Call of the Dragon (Return to Avalore Book 1) (10 page)

“You’ve done remarkably well, Rhiannon. I’m surprised he’s still awake at all.” Aiken gave his brother a pointed look before turning to Drake.

“Drake, I have to finish the healing process before we can leave this place. It won’t be pleasant.” He spoke aloud, keeping Rhia involved in the conversation.

“I’m glad for your assistance,” he replied. “Evan, please take Rhia into the other room. There’s no need for her to witness this.”

“I’m not going anywhere. I want to help.” She squared her shoulders and her chin lifted.

“Rhia, please, do this for me. I know what’s to come, and I’d rather you not see it. I assure you, I’ll be much better once this is done.”

The pain in his voice tore at her determination. She didn’t want to stand there wasting time while Aiken could be working on healing him.

“Aiken is the best healer we have. He’ll have this done in no time.”

She paused for a moment to glare at Aiken. “I’ll go, but if you do anything to hurt Drake…” She left the threat hanging in the air as she turned and walked out of the room, ignoring the snort and snicker coming from the men behind her.

Evan joined her shortly after she’d left the bedroom, closing the door behind him. How was she supposed to keep an eye on things if she couldn’t see what was going on in there? Instead, she had to sit there and wait, while Evan stared at her as though she had two heads.

She shifted in her seat. “Just say what you want to say already.”

He cleared his throat. “You look just like her. When Drake told me he’d found you, I thought he was mistaken, but it really is you.” He shook his head. “I’d all but given up hope that this day would come.”

“Listen, I don’t even know if what he says is true. I may resemble your mother but that doesn’t mean anything. I mean, it could all just be a coincidence.”

His smile transformed his face, making him look younger. “You are my sister. There is no doubt in my mind you’re the one we’ve been looking for. Your eyes, your colors, your looks, no there’s no mistake.” His fingers snaked through his sable hair. “I think if you look deep inside yourself, you will see the truth as well.”

“I already told Drake I’ll go to Avalore, and I’m not going to back out now. I just don’t want you to get your hopes up too high.” Tension mounted in the room as waves of heat came at them from behind the closed bedroom door, drawing her attention to it once more.

“If Aiken requires assistance, he will ask.” He moved between her and the door, effectively intercepting her.

She was out of her league and she knew it. If he wanted to stop her from going in, she had no doubt he’d be able to. “Fine.” She didn’t even try to soften the word or to hide her annoyance.

“I can teach you a few things while we wait if you like. Things you’ll need to know before we cross the dark lands.”

Her heart sped up at the prospect. She knew he was trying to distract her, but she might as well do something useful while she waited. “I’d like that.”

“The very first thing you’ll need to master is cloaking. It’s the way we make ourselves invisible to our enemies.”

Her eyes widened as he disappeared.

After a moment, he appeared next to her. She hadn’t heard a sound or a single footstep.

“How did you do that?” The awe in her voice was unmistakable.

“It’s nothing more than an illusion, but very helpful when faced with an enemy.”

“Okay, tell me what to do.” If she was going to Avalore, she may as well learn some of their tricks.

“Close your eyes for a moment and clear your mind. When you’re ready to try it, surround yourself in a thick layer of white light and hold it to you. Every part of you must be covered.” He smiled and disappeared again. “It will absorb and reflect the light and colors around you. You’ll still be there, but no one will be able to see you.”

She took a deep breath as excitement coursed through her veins. “Here goes nothing.” Gathering white energy was the same as collecting healing light. It was done with the mind. She willed it to come, letting it cling like a magnet. “How’s this?”

Her eyes popped open as prickles of unease began to sting her skin. She couldn’t help glancing at the bedroom door again.

“You’ve almost got it. You need to focus and concentrate more. It isn’t quite thick enough and it needs to be pulled closer to your body.”

When Drake had cloaked her, she’d felt like she was covered in a thick, fluffy blanket. It hadn’t restricted movement, but it had enveloped her completely. She pulled the energy closer until the same soothing comfort wrapped around her. “Better?”

“Perfect.” His smile didn’t quite reach his eyes.

She got the distinct impression something was going on and he wasn’t telling her.

Pain stabbed through her chest, snatching the breath from her lungs as another blast of heat came from the bedroom. Instinctively, she knew the pain she felt was not her own. After several deep breaths, the pain subsided so she was able to move. She managed two faltering steps before Evan blocked her path to the door.

“What’s going on?”

Feet apart, he stood with his hands out in front of him. “I can’t allow you to go in.”

“What do you mean you can’t
allow
me? One thing you should know about me is I don’t take orders very well. Now, move aside and let me through.” Rhia took another step forward to move past him.

“Aiken is the best we have, trust me. He’ll not willingly allow anything to happen to Drake.”

“Trust you? I don’t even
know
you.” The air crackled around her with each breath she took. “Up until yesterday, you weren’t even a blip on my radar.” She turned away, breathing deep, allowing the energy to dissipate before turning to face him again.

“Be that as it may, you’ve done all you could. He needs Aiken now.”

Her eyes didn’t waver as she stared at him for long moments as she contemplated his words before shaking her head and turning away.

Just who did he think he was, anyway? He might be her brother, but it didn’t give him the right to dictate anything to her. The fact that he was right was the only thing keeping her from barging past him. Drake did need Aiken, and she wouldn’t get in the way.

She didn’t try to engage Evan in any more conversation and he seemed happy to stand guard at the door.

She spent the next hour pacing from one end of the long living area to the other. The uncomfortable silence stretched wide between them. She stopped long enough to glance outside through the window into the park stories below. It was empty except for a few people rushing to get out of the rain. A blur of black fur caught her attention as a large dog gave chase to a squirrel, barking at the base of a tree.

