Mercy Burns (Myth and Magic 2)

Then again, maybe this was the council’s way of taking care of the draman problem. Anything was possible.

I drank some more Coke, then asked, “Have you ever tried to find any of the men involved?”

He hesitated, and emotion flashed in his eyes. Anger, regret, and something else I couldn’t really name, but which stirred a response in me nevertheless. I licked my lips and ignored muscles twitching with the need to be gone. Now. I could defend myself. I’d proven that time and again. And one lone sea dragon didn’t pose half the threat that my clique had over the years.

“Hard to get revenge on folk when you never saw their faces,” he said.

And that was his first complete lie. I could taste it, could practically feel the air curling away from the poisonous words. Trae, my half brother, might have the dragon knack of stealing, but I’d inherited something far more useful—the ability to sense falsehoods.

Of course, it wasn’t infallible, as the scars on my back and side would attest, but it had saved my life more often than not, and I wasn’t about to doubt it now.

“You said they wore ski masks. If you were close enough to see that, then you were close enough to notice other things.”

He studied me for a moment, his eyes suddenly as flat as his expression. “Like what?”

“Were they human or dragon kind, for a start?”

He snorted softly. “Humans would have been neither fast enough nor strong enough to overpower a whole town of draman.”

That was true, but the question still had to be asked. Not all draman inherited dragon powers. Some fell on the human side when it came to capabilities. “What about plate numbers? Or voices?”

“I never heard or saw any cars. And I would have, if they’d driven.”

If they’d flown, they must have landed away from the town, so as not to alert the townsfolk of their approach. The rush of wind past a dragon’s wing wasn’t exactly quiet.

He finished the dregs of his beer then shoved back the chair and stood. “What time do you want to rendezvous tomorrow?”

I hesitated, wondering if I would need backup. I might be able to defend myself, but something about this dragon made me wary, and it wasn’t just the lies and half-truths I was sensing. “How about eleven?”

I could ring Leith when I got back home to see if he would accompany me. And if not, maybe he could lend me one of his investigators. I’d feel better if my back was covered. Hell, if I knew where my brother was, I’d ring him, but he was off somewhere again.

“Eleven would be good. And don’t forget to bring the rest of the money.” Angus gave me a nod, then turned and walked out of the bar.

I drained my Coke, then stood. The room spun for a moment, and I grabbed at the tabletop to steady myself. Sweat broke out across my brow and I swiped at it irritably. Lord, I didn’t think it was that hot in here.

Or maybe it wasn’t the heat. The doctors had warned me something like this was likely to happen after the blood loss I’d suffered in the accident, which meant I needed to go home and rest, just like they’d ordered.

I grabbed my jacket from the back of the chair, then gave the bartender a nod and walked out. I could feel his gaze in the middle of my back, like an itch I couldn’t quite scratch, and again unease washed through me.

It was a relief to hit the street again, although the brightness of the dying day had me blinking after the dark of the bar. I raised my face to the sunshine, feeling the power of the oncoming dusk beginning to rise and letting it slither through me to stir the fires in my soul. Yet neither that energy nor the accompanying breeze did much to clear my spinning head.

I flicked a droplet of sweat from my nose, then turned and headed up the street. Once I got home, I could grab a shower. That would cool me down.

But my legs felt shaky and the footpath seemed to be swaying and my stomach was roaring up my throat. I swallowed back bile and grabbed at the nearby wall, trying to steady myself. Lord, maybe I should have stayed in the hospital after all. Or maybe the drugs they’d given me were finally beginning to take effect.

Drugs …

No, I thought, suddenly remembering the forced half smile the bartender had given me when he’d brought over the drinks. It couldn’t be.

Why in the hell would the bartender want to drug me? And why would he even bother? It made no sense.

Unless …

Unless he was a part of this whole deal. Unless he was one of those who had helped kill Rainey.

I shoved a shaking hand into the pocket of my jacket, dragged out my cell phone, and flipped it open. The little number pad blurred and danced before my eyes. I swore and swiped at a button, trying to get the phone book up. The screen went white and tiny little icons jigged about happily.

Again bile burned the back of my throat. I swallowed heavily and hit a button. Another screen flashed up, but I couldn’t read it. The characters were just a blur.