Chapter 7
Lyrian’s heart pounded as she tried to glance back over the back of her seat at Anarian, but the carseat faced backwards, and she couldn’t see the baby. She wasn’t crying, so she was probably still asleep.
She wasn’t sure how, the car careened all over the place as Brad swung around corners.
The siren was loud in her ears, and the red and blue flashing lights were right over her shoulder, illuminating the back seat with their colour. It hadn’t taken the police long to find them, and they certainly didn’t seem to be slowing down.
Lyrian’s heart hammered in her chest. How were they going to get away?
Brad was swearing, and it was clear he had no idea. “I shouldn’t have run. Maybe we could have talked to them…” His voice trailed off, and he glanced over at Lyrian.
She knew what he was thinking. “It wasn’t worth the risk,” she told him. “If they figured out I’m not human…” She gave a shudder, not even wanting to think about that.
She had no idea what would happen if the humans did figure it out, but since Rian clan had fled England to escape the humans there, she didn’t imagine it would be any better with these humans.
Brad’s frown tightened, and he swung around yet another corner.
The police car followed without pause.
There was no way they were going to be able to get away from the other car. It was faster than they were. And knew the area better.
They needed to do something else.
Lyrian knew what she had to do, but still she hesitated.
It had been different when she’d been trying to stop the Trima dragon. She hadn’t been giving away anything the other dragon didn’t know. But once she threw magic at a human, well, it would be hard to turn back.
But it would be even harder to turn back if the police pulled them over. Then she would need to use far more obvious magic.
She needed to do it now. Before they were caught. While there was still time.
She twisted around in her seat, but she couldn’t turn far enough because of the human seatbelt, so she reached down and undid it.
“What are you doing? You need to leave that on.” Brad’s voice held a note of panic.
Lyrian ignored him. Now she could see the police car clearly.
It was close. Too close.
She took a deep breath, and summoned up the wind, directing it closely, buffeting the police car.
They were close enough that she could see the expression of panic on the faces of the two occupants of the car.
The man driving looked wild, his eyes wide and he weaved across the road.
The woman next to him worried Lyrian more. She didn’t look surprised. Her eyes were narrow, and her face suspicious.
Lyrian hit them with another gust, stronger this time. Her experience with the Trima dragon following them at least meant she had an idea of the amount of force needed.
The car swerved wildly, into the other lane.
Brad had stopped objecting now. He was glancing in the rear view mirror. “Are you sure that’s a good idea? What if they realise you’re a dragon?”
“We don’t have much choice. If they catch us, that’s going to be the least of our problems,” Lyrian said, her voice tight.
This time she focused her wind even more, just pushing the front of the car.
It swerved, rolling into a ditch on the side of the road and stopping, its blue and red lights still flashing, their colour a little forlorn now.
Brad didn’t pause. He swung around a corner ahead of them and the police car disappeared out of sight.
Only then did Lyrian sink back into her seat, her arms and legs trembling.
“Put your seatbelt back on,” Brad said, glancing over.
Lyrian didn’t argue. She did up the seatbelt again, then slumped into her seat. Hopefully Brad could take care of it now, because that was the limit of her magic.
Brad kept glancing in his rear view mirror, then over at her, then back at the road. He swung around another corner, and Lyrian wasn’t even sure which direction they were heading anymore.
Hopefully Brad knew.
He didn’t look over, just focused on the road. He seemed to know where he was going.
Lyrian was just relieved that the siren was fading into the distance. Or someone had turned it off. Either way, it was a relief.
She sank down into the seat, and tried not to freak out about how close a call it had been.
And it had all been for nothing too. They hadn’t found Verrian, or any clues as to where he’d gone.
She didn’t know what to do next, or where to go.
Verrian was out there, but if she couldn’t find him, then he might as well not be.
The thought of not being able to find Verrian, or any of the rest of her clan, brought some of the panicked feeling back.
She couldn’t do this alone.
But she wasn’t alone. As Brad had said earlier, he was here.
That thought comforted her more than it should have. She should be focused on finding Verrian, or figuring out how to wake Calrian. Whatever it took to put her clan back together.
