Call of the Dragon (Return to Avalore Book 1) (8 page)

Pacing did nothing to cool the fear burning a hole in her stomach. She wanted to scream, to rush out there and help him, to do something—anything. What had she been thinking? She shouldn’t have let him go track the beast without her.

“Not that he gave me much of a choice,” she grumbled as her frown deepened.

Nervous energy crackled in time with her growing agitation. The impulse to speak to him mind to mind was strong, but she held herself in check. The little scratches she’d suffered the day before were nothing compared to what could happen if one lost focus in a fight. No, she couldn’t risk it.

Her gaze automatically settled on the clock as she turned and paced towards the window again. Two hours and twenty-two minutes. She stifled her plaintive groan. When had she become so needy anyway? This was insane. Here she was, worrying herself into an ulcer for a man she didn’t even know.

Dry, caked-on blood and filth from her battle with the Erritrol yesterday still clung to her skin. What she needed was a shower. At least then maybe she’d feel somewhat human again.

Luxury Home
magazines had nothing on the massive bathroom attached to the master bedroom. From wall to wall, beautiful polished marble gleamed. The clear glass shower held four different heads, as well as a rain shower the size of a small coffee table coming from the ceiling. In the far corner of the room, the biggest tub she’d ever seen begged to be used. She could hold a dinner party in the thing.

The bathroom in her apartment was too small for anything but a tiny shower stall. Even turning in it had been a chore, her elbows and knees banging against the walls if she wasn’t careful enough. Her spirits lifted. A good long soak was exactly what she needed to keep herself busy while she waited.

She smiled as she grabbed what she needed. He’d said to make herself at home. She just hoped he’d meant it. A capful of creamy liquid was all it took to cover the water’s surface with a thick blanket of bubbles. When was the last time she’d had a bubble bath?

She wasted no time in getting her Hello Kitty backpack from the sitting room to retrieve the change of clothes she’d packed, placing them on one of the steps leading to the tub before sinking into its heavenly depths. She couldn’t stop her soft sigh as the hot water and bubbles caressed her skin. Yeah, she could get used to this.

So much had happened in such a short period, her head was spinning. Overall, she thought she’d handled it pretty well. Had Drake not proven he had the same abilities, it might have been harder to swallow. It didn’t hurt that she’d recognized him as the man who haunted her dreams either.

Her entire body tingled, and goose bumps dotted her flesh as she recalled those nightly visions.

In the beginning, he’d just sat with her and talked. She’d never remembered their conversations when she’d woken in the morning, but his face, and his eyes, she’d always recalled with clarity. She’d chalked the recurring dreams up to her overactive imagination, at least she had until they’d become more erotic, and then she’d blamed loneliness.

Truth be told, she’d been almost obsessed. She’d gone to sleep each night hoping to see him in her dreams and had woken each morning aching for his touch. She’d fantasized he was there with her, watching her, his ravenous eyes devouring her as she’d caressed her body to a fevered pitch. Those deep blue eyes had darkened when she’d cupped her breasts and pinched her nipples, turning them into taut peaks, begging for his attention. His breathing had quickened as she’d slipped her hand lower over her belly to the curls between her legs.

She’d revelled in his body’s reaction to watching her pleasure herself. His hard shaft had strained against the jeans he always wore. Then he would come to her, touch her, make her ache for things she’d never even dreamed of wanting before.

One hand slid down her stomach beneath the water while the other slid up her wet body to caress and tease her bubble-covered nipples. The tight peaks ached for more than what she could provide. Her fingers slid lower to her throbbing pussy. Her soft moan filled the bathroom as she sank deeper in the tub.

“Rhiannon, where are you?”

Drake’s bellow had her sitting bolt upright in the tub, sending water sloshing over the edge and onto the glistening marble floor. Her heart pounded in her chest. Had she been so lost in her fantasy she hadn’t heard him calling? Heat suffused every part of her. The door to the bedroom crashed open, his heavy steps came closer and closer as he tore through the room.

She’d been living on her own for so long, she hadn’t even considered locking the bathroom door. She stood, sloshing bathwater onto the floor, dousing her clean clothes in the process. She barely had enough time to grab one of the fluffy white towels to hold in front of her as she climbed out of the tub before he rushed in.

“
I’m here. I was taking a bath.”
She sent the breathless words into his mind. His eyes were wide and frantic. His chest heaved up and down as if he’d just run a marathon. Neither spoke for a moment as Rhia stood there dripping water and bubbles onto the marble floor. “I’m sorry. I didn’t hear you calling.” She spoke softly, wanting to erase the worry from his eyes.

His Adam’s apple bobbed. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have barged in. When you didn’t respond, I assumed you’d changed your mind and left.” His gaze dipped lower.

If the heat coming off them was any indication, her cheeks were so red he could guess what she’d been up to. It was all she could do to keep from groaning.

“I was enjoying my bath. I guess I wasn’t paying attention.”

His eyes shifted to her exposed hip, peeking at him from behind the towel. Bubbles clung to the curve, tickling her skin as they made their way to the floor at her feet.

A soft groan escaped his lips.

His skin was pale, too pale. Deep ridges, which weren’t there a few hours ago, were forming around his mouth. Dark shadows under his eyes made him look gaunt. Her heart leapt at the sight of the congealed blood on his torn shirt. “What the hell happened?” Turning away, she wrapped the towel around her body. If he saw anything, he didn’t say, and she didn’t care. “Go sit before you fall.” She walked towards him, giving him no other choice than to retreat to the bedroom.

“I’m alright, I just need to rest.”

He didn’t fool her, not for one second. “Yeah, okay tough guy. Take the shirt off. I need to see what it looks like.”

“I’m fine, I assure you.” He stumbled past her, grabbing the doorframe for support as he made his way to the sitting room.

