IK2 (16 page)

weary of waiting.” He gestured to one of the two body-builders he‟d recruited from a

gay bar. “Throw some water on him.”

Caldwell sputtered as the bucket of cold water sloshed over him and tried to sit

up. He fell back, unbalanced, since his hands were bound behind him. “What the hell?”

He struggled back into a sitting position and glanced down at himself. “What‟s going

on? Why am I naked?”

Balor gestured to one of the men who began pulling the loose end of the strap

over the girder, forcing Caldwell onto his feet. “You are in need of some discipline.”

“Why?”

“You disappointed me, Alan. I had not thought you so weak that you would lose

control in a fencing match with that slip of a girl.” He shook his head. “That loon,

Smith, fired you when he found out. We have made no progress on even knowing where

to look for the sword. I needed you in that house.”

“I can get back in. I‟ll…”

“You will learn to control your temper, Alan. And your first lesson starts now. ”

He gestured to the man holding the strap. “A little higher, please.”

The leash tugged at the collar as it grew tighter, forcing Caldwell to lift his chin

and stretch his neck.

“If you hold very still,” Balor said as he inspected the collar, “those studs won‟t

dig into your throat too much.” He nodded and the young man secured the leather strap

to a bolt in the wall. Balor moved to a cardboard box on a broken-down desk and

removed two ping-pong paddles. “It‟s odd how these little devices can produce so much

pain when used correctly.” He handed one to each of the young men and turned back to

Caldwell. “Allow me to introduce your playmates for today. John and Simon.” Balor

stepped aside, gesturing for them to move closer.

Grinning, they moved into position behind Caldwell and each administered a

sharp slap to his buttocks, alternating their strokes. He flinched, a muscle tightening in his jaw.

“This is stupid,” he gritted out.

“Oh?” Balor asked. “Dear boys, don‟t forget the backs of his thighs. Let the

smarting wear off his ass before you strike him again. It‟s more painful that

way.”

Caldwell closed his eyes as the beatings began and then popped them open

quickly as Balor ran his hand down the length of his penis. Caldwell jerked and then

SWORD OF FIRE Cynthia Breeding 66

grunted in pain as the collar choked him. Still, he tried to writhe his hips away from

Balor‟s handling of him.

“Oh, I forgot. You don‟t like men handling you, do you?” Balor asked with a

smile. “And so sad, because John and Simon simply love resistant men. However,” he

said with a sigh, “part of this lesson includes controlling your pleasure as well as your pain, so perhaps you won‟t object to Morgan handling you?”

She came forward at once, sliding her hands over his chest and arms and sinking

to her knees in front of him. She stroked down his belly, cupping his balls as she licked slowly up the length of him. His cock stiffened immediately.

“Ah, that‟s more like it,” Balor said jovially. “Do you see how quickly you react

to Morgan‟s gentle touch while pain is administered from behind?” He nodded to

Morgan “Don‟t let him come, my pet.” Moving to the box again, he removed a

blindfold.

“What the—hell, I don‟t need a blindfold!” Caldwell jerked again and then

shouted his fury as the collar tightened around his neck.

“Well, not seeing what is happening makes it so much more titillating,” Balor

answered. “All your senses will be focused on what you‟re
feeling.
The pain will mix with the pleasure. It will blend into one. And,” he added as he fastened the blindfold over Caldwell, “you won‟t really know who‟s sucking you off, will you? I believe the

boys want a turn too.”

“Absolutely,” John said and reached one hand around to pinch at Caldwell‟s

nipple. “I‟ll be relieving little Morgan very soon…and I know how to keep a man hard

for a very long time.”

“And I will take your ass,” Simon said as he paused momentarily in his paddling

to run a finger along the crack, making Cald well shudder. He inserted the tip of his

finger. “This will feel so good. Your butt will be burning, both inside and out. Mmmm.

I can‟t wait….”

“I will make you pay for this, Baylor,” Caldwell said from behind clenched teeth.

