Smoke and Fire (33 page)

“I've no' admitted anything,” Con said. “About anything. You've come to conclusions I'd like verra much for you to keep to yourself.”

Dmitri heard the anger tingeing Con's words. These weren't speculations on Dmitri's part. Whether Con wanted to admit it or not, he'd just revealed the truth.

Though Dmitri declined from asking if Con's lover was in fact the Queen of the Light—Usaeil. Because if it was and Rhi discovered it—all hell would likely break loose.

And it was just a matter of time before Rhi found out.

Dmitri wanted to make sure he wasn't anywhere near when Rhi did. Because the Fae was likely to go nuclear on everyone, leaving destruction much worse than what had happened at Balladyn's fortress.

He eyed Con, wondering if Con knew how close to the fire he was playing.

 

CHAPTER THIRTY-NINE

Mikkel drummed his fingers on his desk. His office lights were kept dimmed, allowing for many shadows about the large room to hide all sorts of things.

He stared at Harriet Smythe for a long minute. The tall blonde had done wonders for his plans from the moment he'd begun tutoring her twenty years earlier. She wasn't just a beauty that knew how to use it to her advantage, she was a quick learner and had a sharp mind.

However, right now, he was furious with her.

“It's going to work out.” Harriet's clear blue gaze held his, her conviction there for him to see.

But it wasn't enough. “How can you be so sure? Both Esther and Kinsey are still alive.”

“We need Kinsey alive,” Harriet said. “That's the only way you'll get what you need from Dreagan.”

Mikkel sat forward in his chair and placed his forearms on his desk. Never far from reach were his six mobile phones placed in a neat row. “If you honestly think the Kings haven't realized what's been done to Kinsey, then I've given you more credit than you ever deserved.”

“Kinsey won't fail us,” Harriet stated firmly.

There was a snort from the shadows behind him. Mikkel didn't turn around to look at Ulrik, though he wanted to. Harriet for her part suddenly realized they weren't alone in the office.

Mikkel smiled. He loved when those who worked for him were reminded of how lethal and dangerous he truly was. He enjoyed their fear. But it only partially made up for him no longer being a Dragon King.

That made him think of Ulrik attempting to gain his magic again by going behind Mikkel's back. He hadn't disciplined Ulrik yet for that—but it was coming.

Just as he would betray Ulrik, killing him right after Ulrik put an end to Con. Mikkel would be King of Kings and the planet could be returned to what it was always meant to be—a dragon realm.

But that was for later. Right now he had to take care of this mess. Mikkel didn't want to kill Harriet. She was loyal and bright, but she'd let him down.

“You've failed me epically,” Mikkel told her. “The whole point was for Kinsey to get in, gather all the information, get it to us, and then let her betrayal become known to Ryder so he'd kill her for us.”

Harriet swallowed and opened her mouth to talk.

Mikkel spoke over her. “I'm not finished. Then there's Esther. I thought I told you not to send her in yet.”

“Did none of your probing into Esther's mind reveal that she had a brother who worked for MI5 and who was helping the Kings?” Ulrik asked from the shadows.

Mikkel wanted to demand why Ulrik had waited to tell him that bit of information, but he held himself in check. Barely. Instead, he focused his growing ire on Harriet, whose eyes had gone wide.

“What?” she asked. “That's not possible. We did every background check there was. She's an orphan.”

Ulrik tsked. “She was trained by MI5. I'm fairly certain they could make you believe whatever was needed.”

Mikkel had had enough. He stood, his chair flying back to hit the shelves behind him. “What?” he bellowed. He stalked around his desk to Harriet. “Are you telling me Esther was sent to spy on us?”

Harriet backed up, the stiletto of her shoe getting caught in the rug and causing her ankle to twist. She caught herself by grabbing the back of a chair set before the desk. “I'm thorough in my work. You know that.”

“No' thorough enough!” Damn, he hated when his Scots accent came through with his anger. He was getting better at controlling it, but sometimes it slipped through.

“Kinsey should've killed her for giving up a name anyway,” Harriet hurried to say.

