Page 14 of The Black Dragon
5
The houseof Leo Harrington offered a splendid view of the red-rimmedcliffs.
Justin had never seen the house’s interior, only the basement built deep into the earth. The night he’d escaped last year, he’d been frantic to flee, never lookingback.
Now he took a long,hard look at the building where he’d lived in hell for three longmonths.
It was forsale.
From one of the twin saddlebags on his Harley, Justin dug out a thick wallet, stuffed with hundred dollar bills. There hadn’t been time to exchange the gold for paper before leaving his cousin Skylar and her mate Sebastian at their clan compound in North Carolina, so he’d exchanged the sackof gold on his journeyhere.
And there was always the millions he had in his investmentaccounts.
Harrington must be desperate to sell such a residence for so little. Desperate men were easier totrap.
Property sat on half an acre. Floor to ceiling glass windows in the living room overlooked the canyon, and the kitchen had custom wood cabinets and another magnificent viewof the cliffs. High-beamed ceilings, a walk-in pantry and bookcases, swimmingpool.
A stylish late-model sedan pulled into the driveway. Justin pocketed his wallet and walked over to shake the real estate agent’shand.
The Skin was middle-aged and babbled, but he didn’t care. Justin itched to see everything inside thehouse.
As they toured the interior, he noted the cream-coloredwalls, absent of portraits or art. Dull andlifeless.
“The house was designed with the view in mind. Every room looks over the cliffs!” The agent pointed to the cliffs framed by floor to ceilingwindows.
No, this house was designed by a man intent on privacy and seeing anyone else coming. Especially adragon.
Double glass doors led out onto a wood deck, a perfect landing stripfor a smaller dragon. Justin examined the angles. As a black dragon, he preferred flying at night when Others couldn’t see him in the dark sky. Dragons had a natural cloaking ability to shield them from Skins, but Others easily spottedthem.
Except if the dragon wasclever.
They explored the bedrooms, coming at last to Ariel’s. Smaller than the others, it had pink walls and whitefurniture. But it was the bed that interested him most. King-sized, with four whiteposters.
Excellent for tying up a prettyMage.
He saw a few indications of Ariel’s personality – a crystal vase of flowers in the bathroom, their scent sweet and mild. Built-in cases filled with books from novels to scientific journals to ancient tomes covered inleather.
Justin dragged ina deep breath, Ariel’s scent swimming in his nostrils. It slammed into him like a freight train, arousing him more than if ten naked women danced beforehim.
Turning to adjust himself, he waited before following the agent into the adjacent dressingroom.
No dresses. Most of her wardrobe consisted of trousers, jeans and shirts. Ofcourse.
Ariel preferred hiding her prostheticlimb.
Justin excused himself for a moment, went into the hallway and made a short call to a friend inSedona.
Two minutes later, as they entered an upstairs guest room, the agent’s phonerang.
“Go ahead and take it,” he urged. “I’ll meet you downstairs. I want to examine the bedrooms for space, get a visual idea if my stuff willfit.”
The agent answered the call, andbegan talking as she walked out. Justin smiled. Marc would keep her on the phone for at least ten minutes, asking her about the listing. Plenty of time to explore Ariel’sbedroom.
An oak bookcase held leather-bound books and paperback novels. He selected one book and flipped through it. Justin scanned the archaic writing and frowned. The book of ancient Mage magick was priceless. Leo musthave procured it from a dealer. Yet the only pages Ariel had bookmarked were the ones ondragons.
To hurt us? Did you plan to find out our vulnerabilities so you could kill us as your fatherplanned?
Yet he had the nagging feeling that fascination, not hatred, drove her to remember these pages. Justin replaced the book and glanced at the top shelf. Nothing but a collection of milkglass pieces. Something shiny caught hiseye.
