“Brilliant. Ladies first.” Tempest approaches me with the second robe like it’s a net and I’m a small forest creature in need of catching. It’s the funniest thing I’ve ever seen. I laugh so hard, I double over.
“Just let me drape this—”
The moment the fabric touches my shoulders, I grab it ninja-fast and toss it over the balcony, just like the last one. In the canyon below us, someone makes an ‘argh’ noise. After that, a sound follows that’s like glass crashing. Tempest leans over the railing. “Sorry about that, Reginald!” He turns around to face me. “You promised to wear the robe, Portia.”
“I said maybe.” An idea appears in my mind.
Why didn’t I think of this before?
“Let’s go inside and jump on your bed!”
“Jump.” Tempest closes his eyes and groans like I’m making his life miserable or something. “On my bed.”
“Yeah.” I grab his hand and drag him toward the door. “Come on, you.”
Tempest sighs and lets me drag him into his bachelor lair. What a sourpuss. Wait until he hears my amazing plans for after we jump on his bed. This is going to be the best night ever.
Chapter Fifteen
When I open my eyes again, I find myself in a modern bedroom decorated in shades of black, white, and red. Tall windows line the walls; a plush white rug covers the floor. I lie naked in a massive bed under black silk sheets. Tempest sits in a chair beside me.
Wait, what?
I sit upright and tuck the sheets under my arms.
Tempest’s large brown eyes lock with mine. “Morning, luv.” His long legs are kicked out before him with his biker boots crossed at the ankles. He wears a fresh pair of jeans and a stretchy black T-shirt. It’s not fair how messy and sexy he looks in the morning.
“Hey.” My voice comes out as a nervous chirp.
Smooth, Portia.
I pat my hair, finding a positive rat’s nest of blonde tangles surrounding my head, halo-style. I open my mouth to ask questions. Instead, I put my foot straight into it. “This is a lot of me naked in your bed, Tempest.”
He eyes me mischievously. “Do you always start conversations this way?”
My cheeks burn red with embarrassment. “How did I end up, you know?”
“Naked in my bed?”
I bite my lips together hard.
This is so humiliating.
“That part, yes.”
“You don’t remember?”
“No, should I?”
“Perhaps not. You were a little out of it after the angelflower wine.”
“Oh, the wine.” I lie in bed, close my eyes, and debate about casting a disappearing spell. “I got a little tipsy, I think.”
“I’d say all-out blasted. You had lots of plans, including jumping on my bed.”
“Did I?”
Kill me now.
“Oh, yes.” A sneaky look returns to Tempest’s expression. “I didn’t join in the jumping bits myself, mind you. I must say I enjoyed the show, though.”
My cheeks burn about eight shades of red. “What did I do after that?”
“Ah.” He laces his fingers over his taught stomach. “You decided that we needed to sleep together. You were most adamant about doing so without clothing.”
I’m so stunned, my eyes almost bug out of my head. “I said that?”
“You most certainly did.” Tempest winks. “I was quite shocked.”
“Did we…” I want to pull the sheets over my head. I grip them more tightly instead.
Wow, do I ever feel like an ass.
“You know?”
“Have sex?”
I wince. “Yes, that.”
Tempest chuckles. “Why, Princess Portia. I’m not that kind of dragon.”
I kick at his boot with my bare foot. “I’m serious.”
Tempest meets my gaze and the laughter disappears. “I could tell you weren’t yourself, luv. I’d never take advantage of you like that. We negotiated.”
“Thank Heaven.”
“Don’t give the angels any credit for what happened.”
I can’t help but chuckle. “Okay, thank
you
.”
“Quite right. In the end, we decided that I could sleep in the chair beside your bed. You could then be naked and that was close enough to count.”
I exhale a relieved breath and curl onto my side. “Thanks again.”
“You’ve only been out for an hour or so. Time enough for me to cast some spells of healing and nourishment. A few whoppers to cover a hangover, too.”
“I owe you.” I want to say more; I can’t find the words. It even gets hard to meet his gaze. Tempest is a special guy.
There, I said it. He’s kind and caring. I’m so lucky to have him with me on this quest.
“Since you’re in the mood to remember your debts, I have to remind you about the angel Verus. After we open the next seedpod, we have a quick stop we need to make.”
