‘‘It’s not an obsession… well, a little one… but we do find gold incredibly…’’ He lifted my hand to his lips, his tongue painting my fingertips with fire.

‘‘Expensive?’’ I asked, wondering that men who obviously had so much wealth could pant after a few bits of gold. ‘‘Precious?’’

‘‘Desirable,’’ Drake said, his face aglow with avidity.

‘‘Arousing,’’ Gabriel corrected him, the sensual velvet tones of his voice affected not in the least by the fact that he was nibbling on my fingertips. I shivered as his tongue made little circles at the tip of one of my fingers.

‘‘Yes, arousing. Very, very arousing.’’ Drake frowned for a moment and whipped out his cell phone. ‘‘I must call Aisling.’’

I turned to Gabriel to give Drake a little privacy during his phone call.

‘‘And what about you?’’ I asked, another shiver sweeping over me as Gabriel bit the pad of my thumb. ‘‘Does gold have an erotic effect on you, too?’’

His quicksilver eyes scorched me. ‘‘Most definitely. I look forward to seeing you wear some of my gold pieces… and nothing else.’’

I was perilously close to flinging myself on him, so it was a feat of strength to drag my mind from the promise he so temptingly offered back to the present.

‘‘Um… what was it you asked me?’’

It took him a moment to gather his thoughts, as well, a fact that pleased me to no end. ‘‘Er… what you found in Kostya’s lair?’’

‘‘Oh, yes, that.’’ I thought for a few moments. ‘‘There wasn’t much else in the unlocked chest. Some necklaces, the amulet, a couple of old-looking pieces of tapestry, and that’s about it.’’

‘‘You had no difficulty getting into his lair, then?’’ Drake asked, putting away his phone. ‘‘Did the blackmailer let you in?’’

‘‘On the contrary, he said it was going to be difficult to get in. But… well, there’s a bit of a story about that. Someone was there ahead of me.’’ I explained about the dragon’s bane on the door, and how I’d gone around to the window to find it open.

‘‘Kostya came in as I was going through one of the chests, the unbound one. Judging by his surprise, he wasn’t expecting anyone there, which means someone else must have opened that window and disarmed the security system.’’

Drake glanced at Gabriel.

‘‘I was with you all day trying to find out what happened to Maata and Tipene,’’ the latter pointed out.

Guilt prodded me painfully. ‘‘I’m sorry, I’ve been so caught up in my own troubles, I didn’t ask you about them. Did you find out anything?’’

Gabriel shook his head. ‘‘No. They have just disappeared.’’

‘‘And someone has broken into Kostya’s lair,’’ Drake said thoughtfully.

Gabriel’s handsome face grew cold at the mention of the black dragon. ‘‘Fiat?’’

‘‘Possibly. Or one of the red dragons,’’ Drake answered. ‘‘It could be that Chuan Ren has been released from Abaddon. Although I believe she’d first come after Aisling and me.’’

‘‘It must be Fiat. He would stop at nothing to regain control of the blue dragons.’’ Gabriel’s hand was warm as it took mine. ‘‘Just as Kostya has nothing to lose but everything to gain by keeping Maata and Tipene from me.’’

‘‘You don’t think he’ll hurt them?’’ I asked, a sick feeling making my gorge rise.

He didn’t dismiss that idea nearly as quickly as I would have liked. ‘‘To do so would bring an all-out war against him, not only by the silver dragons, but by others as well.’’ He sent an inquisitive glance to Drake.

The latter nodded. ‘‘Killing your guards would constitute an act of war against a sept of the weyr. The members would be obligated to uphold the terms of the treaty and destroy him in return.’’

‘‘You know, Porter looked surprised when I asked him what demon lord he worked for,’’ I said slowly as I mused over the facts. ‘‘I wonder if Cyrene heard correctly when he said he was working for a dreadlord.’’

‘‘Dreadlord?’’ Drake asked, pouncing on the word. ‘‘He said that specifically?’’

I nodded. ‘‘What’s the significance of that? It’s just another word for demon lord, isn’t it?’’

Drake and Gabriel exchanged glances. ‘‘In modern usage, yes, but in centuries past, it meant many things… including a wyvern,’’ the latter said.

‘‘Oh. You think Porter was working for a dragon? One of the ones you mentioned?’’

‘‘I don’t know,’’ he said, his eyes dulling slightly. ‘‘It is an interesting thought nonetheless.’’

‘‘So what are we going to do?’’ I asked, suddenly swamped with exhaustion. I tried to remember the last time I’d slept, and couldn’t.

Gabriel pulled me up against his side. I leaned into him, feeling warm, safe, and cherished. ‘‘First we get you out of the country.’’

‘‘You are welcome to stay with Aisling and me,’’ Drake offered. ‘‘The thief takers evidently have found your house, Gabriel.’’

The latter nodded. ‘‘Then I think we will need to have a look into Kostya’s locked chests. The phylactery must be contained in one of them.’’

‘‘And the amulet?’’ I asked.

‘‘It poses many questions, but I do not see that it is of much importance,’’ Gabriel said after a few moments’ thought. ‘‘It was kept in an unlocked chest, and Kostya would never put it there if it held value. It is possible that the thief taker was deliberately trying to mislead you into believing he was not in the employ of a demon lord.’’

‘‘Or he could be operating for purposes of his own,’’ Drake said.

Gabriel nodded.

‘‘What if it turns out that he’s working for a dragon after all?’’ I had to ask.

Gabriel pulled me tighter against him. ‘‘Then we will deal with that situation, too. But of first importance is the phylactery. It is the only thing I can use to barter for the release of my guards. I must have it.’’

‘‘Agreed,’’ Drake said, hesitating a moment. ‘‘He will in all likelihood be expecting such a move, you know.’’

Gabriel didn’t answer, but the smile that curled his lips left me shivering again… this time with cold.

Chapter Sixteen

‘‘Alone at last,’’ Gabriel said in his best dramatic voice, his dimples at odds with the lascivious grin he was giving me as he closed the door and leaned against it.

I stopped admiring the room and eyed him slowly. Although Drake seemed to wear the color of his sept frequently-mostly in his shirts-Gabriel wasn’t clad in silver. Instead he wore a pair of faded jeans and a scarlet shirt, opened just enough to show a beaded necklace from which hung a silver version of his sept emblem. He was the sexiest man I’d ever seen, and I was just a fraction of a second from leaping upon him when there was a knock at the door. It opened, bumping against him.

‘‘I’m so sorry, I didn’t know you were there,’’ Aisling said when Gabriel moved away enough for the door to open completely. She smiled happily at us both. ‘‘I just wanted to check that everything was all right. There’s a bathroom attached, in case you didn’t know, just through the door opposite.’’

‘‘Thank you. I’m sure we’ll have no problem finding it,’’ I said, trying not to drool on Gabriel.

She bustled into the room, tweaking the cover on the bed before going over to a large antique wardrobe. ‘‘There should be some extra blankets in here, if you get chilly. Oh, and everything’s been fireproofed, so you guys can… well… I’m sure I don’t need to explain it.’’

‘‘Everything is lovely,’’ I said, feeling awkward. Gabriel ignored Aisling to watch me with the intensity of a panther about to pounce. It just about blared his intention to indulge in wild, unbridled lovemaking, and although I had every intention of fulfilling that thought, it was a bit embarrassing to have everyone know it.

Drake suddenly appeared, herding his wife out of the room and down the hall with an apologetic glance at Gabriel. ‘‘Kincsem, you should have been in bed an hour ago. You will tire yourself.’’