devil 04 - the devil you know Read online

The dragon turned long, opal-colored eyes toward my young friend and her lip curled slightly. She is just like her mother, that one. All prickly and aggressive. It is a shame.

  I bit my metaphorical tongue and blocked my mind to Glynus. The last thing I needed at that point was for her to distract me with her rantings. Her parents have been missing for several days now, Majesty. Have you seen them?

  The elegant creature before me inclined her long head. They came to me three days ago. We spoke of what happened to my heir and they informed me they had nothing to do with it. I found them very convincing.

  Then you believed them?

  They created doubt in my mind. Enough doubt that I chose not to engage them in war at this time. I am still gathering information and assessing my options.

  I felt as if I was conversing with the CEO of a multi-planet corporation. Do you have any ideas about who else might have wanted your heir dead, Majesty?

  There are some in my queendom who cherish the throne. Even now they plot to kill me. My Slayer protects the throne.

  I barely resisted reminding her that her sexy Slayer hadn’t done much to save her daughter but, glancing quickly at the Slayer in question, I couldn’t quite bring myself to tarnish his rep with his queen. I’d like to question your subjects. See if we can figure out who might have had something to do with your daughter’s death.

  The Queen cocked her head at me, narrowing her gorgeous opal eyes. Why?

  Because whoever it was might have had something to do with the disappearance of the Black Queen and her mate.

  Queen Persuis thought about this for a long moment and then inclined her snout. You will work closely with my Slayer. He will guide you.

  I gulped. Um, how closely?

  Her startling eyes sparked with humor. He will not leave your side while you are here. It is non-negotiable.

  “Frunkin’ wonderful.” I murmured.

  You’re toast, mother Tweener. Glynus offered helpfully.

  I sighed. You’re tellin’ me?

  What’s the deal with the other Tweener? We were on our way to another cavern, where Persuis had said we could stay during our time in her queendom. I was trying really hard not to notice the really hot way the Slayer’s firm, round buttocks flexed as he strode confidently along before us. I’d already spent several minutes not noticing how well he filled out his tight pants in the front.

  The Red Queen was jealous when she learned my mother had sent me to you. So she brought her own Slayer to her caverns and put him in charge of Plinthe.

  The young dragon who was killed?

  Glynus frowned in my mind. Yes.

  Has anybody looked at him for a suspect?

  Nay. I do not think so. He has the Queen wrapped.

  I nodded. He does have a certain charm doesn’t he?

  Glynus snorted, the flames from her nostrils barely missing a nearby tapestry. One of the Queen’s human servants leapt to the side to avoid being toasted. I grinned. Living among dragons certainly had its liabilities. He’s frunkin’ hot, that one is, mother Tweener.

  I frowned at her. That’s five coins in the swear jar, Glynus.

  Yes, ma’am. Her tone of voice was meek but she didn’t look in the least penitent. But not a penny for the lie jar.

  Sighing, I found my traitorous gaze consuming the Slayer’s yummy backside again. No, it certainly wasn’t a lie, Glynus.

  Chapter Five

  Slayed and Flayed

  In searching for the missing queen, our Lady finds a friend,

  Though he’s a little much for her, and may drive her ’round the bend.

  The Dragon Slayer showed us to a cozy little cavern at the center of the queendom. By the time we got there I realized I’d have to keep him close while in the caverns. I’d never find my way back out of the maze of caverns without him.

  A human servant was waiting for us when we arrived at the appointed spot. She took my bag and bowed low to Glynus, speaking in the dragons’ brusque tongue.

  What did she say?

  I have been invited to tea.

  Tea? Dragons do tea?

  Glynus sighed in my mind. We’re not uncivilized, mother Tweener.

  I snorted, drawing the notice of our yummy tour guide. “Is there a problem, dragon fighter?”

  I was visualizing giant teacups held in claws and enormous frosted teacakes made of small animals. I grinned at him. “Glynus is going to tea.”

  Glynus frowned at me.

  “Have you ever seen a dragon tea?”

  I shook my head.

