Dragos Takes a Holiday (Elder Races #6.5)(22)

He drew closer to the port side. The wreck had deteriorated a lot over the centuries, but enough remained that he could see a significant, jagged break toward the rear of the ship. Quite a bit of the hull had sheared away long ago, leaving only the ribs curving up from the base of the ship’s spine.

He plunged both front paws into the sediment along the floor, searching for pieces of the hull. As he found fragments of wood, he turned them over and discarded them until he unearthed one piece, roughly a yard and a half in length, that had letters inlaid in silver at one end.

ille.

Triumph surged, but he didn’t have time to savor it. He needed air too badly and couldn’t stay underwater any longer. Black spots danced in front of his eyes. Carrying the fragment of wood, he kicked to the surface to suck in huge draughts of air. As soon as he caught his breath, he launched out of the water and flew back toward land.

In order to have enough room to change, he had to land on the beach just outside the house. Still gripping the hull fragment, he strode up the terraced path.

Pia had been keeping an eye out for him, because he had barely stepped out of the tree line and onto the lawn when the door opened and she hurried out. Her eyes shone with excitement. “What is it? What did you find?”

He held up the piece of wood, letters facing outward, for her to see. “I think I found the Sebille.”

Chapter Eight

“Already? That’s amazing.” She touched the blackened letters on the wood wonderingly.

He grinned. “I would have found it eventually, but I got lucky. I used what you gave me and followed the current off the north shore. The wreck is quite a ways out and it’s deep. It’s no wonder nobody has found it before now. There’s only a few submersibles in the world that can dive down that far.”

Pia glanced at him with an inward smile. He always had a vital, powerful presence, but now his dark bronze skin looked burnished, and his gold eyes shone with radiance. “Come inside and tell me all about it. Liam’s gone down for a nap. Eva and Hugh barbequed steaks for lunch, and they set aside plenty for you.”

His expression flared with interest. He propped the plank beside the back door and followed her inside. The interior was much cooler than outside. They had closed up the house and turned on the air condition. While he washed up, Pia piled the steaks on a plate for him and set it on the dining room table in the large, sunlit kitchen.

He thanked her as he sat at the table and began to eat. Pia eased into the seat across from him, and Eva and Hugh came to join them while Dragos told him about his flight and the search in between large bites of the juicy meat.

“By the time I found it, I was getting tired and needed air, so I wasn’t able to stay down for very long.” He sprinkled salt on the steak. “I didn’t have a chance to examine the wreck too closely, but I did notice there was a jagged break toward the back third of the ship, between where the main mast would have been and the rear mast. It would have been a hell of a storm to cause that kind of damage. Poor bastards never had a chance.”

“So there is at least one magic item with the wreck?” Pia asked.

“Yes.” He polished off the last bite with a satisfied sigh. “In fact there are several. I want to go back down, maybe first thing tomorrow morning, and see what I can bring up.”

Pia nodded. “I wish I could come with you.”

Pushing away his plate, he crossed his arms on the table and smiled at her. “You could, at least in a boat. You would have to wait on the surface, but if we took a boat out, I could make a couple of dives to bring things back up.”

She clapped her hands. “Let’s rent one!”

He grinned. “You bet.”

Eva spoke up. “I looked through the brochures the rental agency left. You can rent a boat from them. I’ll give them a call.”

“Great.” Pia looked at Dragos. “So that’s tomorrow morning. What do you want to do this afternoon?”

“You relax, enjoy the sun.” Dragos pushed away from the table and stood. His face turned sharp as a blade. “I’m going to go on the hunt for a big Light Fae male who is not a nice man.”

Pia stood too, quickly. That dangerous face was so sexy it made her knees weak. Sometimes she still wasn’t quite sure of her reactions to Dragos. “I’m coming with you.”

His inky-black eyebrows drew together in a frown. “I don’t think that’s a good idea.”

“Well, I do.” She put her hands on her hips. “You know what’s going to happen if we find him. He’s going to be an *, and, Dragos, you can’t kill him just because he’s an *. You’re not Lord of these islands.”

He regarded her with a dark expression. “Fine. Come on.”

Pia looked at Eva. “We’ll be back later.”

The other woman’s face was full of suppressed amusement. “Have fun.”

Dragos went out the back door to get the plank of wood, which he set on the floor of the backseat of the Mercedes. They took off.

That afternoon Pia developed a healthy respect for how many bars, restaurants, grocery and marina supply stores, and fishing shops could be found in the Bermuda islands. Dragos was single-minded and didn’t tire, and she was determined to keep up with him.

They scored a hit with their perseverance in Hamilton Harbor a couple of hours later. After Dragos parked, they walked along the rows of shops and bars at the edge of the marina.