Light Dragons 02 - The Unbearable Lightness of Dragons

his demand.
    His lips tightened, but after a moment he answered. “Not yet. I will locate one tomorrow.”
    “We need someone at the sepulcher as soon as possible, not whenever you get around to it.” She took a deep breath. “You seem to be more concerned about your mate than you are my mother’s sword!”
    “Ysolde is everything to me,” he said simply, which just made me melt all over his back. I licked his shoulder blade. “I will regain the sword, do not fear. But I will do it in a manner I choose. Kostich is more powerful than you credit him, and I will not risk Ysolde’s well-being to regain the sword.”
    “He would not harm her,” Thala argued. “You said she was his apprentice.”
    “Kostich has used her to obtain his ends before, and he may do so again,” he answered. “The sword is mine, but I will claim it in a way that will not allow him to threaten her. I will find a tracker in the morning to locate the sepulcher.”
    “A tracker?” I asked, having managed to slip into my jeans and bra while he and Thala were arguing. I picked up his pants and moved in front of him, blocking Thala’s view. “You mean someone who’s good at finding hidden things?”
    “Yes.” Baltic donned his pants, pausing when he saw the smile I just couldn’t contain. “Do you know of one?”
    “Oh, yes.” My smile grew as I looked at Thala. I’d heard the tale of what happened the night May re-formed the dragon heart. “I know of one who is quite good. In fact, when I was staying with May and Gabriel, he’s the man I was going to hire to help me locate you.”
    “I will contact him in the morning,” Baltic said, wrapping an arm around me. “We will go to bed now.”
    Thala moved aside as we left the room, her expression too placid for my peace of mind. I couldn’t wait to tell Savian Bartholomew, official thief-taker for the L’au-dela and part-time rogue, that he would have the chance to work with the woman who had come very close to killing him.

Chapter Fifteen
    “ Y ou know, Ysolde, Dr. Kostich and I . . . well, we’re not the best of friends.”
    Jim rolled its eyes as Aisling rose from her seat in the lobby of the hotel my former employer favored when he stayed in London. “Maybe that’s ’cause you more or less told him you could take him down if he got in your face?”
    “I never said that!” Aisling whapped Jim on the arm. “I just said that I bet I could give him a run for his money. And he got all bent out of shape because I zapped Caribbean Battiste that one time, which is silly because Caribbean wasn’t upset with me. Well, not after I apologized and swore that I’d never again turn him into a simulacrum. And paid for a new suit, since his was ruined. And then Drake had to pony up some money for the Elderly Guardians’ Home, but that’s a worthy charity, so he didn’t really mind. Much. Anyway, the point is that Kostich and I have a bit of a rocky history, so I’m really not sure how well he’s going to take to my being there with you.”
    “Good morning,” I told her, smiling at her protestations. “I’m well aware that Kostich has no love for you, but since he has even less for me, I figured it couldn’t hurt to have a powerful wyvern’s mate and Guardian there to remind him that we’re no pushovers.”
    “No, we’re not, but he’s also a whole lot more powerful than most people realize,” Aisling told me as we entered an elevator. “Er . . . do you know what room he’s in? Shouldn’t we let him know we’re coming for a visit? What if he’s not here?”
    “He always stays in suite 1818, so I know where he is, and honestly, I’ve found it’s better if I don’t announce my visits. He usually forbids me to enter if I do.”
    “Oh, that sounds good,” Jim said with ominous portent. “At least I have my cell phone and can get video footage of him when he comes unglued.”
    “Hush, you,” Aisling said as the two other people in the elevator gave us odd looks. A few minutes later as we stood outside the suite, she said, “You sure you want me for this, Ysolde?”
    “I’m sure. I’m out of ideas of what to do for Jim, and Dr. Kostich, as you pointed out, is the most powerful mage around.”
    “You never met Bael when he was masquerading as a mage,” Aisling said with a grimace. “He was no lightweight either.”
    I decided I’d ask her about that later, mentally girded my loins, and hit the bell next to the door.
    A familiar redheaded man