Balor laughed. “I don‟t think so, my dear boy. I know exactly which assisted-

living center your mother resides in.”

Balor sat down in a rickety chair to watch the proceedings, unzipping his pants

and motioning for Morgan to come and serve him. He almost laughed at how totally

rigid Caldwell went when John moved around to the front of him, but he was

disappointed in how stoically Caldwell stood there, not screaming or cursing or begging, even when Simon began to massage his anus. Balor had to admit to a grudging respect of

Caldwell. Perhaps, he‟d spare him the reaming. At least for now. He held up his hand to Simon, who looked disappointed but continued his paddling as John sucked Alan‟s shaft

harder and harder.

Balor looked down at the top of Morgan‟s head. She seemed enthusiastic about

her work and sometimes he wished she weren‟t. He did love subjecting a woman to

humiliation and one who wasn‟t willing to have him in her mouth was particularly

enticing. On the other hand, Morgan was very good at his. Who was he to complain?

His thoughts drifted to the female veterinarian and wondered how uptight she‟d

be. If she could resist a warlock—Morgan had told him about their argument—she might

be colder than fish in the Artic ocean, which would make it extremely enjoyable to make

her melt.

SWORD OF FIRE Cynthia Breeding 67

Or at least pleasure him as often as he wanted it. She didn‟t believe in

supernatural beings. She wouldn‟t recognize him.

He might just have to pay Sophie Cameron a visit himself.

SWORD OF FIRE Cynthia Breeding 68

Sophie petted Augustin‟s silky muzzle and checked his supply of oats in the

trough. “I‟m going to have to cut down on those if I can‟t get to riding you more,” she said as the horse shook his head. She laughed. “I think you understood that, didn‟t you, guy?” With a lingering stroke along his sleek neck, she closed the stall door. “Maybe

tomorrow will be a better day.”

She turned on an oldies-rock station as she drove home in the dusky twilight.

Oddly enough, some of the bands from her parents‟ day were still performing or doing

reunion tours. Nostalgia for a time when life was simpler—or so her mother said—

nearly overwhelmed her. If her parents hadn‟t been killed in a freak train wreck, what

would her mother have said about dragons lighting up the night sky? Probably—

Sophie‟s hands stilled on the steering wheel as “Lucy In The Sky With Diamonds” began

playing. How ironic. She shook her head. In her parents‟ day, what with LSD and

tripping, dragons may have been a common sight.

Maybe they were even real.

It had been two days since Michael left her office and she hadn‟t heard from him

nor had she seen the dragon. She should be relieved that he had taken her seriously when she said she was through with all this nonsense about hunting Excalibur.

Especially with
him
. How could she trust a man who used magic to seduce her in

her dreams? And, dear God, she didn‟t want to admit it, but that dream had been so

good. Even now, she could still taste his kisses, his lips warm, persistent, and

demanding. She felt her nipples tighten as she remembered how his mouth had covered

them, drawing deep with hard suckles. Heat seared through her as a pleasant throbbing

began between her legs. His tongue had been there, like soft velvet, gently laving at her folds, licking in broad, slow strokes until she arched and quivered for him to take her.

Dear Lord, she‟d shattered in the hardest climax she‟d ever had and he hadn‟t even

entered her. Hadn‟t even been
there
physically.

What else could that be but magic?

Then, as if she‟d conjured him herself, he was standing in her driveway when she

turned into it. His dark hair blew against his collar in the slight breeze as he stood

waiting for her, muscled arms folded across that broad chest, unmoving. She must be

imagining him. Sophie blinked, opened her eyes. He was still there.

“What are you doing here?” she asked as she stepped out of the car.

He smiled, his dark eyes glistening in the near darkness. “I‟ve brought you proof

as I said I would. Could we go in?”

Sophie hesitated. The last thing she needed to do was be alone with him in her

house.

“Please. This is important,” Michael said. “You‟ll be safe with me.”

