She flinched as both Hugh and the griffin stared at her. “What?”
“You can hear him?” Hugh said, sounding startled.
“Um, yes. In my head, the same way I can hear John. Why, is that wrong?”
“Not wrong,” Hugh said, his ice-blue eyes narrowing thoughtfully. “But usually we can only communicate telepathically with other mythic shifters.”
The griffin cocked his head, feathers raising with evident interest. *So I was right. Your father was the lost sea dragon Emperor, wasn’t he?*
Neridia looked down at her knees. “That’s what John thinks. But whatever my dad might have been, I’m just human.”
Hugh and Griff exchanged glances. “Hmm,” the paramedic said, not sounding entirely convinced. “Well, medically speaking, I can pass no judgment on what species you are, but I do know that you’ve badly sprained this ankle. Hold still.”
He laid his hand on her ankle, skin to skin. Neridia caught her breath as a tingling warmth spread out from his touch.
“How are you doing that?” she asked in amazement as the dull ache faded away to nothing.
“With great annoyance and discomfort,” Hugh replied, through gritted teeth. His expression was set in a pained grimace, as though healing her was hurting him in some way. “Why do all my patients have to screw like bunnies before they get injured?”
Embarrassment flooded up her face. “How did you-?”
*Hugh doesn’t like to talk about himself,* Griff said telepathically. The griffin’s hooked beak fell open in an unmistakable smile. *But it seems congratu
lations are in order. You and John are mated?*
Neridia squirmed, her blush deepening. “Um. Yes.”
“So much for chastity,” Hugh muttered, without looking up from her ankle.
The griffin buffeted the paramedic with his free wing. *Don’t mind him. He’s just cranky. We’re all delighted for you and John.*
His warm mental tone conveyed his sincerity. Neridia looked away, her throat tightening. He was so obviously pleased for his friend, she couldn’t possibly tell him that she wasn’t sure she shared in his delight.
In the lake, it had felt so natural, so right. But in the cold light of her burning home, the full impact of her hasty decision was finally hitting her.
I’m joined to him forever, she thought as she watched John’s towering silhouette, backlit by sullen flames. No matter what. And he’s from a different world…
A world full of monsters.
He hadn’t flinched or hesitated in the face of the fire-wielding assassins. He’d cut them down with a practiced, ruthless efficiency, as if it was all in a day’s work. As if this sort of thing was normal in his world.
And he wants me to join him in that world. Forever.
Neridia hugged her knees, cold and numb. All she wanted at the moment was for everything to be back to normal. To be safe and secure in her own home, surrounded by her own familiar things.
But that was something she could never have again.
John was calling great streams of water out of the lake, directing them onto her house to douse the fire. The red dragon—Dai, Hugh had called him—stomped out smoldering patches with his huge taloned feet, apparently impervious to the flames. Chase, in pegasus form, flew in wide, sweeping circles above the fire, keeping watch for any further signs of attack. The final man, who John had briefly introduced as Fire Commander Ash, didn’t appear to be doing anything other than standing and watching, his hands behind his back.
Despite the firefighters’ efforts, it was clear that there was no saving her home. The cottage was a roofless, blackened shell. One wall had completely collapsed, torn away by John’s raking talons in his haste to save her.
My home, my things…all my father’s paintings. Everything I had. Gone.
John’s head jerked round, like a dog hearing its master’s call. Leaving the other firefighters to finish putting out the remnants of the blaze, he strode over to her.
“Oh my mate, my heart, do not despair.” He sank down to one knee at her side, pushing up the dragon-faced visor of his helm. Underneath, his face was streaked with soot and sweat. “You still have a home, though you have never been there. Your palace awaits you under the sea, with a thousand treasures to replace every one that you have lost.”
Thanks to the strange bond between them, Neridia could tell that he honestly thought this would comfort her. She was suddenly, abruptly furious.