He looked over her pale face and the fear in her gaze. “The only reason you're alive right now is because you've done what no other has been able to do. You got a human onto Dreagan. This is your last chance, Harriet. If you can't finish what you started, then I'll claim your life.”

“I'll finish it,” she vowed with a firm nod. “I've never let you down before. I'll fix this and prove I'm worthy of continuing to work for you.”

He gave her a nod. Without another word, she hurried from his office.

“Do you believe her?” Ulrik asked.

Mikkel turned to face his nephew. “I hope she comes through because she's been a great asset. In the end, however, I'm sure she'll have to die.”

“Even if she corrects the problem and gets you all you need and want from Dreagan?”

Mikkel narrowed his gaze on Ulrik who stood still as a statue against the wall. “She failed me. I can't believe you asked such a question. You were King of the Silvers. You above all else knows what it means to keep those below you in line.”

“Without a doubt.”

“Then why ask me that?”

Ulrik stepped from the shadows and leaned his hands on the desk. “Because of what she's done for you.”

“Others can take her place,” Mikkel said with a wave of his hand. “All her work has been saved so anyone can step in at any time.”

“You believe it's that easy?”

“I do.”

Ulrik slowly straightened. “Just as you believe anyone can be a Dragon King.”

At this Mikkel smiled. “Not at all. It takes a special kind of dragon. You took what was meant to be mine.”

“Stronger. Braver. Smarter. More powerful. With more magic.” Ulrik paused. “Aye. A special dragon.”

Mikkel didn't like this attitude Ulrik was showing. It was time Mikkel reminded him who was in charge of who. “You've been spending a lot of time with Muriel of late. You favor her.”

“She's good in bed.”

“Kill her.”

Ulrik showed no emotion as he stared silently at Mikkel. “I'll no' kill one of Taraeth's favorite slaves on your whim.”

“I'm telling you to do it,” Mikkel said. “You will do everything I say.”

Ulrik tugged the cuff of his dress shirt at his wrist and buttoned the suit jacket. “You can no' start killing off the Dark.”

“I'm not. You are.”

“So you want Taraeth's anger directed at me.”

“What I want,
nephew
, is for you to remember your place.”

Ulrik's silver gaze hardened for a split second. “How can I not? You remind me of it constantly.”

“Then you should know I'll no' stand for any back talk, nor will I allow you to grow a spine.”

Ulrik could kill him. Right then. It wouldn't take much. He had Mikkel at a disadvantage, though Mikkel didn't realize it yet. The thought of seeing Mikkel's surprise as the life drained from him was exhilarating.

But he had a plan for his uncle. Ulrik needed to remember that before he lost what little control he had over his anger and showed Mikkel exactly who was King of the Silvers.

He was tired of hearing what Mikkel was going to do when he took over. His uncle would never get close to ruling. The fact Mikkel didn't even realize that Ulrik had all of his magic back and was once more the King of the Silvers proved how unprepared Mikkel truly was.

Ulrik was going to enjoy bringing Mikkel low. Though it wasn't time. Right now he got pleasure watching as Mikkel upset the order of things at Dreagan.

Though it didn't go unnoticed by Ulrik of just how they were using Kinsey against Ryder. A betrayal. And not just any betrayal. Ulrik had seen Ryder with Kinsey. They were mates, regardless of whether Kinsey had accepted it or not.

Ulrik knew how it felt to have a woman he thought to be his deceive him in such a way. That didn't sit well with Ulrik in the least.

It was time he went to Dreagan and took a look at the situation. Obviously Con wasn't there or Kinsey would already be dead.

Ulrik cut his hand through the air at whatever Mikkel was saying that he didn't care about. “I'm no' killing Muriel. You want to take your anger out on me, then take it out on me.”

“What better way to hurt you than taking something you care about?”

Ulrik chuckled wryly. “Oh, uncle. If you really knew me, you'd know I doona care about anyone. Now, I need to return to the store.”

“I'm no' finished with you yet.”

A third slip in less than half an hour. Mikkel wasn't nearly as in control of himself as he led others to believe. Ulrik would have to remember that. It could be used against his uncle.

“Then what do you need of me?” Ulrik waited impatiently as Mikkel tried to think of something for him to do. “Exactly. When you need me, you know where to find me.”