She looked into those mesmerizing eyes and then quickly away. She certainly

didn‟t need to be entranced—or whatever magicians called casting a spell these days—by

Michael. Still, he had told her he never forced a woman.

SWORD OF FIRE Cynthia Breeding 69

“I suppose you can come in, but not for long.”

He smiled, the dimple showing. “Good. Thank you.”

As she started to unlock the door she no ticed what looked like a large dog kennel

behind her hedge. A low noise, not quite a growl, was coming from it. “What‟s that?”

Michael picked it up and pushed the door open. “I‟ll show you once we‟re

inside.”

Sophie shut the door behind him and snapped on a lamp as he set the kennel on

the floor. Another low rumble sounded and this time, she saw a faint puff of smoke. She felt her eyes widen as he unlatched the door. It couldn‟t be…

A red dragon the size of a large dog lurched through the opening, its cobalt eyes

blazing as it swung its head from side to side and slapped its tail resoundingly on the

floor.

“That isn‟t…”

“Afraid it is,” Michael said and grinned. “Meet Pendragon. In his other form.”

He looked down at the dragon. “He‟s promised to be on his best behavior, too.”

Spikes rose along the dragon‟s spine and he slitted a look at Michael and then he

sighed, wisps of smoke curling upward. He extended a gold-tipped claw toward Sophie.

“I am here to help you find Excalibur,” he said in perfect English.

The room started to swirl around Sophie in various shades of grey. Reeling, she

tried to hold on to some semblance of sanity. The last thing she remembered was

Michael leaping toward her and catching her in his strong arms.

* * * *

“You didn‟t have to scare her out of her wits!” Michael said as he eased Sophie

onto the sofa.

Pendragon snorted, sparks filling the air, fizzling before they reached the carpet,

thanks to the warlock‟s quick hand-spell. He was not happy being in small dragon form

and he didn‟t like being chastised.

“You wanted her to get to know me. What am I supposed to do? Stand here and

look like some stupid animal?” He raised his spikes. “I am the head-dragon of Britain!

Even Caesar gave me a wide berth. I re member…”

“Not now,” Michael replied, his eyes on Sophie as he gently stroked her face,

speaking softly in Gaelic to her.

Pendragon rattled his scales in response and turned his attention to the girl. She

looked so much like her ancestor. His Epona. The Roman goddess‟s blood flowed in the

veins of this human, yet Sophie Cameron had none of the warrior qualities Epona

possessed. The girl had
fainted
when he merely spoke to her! And he had been e ver so polite, careful not to knock anything over with his tail or rip her rug to shreds with his claws, or set anything on fire, just as Tanio had requested. Was it too much to ask that this mortal carry on a simple conversation with him? By Mithras! How could he help

the girl if she was going to swoon whenever he spoke? A descendant of Epona‟s should

be made of sterner stuff— He paused. This woman probably had
his
blood flowing in her veins, too, since Epona had chosen to have their only child in her human form.

This simply would not do. A female with dragon blood, whether she was able to

shift or not, needed to be taught about her birthright. Of course, that bloody warlock

would probably object, judging from how tenderly he was coddling the awak ening

woman, but then, why would he have to know?

SWORD OF FIRE Cynthia Breeding 70

Pendragon understood now why Brighid had sent him. He would definitely

protect the human. She was, after all, a granddaughter—centuries removed—in his

genealogy, but he would do more.

Sophie Cameron might be the last of his kind.

* * * *

Sophie rubbed her bleary eyes as she sat down at her desk the next morning to

review her list of patients for the day. Not getting sleep at night was taking its toll, but how could she possibly sleep with a talking dragon in her home?

“Coffee?” Morgan asked in a chirpy tone.

“Please. Make it strong.” Sophie scanned down the calendar. Thank goodness

she had only routine appointments for this morning. The afternoon looked light as well.

Maybe she could get Allison to cover for her. She really needed able to clear her head