Playing with Fire

‘‘Ophelia?’’ Aisling asked, causing me to gawk slightly.

‘‘Yes, that’s her name. Do you know her?’’

A little smile graced her lips. ‘‘Yes. Amelie, a friend of mine in Paris, said she’s left the country. Her… er… twin was banished to the Akasha, you know. Ophelia suffered from depression after that, but last I heard, she was in Africa devoting herself to charitable works.’’

The pilot flashed on the seat-belt warning while Aisling was talking. I dug around in the comfortable leather chair for the seat belts, wondering what the doppelganger’s twin had done to leave her banished to the Akasha.

My phone rang before I could ponder much. ‘‘Oh, sorry,’’ I said as the pilot, a dragon who had been in conversation with Drake, frowned over at me. ‘‘I’ll turn it off. I just… Oh, thank the gods.’’ I was about to turn off my phone, but the caller ID number blinking at me was a familiar one. ‘‘Cy? Where are you?’’

‘‘Oh, Mayling, good, you haven’t left yet…’’ A loud roar from what sounded like a truck drowned out the rest of her sentence. ‘‘… kidnapped me, which was just about the most… me of all people!’’

‘‘What? Cy, I can’t hear you. Where are you? And what’s that about a kidnapping?’’

I held the phone a few inches away from my head as a loud truck horn threatened to deafen me. The pilot and Drake both glared at me.

‘‘I’m sorry, May, but you will have to turn off your mobile phone,’’ the latter said.

‘‘What’s wrong?’’ Gabriel asked at the same time, cleverly picking up on the fact that all was not well.

‘‘I don’t quite know. It’s Cy, and she’s evidently standing in the middle of some horrible traffic trying to tell me something… What’s that?’’

‘‘… the blackmailer! Can you hear me now? He’s…’’ More sounds of engines cut off what she was saying. ‘‘… horrible man! I tried to fight him off, but… please, I’m begging you…’’

‘‘Where are you?’’ I yelled into the phone, hoping she could hear me.

‘‘Is it Kostya? Has he attacked her again?’’ Gabriel asked, half rising out of his seat.

My hope was in vain. I could hear Cy attempting to speak over the noise, but couldn’t make out the words. Suddenly, the co

Everyone in the plane was looking at me. I ignored them to turn to the one person to whom I knew I wouldn’t have to explain. ‘‘No, it’s not Kostya. Cyrene needs my help with something else, a personal matter.’’

His silver eyes searched mine. I was torn between the need to help Cy and the urgency presented by the situation with the phylactery, but with Cyrene’s plea for help still echoing in my head, there was only one thing I could do.

‘‘I’m very sorry, Gabriel, but I can’t go to Paris.’’ I grabbed the small backpack I used as a purse and rose.

Gabriel’s face was a study in emotion as frustration, anger, and irritation all took a turn, but as he nodded and stood, concern was all that was left. ‘‘I understand. Your twin must come first.’’

‘‘You go to Paris. I’ll use a portaling company to get there as soon as I find Cyrene.’’

Regret filled his lovely eyes for a moment before it was blinked away. He turned to Drake. ‘‘We will join you as soon as possible. I assume you will do everything in your power to keep the phylactery from falling into Kostya’s possession again.’’

Drake’s lips quirked. ‘‘You would trust me with it?’’ he asked.

Gabriel was silent for a moment before giving him a sharp nod. The pilot had opened the door and lowered the stairs; Gabriel and I hurried down them, heading toward the nearest hangar.

‘‘You don’t have to come with me,’’ I told him as the plane taxied off.

He said nothing until we were in the back of a cab.

‘‘Where is she?’’ he asked as we got in.

‘‘We should go to Drake’s house. That’s where she was last.’’

He gave the instructions to the driver before sitting next to me.

‘‘Gabriel… you don’t have to do this.’’

‘‘Your twin is in danger. That must take precedence over the phylactery,’’ he interrupted.

I looked at the strong planes of his face, the high cheekbones sculpting lines that made my stomach tighten with happiness. The brown, elegant slashes of eyebrow set off his eyes so that they just about glowed with emotion. The phylactery was everything to Gabriel- if Kostya regained it, I knew without the slightest doubt that he would use it against the silver dragons. It was of tantamount importance that we get to it before he did… and yet Gabriel was willing to set aside his need to protect his people in order to help me with Cyrene.

My heart heaved a little sigh of resignation and allowed itself to do what it had wanted to do from the very begi

‘‘I think that is the nicest thing anyone has ever done for me,’’ I said once I could manage to speak around the lump in my throat.

He gave another short nod, acknowledging the fact that I recognized his sacrifice.

‘‘Would it upset all sorts of dragon etiquette if I was to kiss you silly in a taxicab?’’ I asked him.

One dimple started to show despite his serious expression. ‘‘Not in the least.’’

‘‘Good. Because I don’t think I’m going to be able to stop myself,’’ I said, smiling into his mouth. The second my lips touched his, fire swept through me. Mindful of the surroundings-and not wanting to have to explain to a startled cab driver why the backseat of his vehicle was engulfed in flames-I controlled the dragon fire, allowing it to pass back into Gabriel.

‘‘You taste so good,’’ he murmured, his hands hard on my hips as he tried to pull me over his lap. ‘‘You taste of the cool water that hides deep in a stream. You taste of the night air, soft and scented and mysterious. The taste of you drives me wild. I want to be with you, be inside you, shout to the world that you are mine at the same time I want to keep you hidden where you will exist only for me. You make me feel invincible, little bird.’’

‘‘You are invincible,’’ I whispered, nibbling his delicious lower lip. ‘‘You are my dragon in shining armor who will slay that pesky Saint George for me.’’

His dimples deepened even though he sighed with frustration as, aware the cabby was watching us in his rearview mirror, I settled back down on the seat next to Gabriel.

‘‘Saint George?’’ he asked.

‘‘Well, his name is Porter, and he’s not a saint, but I can tell you that he has stepped over the line and done something very foolish.’’

‘‘You think the blackmailer kidnapped your twin?’’

"Can you think of anyone else who would do something so crazy?"

Gabriel shook his head. ‘‘No. It does seem to be an attempt to manipulate you by holding Cyrene hostage.’’

‘‘Exactly. I guess he figured I needed a little push into stealing the phylactery back for him.’’

‘‘You should have told me about this from the first. I would have taken care of him for you,’’ Gabriel said with smug self-assurance that grated.

The look I gave him should have, by rights, left him babbling in apology. ‘‘Certainly not! I’m insulted you think I’m so feeble I can’t deal with one little blackmailer on my own. I didn’t mean you should actually slay him for me, you know. I can take care of that all right.’’

Gabriel gri

‘‘I may be little, but I pack a hell of a punch,’’ I said, nodding toward my ankle where the dagger was strapped.

‘‘I have no doubt of that, just as I have no doubt that so long as I am around, you will never have need to prove that. What do you plan to do about the thief taker Porter?’’

‘‘I hadn’t thought beyond making sure Cyrene is safe. I guess we’ll have to deal with him now.’’

‘‘I will take care of him for you,’’ Gabriel said calmly. ‘‘We will rescue your twin, and then see to it this thief taker does not bother you again. After that, we will be free to move on to more important matters.’’