Me and My Shadow - Katie MacAlister [47]
“I don’t even know what they are,” I said cautiously.
“Tch.” He made an impatient gesture. “You will assist me in acquiring the von Endres blade, and I will grant you a full pardon for those crimes of which you are charged.”
“Do you think it’s possible to take the sword away from Baltic? If it’s something important, he’s not likely to let it go without a serious fight. And while I’m up to kicking him out of my house, I don’t know that it will be possible to get the sword from him without killing him.”
Dr. Kostich evidently came to some sort of a decision, for he nodded his head twice and murmured, “Yes, it will be a good test for Jack. Tully is weaker, but such an experience will be invaluable to her.” He raised his voice and added, “Does it matter if the dragon is dead? Given your reputation, I would have thought you would relish an official sanction to destroy him.”
“I am not a hit man, if that’s what you’re implying,” I said rather huffily, straightening my shoulders and trying to look down my nose at him. “I’m a thief, and even then, there are extenuating circumstances. I do not go around murdering dragons, even those that threaten me.”
He made a careless gesture. “Whether he lives or dies is not a concern. The blade is. Do we have an agreement?”
I bit my lip and looked at the others in the room. Cyrene nodded her head and gave me a thumbs-up. Nathaniel and Obi watched me carefully, but I sensed their approval. Maata alone looked concerned, her silver eyes dark with worry.
“Yes,” I said, coming to a decision. In for a penny, in for a pound . . . “Yes, we have an agreement.”
Chapter Seven
Dr. Kostich hadn’t been kidding when he commented that a full arcane concussion blast could blow out the walls of Gabriel’s house.
“He underestimated it, however,” I said to Cyrene as we sat huddled in a police car some eleven hours later. “It blew out the walls of the houses on either side, too. I hope they find the two cats belonging to the old lady who lives next door.”
“And her fish,” Cyrene said, hugging the blanket that was the only thing between her bare skin and everyone else. “I feel so bad about the fish. What was Baltic thinking trying to blow us up like that? He knew we wouldn’t be killed.”
“No, but we’re vulnerable now,” I said in a hushed voice as yet another policeman bustled past, talking into her radio and carrying a clipboard. “We don’t have a stronghold to keep him at bay, and he knows it. We’ll have to set up camp at a hotel or find another house. But even that—it wouldn’t be safe against Baltic. Not until we’ve had some time to put in security systems.”
“I know a house that’s safe from Baltic,” Cy said, yawning.
“Really? Where?”
“That yummy Drake. I bet he’d take us in if you asked nicely.”
I opened my mouth to protest, but nothing came out. And really, why should I protest? As I thought the idea over, I realized just how sound it was. Drake’s house was sure to be protected from unauthorized entrance. Not only that, we’d have the power of the green dragons to help in case Baltic might, somehow, make it into the house. There really was no downside to the idea.
“Congratulations, Cy,” I said, pulling out my cell phone to call Gabriel again. “You’ve had your first good idea. I’m so proud of you, I’ve got tears in my eyes.”
“That’s what you said the last time I had a good idea,” she said smugly.
“Way back in 1922. You may want to pace yourself just in case you overload your brain,” I said with a dead-pan face.
Regardless of my joking, it was a good idea, and although Gabriel approved of the plan, he did sound somewhat worried. “Drake will not allow harm to come to you, but I don’t like you being under his roof for any length of time.”
“Worried I’ll succumb to his charms?” I teased.
“Not in the least. Aisling