Michael sighed, trying to ignore the screams of Mine! in his head. “I’ll think about it.”
“Do that. You deserve someone nice.”
Terrence did have a point there. Michael’s last girlfriend had started out nice, but she had gotten rather needy fast. She told him that he was spending too much time at his job and had given him an ultimatum; so, he let her go. That went over about as well as porcupines at a petting zoo. And it didn’t help when his neighbors called the cops. They took one look at his Eternity identification and hauled her to jail, leaving him to clean up the three windows she had broken. Terrence’s old-fashioned clock chimed six times, drawing Michael back to the present. Hell, was it that late already?
Terrence stood up and stretched. “If you plan to take this to Daniel tomorrow, you’d better get some sleep.”
“True.” Michael stood up and looked around the room. Terrence had one bed and that nice, cozy beanbag. Michael had spent several nights stretched out on the oversized thing, but Carissa was currently occupying it. He looked up to Terrence for an answer to his dilemma.
“The beanbag’s big enough for two.” Terrence chuckled before heading for his bed.
Michael looked down at it. He had slept double on futons that were half the size of that thing, but to cuddle up against Carissa… Could he do that? The voice in his head told him definitely. But, should he? That he wasn’t sure about.
Terrence chuckled again as he clicked off the overhead light, dropping the shelter into its nighttime mode.
An eerie, green glow from the small panels flooded the room with just enough light for Michael to make out shapes. Letting out a sigh, he kicked off his boots. Unless he wanted to brush the papers off the table, there really wasn’t any other place to sleep.
Pulling the beanbag away from the wall, Michael lay down on the high side, pushing the filling around until the surface was nearly flat. Letting out a sigh, Carissa rolled over. Michael froze as she snuggled into his side, with her head nearly on his shoulder. Her hand came to rest on his chest. Damn, she felt good. Slowly, he drew in a breath and wrapped his arm around her. Carissa let out a contented sigh before dropping back into a deeper sleep. Maybe Terrence was right. Maybe he had a chance.
Mine! the voice screamed again.
Or maybe he was just a delusional idiot with wacked-out hormones. He adjusted his ever-present issue and closed his eyes. Matching his breathing to her steady rhythm, he tried to shut up the voice telling him to claim the luscious creature next to him. He was mostly successful, but man, were his dreams going to be carnal tonight.
14
“Are you sure about this?” Carissa looked at the little dragon next to her.
Michael nodded his head, unable to speak. The magic holding Tilly’s voice had worn off during the night, so Carissa had to borrow his.
Carissa looked over the dash of Terrence’s pickup truck. The thing drove amazingly well for the condition it appeared to be in.
When she woke up this morning wrapped in Michael’s arms, a lot of things passed through her mind, but turning him in hadn’t been one of them. Yet, here they were, sitting in the lot across the street from the main office of Eternity. Michael had woven a strong case for this course of action. It had the highest possibility of working, but it made Carissa uneasy. If just one thing went wrong, Michael would be in the hands of Eternity. And if the information he had discovered was correct, there was no way he would live to see a fair trial.
Carissa looked at the guarded gates one last time before opening her borrowed leather jacket and letting the little dragon crawl inside. When he poked his head back out, she kissed him on top of it. “For luck.”
Michael purred at her and nuzzled her cheek before retreating back down inside the coat.
Carissa took a fortifying breath and tucked the thick, manila envelope inside the coat with Michael. He had explained how that one folder held everything he had collected on the missing dragons and the ring responsible for taking them. Terrence had made a copy just in case. It was amazing how paranoid one person could be.
Zipping the jacket up, Carissa got out of the car and hurried towards the building. She knew the moment the guards at the gate recognized her. There was a flurry of activity as calls were made for additional men.
“Lady Markel!” A broad man in a black uniform met her halfway across the street. He latched onto her elbow and pulled her back to the safety of the building. “Are you all right?” he asked, looking over her.
Carissa nodded her head to reassure the guard. For this plan to work, they had to think she’d freed herself, and that meant no voice.
“Get her inside.” The broad man handed her off to two more men, who rushed her past the standard checkpoints, unmolested. Being kidnapped sure made secure places easy to get into.
Carissa clutched the neck of her jacket together as they walked down several halls. She had been in this building enough to recognize the route to medical. That was not where she needed to go.
“This way, My Lady,” the guards said, trying to redirect Carissa when she made the turn she wanted.
Carissa pushed their hands away and ignored them. Unsure of whom to actually trust, Michael had made it clear that she should only talk to Daniel.
“Please, My Lady, this way.” The man tried to stop her.
She ignored him and took the hall that would lead her to the main offices. When his hand gripped her elbow, restraining her, Carissa wheeled around, breaking his grip. “I’m here to see Daniel,” she informed her guards before turning back to find her destination. “I know where Michael is.” This got their attention.
The second man reached for her shoulder and stopped her again. “Tell us.” There was a definite note of anger in his voice. Oh yes, these men would definitely hurt Michael. Were they involved, or just upset that one of their number would hurt the people they were sworn to protect?
She turned away from them and tried to continue down the hall. “I will speak with Daniel.”
“Then come with us to medical, and we’ll get him for you,” the first man pleaded.
Man, these men were pushy! A thought hit Carissa that made her smile as she ignored her escort. Her brother had probably been livid when he’d found her gone. Kyle would have definitely threatened all of them if they didn’t find her unhurt. That would explain why they were so determined to get her to medical. Carissa ignored them and hurried down the hall to Daniel’s office. Someone had probably called the king as soon as she had crossed the road… She had to hurry before he showed up. Now that was truly a scary thought!
Carissa’s feet picked up speed, and she raced down the halls, trailing the bewildered guards after her. Seeing Daniel’s office door open, Carissa burst into the room without knocking.
Daniel’s surprised face looked up from behind his desk.
“Leave us.” Carissa added a hint of magic to the order and slammed it into the men huffing behind her.
Both of them stopped dead in their tracks and left.
A moment of silence followed as Carissa met the green eyes of Eternity’s director.
He looked her over.
Michael’s ratty leather jacket and oversized clothing probably made her look like some homeless kid. It didn’t help that she had twisted her hair up in a loose bun that was starting to come undone. Realizing that she probably did look somewhat abused, she took as regal a posture as she could muster. That may have also explained why the guards were so adamant about getting her to medical.
Daniel rustled some papers on his desk before speaking. “Do you think it was wise to send them out with such an open order?” He looked past her to the open door.