That’s when it clicked. She knew she’d been missing something last night when she was healing Drake. Months ago, she’d come upon a dog suffering alone in the dark. The poor creature had been viciously attacked and left for dead. No matter what she’d tried, the dog had worsened until she’d thought there was no hope. On a hunch she’d only been able to attribute to dumb luck, she’d infused the animal with energy. Without the extra burst she’d given, she would never have seen the parasite trying to get away from the brightness. It had peeked out of one of the many wounds. After quite a few attempts, she had managed to ease the worm out of the mutt. The thing, as though possessed, had come out of the dog and moved toward her, seeking another victim. She shuddered at the memory.

Blood rushed in her ears and her heart pounded. “
It’s a parasite. I’ve seen it before. I know how to get rid of it.”

“
Yes, it’s a parasite.”
Aiken’s defeated voice came back to her crystal clear. “
And it’s not releasing him. I’m sorry.”

“You already knew and you didn’t bother to mention it? And don’t you apologize, as though he’s already dead.”
She knew it was bad, but was he so far gone he’d not make it?

Her shoulders squared, as she lifted her chin, facing Evan again. “I’m going in there even if I have to go through you.”

The way his arms tensed and his stance shifted in preparation for an attack, he knew she meant it.

“I can help him, I know I can.” She took a deep breath, gauging his reaction as she moved forward. “The parasite in him is eating him alive.”

“Rhiannon,” Evan sounded exasperated. “Aiken will-”

She shook she was so angry. “Drake. Is. Dying. The pain tears through me just as it does him, and I won’t let him go without a fight. Now move out of the way.” Energy swarmed to her. “I mean it, get out of my way.” The threat was unmistakable. She didn’t try to hide or contain the sizzling power rushing to her.

He stood with his hands relaxed by his sides. “I’m not going to fight you. If you want in there, then go, but be warned, the scene will be gruesome.”

“Get. Out. Of. My. Way.” The words pushed through clenched teeth. “Men.” What did he think she’d do, pass out? She was the one who’d been looking after Drake up until they’d gotten there, hadn’t she?

She shoved past her brother, rushing into the room, faltering after only two steps.

Chapter 8

The room was bright—too bright. Rain still drizzled, but the clouds had thinned, allowing too much daylight in for what Rhia needed to do. Aiken stood over Drake. His energy, much deeper in color than her own, flooded the injured man.

“Stop. That won’t work with this thing. You can’t go in there and heal like you do for other wounds. It’ll just tear him apart trying to get away from the light.” She rushed to Drake’s side. He was so pale, so still, her breath caught in her throat.

Aiken’s shoulders dropped as he took a deep breath. “Tell me what to do and I’ll do it. You shouldn’t expose yourself to such vile things.” His eyes when they met hers held the same worry that churned in her stomach.

She shook her head. “No time. Close the drapes and light just one or two of the candles. It won’t like the brightness.”

She issued her instructions in a cool, calm voice while inside, her entire being shook. She’d expected it to be bad, but even her wildest imagination hadn’t prepared her. Blood covered Drake’s body. His chest had numerous new, ragged wounds where the worm had come out in an attempt to get away from Aiken’s healing light, only to burrow into him again as it met the light of the room. The once-pristine sheets were crimson. How could one man lose so much blood and still survive?

Her hand trembled as she pushed errant strands of hair from her face, tucking them behind her ear. She took a deep calming breath. If she couldn’t do this, he’d die and she wasn’t letting him go.

“One of you will need to be ready to kill the nasty thing once it comes out. Be quick. If it gets spooked or the light is too bright, it’ll retreat. Make sure it’s all the way out. We don’t want any part of it living inside him.”

Closing her eyes, she drew energy fast, and she didn’t care where it came from. If Evan was the one providing for her, then it was the least he could do after having kept her away from Drake for so long. Deep breaths, in and out, pulled it in closer, surrounding her, bathing her in its warmth. It was strong and masculine, pulsating in the room. Evan had to be the one providing for her. The negativity and frustration of the past few hours slipped away until only the will to help Drake remained.

“Drake, I’m going to do something. It won’t hurt, but you might feel some heat inside. It’s important you don’t try to move.”

He didn’t answer. Deep down, she hadn’t expected he would, but she’d hoped just the same. The only movement she’d seen from him since she’d re-entered the room was the minute movement of his chest with his shallow, irregular breaths.

By the time she was ready to start, the sweet scent of the candles filled the room. She focused her subtle flow of light to enter near his shoulder rather than into his chest.

Guiding the pure light through Drake, she moved it, shaping it to form a pale purple basin within his body. When she was done, brightness surrounded the creature on all sides except toward the wound where she wanted it to exit.

Smooth, gentle energy flowed into him, filling the basin from the outside edges in, giving the worm a smaller, darkened area for it to dwell.

She nearly faltered as she came across each internal organ. Searing heat met her advancing gentle probe. Where she should have met some slight resistance as her light went through his organs, there was nothing to impede her progress. It was as though someone had taken a fiery dagger and stabbed through the muscle and tissue over and over, leaving nothing but a quivering mess in his chest and abdomen. He had to have been in an excruciating amount of pain, yet he’d worried about
her
comfort.

She breathed deep, taking in the scents of the lavender and lilac, more to soothe her own frayed spirit than the need for more balance to accomplish the task at hand.

“
I’m moving it towards the wound on his right side.”
She sent the message to both brothers without effort.

“I’m ready.”
Evan’s voice rang clearly in her mind, focused and sure.

The painstaking process of closing in on the parasite couldn’t be rushed. One wrong move and it would find another place to dig deeper and do more damage, and Drake couldn’t take any more injury and survive.