‘‘Which means if he really is alive, he’s going to be one badass dragon,’’ Jim said.

‘‘All of this is moot. I killed Baltic three hundred years ago. What matters is the phylactery-and I want it returned immediately,’’ Kostya said.

‘‘How do you explain the theft of the phylactery in the first place if Baltic really was dead?’’ I asked.

He glowered. ‘‘You stole it from me.’’

‘‘How do you explain it assuming I didn’t steal it?’’

‘‘I would make no such assumption. You admitted you took it the night I caught you in my lair.’’

‘‘Oh, this is useless,’’ I said, getting off of Gabriel’s lap. ‘‘We’re just going round and round. Whether or not Baltic is alive, the important thing is to retrieve the phylactery, and find Maata and Tipene.’’

‘‘I thought you said you had the phylactery,’’ Aisling said.

‘‘I did have it-and then I was arrested, and my possessions taken from me, the phylactery included. So far as I know, it’s with my other things in the L’au-delà vault in Paris.’’

I was moving toward the door when Kostya shouldered me aside.

‘‘Where are you going, brother?’’ Drake asked him.

‘‘To reclaim what is mine,’’ he said with a dark look at Gabriel.

‘‘Like hell you are,’’ I said, dashing after him. ‘‘That phylactery belongs to Gabriel!’’

The room emptied out after us. For a moment, everyone stood looking at one another in the large entryway, then Kostya muttered something that had Gabriel lunging at him, Drake’s two men grabbed Gabriel, and Aisling started ordering her demon to stop her brother-in-law. But Kostya was gone before Jim could whip into action.

‘‘Agathos daimon,’’ I swore under my breath.

‘‘Should I follow him?’’ Pál asked Drake.

The latter hesitated for a moment before shaking his head. ‘‘No. He would just shake you.’’

‘‘May can follow him,’’ Cyrene said. ‘‘She’s very good at following people. I had a boyfriend once who I thought was two-timing me-he had the tiniest eyes, which I’ve always felt was a sign of a shifty nature- and May followed him around for a week without him ever knowing she was there.’’

‘‘Mayling will stay with me,’’ Gabriel said, grabbing my wrist and hauling me up the stairs after him.

‘‘Well… I suppose I could do it,’’ Cyrene said with a slight frown. ‘‘It can’t be that hard to follow someone. And I’ve been watching May do it for years.’’

‘‘Don’t even think about it,’’ I called from the top of the stairs. ‘‘He’s much too dangerous, Cy. We’ll keep an eye out for him, never fear.’’

The last I saw before Gabriel pulled me to our bedroom, Cyrene was still standing in the entryway, her lips pursed as Aisling smiled at her dragon.

‘‘To Paris?’’ Aisling asked.

‘‘To Paris,’’ Drake replied in a grim voice.

‘‘This is just like that wacky movie with the Black-adder guy, where they were all racing to find a treasure,’’ Jim said, its voice following us as we hurried down the hall. ‘‘Only with dragons, an ex-virgin doppelganger, and a really attractive Newfie. Bet people would pay big bucks to see this!’’

Chapter Twenty

‘‘I’m going to talk to Aisling for a few minutes,’’ I told Gabriel as we headed to our room to pack our things for the trip to Paris. ‘‘It’s just girl talk, nothing important.’’

He frowned as I went straight for the bag István had so recently brought me. I had taken only one or two things out of it, so it was easily repacked. ‘‘Girl talk? Are you injured in some intimate manner?’’ He put his hand on my belly as if to feel some sort of internal problem. ‘‘Has our mating been too rough?’’

‘‘No, it’s nothing at all like that.’’

‘‘May, I am a healer in addition to being your wyvern,’’ he said with a serious expression. ‘‘You must tell me if you are having any sort of physical problem, no matter how embarrassing you find it.’’

‘‘Honestly, it’s nothing-’’

‘‘Take off your clothes,’’ he said, nodding toward the bed. ‘‘I will examine you to make sure all is well.’’