  Slayer shuddered, wiping the smile right off my face. “Trust me, you don’t ever want to see one.”

  My gaze swung to Glynus and she huffed, flinging smoke rings into the air.

  When she’d left the cavern I turned to the delectable dragon Slayer. “I guess it’s just you and me then.” My happy place wept at the thought.

  He nodded. “You want to question the reds?”

  No, I want to throw you to the ground and do the hip-hop on your bebop. “Yes.”

  “Where do you want to start?”

  “Anyone who saw the king and queen leave that day. The guards on the perimeter maybe?”

  He frowned thoughtfully. “That makes sense. You want to know if they saw anything out of the ordinary as they were leaving, such as being joined by someone in their flight?”

  “Right.”

  He nodded. “We’ll start with the guards’ quarters.” He glanced at me. “Maybe you should let me interview the guards by myself.”

  I bristled. “Why in Hades would I do that?”

  He cast an appreciative gaze over me, scanning me from head to toe. Heat flared everywhere his hungry gold gaze touched. My Settling blazed into life and I found myself envisioning his glorious body naked and covering mine. Soft lips trailing down my throat, opening to pull an aching nipple into the heated cave of his mouth. Hot, calloused fingers sliding up my sides, cupping breasts heavy with desire. His solid thighs settled between mine, a thick, hard cock nestled at the entrance to my weeping pussy, pressing insistently…

  “Hello?”

  I blinked and discovered, to my extreme embarrassment, that I was staring at the nicely rounded package at the juncture of those muscular thighs. I licked my lips and forced my gaze to lift. His smile was smug. “Are you okay?”

  My answering laugh sounded sick and uncertain, even to me. “I’m fine. Let’s go.”

  His smile widened slowly, his gaze never leaving mine. “This is going to be fun.”

  I frowned, turning toward the opening to the cavern. “Yeah. Whatever.” But as I stomped into the dimly lit passageway ahead of him, dragging my dignity like discarded toilet paper on my shoe, I couldn’t help thinking that he was right. Spending hour upon hour with the yummy dragon Slayer at my side was going to be a truly stimulating experience.

  I soaked my panties on that thought and all but came on the spot. He joined me in the passageway, dropping a superheated hand at the small of my back and giving me a gentle nudge. “This way.”

  My pussy throbbed and cried. My breath locked into my lungs. I felt a moment of sheer panic. Jesus, Mary, Joseph and their plumber, this was going to be complete agony. I’d be lucky to survive with my soul intact.

  The smell hit me first. The sounds were almost as bad. Unfortunately we’d arrived at feeding time.

  We’d traveled nearly an hour through the maze of caverns before coming to the guard’s quarters. As we neared, the dragon Slayer turned to me and grinned. “Last chance. You can stay here and let me question them.”

  I frowned. What was his deal? How bad could it be? I flicked a hand for him to continue on and dropped in behind him. I wasn’t stupid. If this was going to be dangerous I’d let them take him out first, giving me time to pull out some smack down of my own.

  I’d mourn the loss of his fine ass…ets later.

  I followed him through a large, arched entrance and into an enormous cavern. On the far wall a thirty-foot-high wate
rfall splashed pleasantly into a small pool of water, whose surface bobbed with something that looked like body parts.

  Dragon refrigeration.

  Although the waterfall was loud, it couldn’t mask the sound of enormous teeth crunching through bone or claws ripping through flesh.

  About a dozen enormous red dragons lounged around the huge cavern, slouching against nests made of straw, feathers and some kind of black mud. Their massive jaws crunched and slavered over their unfortunate food, drooling thick ribbons of saliva and blood that slid down their huge bellies and puddled beneath them on the rock floor.

  Bits of fur and flesh peppered the floor around them, mingling with the gore that drooled from their nasty maws.

  I could see why they didn’t eat in their nests.

  My guide stayed just inside the entrance and called out, speaking in the Red’s language. In the furthest reaches of the cavern an enormous, dark red dragon belched and roared, apparently responding to whatever the yummy Slayer had said.

