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Chapter 13
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Brothers of Ash and Fire Chapter 14
The car halted, making Piper pitch forward a little. She woke up and blinked. She was warm and cozy, and the last thing she wanted was to move."As much as I enjoy you cuddling against me, little dove, I need to get you inside where you can sleep in a real bed." Mikhail's voice was a husky whisper close to her ear. She glanced around and realized that she was practically on top of him. Her head was tucked beneath his chin, and he had one arm curled around her waist. Her legs were across his lap, and his other hand rested on her outer thigh."Oh!" She scrambled away from him, which only made him laugh. The rich, rumbling sound warmed her down to her toes, and she hated that. A kidnapper should not have that effect on her. But Mikhail did. This was definitely a bad case of Stockholm syndrome. There was no denying that."Why don't you come inside and warm up? I'll put a pot of tea on." Mikhail climbed out of the car. Piper watched him walk over to Belishaw by the SUV and speak to him. It
Brothers of Ash and Fire Chapter 15
They walked down a short corridor and paused in front of a heavy oak door with intricately carved designs. The latch was an old brass contraption that had not been updated like other parts of the house. It was stiff when Mikhail gave it a jerking twist with his hands. She guessed that most people would have taken a home like this and done their best to update everything so it was new and modern, but Mikhail hadn't. His home was ancient. The stones by the window were covered in moss, and the walls were thick enough that the roar of the sea outside couldn't slip between the cracks and stones, though the windows were still a problem. It was a place that filled one's mind with dreams of days long past and the lives people might have once lived. The house was a haunting place full of surreal beauty.The wooden door opened, and Mikhail led her inside. A four-poster bed sat on a small dais, with blue-gold brocade curtains draped over the bed, shadowing it from the light of the chandelier."
Brothers of Ash and Fire Chapter 16
I would rather be adorned by beauty of character than jewels. Jewels are the gift of fortune, while character comes from within.Plautus"No! I wasn't going anywhere!" She gasped and dug her fingers into his arms, trying to make him release her."Why do I get the sense that you're lying?" He chuckled, but the sound was dangerous. "Does this mean I must keep watch over you, even while you sleep? Or shall I tie you to the bed?" He carried her back down the hall to his room and tossed her none too gently onto his massive bed."Stay," he ordered and went to lock the door, blocking her only way out."How dare you!" Piper snapped, even though her heart was racing again. She hadn't forgotten what he'd threatened to do to her in the SUVabout how he would punish a woman. She also hadn't forgotten that his dominance turned her on.I'm going to need major therapy after this.Mikhail opened a drawer from his dresser and turned to face her, a pair of silk neckties in his hand. He wound a b
Brothers of Ash and Fire Chapter 17
Mikhail stood outside the door to Piper's bedroom for a long while, listening to her shift and toss under her sheets. When he heard the faint chattering of her teeth, he'd had enough. He eased the door open and peered cautiously inside. She was asleep but still cold, despite the mountain of blankets on her bed. With a growl of frustration, he approached the bed and carefully slipped her out from under the blankets and into his arms. Her chattering teeth stilled, and she murmured something fretful in her sleep before she nuzzled his chest and sighed.Unable to stop a cocky grin from spreading across his face, he carried her back to his room and settled her beneath his blankets before he turned out the lights and joined her under them. Her feet were like ice, and her hands were just as cold. He tucked her body close to his and placed her feet on his shins. Soon she'd warm up. A dragon gave off more body heat than a human, one of the perks of being a shifter, such as being able to exti
Brothers of Ash and Fire Chapter 18
Those who build walls are their own prisoners. Ursula K. Le GuinPiper woke slowly, in that hazy way one does on a winter weekend when one has snuggled deep into the blankets. Bright, clear sunlight bathed the room and bed in stark pale colors, washing everything out and making it feel surreal.She blinked and studied the bed hangings and the dying fire in the fireplace. Where was she? Bit by bit, memories of last night came back to her. She winced as she realized it hadn't been a wild and fantastical dream. She was really in Mikhail Barinov's house in Cornwall and had been forced into helping him steal the Cheapside treasure trove.It took her a few seconds longer to realize she was in a warm bed, but not the bed she'd gone to sleep in. She whipped her head up as soon as she recognized where she was: Mikhail's bedroom. How had she gotten here? Surely he hadn't She lifted the sheets and breathed a sigh of relief. She was still clothed. Nothing had happened last night, as far s
Brothers of Ash and Fire Chapter 19