Ulrik walked from the office and down the hallway to the front door. Fast moving clouds hid the moon, making the night seem darker.

It was a night for wreaking havoc.

Ulrik got into his McLaren Spider and drove away from the manor on the west coast of Scotland. It would take him a few hours to drive back to the store, but that was time he didn't have.

He waited until he was forty minutes from Mikkel's before he pulled over at a small village. He went inside a restaurant and used his new skill of teleporting to take him to Dreagan.

As always, he arrived in his mountain. It was the one place he knew he could go that no one at Dreagan would ever think to look for him.

From there he used the tunnels below the mountains to take him toward the mountain connected to Dreagan Manor. Dreagan was on high alert, which made Ulrik waste more time avoiding Kings who patrolled the tunnels.

He paused to look in on his Silvers for a moment. Later he would go and spend more time with them. For now, he had to find Kinsey and Esther.

Ulrik located Esther first. She was lying on a chunk of rock, unmoving. The mortal Henry North paced the cavern as Banan attempted to talk to him.

Next to Ester in the adjoining cavern was none other than Kinsey, who was also unconscious. Except Ulrik didn't find Ryder with her. It was Con and Dmitri.

Ulrik wondered why neither of the mortals had been killed yet. Unless Con sent Ryder away as he'd done to Ulrik so long ago. But the Kings didn't look as though they were getting ready to slay a human.

They were in their locations for battle.

Just what was going on? This wasn't what he'd expected to see when he arrived. No wonder Harriet was so sure she could get Kinsey to do what she wanted.

Ulrik wished he'd learned exactly what it was Harriet and her team had done to Kinsey and Esther, because it was enough that they knew the women weren't dead.

Some kind of tracking device perhaps? That was the most plausible answer.

Ulrik ducked into the cavern across the narrow corridor as he heard voices. He saw Tristan and Roman walk into the chamber where Kinsey was.

“Tristan, I need to see if you can get into her mind,” Con ordered.

Ulrik moved to the other side of the cave opening so he could see across the way into Kinsey's cavern. He watched as Tristan moved to stand at her head. Then he placed his hands on either side of her head and closed his eyes.

“I can no' find her,” Tristan said with a frown.

Ulrik knew then that Kinsey hadn't truly betrayed Ryder by her own choice. Mikkel and Harriet were controlling her. And that changed everything.

 

CHAPTER FORTY

Ryder finished going through the log of Kinsey's every key stroke since she'd arrived at Dreagan. He'd expected to find instances where she saved information about Dreagan and forwarded it or even downloaded it to a PIN drive.

Yet there was nothing.

Kinsey was good, but she wasn't good enough to get through his firewalls because there hadn't been enough time when she was alone to get through them.

Even if she had broken through his firewalls, that would've immediately sent him an alert. But there hadn't been any sort of alert.

It was as if Kinsey had done nothing more than try and clear her name. Yet Ryder knew that couldn't be the truth. He had damning evidence of her agreeing to spy on Dreagan for Kyvor.

He checked a second and third time, but there was still no evidence that proved Kinsey did anything other than what he'd asked her to do.

Ryder hid the virtual keyboard and pushed back from the table. With a sigh, he got to his feet and walked from the computer room.

The manor was strangely quiet as he made his way downstairs. It seemed so odd after the cornucopia of laughter and conversation around the dinner table just a few hours earlier.

The silence and stillness reminded him what Dreagan had been like after they sent their dragons away and took to their mountains.

Ryder stopped when he descended the last stair. His mind ran through everything that could happen to Dreagan and those who called it home because he'd allowed his feelings to get in the way of precautions, and it made him ill.

Kellan hesitated on his way toward the foyer. He eyed Ryder for a moment before he said, “Delaying the inevitable only makes things worse.”

“I should've seen it.”

Kellan put his hands on his hips and released a long breath. “Ryder, I'm going to tell you something that Con never will. All of us could've seen it in her, but none of us did. No' even Con. Doona allow the blame to rest so heavily upon your shoulders. As soon as you discovered the evidence, you acted. No one was hurt, and nothing was done to Dreagan. It's going to be all right.”