Chapter Nineteen
Kase
When he came around, his fury was as hot as the fire Coltaine had burned him with. The combination of the quicksilver armor he’d partially managed to call forth, and the time he’d spent unconscious—several hours, judging by the fresh skin on his arms and legs—had served to help him recover from the blast.
His mind back in place, he attacked the door logically this time. Metal grew brittle as it grew colder. With that theory in mind, he’d coated the entire inside of the door in a layer of quicksilver and was constantly reapplying it to ensure it stayed at a sub-zero temperature. They were nearing the point where it was time to test his theory.
With a calmness that belied the raging temper inside him, Kase called forth a weapon from his powers. Instead of his normal axe, however, he went with something different. A pickaxe flowed, formed and hardened in seconds. He’d never conjured such a weapon before, so it took most of his concentration for several seconds.
“Whatcha doin?” Coltaine asked, suddenly appearing in the hole.
“Breaking out,” he growled, and swung with all his strength.
“Okay.” Coltaine stepped back.
Pulling the door open as he went.
Kase yelped as his pickaxe suddenly had nothing to impact upon. He spun, stumbled, and fell through the door with a crash, ripping open some of the newly healed skin in the process.
“There. You’re free,” the elder dragon said. This time he was definitely smirking.
“I don’t understand,” he said, getting to his feet, trying to spot the trap.
“The circumstances have changed. Come on.” Coltaine didn’t wait, heading down the hallway toward the ramp that led out of the prison block.
Confused, but not ready to waste a second chance, Kase raced after the head Magistrate. “What happened?” he asked, falling in step.
“Something has happened.”
Gritting his teeth, Kase forced himself to speak calmly. “Can you provide the details and how this involves me, please?”
“A Magistrate is missing.”
Kase whistled. “That’s unusual, to say the least. But I’m not your guy, Coltaine. I’ve been here the entire time. Heck, until recently I was unconscious. I’m innocent!”
“I know. It’s Jerrik. He was on his way here with Michelle. Her house was broken into and she came to him looking for you for help.”
Kase sucked in his breath. “We need to go. Now.”
“Why do you think we’re going this way?” Coltaine looked at him as if he’d lost his mind.
“Right.”
They hurried to the surface. Kase wanted so badly to take flight and search out his mate, but he hadn’t the first clue where to look. Pushing the urges from his dragon down, he asked Coltaine where they were heading.
“The last place we knew them to be. Jerrik’s office. It’s a fairly straightforward route there, so we’ll want to see in case they lost control of the vehicle or something.”
The Enclave kept a number of vehicles at its disposal, and Coltaine took them to one now, a sleek black luxury SUV with heavily tinted windows.
Before either of them could get in, their cellphones started ringing. Both of them.
“That can’t be good,” Kase muttered, taking his out and staring at Coltaine, who had done the same.
In unison they answered.
“Coltaine. Kase.”
The two dragons looked at each other in confusion. Were they on the same call? He gestured at Coltaine to speak, letting the elder dragon take the lead. Sometimes youth had its privileges.
“Who is this?”
“That doesn’t matter.”
Coltaine narrowed his eyes. “What do you want?”
“Now that,” the mystery voice said, “is a much better question.”
Kase was beyond baffled at this point. Maybe he’d get used to it, but he doubted it.
“First,” the caller said, “Let us deal with the impending death of one of your Magistrates.”
Coltaine’s eyes took on a shade of red. “What are you talking about?”
Kase had to fight down the urge to step back from the crimson dragon. For as long as he’d known the man, Coltaine had exuded calm and peace, only acting when necessary, and even then his actions were executed with purposeful precision. This was the first time he’d seen him mad, and it was a terrifying sight to behold.
“Jerrik of course. Let’s not pretend like we have no idea what we’re talking about.”
“That would be a lot easier if we actually had a clue what we were talking about,” Kase snapped, unable to hold himself back.
“Then I shall explain it, perhaps in terms that you can understand. It’s really quite simple. I have Jerrik and Michelle. Two of them. Two of you. Are you following so far?”
Twin growls of rage answered the question well enough.
“Right. Now this is how it’s going to go. Coltaine.” The voice paused. “Coltaine, are you listening?”
“I am.” The elder’s eyes were now glowing with fire. Kase pitied anyone who got in his way.
“Good. There is a train. The coordinates will be on your phone. You’ll find Jerrik on it. Don’t worry, he is quite safe. For now. But you had better get to him soon. The bridge is out ahead, you see, and the train appears to have lost its breaks.”
Coltaine growled.
“Better go.”
“I’m sorry,” he said to Kase, getting in the car. “I have to do this.”
Kase inclined his head. “I know. Go.”
Coltaine checked his phone, nodded, and the SUV took off with a throaty roar that would have done a dragon proud.
“Now that leaves us with you, Kase.”
“Where is Michelle?”
“She is safe.”
“Like Jerrik is safe?”
“No, much safer. Don’t worry, you’ll see her soon. After all, you’re coming to meet her.”
“And you?”
“Well of course me. That’s the entire point of this. I’m not inherently cruel. I just want something. Something you have. You’re going to bring it to me, if you want her to continue to be unharmed. Do we have a deal?”
Kase desperately wished to destroy something. Anything. To feel his fists reduce it to rubble. Yet that would not help Michelle. He needed to keep his calm. Right now, the stranger on the phone had the upper hand, but that wasn’t always going to be the case.
“What is it you want from me?”
“The data, Kase.”
“What data?” he asked, pretending ignorance.
“You know. I await you at my residence. Come alone, and bring it with you. Don’t be late!”
The line went dead. A moment later, the phone buzzed with a text message from the same unknown number. It was coordinates.
I’m coming, Michelle. Just hold on.