My brows draw together with shock. Did I say Tempest was kind and caring? I forgot about the odd Verus prophecy part, too. Not sure what to make of all that. Even less sure that I’ll go along with it. Some things are too weird.
The room shudders with a wave of tremors. Fresh adrenaline pumps through me. We need to get back on our quest.
“How bad has it been?” I ask.
“We’ve been getting tremors like this for the last hour.” The floor stops moving. “They don’t last long, though.”
I scan the room for my wicker sphere. “We need to get going.” I grab the magical object and speak directly into it. “Where in Furonium is the third seedpod?” The sphere doesn’t move. The long strands don’t even twitch. I frown. “Do you think it’s broken?”
“It’s fine, luv. You already asked it last night. It stopped answering you after six times or so.”
I groan with embarrassment. “Why am I not surprised? So, what did it tell us?”
“The third seedpod is in a storage cave that’s not too far from here.”
“Cool.” Now that I’m rested and jacked up on healing spells, I feel ready to take on the world. I wrap the sheet around my torso and slide out of bed. “I’ll be ready in ten minutes.”
Chapter Sixteen
Tempest and I walk along the basin of a red stone canyon. The air is still and quiet. No one else is around. Striped rock walls rise on either side of us. A pale blue sky arches overhead. A bubbling stream meanders through the yellow scrub grass on the canyon floor. We’ve followed this slim waterway for more than an hour. Not far from here, it should pass the cave where the third seedpod’s hidden. My heart lurches at the thought.
Only two seedpods left to go.
Small stones tumble down the canyon wall with a clickity-clack. My chest tightens with alarm. I twist around, scanning for trouble. Evil energy oozes out of the shadows.
“It’s the Scintillion,” I say in a low voice. “That monster’s nearby.”
Tempest scans the swirling rock formations. “I can sense it too.”
I cup my hand by my mouth. “We know you’re here and we’re not afraid of you!” The word ‘you’ echoes for an extra-long time through the canyon. It sounds badass that way, which makes me feel a bit more confident, even if I don’t really feel that way on the inside.
Tempest and I approach the mouth of a small cave. This is it. He pauses beside the darkened entrance. “We go in as a team. Safer that way.”
“Sure.” My voice comes out clipped and anxious.
Together, Tempest and I step inside. The cave is a long and low space. Corrugated metal boxes are stacked everywhere. Each one’s marked with different magical ingredients. I scan the labels. Dried eye of newt. Elder dragon scales. Powdered reindeer horn.
“Is this Hexenwing storage?” I ask. If there’s one Furor tribe I know something about, it’s the Hexenwings. Outside of Tempest, they’re the only ones who use magic.
Tempest strolls around the room, inhaling deeply. “Yes, but they haven’t visited this place in years.” He pauses. “Someone else has, though.” Tempest’s tail arches over his shoulder as his body goes into battle mode. An eerie sense of menace seeps out from the darkened corners of the cave.
A jolt of awareness skitters across my skin. This is exactly how I felt in Atlantis when I met the Scintillion.
“You can come out now,” I say.
The Scintillion’s gurgling voice creeps in from the shadows. “There’s no need to worry. I’m not here to kill you.”
Sure, you aren’t.
A hulking silhouette steps out from behind a stack of crates. Although I’ve fought this monster many times, I’ve never gotten a good look at the thing. The Scintillion is tall and broad with a barrel chest and long arms. Blackened goo oozes off every inch of its body. The monster’s fiery eyes focus right on me.
My chest tightens with dread. That thing wants me dead, there’s no question about it. The stench of rotting flesh slams into me, making me sick to my stomach.
“I know the two of you are powerful,” says the Scintillion. “You proved that in Atlantis. I’m here to make a deal.”
Tempest moves, placing his body between the Scintillion and me. I grab the dagger from my thigh holster and hold onto it tightly. My hand shivers with nervous energy, and the blade taps lightly against my thigh.
“What kind of deal?” I ask.
The Scintillion steps closer, its movements making nasty slurping noises against the floor. Tempest raises his arm. “That’s close enough.” The monster pauses.
The Scintillion’s long black tongue licks its thin lips. “This is my proposition. The Marked are rich with Firmament energy. I need just a little taste of that power. Give it to me and I’ll hunt you no more.”
“Bollocks,” says Tempest. Dragon scales appear over his exposed skin. The scent of charcoal fills the air as he preps his lungs to breathe fire.
