Dragon Bound - The Saga of Flames and Frost

Chapter 8

Illara looked around the familiar room, quickly sorting her options. Thor was larger than her, but when she bolted he would be taken off guard and she was quick. If they were on the bed he would be able to grab onto a canopy post for leverage. Better that they sit on the furs before the fire. Once she learned what she needed to know, she could scramble up and out the door before he realized what was happening.

She took his hand and led him to sit. "I am still a bit chilly. Could we talk here before the fire?"

He ran a hand along the soft fur and his eyes glowed. "Of course, of course."

She delicately removed her grasp from his and eased herself to the ground, making sure she was on the side closer to the door. Once he had settled himself, she leaned forward, adding an eager gleam to her eyes. "So the dragons? You say their lair is near?"

His teeth shone in the firelight, and he shook his head. "What, do you imagine the dragons all curl up together in one massive cave, perhaps in piles of gold forming nests like this?" He ran a hand across the soft fur, sliding his fingers toward her.

Illara blushed. She did, in fact, have a vision very much like that in her head. The dragons, after all, were lizard-like in their appearance. It wasn't much of a stretch to imagine they curled up together for warmth in some sort of a rocky cave. And, as far as the piles of gold they hoarded, wasn't that known by all? It was why, every few years, a group of treasure hunters would sneak past the border patrols and hike up into the mountains, sure they would make their fortune.

They never returned.

Illara gave an embarrassed smile. "I guess I have a lot to learn, then, don't I."

Thor's hand was resting by her thigh now. He leaned forward. "Dragons are highly intelligent," he murmured, "and fiercely independent. The thought of two dragons sharing the same home ..." He chuckled. "I suppose it does happen, rarely. Carthian is getting on in years, and Nicodemus has been staying with him as of late, to watch over him."

His eyes shone and looked into the fire. "But now, oh yes, things have changed."

Illara's brow creased and she kept her voice low. She had a sense that he'd barely been aware he spoke, and she wanted to keep the flow of information going. "You are wise, so wise, in so many ways," she murmured. "I imagine you know exactly where every dragon is at all times."

He nodded, his gaze still on the depths of the fire. "Every single one," he boasted.

"And Nicodemus, he is keeping an eye on Carthian."

Thor's mouth turned up. "Right now, I don't think Nicodemus is able to do much of anything." His smile sharpened. "Much of anything at all."

It took all of Illara's training to hold the smile on her face. To nod sweetly as if Thor's comments were about the fragrance of a summer flower.

She turned to look out the window. "Still, Thor, with all those peaks and valleys, it must be hard to know exactly which one Nicodemus is near. I can barely tell them apart!" She leaned as if to look more carefully through the closest window and pressed the curve of her breast against his arm.

She could feel the reaction course through him; feel the tension in his arm. His voice was rough when he spoke. "I know every chasm and cliff in that range. There is no way to mistake the Carthian keep."

Illara tilted her head so her hair fell, soft and full, across his chest. She whispered, "Can you really tell which one? Out of them all?"

His throat grew tight. He pointed to a distant peak which had a sharp jag on its right side. "That one."