How to Drive a Dragon Crazy (Dragon Kin #6)(47)

“Éibhear! Stop saying that! I’m not trying to whore her out!”

“Then what the hells are you trying to do?” Briec demanded, knowing their sister well enough to suspect that if she was bothering to defend herself, there was a chance she was doing exactly what she was trying to say that she wasn’t doing.

And now that Briec had taken over arguing with Keita, Talaith stepped out. She stopped by Éibhear’s side. “Where did Izzy go?”

“She said to find Brannie.”

“All right. Thanks.”

She started to walk off, but Éibhear took a quick step back, leaning down to get a good look at her face. “Everything all right, Talaith? This thing with Keita—”

Talaith quickly dismissed that with a wave and an eye roll. “Don’t worry,” she said, reaching up and patting his shoulder. “I’m fine.” She pulled her hand away, then reached up and patted his shoulder again. Then his entire arm. “Gods, Éibhear.”

“What?” he asked, looking down at his arm.

But she didn’t answer, just walked off in search of her daughter.

Izzy heard her name called and stopped, turning. Her mother ran up to her.

“Do you have some time to talk?” Talaith asked.

“About Keita? Really?”

“Not Keita. I’m letting your father deal with that.” She stepped closer, glanced around, and lowered her voice. “It’s about Rhi.”

“My house? I’ll make us some tea.”

Her mother nodded. “Sounds perfect.”

Arm in arm, mother and daughter walked to Izzy’s house. And although they chatted amiably, Izzy knew her mother well enough to know that something was bothering her. Something that had nothing to do with Keita’s latest outrageous political maneuver.

Once at the house, Izzy sat her mother down at the table and pulled out some cake that she’d bought for the dinner she’d had with Celyn and Brannie the evening before. She cut several pieces and put them on a plate before her mother. Then she went about making the tea.

By the time Izzy poured the tea and sat down at the table cattycorner from her mother, it was easy to see how distressed she was. Taking her mother’s hands in her own, Izzy said, “Mum . . . what is it?”

“I’m so glad you’re home. I need your help.”

“Tell me. What do you need?”

“I’ll need your help with your father. You’re so good with him.”

“Anything, Mum. Just tell me.”

“Your sister . . .”

“What about her?” Izzy pushed.

“Her skills as a witch . . . they’re . . .” Talaith licked her lips, took a breath. “I want to send her to her grandmother for training. Proper training.”

Izzy winced. “Grandmum, eh?” She shrugged. “That won’t be easy. But I’m sure I can come up with something to get Dad to agree. Although it’ll be hard for Rhi on Devenallt Mountain, being unable to fly . . . wait. Can she fly?”

Talaith shook her head. “No, no. Not your grandmum. Your grandmother.” Talaith licked her lips again and admitted, “My mother.”

Izzy stared at her mother for a long moment. Then, when she truly understood what she was saying, Izzy flung her mother’s hands away and roared, “Have you lost your f**king mind?”

“That is enough!” Dagmar snarled, stepping between Briec and Keita and swinging her arms in an attempt to stop the ridiculous slap fight between siblings.

“Your lady is very brave,” Éibhear stated to Gwenvael before taking a bite out of the fruit he held.

“She is. I’ve seen her face down some of the worst tyrants with absolutely no fear.”

“You mean Dad?”

“He was one.” Gwenvael glanced at him. “Did you start all this?”

“I’d really say that Keita started it, but I did escalate the argument to the free-for-all you see before you.”

“Nicely handled, little brother. I’m usually the only one who creates this level of discord.”

“I’d found that creating discord, as you call it, among the Ice Landers, made them much easier to kill because they were so distracted. I have to admit . . . I’ve used that to my advantage.”

Gwenvael put his hand to his heart. “Are you saying that I helped you become a better killer?”

“You have, brother. You have.”

“I’m surprisingly proud of that.”

Dagmar faced Keita. “I thought I was to handle Lord Madock.”

“You were taking too long and once I discovered his taste for women with muscular thighs bigger than his entire body, I thought of Izzy.”

“Wait,” Briec said. “Are you saying you want Lord Madock dead?”

“You’re just getting that?”

“And you expected Izzy to kill him? A man she doesn’t even know?”

“All Izzy does every day is kill,” Keita snapped back. “She kills and she orders others to kill. So why are we acting like she’s some weak little child I’m trying to marry off?”

“Why didn’t you just ask her that then?” Dagmar wanted to know. “To take care of Madock? Rather than this pretending you want her to meet and entertain a man more than twice her senior?”