  The Slayer stiffened, his jaw tightening as he perused the path to our victim. We’d have to traverse a half dozen feeding dragons and their disgusting mess to get to him. He turned to me. “Last and final chance.”

  I shook my head. “After you.”

  Sighing, he shook his head too. “Stubborn and beautiful. My favorite combination.”

  By the time we reached the enormous guard in the back of the cavern I wondered if he shouldn’t have replaced the word “stubborn” with “stupid”. My lovely boots were soggy with disgusting substances and weighted down by sticky gore.

  Putrid-smelling bits of flesh and dragon snot dripped down the front of my sweater and my hair stuck to my cheek on one side, sodden with spit.

  I glanced at my guide and saw that he was nearly spotless.

  With an indignant gasp I realized he’d used me as a human shield. When I glared at him he laughed. “I gave you three chances to stay out in the passageway.”

  An enormous belch blew the drier parts of my hair back from my face and a sewerlike stench overwhelmed me. “Bleurgh!”

  When it ended, the Slayer stepped from behind me and addressed the mountain-sized creature lounging before us. I, of course, didn’t understand what he said, but whatever it was, the dragon fixed his enormous eyes on me.

  The red was the largest dragon I’d ever seen. From my perch way down on the cavern floor, it looked like the mound of his slimy looking belly rose twenty feet in the air. It rumbled threateningly as my gaze lifted toward the car-sized snout higher up. I met the dragon’s emotionless gaze just as a long, snakelike tongue slid out and performed a lazy swipe over his greasy snout, retreating back between the massive jaws with an audible snap.

  I shuddered and the dragon grinned, showing bits of gore stuck between its jagged, deadly-looking teeth.

  My guide nodded, turning to me. “He says he’ll answer your questions, as long as they aren’t treasonous to his queen.”

  “Ask him if he saw the black queen and king leaving the Red queendom three days ago.”

  The Slayer turned to the guard and repeated my question in dragonese.

  The huge creature nodded his head and his jaw moved as if he were trying to speak the words he was sending mentally to my guide.

  Or maybe he was anticipating taking a bite out of yours truly. Despite the evidence of an extensive meal scattered around him, his enormous eyes had a decidedly hungry look.

  The Slayer nodded, his gaze intense as he listened. After a moment he turned to me. His face was grim. “He says someone did meet the king and queen on their way back to their queendom.”

  Something in his face warned me I wasn’t going to like what I was about to hear. I took a deep breath and asked. “Who met them?”

  The dragon belched again, sending sewer air wafting over us. The Slayer took my arm and led me away, toward an enormous window on one end of the cavern, where we were relatively safe from eating mishaps.

  He pulled his hand from my arm with a grimace, examining the slime that had transferred itself from my once beautiful sweater to his formerly immaculate palm. Holding it away from his body, he cast a speculative eye over a rare clean spot on my sweater.

  “Don’t even think about it!” I warned him.

  He grimaced again and held the hand farther from his pristine clothing.

  “Just tell me who met the black queen, Slayer.”

  “You aren’t going to like it.”

  I flipped my fingers for him to continue, suddenly impatient to get it over with.

  “She was apparently met by a large contingent of her own solders.”

  All the blood ran from my face and my heart skipped a beat. “Frunk me to Hades!”

  He nodded and fell into step beside me as I headed quickly toward the door.

  “What’s the fastest way to get to Glynus?”

  “I know a shortcut. Follow me.” He placed a hand on my back and rubbed. I jerked away and turned to him, he was grinning, examining his now spotless hand. “Ass.”

  He laughed and jerked his head toward a nearby passage. “This way.”

  * * * * *

  Glynus was covered in blood and gore.

  I screamed her name as the Slayer and I charged into the room, which was filled with female dragons.

  She turned her head and looked at me, confusion painting her beautiful eyes. Mother Tweener?

  That’s when I realized all of the dragons were covered in blood and gore. I glanced at the Slayer.

  He shrugged. “At least you’re dressed for it.”