“My offer isn’t for you,” says the Scintillion. “What do you say, Marked?”
I tap my chin, considering. I haven’t spent my life poring over research only to ignore the facts now. They tumble through my brain, the information taking a new shape in my mind. A realization slowly seeps over me. I don’t have to be afraid of the Scintillion. He should be afraid of me.
“Want to know what I think?” I ask. “You were telling the truth before. You didn’t come here to kill us. You already tried that in Atlantis. Brought along an army, too. And you failed. So, you know you can’t win in a head-on fight.”
The Scintillion’s eyes flare with fire. Warm satisfaction spreads through my chest. His silence says that I’m right. I feel like a shark that smells blood in the water. I’m going in for the kill.
“And now you’re negotiating.” I shake my head. “With what, exactly? Want to get your ass kicked again? Bring it on. Like hunting us across the after-realms? Be our guest. Only make no mistake. Get out of my way. I have seedpods to open and I swear, if you slow me down, I will kill you so dead you’ll never ooze your way out of battle again.”
The earth trembles. Tiny rocks careen down the cave walls. Metal boxes rattle against the floor. Somewhere, more sinkholes are opening up and doing damage. The thought makes my blood boil. “Want to know what scares me right now? Not you.” I point at the cave wall. “That scares me. The after-realms falling apart. Are we clear?”
The Scintillion lets out a gurgling roar. Tar flicks off its body as it shudders with rage. For a moment, I think the thing’s going to attack again. My body tenses, waiting for the blow. But that doesn’t happen. The Scintillion collapses into a puddle on the rock floor and oozes away into the ground. I stare at the spot in disbelief.
He left. He really left. Guess I’m better at giving speeches than I thought.
My gaze stays locked on the cave floor. “Do you think we saw the last of him?”
Tempest steps up behind me. “No.”
“Me neither.” I turn around to face Tempest. “Let’s get that see—”
Tempest’s mouth is on mine in an instant. Our tongues meet. His hand fists my hair. I loop my arms around his neck and press myself against him, hard. It’s the best feeling in the universe. It’s over way too soon. Tempest breaks the kiss and presses his forehead to mine. We’re both panting for breath, our arms still entwined.
“What…” It takes me a few seconds to organize my thoughts. “What was that for?”
“After that speech? I gad to give you a kiss. You’re magnificent, Portia.” Another jolt hits the cave floor. “But the after-realms? They’re a bloody mess. We better go.”
“Right.” It’s an effort to unwind my arms from him. “Time to find that seedpod.”
There’s an awkward moment where we’re standing close and not doing anything about anything. The kiss replays in my mind. Unbelievable. Tempest and I are coming together while the after-realms are falling apart. That makes it official. My love life is actually a bad country-western song. If it weren’t for bad luck, I’d have no luck at all.
Time to focus to the quest again.
“Where’s the deepest part of this cave?’ I ask. “I’m guessing that’s where the seedpod will be.”
“That’s the sub basement, two floors below us.”
“Lead the way.”
Tempest and I climb down a rough-hewn staircase. It looks clawed out of the rock by dragons. Maybe it was. We reach the sub-basement. Floor lights blink on in succession, revealing the space. What I see is a mess. The floor’s jammed with random-looking piles of junk. There are open urns of powder, cracked chests of gemstones, and piles of dried-out herbs.
Closing my eyes, I reach out with my senses, searching for Firmament magic. The liquid power instantly rushes through my soul. “The seedpod is nearby, no question about it.”
“Let’s tidy up then.” Tempest whispers a quick incantation in dragon tongue. His deep and rumbling voice echoes through the small space. Instantly, all the junk slides into neat piles along the walls, or arranges itself onto shelves.
With all the garbage out of the way, it’s clear what to focus on next. A large, circular lump juts out of the center of the floor. My pulse quickens. This thing is about the same size as the other seedpods. I take a cautious step closer. The energy radiating from this spot is overwhelming. My hands turn slick with sweat.
I can’t stop thinking about the seedpod in Atlantis. When I tapped into the Firmament’s power there, I blew out the entire cavern. And before that, I wiped out the Library in Heaven. Not the best track record.
My knees tremble with worry. “I think we need a plan here.”
Tempest moves to stand behind me. “Perhaps we team up again, only on purpose this time. Maybe we cast a spell of opening together?”