” Ridge said.

  Tolemek snorted. “Lizard-slaying, maybe.”

  “What I want to know,” Apex said slowly, his eyes toward Tolemek, “is why he wasn’t surprised by the revelation of Nowon and Kaika’s death—or capture. Whatever it turns out to be.”

  Because Jaxi had told Sardelle about it the day before and she had told Tolemek. But she couldn’t explain that in a logical, believable way to the pilots who didn’t know about her or Jaxi.

  Tolemek raised his eyebrows. “After three days of traveling, I am too weary to react to much of anything.”

  Ahn, standing arm against arm with Tolemek, narrowed her eyes at Apex.

  Jaxi told us, Sardelle told Ridge. She wouldn’t have shown a visible reaction, either, but Apex hadn’t been watching her, only Tolemek.

  I gathered. Ridge spread a placating hand. “It doesn’t matter. What matters is what we do next.”

  “Wait, sir.” Apex raised his own hand, palm spread. “It does matter. We haven’t talked about it, but don’t you find it suspicious that those Cofah airships were waiting for us when we first flew onto the continent? And then that watchtower knew to search the skies for us.”

  Duck snapped his fingers. “That’s right. They’ve been all over us like ants on fried chitlins since we got here. How did they know we were coming?”

  “It has occurred to me that someone may have leaked information about our mission,” Ridge said, “but I don’t see how it could be Tolemek, since he didn’t know anything about it until the afternoon before we left. The news couldn’t have traveled here any faster than we carried it, so it would have had to have been sent ahead of time by someone else who had knowledge of the king’s plans.”

  “Unless the news traveled by sorcerous means,” Apex said.

  Several people shifted uneasily and frowned at him. The statement made Sardelle uneasy, too, and she waited to see if Apex would look at her. Had he figured out what she was? He was supposed to be an academic. Was he observant? Someone who had deduced that she wasn’t the archaeologist Ridge had described her to be?

  Apex did give her a long look, but when he pointed, his finger extended toward Tolemek. “I’ve been reading up on some of the alchemical formulas he’s made, and while he doesn’t publish the ingredients or his methods—” he scowled as he said this, as if it were some crime, and maybe it was some academic faux pas these days, “—I am extremely skeptical that some of his potions could be viable without some sort of otherworldly influence.”

  Ahn’s fingers curled, as if she was thinking of plowing a fist into Apex’s nose, but she didn’t say anything. Maybe because she knew Apex was right. Sardelle had suspected Tolemek had some dragon blood at their first meeting, and Jaxi had confirmed that suspicion early on. Oddly, Tolemek himself had never suspected until Jaxi had informed him.

  “I thought your specialty was archaeology, Apex,” Ridge said quietly, “not alchemy.”

  “It doesn’t take an expert to sniff out fishy science.”

  “Wait,” Duck said, “are you saying Deathmaker is a witch?”

  “Witches are women, aren’t they?” Tolemek murmured to Ahn. He sounded more amused by the accusation than worried about it. He probably thought he could handle Apex, no matter what came up.

  “You’re asking me?” Ahn muttered. “I don’t know the details.”

  Sardelle could have explained the correct terminology, but she didn’t want to call attention to herself, not when this was the topic.

  “We’ll keep an eye on everything,” Ridge said. Nothing about an eye on Tolemek. He must truly believe his pirate scientist wasn’t to blame. His reasoning had been logical, but maybe he had someone else in mind. “In the meantime, I want your opinions on the mission. I feel I have to carry on with it, but if two of our elite troops were captured, there’s a possibility we might fall to the same fate. I’ll ask for volunteers. Anyone who’s not comfortable going can wait out here. Or fly back with the information we have. Duck’s right; what we’ve learned does need to make it back to the general.”

  “I’ll go,” Duck said. “I thought you were picking us for this possibility all along.”

  “I was,” Ridge said.

  “Then what’re you asking for volunteers for? We’re with you, sir.” He waved at Ahn and Apex.

  Ahn nodded once. Apex was still glaring at Tolemek.

  “Is he going?” Apex asked.

  “He and Sardelle have unique talents that will be extremely useful if we’re sneaking into a highly guarded facility, especially if that facility is on the alert because of the failure of our first team. They know we’re out here. They’ll be ready for us.”

  Sardelle was glad he hadn’t asked for the details of the incursion into the asylum. They might have gotten in and out, but she couldn’t imagine anyone calling that smooth. An image of that guard coming to and running down the hallway with the mop bucket chained to his wrist came to mind.

  “Unique talents, sir? Like what?” Apex asked.

  Ridge looked into Sardelle’s eyes, a question there, though he didn’t form any thoughts in his mind.

  Guessing what the question was, she did it for him. You want to tell them?

  Do you object?

  I think it’s going to come out anyway, if we’re sneaking in together. I’ll be hobbled if I have to worry about not letting them know.

  “Magic,” Ridge said.

  Apex’s expression was somewhere between vindication and betrayal. “You knew, sir?” He flung his hand toward Tolemek.

