Me and My Shadow - Katie MacAlister [124]
“You will. Pál is wandering around the house jabbing everyone like some sort of bizarre dragon-vampire hybrid.”
“But what is the test for?”
“No idea, but honestly, retina scans? Does Drake seriously believe someone is going to go to the trouble of trying to pretend they’re any of us just to go in and see his children?”
René sighed, and gave a short little laugh. “He will learn, I think. Aisling will not allow her children to grow up coddled in the wool of cotton. You must give Drake a little time. And you, how do you fare now that you have found yourself?”
“I wasn’t aware that I had been lost,” I said carefully.
“Ah. Then I am mistaken.”
Silence fell for about a minute. René softly hummed to himself and looked out the window at the workmen who were busily rebuilding the front entryway.
“You’re talking about the dragon heart, aren’t you?” I asked, unable to keep quiet any longer.
He smiled. Just smiled.
“You fates can be very annoying sometimes,” I said, softening the insult with a smile of my own. “As it happens, yes, I found myself.”
“Did you tell your Gabriel?”
“Yes.” I thought for a moment. “But he didn’t believe me. Or, rather, didn’t understand.”
“That is the way with dragons,” René said sagely. “But you will show him, hein?”
I lifted my hand and watched as the fingers curved and elongated into scarlet claws, the skin shimmering into silver scales that swept up my arm. I smiled. “Yes, when the time’s right, I’ll show him.”
“He will be happy. But will you?”
“Yes, I think I will be. I realize now why the dragon shard chose me,” I said, letting the scales slide back into human flesh. I flexed my fingers. “It wanted me to stop being a shadow of someone else, and start being myself.”
“And that can only be a good thing.” René glanced at the clock and tsked. “But I am making you late for your baby visit. I will be quiet now, and let you go see the adorable little ones. I must pick my wife up from the train station in a short while. She has come to see the bébés, as well.”
I said nothing more as he bustled out of the room, and followed more slowly as I savored the feeling of relief. I was free from Magoth at last. Nothing would ever take me from Gabriel again, and I was happy with who I was—not strictly a doppelganger, not strictly a dragon, but something in between, something unique.
Gabriel emerged from Drake’s study, giving Maata approval on the house she found for us to rent. “Tell them we will take a lease for a year, but only upon May’s approval,” he said before catching sight of me. He gave me a rueful smile as I moved automatically to his side, his fingers immediately seeking mine. “Are you ready for the foolishness?”
“Not really, but I do want to see Aisling and the babies. Did you have the blood test?”
He sighed, our fingers entwined as we mounted the stairs. “I would say Drake had lost all his reason, but it is common for male dragons to be very protective of their spawn. Drake is most likely overreacting because of all the people in the house.”
“No doubt. We’ve been so busy with Magoth, it’s totally slipped my mind, but what will happen with Thala?”
He shot me a curious look. “I do not know, little bird. Kostya has claimed her as a prisoner of war, but whether Drake will release her to him is in question. She must answer many questions to the weyr.”
“Baltic will be back for her.”
“Possibly. But I do not think he will find it so easy to free her,” Gabriel said dryly as we arrived at the room that had been given over to racks of sterile surgical wear. We quickly changed our clothing, and presented ourselves and our appointment cards to István, who stood guard outside Drake’s bedroom.
“We haven’t seen the last of him, you know,” I said in a whisper when István went in to check if Drake would clear us for the visit.
“No. The weyr will meet to discuss the issue he presents. We cannot let him continue destroying dragons. He will have to be stopped.”
“Do you think he’ll seek revenge for us keeping the dragon heart out of his reach?”
“It is