  Shaking my head I hurried over to Glynus. I won’t ask you what you’ve been doing. I’m going to have nightmares for the rest of my life just looking at the results. But we need to get out of here right now.

  Glynus shot to her feet, obviously relieved to be sprung from the…er…festivities. Thank Him, Mother Tweener! I thought I’d never get out of here.

  We headed for the door. The Slayer was leaning against the archway cut into the rock wall that formed the entrance to the cavern where the dinosaur “tea” was being held. He suddenly jerked upright, one hand shooting toward the sword he wore in a scabbard at his hip.

  It was the only warning I got.

  I turned and shot a power arrow into the massive red dragon descending on Glynus, enormous claws outstretched in attack.

  Not wanting to start a war unnecessarily, I’d kept the voltage low. The result was that the enormous female staggered back a few steps but wasn’t seriously harmed. She caught herself with a single flap of her huge wings and surged back toward Glynus, ignoring me as if I were a pesky bug.

  She hit my dragon in the chest and the two massive creatures flew backward, slamming against the wall directly beside the Slayer. He dived away, barely missing being crushed by the two grappling dragons as they rolled sideways.

  I advanced on them, unsure what to do. I couldn’t exactly shoot a power arrow into the rolling mass, for fear of hitting Glynus. I reached for her with my mind, worried for her safety.

  She was half the size of the dragon trying to kill her.

  Can you get away from her so I can zap her?

  Glynus chuckled in my mind. You always try to ruin my fun, mother Tweener.

  Glynus suddenly roared and clamped her massive jaws over one of the red’s wings, flipping her head to wrench the wing from the other dragon’s body. She created a sizeable gap at the top of the red’s wing.

  I blinked. Go Glynus!

  The other dragon stumbled backward with a roar of pain. I covered my ears and dived away from the twin jets of fire the red was spewing in her anger. Rolling across the floor, I ended up next to the Slayer.

  He looked down at me and winked. “You’ve done a good job with her.”

  I grinned. “Thanks.”

  He nodded, reaching for my hand. “It might be wise to make our escape now though.” He turned his gaze to the room, where the other tea party goers had shaken off their surprise and were advancing on the two
combatants. It wasn’t immediately clear where the other dragons were leaning as far as taking sides…but it was a pretty good bet they’d go with their fellow red over the future queen of their rivals, the black dragons.

  Glynus now sported a long, jagged slash in her creamy belly, but she had all four sets of claws buried in the big red’s torso and was driving her backward by pounding her wings hard on the air.

  Hey Tadpole, I’m thinkin’ we might want to make our escape pretty quickly here. The troops are getting a bit restless.

  Glynus gave one last pound of her wings and roared, bathing the red in fire from her flaring nostrils. As the red brought her fireproof wings up to protect her snout, Glynus turned away and flew toward us. Whatever you say, mother Tweener.

  She slowed enough for the Slayer and me to each grab a wing and catapult ourselves onto her broad back, and then flapped her wings and took off toward a high window in the side wall of the cavern. Behind us, the sound of several sets of powerful wings filled the cavern and I knew it wouldn’t be long before we had unwanted company in our flight.

  Glynus was heading directly toward the window. I’ll let you do the honors, mother Tweener.

  Glad to.

  I lifted a palm toward the huge window and sent a power arrow into it, shattering the glass and sending it toward the ground.

  Dragons and humans alike scattered away from the deadly rain of glass, Glynus used one wing to briefly shield her face from the spray of particles and the Slayer and I hid our faces, ducking down behind Glynus’ massive head. A moment later the sun burned brightly against the tops of our heads and fresh air swept us, washing away the cloying smell of reptile and death.

  We soared away from the caverns, heading to an unknown destination quickly. Amazingly, none of the reds tried to follow us. I found that very strange but, at the moment, couldn’t help being grateful.

  I turned to the Slayer. “What was that all about?”

  He shrugged. “There have always been hard feelings between the two dragon races, maybe somebody just decided to take advantage of the moment to score some points.”

  My gaze sharpened on him. “You think the queen was behind that?”