Mikhail collected the letter and carefully tucked it back into the stack before he finally answered her."My family was betrayed. Elizabeth I took advantage ofmy ancestorand drugged his wine and tricked him into revealing where he'd stored the jewels. My ancestor was forced into prison but he never forgot what she did with the jewels.""But why?" Piper asked. "It wasn't out of some kind of greed, was it?"Mikhail considered his words. "No. She believed herself to be in the right. She believed the jewels were a part of her father's royal treasury, and they had been, once. But her father had given them to the Belishaw family in the early years of his reign for their services. And the Belishaws, in turn, had given them to us. Henry, however, grew to resent the deal in his later life and no doubt told all who would listen that he believed them to be rightfully his. He was a bitter man, petty and vengeful. And there were other voices that poisoned the queen against my ancestor" Mikhail's
Brothers of Ash and Fire Chapter 20
There were cliffs there,And forests made of mists. There were bridges spanning the void, and that great gray blind lake which hung above its distant bottomLike the sky on a rainy day above a landscape.Rainer Maria RilkeThe mist rolled through the coast of Cornwall like a silent wave, blanketing everything with dampness and chill. For the first time in a long while, Mikhail felt cold. A dragon's blood runs hot, even in the deepest of Russian winters. But today he felt a bone-numbing ache and cold. It seemed to cut deep, freezing the edges of his very soul.Belishaw's call had been a grim reminder of reality. He'd lived so long outside of the world that he'd lost track of the rules, forgotten about things like consequences. He'd involved Piper, and now her life was crumbling around her. He could see how much it might cost her, and it wounded him as much as it had terrified her. The last thing he ever wanted was to hurt his future mate.I never think things through. Not five h
Brothers of Ash and Fire Chapter 21
Mikhail buried the memories, now bitter in his heart. The past was the past, and he should not dwell on those dark days and forget to live. He looked out to the sea. Beneath the mist-covered cliffs, the white froth of the ocean churned against the rocky beaches, forming tiny inlets that had once hosted a place for the men and women of Cornwall to catch fish or raid the shoreline for the flotsam and jetsam of shipwrecks, provided by unfortunate captains who'd underestimated the dangers of the coast.His dragon paced in the prison of his mind, demanding to be set free, even for a few hours. The weight of his sorrow at Elizabeth and now Piper left Mikhail weak. With a sigh, he allowed the dragon to come soaring to the surface.Mikhail stripped out of his clothes and leapt off the cliff. He flung his arms wide, and for a moment he dove like an Olympic athlete. Then the transformation roared through him like a riptide. His muscles stretched, his skin hardened into dark moss-green scales,
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Brothers of Ash and Fire Chapter 81: Epilogue
Above us, outlined against the brilliant sky, dragons crowded every available perching space on the Rim. And the sun made a gold of every one of them.?―Anne McCaffrey,?Nerilka's StoryThe sound of the door chime at Rurik's apartment made Charlotte tense. Madelyn and Piper both giggled at her, but Charlotte wasn't laughing. After she'd almost died the day before, everything had become a chaotic blur. She'd been staying at Rurik's apartment while her brothers and Rurik's had seen to handling the cleanup of the dragon battle. She hadn't been sure if they would agree to come when she and Rurik had invited them over today."It's going to be fine," Madelyn said. "They fought together against Drakor and the Silvas.""And your brother saved my ass," Piper added. "That counts for something."Charlotte bit her lip, studying her future sisters-in-law. Behind them in the kitchen, Grigori and Mikhail were teasing Rurik about being mated, just as he'd predicted. He'd put up with it long enou
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SnowSnow was falling. Charlotte could feel it on her skin before she opened her eyes. She was there in that realm between, feeling Rurik's beating heart. The warm glow was so close, but as she sat up and blinked, she saw the flames flicker and sputter, threatening to go out.She surged to her feet and pushed through the thick snowfall as the storm became fiercer, wind whipping at her. She had to reach his heart this time, or else the wall of shadows creeping in at the edges of her vision would overtake her.Charlotte braced her arms in front of her face, shielding it from the icy wind. Shapes moved ahead of her, but they weren't shadows. These shapes weredragons. Hundreds of them, lined on either side of her path to the dwindling glow of Rurik's heart. Their massive, long-snouted heads bowed, their frills fanning up as they watched her pass by beneath them like giant statues."Another comes to the doorstep. Come, brother. Come home. There is so much for us to show you. So much you
Brothers of Ash and Fire Chapter 79
Like a fruit suffused with its own mystery and sweetness, she was filled with her vast death, which was so new she could not understand that it had happened.Rainer Maria RilkeRurik had fought a thousand battles, but nothing compared to the one inside him the moment he saw Charlotte pull Drakor over the edge of that building. Every nightmare he'd ever had as a boy of having a mate and losing her came true in that instant. The terror, pure and violent, froze him in place, but not for long. His dragon, buried deep beneath the serum, suddenly stirred."No!" His roar shook the already unstable building around them. He didn't have time to think. He rushed toward the ledge, just as Damien and his team stormed the room. It only took a moment for the hunter to recognize his intentions."Rurik, no!"Rurik leaped from the window, his rage and love blurring together in a swell of emotions that drowned out everything else. His dragon exploded out of him as he hurtled down toward his mate.
