Now all they had to do was position the stone and metal key at the right height, in the right spot, and see what happened.
Lavinia better arranged her scarf, and Max glanced at her. "Do you need more layers?"
She shook her head. "No, I'm fine, really. Besides, if I put on any more layers, I won't be able to move."
As Max's eyes took in her bundled form—she had an undershirt, a long-sleeved top, a sweater, an inner jacket, and an outer one—his lips twitched. "Maybe next time we need to put you in a snowsuit."
She rolled her eyes. "I'm not that bad. And I'd like to see you survive the summer in Australia. At least with the cold I can put layers on. With the heat? You'll wilt."
"I have some heat tolerance. Although the south of Spain or even Egypt isn't quite the same, I'd imagine."
She sighed. "Egypt. I've never been and would love to."
Max took her gloved hand and squeezed. "We'll go one day, I promise. Some of the dragon tombs they've unearthed in recent years have revealed so much about the ancient Egyptians and their relationship with the nearby dragon-shifters."
It was on the tip of her tongue to suggest it as a honeymoon, but they hadn't discussed mating or human marriage.
And given what had happened to her father, Lavinia knew a human living with a dragon clan could be difficult. Especially as it'd have to be on Skyhunter if they wanted to continue their work with Dragon's Court once they found it, and Skyhunter didn't have any humans living there.
If they found Dragon's Court.No.She refused to think that way. They would locate it, no matter what.
Her dragon yawned and spoke up.Just ask him what he wants. He's not the kind of male to just say yes because you wish it.
I'll talk to him later. The winter solstice only comes once a year, and today's too important to muddle it with other stuff.
If you say so. But just don't come up with one excuse after another. Because then I'd have to take control and ask Max myself.
Since her dragon rarely threatened to take control—the frenzy had been a special case—it alarmed her.I'll deal with it soon, I promise. Now, go back to sleep. I need to focus.
Fine. Wake me up when you're done.
As her dragon took a nap, she met Max's eyes, and he raised his brows. "Does your dragon have any last-minute insights?"
"No, she's just being herself. Which means looking out for me." The words made him frown, but Lavinia pushed past it. "Let's hurry and find where to put the key. It might look good in a movie to solve the clue at the last second, but I don't want to risk it."
After one last long look, Max nodded. "It's definitely on this ridge." He gestured toward the rows upon rows of carved-out shallow holes in a large, flat rock. Ones that should fit a stick with a key atop it. "Let's just hope our translations are spot on."
It'd come down to one of two answers—twelve or twenty-four. Given the grid of holes, the numbers made sense.
Although if they had the translation wrong or picked the wrong place, they would have to wait another year.
They both knelt next to the rock, and after Max brushed away the dirt and debris, they studied the surface for etchings, pictures, or any last clue to help them pick the right spot.
Leaning down, Lavinia removed her glove, ran her fingers along the bottom edge, and felt some etchings.
Since England had decided to actually be dry for once in winter, she took out a water bottle and gently splashed some liquid on the surface. It was a trick often used to make any faint lines more apparent.
And after shining her torch on the surface, she could see it had worked. A sentence in the old dragon language appeared in the wet stone. She barely noticed Max taking pictures with his phone as she mentally translated it in her head:
The clans cometo pay their respects to the queen, ready to bow and worship her.
Max probably burnedto ask her what it said—his Mersae was rudimentary—but allowed her time to think.
At the formal opening of Dragon's Court, there had been twelve dragon clans in England. However, she didn't know if the words also referred to all the clans in Wales and Scotland too. She met Max's excited yet impatient gaze. She told him the translation and added, "There were twelve clans in England when the castle was finally occupied, but how many were in England, Wales, and Scotland in total?"
"Well, in the late seventh century, that would've been twenty."
As he said the words, they grinned at one another. Lavinia grabbed his hand and squeezed. "So twelve is the answer to where to place the key."