Not wondering if she could hide in a corner with Brad until someone found her.
Maybe she could excuse it, if she were an ordinary dragon. But it wasn’t acceptable for a princess at all.
She should be ashamed of herself.
“Are you okay?” Brad glanced over at her for a second as he drove, his expression concerned.
How was she supposed to answer that?
“I’m fine,” she managed. “At least we’ve escaped from the police.”
Brad glanced over again, his expression still worried. “We’ll find your brother.”
“How?”
Lyrian didn’t mean her voice to sound hopeless. But she couldn’t help it.
Brad was silent. He didn’t know either.
That didn’t make Lyrian feel any better.
Brad drove them back out to the cave. Lyrian manged to summon up some energy to hide their tracks again, as they crossed the dry, baked dirt.
She found the motivation to feed Anarian, and even to play with her, though it was a rather lacking effort. Anarian didn’t mind though. That was one good thing about babies, they didn’t require imaginative entertainment.
When the baby was finally asleep again though, the last of her energy seeped away. She sat down on a rock and stared off into space, not even able to try to figure out what they could do next.
“Look, it’s not as bad as it seems,” Brad said encouragingly. “We might not have found Verrian, but we do know that he was there. That means some of your clan are still around.”
It was sweet of him, really, to try to cheer her up. But it wasn’t going to work.
“It doesn’t matter if they’re out there if I can’t find them,” Lyrian said tiredly. “And the trouble is, if I keep looking, I’m putting Anarian at risk.”
That was her real concern.
If the police had caught up with them, she could probably have fought her way out, but not with a baby.
And if the humans got hold of Anarian…
She gave a shudder at the thought.
Maybe hiding in a corner waiting for her clan to find her wasn’t such a bad idea after all.
Brad came and knelt next to her, and took her hands in his. “You can’t give up. We know your brother is out there. It’s just a matter of finding him. And I know we can do it.”
Lyrian’s heart melted a little at his words.
He was determined to do this because it was what she needed. She loved him for it.
But it didn’t help, because determination alone wasn’t going to make it happen.
“How?” she demanded. “We don’t even know where to look next. If Lisa isn’t at her brothers, were else can we look? We don’t know anything about her. We don’t even know that Verrian is still with her.”
“I don’t know yet,” Brad said firmly. “But we’ll figure it out. I’m not letting you give up.”
Lyrian stared at him. “Why are you so determined?” she asked, trying not to let her voice sound discouraged. “I mean, it doesn’t help you if I find my brothers. In fact, it’s just one of the reasons we can’t be together.”
Brad hesitated, she could see the indecision in his eyes.
The same indecision that warred in her heart.
He gave a sigh. “I know that,” he said softly. “Don’t think it hasn’t occurred to me. But it’s not the right option. I can’t protect you like your clan can. We might not be able to have each other, but if I can know you and Anarian are safe, then that’s going to make leaving you a little easier.”
Lyrian felt tears prick at the back of her eyelids.
How did he managed to say something she didn’t want to hear in words so beautiful it made her want to cry?
“Hey, no crying,” Brad said softly, brushing her hair out of her face. “Or I might just start.”
His eyes looked a little misty too.
Lyrian couldn’t help it. She reached out and threw her arms around his neck.
Brad pulled her close, and peppered kisses on the top of her head, murmuring her name.
It was dangerous. Risky. But the temptation to be close to him was too much. Lyrian lifted her face to his.
Brad stared down at her, uncertainty in his eyes.
His lips hovered just above hers, one hand tangled in her hair. She could feel his breath on her cheek, and hear his heart beating.
She’d never felt this close to anyone before. This felt as strong as any Mesmer bond she’d ever experienced, maybe even stronger.
Was this what a mate bond felt like, or was the mate bond stronger than this?
Was it possible to feel more strongly about anyone than the way she felt about Brad right now?
His head lowered a little, his lips inched closer to hers.
Lyrian’s whole body was crying out with need. How much she wanted him scared her. And excited her. There were so many reasons they shouldn’t do this.
But surely there was nothing wrong with a kiss? If they didn’t take it any further, then there would be no risk of forming a mate bond.
But could they stop once they started?