She squared her shoulders and lifted her chin as she followed him to the sitting room. “That’s a lie and you know it.”

Why did men have to be so stubborn? He’d find out in a hurry she had a bit of a stubborn streak of her own.

“I’ll be able to heal myself in a moment, Queen Rhiannon. I just need to catch my breath and gather some energy.” He sank into the same leather chair he’d used earlier.

“Rhia. Just Rhia. No more of this queen shit from now on.” Sighing long and loud, she tried again. “Okay, this is how it’s going to go. I’m going into the bedroom to find something other than a towel to wear. You,” she pointed towards his chest, “are going to take your shirt off. If you haven’t done it by the time I get back, I
will
do it
for
you.”

“That won’t be necessary, Que… Rhia.”

“I wasn’t asking.” She paused, gathering her courage. “As your Queen, I’m telling you to show me your wounds.” She lifted her chin higher and hoped he wouldn’t call her bluff.

“Tell me, do you always get your way, beautiful Rhiannon?” Even as he spoke, Drake stood and pulled his t-shirt from his body. He swayed before rolling the shirt and dropping it to the floor next to the chair and letting himself fall back into it with a grunt.

Air rushed out of her lungs. “That’s not
nothing
, Drake. It’s far from being nothing. And no, I don’t always get my way, in fact, I seldom do.” She disappeared into the bedroom.

When she emerged, she wore one of his t-shirts.

“I had to borrow this. My clean clothes got drenched when I got out of the tub.” She pulled at the hem, trying to hide more of her thighs as the soft material clung to her still damp skin, accentuating her curves.

Beads of sweat dotted his forehead. His skin took on a gray-ish tinge she’d often seen at the hospice. One she didn’t want to see on him. “Okay, tough guy, into the bedroom we go.”

He stood on shaky legs and blinked several times before he steadied again. She snaked her arm snaked around his waist, trying to support his large frame.

“There’s no need to carry me.” Even as he spoke, he draped his arm around her shoulders and leaned against her.

“Let’s just say it’ll make me feel better if I stay with you, okay?” She nearly staggered under his weight.

Her own forehead had dampened with perspiration by the time she had him lying on his back on the big bed. Her hands trembled as she brushed her damp hair from her face.

She darted into the bathroom, returning a moment later with a large basin and some towels, setting them down on the bedside table nearest him.
Okay, she could do this.
She had to do this. He was in trouble and she wasn’t about to just let him die on her. She took a deep steadying breath.

With gentle fingers, she palpated the raised, angry welts surrounding each ragged wound.

He groaned and opened his eyes. “
May I ask what you are doing?”

Her heart leapt as she pulled her fingers away. Her eyes darted up to meet his weary ones. They held no censure, only pain, which gave her the courage and determination she needed to keep going.

“
I’m feeling your wounds. Something isn’t right. The heat in your injuries are extending past the wound bed and reaching deeper. I’d like to know what I’m dealing with before I do anything.”

“An Ikabrol did this. Their claws contain a dangerous poison, lethal if left untreated
.”

“How long? How long until it kills you?”
She couldn’t keep the tremble from her voice.

She prodded the tissue around the worst laceration. Thick, green drainage seeped from it. The pungent smell of infection in the air made her want to retch.

His features contorted as pain shot through him again. “
Do not worry yourself for my safety. Evan and Aiken are coming.”
His entire body trembled beneath her fingers. “
They’ll be here by sunrise, and Aiken will be able to get rid of the infection.
”

Her shoulders stiffened and her eyes widened, but she said nothing.

“They’re already making their way through the dark lands. Aiken is one of our best healers.”
A faint wheeze accompanied his laboured breaths.

He was in trouble. It didn’t matter if the healer, her brother, showed up in the morning or not. If she didn’t do anything, he wasn’t going to make it. His speech was slurred, worsening each time he spoke, and his eyes were beginning to swell shut.

“
Then I’ll be glad to meet them. Now, be quiet, I need to concentrate.
”

“Yes ma’am.”
The smile in his voice didn’t reach his lips.

Slurred speech, pain and tremors, she mentally listed the symptoms. The poison had to be attacking his central nervous system. What the hell was she supposed to do to fix this?

She took a deep breath, puffing it out through pursed lips. Candles. She needed candles. Her mother had been a firm believer that candles purified the air and helped guide the healer. Who knew if it was true or not, but she’d need all the help she could get.

She ran into the living room where she’d seen three large pillar candles sitting on one of the bookshelves, and grabbed them and the matches sitting next to them before dashing back into the bedroom. She lit and placed them around the room before taking her position next to him again. The sweet scent of lavender and jasmine filled the air.

Calm serenity came over her as she took deep breaths of the healing scents. She became one with her power, feeling it surround and flow through her. She raised both hands, palms out as she gathered more energy before she laid them just above his wounds. All the while, her breathing remained smooth and rhythmic.

With each slow breath, she gathered healing light, holding it inside her own body as she molded and shaped it into what she needed. It vibrated within her, awaiting direction. She released it into Drake’s chest. Her very life force shrank away from the lethal poison invading his body. It pushed against her as it recoiled from the vile sludge. It was everywhere. She felt it throughout his system, attacking everything in its path.

“Damn you, you can’t have him. You’re not going to win, not this time.”

The healing aroma of the candles kept her grounded as she set to work again. Her warm light flooded his cold body, giving the poison no chance to retreat. She pushed it up through tissue and organs, back to the surface of the wounds, where she could wash it away.

Her brain registered his deep moan, but she couldn’t stop, not now.

“I’m almost done, I promise. I’m sorry if I’m hurting you
.”

She wasn’t surprised when he didn’t respond. He was too weak. Even remaining conscious was too difficult a task. His spirit pulled away from her as he slipped into unconsciousness.