  “That Tolemek’s potions are witchy?” Ridge asked. “No, I just figured that was science and engineering. I was actually referring to Sardelle. I didn’t bring her along because she’s a good history student.”

  All of the stares leveled in Sardelle’s direction made her uneasy, but she kept her chin up and tried to look wise, helpful, and not particularly witchy, since they all considered that something vile.

  “I thought she was here because she’d be better at keeping your bump stick warm at night than Colonel Therrik.” Duck rubbed his head. “Are you saying she’s… a witch?”

  “A sorceress actually,” Sardelle said. “Witches tend to be poorly trained, often self-taught, and sometimes completely bogus insofar as having an actual aptitude for magic. I was formally trained.” She decided not to volunteer the how and where, since that would take some time to explain.

  “You knew, sir?” Duck whispered. “And you’re still…” He groped in the air, and Sardelle waited to see if the term “bump stick” would come up again. She hadn’t heard that one before. Amazing how much the slang for such things changed in three hundred years. “Or is that all an act? Are you two pretending to be a couple, and you’re really—” His fingers
flexed in the air again. The poor kid was having trouble finding a piece that would fit into his puzzle. “Does the king know? Are you spies?”

  “If Colonel Zirkander is a spy, then I’m a spotted tiger shark,” Apex said.

  “Your confidence in my ability to suss out information on the sly is disappointing, Apex,” Ridge said.

  “It’s not the sussing I’m questioning, sir; it’s the not talking and joking about what had been sussed.” Apex wrinkled his brow. “That didn’t make sense. I’m as befuddled as Duck usually is, right now.” He looked at Tolemek and Ahn. “But I see I’m the only one. Once again Deathmaker seems to already have this information. And, Raptor, you don’t look surprised, either.”

  “I was extremely surprised on a night a few weeks ago,” Ahn said.

  Apex shook his head and stumbled away from the fire, mumbling something about firewood.

  “I’ll help,” Duck said and jogged after him.

  Sardelle touched the back of Ridge’s hand. Is it wise to let the two of them go off together?

  “They’ll figure out what they think and if they want to go with us. Each of them may be useful, but I wasn’t lying earlier. Someone should get this information back to Iskandia. On the chance…”

  “We fail utterly?” Tolemek asked.

  Ridge shrugged.

  “I’m not failing before I find my sister. I don’t know why they’ve moved her, but if the message she left me is true, I know they didn’t simply send her back to my father’s home. She’s in danger because of me, and I’m not going to die in some forsaken wilderness when she’s waiting for me to help her.”

  “Does that mean you don’t want to come on this mission?” Ridge asked. “You and your tools would be useful, but it’s not your quest. I understand that.”

  Tolemek looked down at Ahn. She wasn’t whispering in his ear or making any facial expressions that suggested she would be disappointed if he didn’t come, but he may have seen something there that Sardelle didn’t. “I’ll go,” Tolemek said.

  “Good. Ahn?”

  “Yes, sir. I’m in.”

  Ridge gave Sardelle his tired smile. “I hope you’re still in too.”

  “Yes, but can we talk for a moment?” She clasped his hand—and found some of the sticky pitch he had mentioned earlier.

  His smile flattened with I-told-you-so wryness.

  Tolemek and Ahn had already moved away from the fire, and the two lieutenants were talking—their voices occasionally rising in anger or exasperation—off in another direction. Sardelle didn’t have to lead Ridge far to find a private spot.

  She dusted snow off a log, sat down facing the fire, and unfastened the snowshoes. Icy air whispered off the mountaintops, licking at her skin, and she pulled her cloak tight. She had a trick for heating blankets, usually reserved for sick patients, that she might have to employ the next time they had a sleep break. Whenever that was. Dawn was only an hour off, and Ridge would want to be gone before the sky brightened. There was a Cofah airship that knew where they were, and it would have had time to reach a base and gather reinforcements by now.

  Ridge sat on the log and put an arm around her. For a moment, Sardelle allowed herself to feel amused that Duck had thought their romance had been an act. Everything else was an act. This was the one true thing. Or was it? Would she truly be considering leaving him if she cared for him? She recaptured his free hand and clasped it in hers. Yes, it was because she cared that she was considering it.

  Really? I thought it was because you were being cowardly and didn’t want to face that secret organization.

  I have no problem facing organizations. I just don’t want to ruin his career. His life.

  Yeah, yeah, why don’t you ask him what he thinks about your career-ruining presence and let him decide for himself?

  That’s… actually somewhat logical, Jaxi.

  You needn’t sound so surprised. I’ve been witness to thousands of matings.

  Thousands? Either your former handlers were extremely randy, or you have a voyeuristic streak.

  If swords could smile, Jaxi did.

  Ridge’s gaze had drifted toward his flier—he probably needed to get back to the repairs. “Is there something you were wanting to talk about? Or has your time away with a boring and introspective pirate left you aching for someone fun to cuddle with?”

