Page 73 of The Dragon With A Girl Tattoo
“This is Becket, my mate.Your feather will like her, too,” he told Maat.
She gave me a quick once-over, then laid the feather on my palm.It didn’t hop up and down with joy, like it did for Yrian, but it rested there quietly.
“Indeed, she is welcome to pass, as well,” Maat told me, and to my utter surprise, she winked.
“Are we done?I have just enough time to get back to Anton.Oh, nephew.There was something I was supposed to tell you if I saw you....”Isis approached, expensive perfume wafting about her as she stopped in front of Yrian and tapped one perfectly manicured nail on her lower lip.“Ah!I have it!Osiris wanted me to warn you that Maat’s sister has been buddying up with that troublesome brother of yours.”
“Asfet?”Maat asked, as she stuck the feather back in her hair.Her expression turned somber as she watched Yrian.“She has returned to the Duat?”
“Evidently,” Isis said with a careless gesture.“It matters not to me.Osiris handles that sort of thing.Guards!We leave.”
The three shirtless men in ancient kilts immediately fell into line behind her as she departed, the captain in tow.
Maat looked troubled.Yrian looked furious.I just felt lost.“I get that anyone hanging around Bael is not good, but is there a reason why we have to be warned about it?”
“She is the other half of me,” Maat answered, but I had a feeling she was not really paying attention.“I am order; she is chaos.”Her gaze slid from looking at nothing to Yrian, her expression shifting to sympathy.
“Would she have the power to bring people into the Duat without using the ferry?”Yrian asked, his fire so high I worried it might spill out onto the deck.
“Yes,” Maat said, her gaze dropping to her hands.“She is a deity, as am I.We do not need theWepwawetin order to travel in the Duat.I must contact Osiris.He has always dealt with Asfet in the past.He must return from the mortal world.”
“I doubt if he would, not while the sons of Horus are running amok,” Yrian told her, then held out a hand for me, giving Maat a little bow.“We thank you for your help.”
“Be careful,” she warned as we turned to leave the boat.“Asfet has always embraced that which will cause the most trouble, and if she is working with Bael ...”
“So, now we have a new bad guy to worry about?”I asked as we trotted down the gangway.A couple of dusty taxis were waiting for the passengers, along with stacks of luggage.Most of the people had left, but there were a few remaining who took pictures, chatted excitedly, and consulted maps as to where they wished to go next.“Like we don’t have enough with Bael and Xavier?”
“Asfet is the least of my concerns—” His phone started playing an operatic song I recognized as “The Cat Duet.”“It is my youngest brother.Yes?”
He put his phone on speaker just in time for me to hear Baltic explaining that although Deus escaped while being transported to Drake’s country house, he had spilled a few secrets about Xavier.
“He admitted that Xavier seeks to become a new demon lord.”Baltic’s voice sounded tinny and thin, which I put down to the Internet connection in the Duat.Most underworlds had less than sterling reception with the mortal plane.“He did not say that Xavier sought help from Bael for that purpose, but I can’t think of any other reason for consorting with him.It also explains why he is trying to gain the shards.”
“It is as we thought,” Yrian agreed.“Kashi would have little use for someone unless they provided the potential for his release, and I can think of nothing he would want more than the dragon heart itself.”
“Deus refused to answer when asked where the blue shard was now,” Baltic added, an obvious warning in his voice.“The others—particularly Archer and Hunter—don’t believe Xavier would hand it over to Bael, but I am not convinced.”
“Speculation about what Xavier might do is useless.It’s clear he’s already given the shard to Kashi,” Yrian said, watching as the last batch of tourists left.One taxi remained, and I gestured to the driver that we would be a few minutes.She loaded up our luggage, pulled out a handheld game console, and proceeded to lean against the taxi playing a game.
“You think Xavier has been to the Duat since we last saw him?”Baltic asked.“The ferry leaves once a week.You were on the sailing that he must have joined, since we saw him four days ago.”
“He was not on the ferry, nor was the demon who kidnapped Becket.I believe now he bypassed the trip altogether,” Yrian answered, his voice flinty and full of pointy bits.“Becket and I were just warned that Maat’s sister, Asfet, has been working with Kashi.Since the wrath demon who kidnapped Becket disappeared off the ferry, we must conclude the same about Xavier, assuming he was bringing the shard to Kashi.”
I rubbed my arms against the goose bumps that formed despite the heat of the afternoon.
“The other shards are no doubt the target of Xavier and his tribe,” Yrian continued when Baltic swore in French.“This circumstance is why I created the weyr.The kin must pull together to defend the shards.Summon the tribes friendly to you.Guard those septs with shards.”
I said nothing as Yrian hung up, wanting to hug him, kiss him silly, and find the nearest fireproof bed so I could make him forget all the woes hanging over his head.Instead, I asked, “What next?”
“We find Kashi, and I destroy him,” Yrian answered.
“Just like it’s that simple?”I asked as he held open the taxi door for me.
“It won’t be simple at all, but it must be done,” he answered, then told the driver to take him to the home of Kashi.
“Who—” she started to ask.
“He’s also known as Bael,” I said with a quick glance at Yrian.He was looking out of the window, his expression stark, little tension lines forming around his mouth.