Brothers of Ash and Fire Chapter 78
Charlotte woke with a gasp. Rurik's voice still lingered inside her, a whisper, more in her heart than her head. Had she dreamed it? Her lungs burned and her throat was in agony. For a moment she didn't remember where she was, until she saw Luis Silva crouched over her. His hands were no longer wrapped around her throat. Now they were balled into fists at his thighs.The memories of what had happened before she'd passed out came roaring back. But he seemed to have lost interest in her, which was perhaps the only thing that had saved her life. Luis was staring at something over her head. Clutching her throat, she rolled over and looked out through the tall windows and saw three winged shapes headed straight for them. Their wings flapped in a strange but familiar way, something between a gliding bird and the pulsing frenzy of a bat. Dragons.Luis growled, eyes fixed on this imminent threat. Charlotte realized this would be her only chance. She scrambled to her feet and lunged at Luis
Brothers of Ash and Fire Chapter 77
The brave men did not kill dragons. The brave men rode them.Game of ThronesRurik stared at the floor number digits, which kept changing in the elevator as he and Damien's team rode it to the top floor, when suddenly his head seemed to clear of the fog that had separated him from Charlotte.Flashes of what she was seeing came through the bond to him. Drakor's face, the serum in his hand as he talked. Red-gold eyes burning into Charlotte's. Another man standing close behind Drakorone Rurik recognized with dread. Rurik felt her heart pounding and her terror spiking. He leaned against the side of the elevator, gasping as her strong emotions swamped him.Charlotte, where are you?"Uhguys, the dragon's face just turned green. I think he's going to puke," Jason said, cautiously inching away from Rurik. Meg and the other hunters stepped back. Damien gripped Rurik by the shoulder. "What's the matter?""I know I know where she is!" Rurik's head exploded with new images. An office build
Brothers of Ash and Fire Chapter 76
Dragons and legendsIt would have been difficult for any man not to want to fight beside a dragon.―Patricia Briggs,?Dragon Blood"You are Rurik's mate," the Russian dragon mused as he leaned in and inhaled Charlotte's scent. She tensed, closing her eyes as he drew close enough to kiss her. He didn't, but the invasion of her personal space was unsettling.When he finally leaned away from her, she opened her eyes again. Luis, the man she'd head-butted, leaned against the closed door, watching her with black eyes. He'd brought her to an expensive high-rise structure in Moscow, newly built and mostly empty. She almost fainted at the height when she realized they were more than forty stories up in an empty corner office. She sat in a metal chair, but she wasn't restrained. Why bother? She had no way to escape, except jumping.Luis's gaze raked down her body. "She reeks of Barinov." Dimitri Drakor didn't seem nearly as brutish as she'd expected. He was nothing like Luis, who'd so cas
Brothers of Ash and Fire Chapter 75
The course of true love never did run smooth.- Willian ShakespeareRurik's face hurt like the devil. Jason's one punch had left Rurik feeling agony he normally felt only in battle with another dragon. He spat, the bloody mess landing on the hotel carpet floor. Damien was staring at him, a contemplative look in his eyes, and Jason looked ready to go for round two with him."There's really no way to sever the mating bond?" Damien asked, his tone dangerously quiet. This time Rurik didn't feel like trying to hide his answers. Nothing he would say would change whatever it was they intended to do with him."Only death can break the bond." He looked Damien in the eyes. He saw only one option left open to him, even though it would shatter his heart. "Our intention, our hope, was to convince you there was another way between our peoples. But if you are so blind that you can't see this, then I have another option."Damien frowned. "What's that?""I will leave her alone. You take her hom
Brothers of Ash and Fire Chapter 74
Charlotte lay on her side in the back of an SUV, her head pounding. She tried to sit up, but her body ached. She blinked, her brain foggy. She recognized the two women in the front seats of the vehicle."Tamara, Meg, what's going on?" She didn't immediately remember what had happened, but when her gaze met Tamara's in the rearview mirror, the last few hours came flooding back to her."Rurik!" She gasped and scrambled to reach for the car door."Charlotte!" Meg spun around in the front passenger seat. "Calm down, okay? Tamara and I are working on a plan. But first we had to get you somewhere safe." "A plan?" "Yeah. We both think your brothers are a bit unreasonable at the moment. Damien especially. I know it's going to piss him off, but I know what I saw between you and Rurik tonight. I've seen enough shifters in my day to know what a mating looks like. But the fact is we're never going to get your brothers to calm down by flying off the handle. So just relax, okay?"Charlotte t
Brothers of Ash and Fire Chapter 73
Whatever can die is beautifulmore beautiful than a unicorn, who lives forever, and who is the most beautiful creature in the world. Do you understand me?―Peter S. Beagle,?The Last Unicorn"All right, you fucking bastard, talk!" A rough hand shook Rurik in the chair he was tied to. Rurik could feel the tranquilizer leaving his system. If he could delay whatever torture they intended just a few minutes longer, he might be able to break his bonds and then"You want me to talk?" he replied with a grin. "What shall we talk about? How about the cowardice of the Brotherhood? You seem well acquainted with it."The man who'd shaken him cocked a fist, but the door opened and a second man entered. This was the one Rurik recognizedDamien MacQueen. The younger man resembled him so much that he had to be Jason. Charlotte's brothers."Stand down, Jason.""Let me do this," Jason insisted. "Just one little punch.""I would barely feel it." Rurik chuckled, flexing his hands against the chair a