  Sardelle thought about defending Tolemek, but he hadn’t been a very talkative companion. She might believe Ahn didn’t find him boring—she wasn’t that talkative, either, so maybe they enjoyed spending time together in silence—but Sardelle preferred Ridge’s playful teasing.

  “Can we trust them?” Sardelle tilted her chin toward the arguing lieutenants. “Or can I trust them, I should ask. I know they won’t plot against you.”

  “No, their military indoctrination should keep them from plotting hijinks against a superior officer.”

  “Hijinks aren’t what I’m worried about.”

  “I don’t think they’ll risk my ire out here. Once we get back… Enh, that’ll probably be the least of my problems when I get back. If I don’t get court-martialed for kicking out Therrik, I’ll probably get demoted for tarring up the mission.”

  “How are you responsible for what’s gone wrong?” Sardelle asked. “Was that colonel likely to make the captains more effective?”

  “Not from what I gathered, but he’ll be back there, slobbering all over the king’s ear while I’m out here, underestimating Cofah pilots and nearly crashing into canyons.” He lowered his voice. “Your sword saved my life.”

  “I know. She’s quite pleased with herself.”

  “I feel like an idiot. I was overly confident. I wasn’t even thinking about the potential of special dragon-blood weapons when I saw those Cofah fliers. And after what we’ve already seen, I should have been. But I assumed the pilots would be green compared to my people—compared to me.” His hand flexed and he made a disgusted noise. “Apex is right in that the Cofah seem to have an uncanny amount of data on our whereabouts. I don’t know if there’s a snitch somewhere or if it’s something else they can do with that blood, but I have no reason for overconfidence out here.” He scuffed at the snow with his boot. “Sorry, we were supposed to be talking about your concerns, not my… The dragon usually gets this.”

  Sardelle blinked. “The what?”

  “You know, my little figurine.”

  “You, ah, talk to it?”

  “Not to it,” Ridge said, “but I pace in circles and talk to myself.”

  “While you’re holding it.”

  “Yes.” He squinted at Sardelle. “I’ve told you before, this isn’t that odd. Not any odder than what other pilots do. The job makes us a little crazy. All of us.”

  “Of course. I understand. And I’m not mocking you.” She squeezed his hand, but couldn’t help adding, “Do they have asylums in Iskandia these days? Or is that only in Cofahre?”

  “I think so, but it wouldn’t be within your rights to admit me, unless you were my wife. Even then, I think I’d have to do more than get caught talking to myself.”

  Unless she was his wife… He was joking, but the words made her pause and dwell on the possibility. Did he want that? Did she? She shook her head. She had better bring up the first discussion first, though commenting on his jokes was easier. “Even if you’re rubbing your dragon while you’re talking to yourself?”

  “Yes. Er.” His brow crinkled. “We’re still talking about the statuette, right?”

  “I was.”

  “Good. Yes. Me too.”

  She snorted softly.

  Ridge leaned closer and kissed her on the cheek, his lips warm against her chilled skin. “Thank you. I don’t know if it was your intent, but you’ve taken my mind off glum thoughts.”

  “I’m glad, but…” Now it was Sardelle who poked at the snow with her boot. “Some of this court-martial concern of yours… You’ve made some choices others might question, and you’ve been put in some compromising
situations lately as a result of me—of knowing me and having me in your life.”

  Ridge gave her a suspicious squint. “Did someone tell you about the vine at the castle?”

  “The what?”

  That’s an entertaining story. Definitely get that from him.

  “Nothing,” Ridge said. “Go on.”

  Hm. “I like your company very much—”

  His eyes widened with surprise—ugh, did this sound like the beginning of a we-need-to-go-separate-ways speech?

  “—and could easily see living with you for many years… or all of them. But I’m afraid I’m getting you in trouble. That you’re making choices you wouldn’t usually make if you weren’t trying to protect me. I was wondering…” She wasn’t sure what expression was in his eyes now. She was having a hard time looking at them. “Maybe I should leave for a while, until I’ve dealt with the people spying on me and your life returns to normal. You have the respect of your people, your superior officers, your king, your pilots… I don’t want you to lose any of that because of me.”

  “Sardelle.”

  She risked meeting his eyes. He didn’t look mad or stunned or devastated, but he did look like he was trying to figure something out. Or figure her out.

  Good call, genius.

  Hush.

  “Is this allowed?” Ridge asked. “Talking about leaving right after you teach me to mind-talk and invite your sword to waltz into my head whenever she feels like it?”

  “Uhm.” She didn’t know what to make of his humor, not this time. A defense mechanism? A sign that he didn’t understand the ramifications of what she’d asked? No, he wasn’t a dull man, even if he hid behind that I-just-like-to-fly-and-shoot-things persona.

  “I assumed that was a sign that a marriage proposal was imminent,” Ridge said, “or at least that I was worth sharing your innermost secrets and abilities with.”

  “Marriage proposal? Are the women supposed to do that now? It was always the men in my time.” She stopped talking, lest it turn into battling. The topic flustered her. He wasn’t seriously suggesting he’d want a proposal, was he? No, it was a joke…

  “It can come from either sex.”