‘‘Agathos daimon! I just want to have a little girl talk with Aisling, Gabriel! I don’t need a gynecological exam! Besides, if I take off my clothes and get on that bed, you’ll end up with yours off, too, and we’ll never get to Paris.’’

‘‘When’s the last time you had your period?’’ he asked, a frown furrowing his brow as he ignored the playful little nibble I gave the tip of his nose.

I went to the door and cast him a look fraught with dignity. ‘‘We are not having this conversation. And if you even think of following me, I will… I will… well, I’m not quite sure what I will do, but you can rest assured that it will not be pleasant. My bag is packed, by the way.’’

He didn’t say anything to that, but I felt his gaze on me as I headed down the hallway to knock on Aisling’s door.

I paused for a moment before Cyrene’s door, giving a quick tap before opening it. The room was empty. ‘‘Have you seen Cyrene?’’ I asked Pál as he hurried past me bearing two large suitcases.

‘‘A few minutes ago, yes. She said she had something to do, and left.’’

‘‘She left? What on earth…?’’ I pulled out my cell phone and punched in her number.

Drake left his room bearing another suitcase. Through the open door I could see Aisling gathering up a few books to tuck into a book bag.

Jim wandered out. ‘‘Funny time to call someone.’’

‘‘I’m trying to get hold of Cy.’’ I waited a few seconds before hanging up, a cold, clammy hand gripping my stomach. ‘‘Voice mail. She’s not answering. I have a horrible feeling I know where she is.’’

‘‘Where who is?’’ Aisling asked as she emerged from the room.

‘‘Cyrene. I think she went to tail Kostya. Silly, stupid… He won’t hurt her if he sees her, will he?’’ I asked Drake as he came upstairs again.

He paused to consider the question. ‘‘He has no cause to. The only reason he held a knife to her before was because he thought she was you, and he will not make that mistake again.’’

I relaxed slightly. ‘‘I don’t know why I’m worrying- she’s never followed anyone before. I’m sure Kostya will realize immediately that she’s shadowing him, and won’t waste any time shaking her. I just hope she has enough sense to go home rather than to try to follow us to Paris.’’

‘‘I have a friend in town who I’ll call to check on her if it’ll ease your mind,’’ Aisling said, turning back to her room. ‘‘Thanks, sweetie, that’s everything, I think. I’ll be down in just a minute.’’

Drake nodded and went downstairs. I followed Aisling into her bedroom, standing uneasily as she called a number and left a message.

‘‘Nora’s out right now, but I’ll try her again in a bit, all right?’’

‘‘Thank you. It’ll make me feel better knowing someone is keeping an eye out for Cy. Er…’’ I bit my lower lip. ‘‘Do you have a minute? I wanted to talk to you really quickly, without being overheard.’’

She looked mildly surprised but sat down on the end of the bed and nodded toward a chair. ‘‘Of course.’’

Jim ambled over, plopping itself down at her feet.

I glanced at the demon. ‘‘Er…’’

‘‘Jim, shoo,’’ Aisling said, correctly reading my thoughts.

‘‘What? I’m not doing anything!’’

‘‘You’re making May uncomfortable. Go see what the boys are doing.’’

‘‘Whatever it is, it won’t be nearly as interesting as this,’’ it answered.

‘‘Oh, it doesn’t matter, I guess,’’ I said with a tight smile. ‘‘Jim might have some helpful insights as well.’’

‘‘I’m all over helpful insights, sister,’’ it told me with an oddly endearing grin. ‘‘What’s the problem? You can tell Dr. Jim. Is it something in the romance department? Need some advice on how to handle Gabriel?’’

‘‘No, thank you-’’

‘‘Ah. Then it’s the sex, right? Fiery, animalistic, dragon sex too much for you?’’

It was difficult to keep from rolling my eyes. ‘‘Thank you, my sex life is not open to-’’