Page 36 of Magic Betrayed

Surely I was imagining things.

“As fun as this is,” I said, “Kira is waiting for us. I get that you want to help, and I’m thankful, but maybe we can discuss it later?”

But the fae prince persisted. “If you will not allow me to join you, I will simply carry on searching on my own.” His expression turned positively mulish. “You might as well take advantage of my skills and my connections to speed your own efforts.”

I could see the appeal, but how could I make this decision without knowing what Kes would want? Anyone involved in this search was eventually going to learn some uncomfortable truths. But wasn’t it reason enough to take that risk if it meant she would be found sooner?

“I’ll think about it on the way,” I finally promised. That would give me time to talk to Callum without the fae prince listening in.

But the dragon only swiveled his head on that long, sinuous neck, gestured to the SUV with his nose, and shot me a pointed look.

Oh.Oh.

I felt my face heat as I considered this fresh complication. He’d shifted so fast, he’d shredded his clothes, and now he couldn’t shift back without… Nope, not thinking about that.Definitelynot picturing it.

“You don’t keep extra clothes in your car?”

He did not. There was little reason for it, since he almost never shifted in the city. As the growing traffic jam and occasional flash from phone cameras indicated, seeing dragons tended to scare the human residents, and he could get in trouble with human authorities for creating a hazard in an urban airspace.

“You can hear him, can’t you?” Rath asked me quietly.

“I…” Should I admit it? I didn’t even know precisely what I was admitting to, but at this point, it wasn’t like I could deny it. “It’s not like hearing a voice,” I hedged. “But I do feel like I know what he’s trying to tell me. I just don’t knowhow.”

Rath’s expression turned sharp and sly and almost wickedly amused. “Then I might have some information that would interest you.” The words were barely out of his mouth before he was nearly knocked off his feet by a sharp blow from the dragon’s tail.

It didn’t seem to faze him. “Don’t be so dramatic, Your Majesty. I’m not an idiot, and I have no intention of repeating my mother’s mistakes.”

Oh, wow. He just went there.

“But allow me to point out that you cannot drive until you can shift, so perhaps you’d be willing to consider my offer?”

He was right, and the worst of it was, he seemed to know that I shouldn’t be driving either. I knewhow, of course, but I’d been imprisoned by the fae starting when I was sixteen, so I didn’t have a license. It was one thing when we were escaping the Fae Court and I’d had no choice, but these days I was trying to be a mostly law-abiding citizen. Which meant I probably shouldn’t risk getting caught driving a car registered to the Shapeshifter Court.

“I’ve already glamoured my own mode of transportation,” Rath informed us, “so I am available to drive Raine to meet Kira. You would be free to fly back home and join us once you’re more… suitably attired.”

Callum didn’t like it. He was angry that he’d shifted for battle when there was no enemy. Angry about leaving me alone with Rath. But he also knew it was the most logical course of action and couldn’t think of a reason to refuse.

Neither could I, much to my dismay.

“I will befine,” I insisted, arms folded across my chest as I stared up at his scaled face. “You’ll probably beat us there, anyway. And if we never show up, you can hunt us down and find out for yourself whether fae royalty tastes like chicken.”

Rath let out a suspicious sounding cough. “Considering his family history, I suspect he alreadyknowswhat fae royalty tastes like.”

Yep, he went thereagain, and Callum was clearly just as surprised as I was. But he also seemed resigned to leaving me with Rath, and as he turned towards me, I caught the edges of another thought.

Be careful. Stay safe. Key is in the coat pocket.

I reached my hands into the pockets of Callum’s enormous coat, and sure enough… there was the smooth, cool shape of a key fob beneath my fingers.

This wasn’t just my hunch magic. This was something entirely different, and I was terrified to look at it too closely.

“Thanks,” I said, suddenly feeling reluctant for him to leave. Which was ridiculous. I was more than capable of handling this on my own. In my entire twenty-six years, I’d never had anyone to rely on, so I shouldn’t need anyone now. But something about Callum-ro-Deverin made me feel safe in a way no one and nothing else ever had, and after another taste of that safety, I didn’t want to give it up again.

Which was all the more reason for me to let him go. Learning to rely on someone who couldn’t stay was nothing but a recipe for heartache and disaster.

“Go on, then. We’ll see you at the bookstore.”

Callum backed away, molten amber eyes still resting on me, as if trying to communicate something more. Something wordless and fierce. His wings spread to their full, terrifying width, and I heard the sound of shouts and screeching brakes as the traffic from nearby Northwest Expressway reacted to the sight of a dragon preparing to take flight.

---