Chapter Two

 

 

Trin flexed her wrists as she closed in on the group that was trying hard not to incur notice. She thought that was a good idea and blurred herself into invisibility.

The sharks each had a gun aimed at their backs, and Meadra was being held between two men who had stiffly pleasant expressions on their faces. Trin grinned and thought to herself, That is about to change.

There was another member of their party nearby, but she wanted to get the boys free of the threat, or Apraxa would never forgive her.

She moved toward the men with the guns, flicked her batons out, and struck quickly, hearing the crack of their wrists as the guns were forced down.

“Take care of them,” Trin muttered as she moved toward the men who had picked Meadra up and were hauling her bodily toward the street.

It was difficult to do while unseen, but she extended her wings and jumped up and over the trio, pulling knives and stabbing each of the men in the shoulder when Meadra collided with her.

She flashed back to visible as the men reeled back, and she pulled Meadra away from her abductors.

A slow clapping sound made her turn slightly to put herself between Meadra and the noise.

“Who are you, mage?”

The mage walked forward, and while he had devastatingly good looks, there was a sneer in his expression that Trin didn’t care for.

“I am sorry to inconvenience you, but the project is coming with me.”

Meadra gasped.

“No, she isn’t. She is my guest, she is my kin, and she is staying with me.”

The two men who had had a grip on Meadra backed off when the mage fired up his hands with power.

“Meadra, stay behind me and get ready to hang on.”

The mage snorted. “You can’t carry anyone in that form. I am amazed you could move at all with those enormous encumbrances.”

She inclined her head and didn’t respond. He fired one shot after another, and she twisted, catching and scooping the power with her wings, flinging it back in a weirdly smooth move that her dragon engaged in while roaring wilding in her mind.

The mage was struck and flew up and back several dozen metres. He wouldn’t be doing anything else tonight.

Trin saw a crowd of sharks bringing up the rear with Kohasi at their head.

Kohasi nodded. “Go, we will take care of the leftovers.”

Trin smiled. “Thank you. I just need to retrieve something.”

She walked toward the two men wearing her knives and jerked the implements out while the men screamed. The sharks surrounded them, and Trin returned to Meadra. “Come along, Aunt.”

She scooped Meadra up and launched skyward, flying in a wide loop before she settled back into invisibility and returning to Apraxa’s home.

She landed on the roof and resumed her visibility. “Well, that was less fun than I had hoped.”

Meadra nodded, and then, her lower lip wobbled, a fat tear made its way down her cheek. “They said they would kill you or the sharks if I cried out.”

“It’s fine. We are all fine, and they all need medical help, especially that mage. Ouch.”

Meadra sniffled as they walked toward the door. “I know. That was amazing. How did you do that?”

Trin chuckled. “I have no idea. The dragon knows what she can do, but she only tells me when I express a need.”

Meadra nodded as they entered the security door. “Do you think that I have a dragon in me?”

“I am pretty sure you do, but what kind it is, is up for grabs.”

Meadra touched her arm. “Can you bring her out?”

Trin’s dragon perked up.

Trin shook her head. “I would like to do it at the guildhall in the Wheel. That way, if things go wrong, there are other dragon females around to help.”

Meadra nodded. “That sounds good.”

“They will insist on keeping you close to them, but that is the best place to be safe.”

Her aunt paused as they entered the main living space. “If it is so safe, why are you here instead of there?”

“I would have left anyway. I had to find out where my mother came from.” Trin gave her a hug. “I was very worried tonight.”

“Me too, but you just looked angry.”

Trin backed up and wrinkled her nose. “Angry and worried look sort of the same on me. Either way, unless I say otherwise when you see that face, hold very still.”

Meadra laughed.

Apraxa’s voice sounded from the living space. “I am curious. Tell me what has been going on.”

Trin stepped around the last barrier and looked at Apraxa as she sat on the couch with a mug of tea next to her. “What are you doing home?”

Apraxa was sporting a claw mark and a black eye but looked otherwise fine. “My mother decided that my presence was no longer desirable, so I came home.”

Trin nodded, but Meadra stared. “She hit you?”

Apraxa quirked her lips. “She did.”

“What did you do?”

“I hit her back. Then, I apologized to my grandparents and got the hell out of there before I was tempted to do anything foolish.”

Trin had to ask, “What about the guy?”

Apraxa winced. “It got complicated, even for an arrangement. He wanted possession of my businesses, and I told him to fuck off.”

“Oh. That is understandable.” Trin got it. If Brommin tried to interfere in her business in the future, he was going to feel the back and front of her hand.

“Yeah, well, when I started it in the middle of the court, he got a little huffy, and his family had to haul him off before he got arrested.” She finished her tea. “I left shortly after that.”

Trin grinned. “How shortly?”

“About five minutes. I made my bows to the court and got back in the water. It was a fun visit with my mother’s family, but I prefer it back here in Breaker City. Oh, that said, can I come with you to the capitol? I have a funny feeling that this place isn’t going to be safe for me in a few days.”

