Page 28 of The Black Dragon
The words of Leo’s assistant rang in his mind. Maybe he had a dark heart, but damn, Ariel’s father had taken the darkness inside him and drawn it out for his twistedpurposes.
I should do to Leo what he did to me. Turn him into screams echoing in the night and make him scream over and over until he begs fordeath…
“Don’t do it,Justin.”
This time the low, hollow voice didn’t come from inside his head. Justin jumped to his feet, looking around with wariness. “Showyourself.”
Only a wizard of enormous power could speak to him telepathically. Sure enough, a haze of glowing blue smoke filled the air. Out of the haze stepped a tall, black-haired man with a well-trimmed black beard and intenseblue eyes deep as the ocean. Wearing a cobalt-blue tunic and trousers, and soft, doeskin boots, he lookedancient.
Justin’s heart raced with dread and his chestconstricted.
“Who are you?” hedemanded.
“Drust.” The man folded his arms across hischest.
He knew this name.Everyonein the dragon world knew this name. Drust, the newest of the wizards of the Brehon. Guardianand judge of dragons, who had only received his powersrecently.
Yet this wizard presented a greater threat than the Silver Wizard who ruled over all other shifters. Drust was dragon himself, and knew a dragon’sheart.
Notmine.
Inside, he trembled. Drust could easily kill him. Drust held far greaterpower.
“You can’t punish me for abstract thoughts.” Justin didn’tlook at thewizard.
Drust sat next to him, dangling his long legs from the overhanging rock. “Far from abstract, Justin. You have a well formulated plan. You have reason enough to seek justice. But don’t go afterLeo.”
He didn’t like anyone ordering him around. Didn’t like it back in North Carolina when Sky’s parents turned into dictators. Didn’t like it now from Drust, wizard ornot.
Justin clenched his teeth. “Give me one good reason whynot?”
Drust traced a line in the rock, burning a symbol into the surface with cobalt flames. “It is not your place and if you do so, you will damage what you share with Ariel. You and Ariel need eachother.”
“I don’t need anyone,” helied.
Expecting a lecture, he was stunned to see the wizard offer him a ruefulsmile. “I once thought the same until Tristan and Nikita freed me from the ShadowLands.”
Justin rolled a shoulder to ease the sudden tension. Talking with a powerful wizard who could fry his sorry ass meant diplomacy, a tactic he’d never excelled at. He’d lived through too much to playpolitics.
“What do you want? You didn’t drop down from Tir Na-nog to have a chat or warn me againstLeo. You could have done that before I camehere.”
“I need you to retrieve a certain crystal for me. It’s in a cavern filled with baby dragons.” Drust stretched. “I trust that you would not harmthem.”
He laughed. The idea of him protecting babies was like setting the legendary Chimera to changediapers.
“Do not mock yourself. You kept your cousin Skylar alive and thrivingwhen she was firstborn.”
His sarcastic smile dropped. Justin rubbed his hands against his legs. “That was different. She’s family. What kind of dragons? Dragon shifters? Don’t they haveparents?”
“They were hatched from eggs laid a millennia ago. These are real babydragons.”
Now he knew the wizard was playing with him. “That’s a myth. Next you’ll tell me there’s such a thingasunicorns.”
“Not in Arizona. They prefer the mountains of northernCalifornia.”
“Where they probably live in communes like Skin hippies and sing songs oflove.”
Drust gave him a steady look. “Love should not be mocked. You are far too young to be socynical.”