Meadra looked at Trin, and they laughed. Trin held up her hand. “Let me just check on my gown, and we can go. Did we want to drive or fly?”

Apraxa waited until she was walking away and then said, “Don’t you have a gown waiting in the capitol?”

“I didn’t really have time, and I am not sure that Mirbella had time to finish it.” A call could confirm it, but Trin felt a little bit guilty about all the weird work that had already been given to the seamstress.

Apraxa propped her elbow on the arm of the chair and used her fist to support her head. “I called earlier and gave her my measurements. She said she could provide me with a shifting gown now that yours was taken care of.”

Trin paused and turned around. “So, you already had it figured out.”

“I know about the festival. I guessed you would want to leave as soon as possible.” Apraxa looked at Meadra. “Are you all right?”

Meadra nodded, and her chin wobbled for a moment before she took a deep breath. “Yes. I am fine, and none of ours got hurt. Your brothers are fine.”

Apraxa nodded and waved that away. “They were your guards, they should have been paying attention. That said, I am glad they are fine. I can assure you that the attackers are not.”

Trin smiled. “I am glad it was on their terms and not mine.”

“They learned a bit about sharks, and the sharks learned what happens when you eat mage blood. My brothers are going to be jumping anything with breasts for a few days. Best that we get Meadra out of town. Can you fly us?”

Meadra got an excited gleam to her eyes. “I will go pack for both of us. What will you do with Ystine?”

Trin smiled. “I will put her in the yard and pick her up as I fly. I will call Creata and ask her if we can land at her house.”

Apraxa wrinkled her nose. “I suppose I should make an appointment to register with the guild as well.”

“That might be a good idea if you are going to attend the ball.” Trin grinned. Meadra had left the room and was probably packing frantically.

“Probably. I have the family invitation, so I can get in under that, but the registration will mean I can take a pick if I like one of the guys on offer.” Apraxa winked.

Trin winced. If Apraxa was engaged, there was a sense of possession in play. She was thinking of teaching her male a lesson, and that wasn’t a good thing.

“Right. Well, if you can get what you need, I will call Creata and get Ystine into the forecourt. We can be out of here in an hour.”

“Righto. I will get my bag.”

Trin blinked at the weird turn of the evening, and she put in a call to Creata.

“Trin? Are you all right?” It had become her standard greeting when Trin called.

“I am fine. I am coming home. Can we land at your place tonight?”

“Of course. I will have two rooms readied.”

“Could you make it three? I am bringing Apraxa along as well.”

Creata chuckled. “Excellent. We will have a sleepover. The baby will love it.”

“Okay. We will fly out in an hour, and I will drop Ystine first. You can check on your other baby.” Trin laughed.

“I will have a snack waiting and fire up the security system.”

“See you soon.”

The call ended, and Trin looked around. Right, time to leave the hideaway.

 

Trin was wearing one of her shifting outfits as she stood on the roof. “Once I shift, I won’t be able to talk, but I can hear you. Get the stuff onto my back and strapped down as quick as you can then get in place. Once everything is set, I will take off and grab Ystine. From there, it is straight to the capitol. Got it?”

Meadra nodded, her hands on her bags and ready to throw. “Got it.”

Apraxa nodded. “Got it. The cargo webbing is ready. When you shift, we move.”

Trin looked at the two women who were bundled up for a cold night. She was going to have to fly high to maximize her invisibility, so they were going to get chilled.

Trin made sure everything was ready, and she shifted, balancing over the bearing walls of the home beneath her.

Apraxa moved quickly, and Meadra started to hurl the luggage upward with the skill of a farm girl.

Less than a minute after they had started, Meadra was attaching the cargo strap under Trin’s belly and around her neck. She barely felt anything, as if they were made of dandelion fluff.

When Apraxa finished settling everything, she said, “We are good to go.”

Trin nodded and stretched her wings. She rose carefully from her crouch and walked to the edge of the warehouse, flaring her full wingspan until there was air caressing every part of her. A light hop sent her sailing down, and she reached out her hind claws and caught Ystine, carrying her carefully as her wings began to beat.

The moment she had her velo, she went invisible, and her wings scooped vast volumes of air behind her and under her. Breaker City grew smaller and smaller as she climbed, and when she had the altitude she wanted, she went visible and hid in the clouds. The trip to the capitol would take hours, and she needed to put on as much speed as she could without intercepting any other aerial passenger vessels.

She kept her senses trained on her riders, but they seemed fine. This long stretch as herself was rather freeing. No panic, no emergencies, just flying home to be with friends and her mate.

Hmm. The thought of her mate was filling her mind, and it was welcome. Brommin was going to be hers in front of witnesses, or she would beat any female who got between them.

Trin wanted her bookish assassin in her arm as fast as she could manage it. If his father weren’t the senator ruling all of the northern continents, it would not be such a huge deal.

Family ties could be cumbersome, but she was willing to learn how to manage them.