How to Drive a Dragon Crazy (Dragon Kin #6)(50)

Dropping onto a boulder, Izzy stared out over the calm lake. “I don’t trust that woman.”

“Your mum?”

“No. That bitch who bred her.”

“I can’t say that I blame you. Do you think your mother’s really going to send Rhi to her?”

“I do. But that’s madness. What if she turns her against us? Giving that evil bitch someone as powerful as my sister seems a foolish move.”

“But keeping your sister here with no way to control her power seems more foolish. At least if she destroys everything around her, she’ll be safely in the south and far from us.”

Izzy gawked at her cousin, and Brannie added, “Not that I don’t care about the Desert Land people. I’m just saying it won’t be our problem.”

Looking back at the lake, Izzy wondered what would be the best decision. Trusting her mother was making the best decision about a woman who’d tossed her out while pregnant and barely sixteen?

“What do you need, Iz?”

Yeah, that was Brannie’s way. If she didn’t have an answer, then she wanted to know what she could do for you to help you get through whatever your problem was. An important trait in an ally during battle. An invaluable trait to have in a friend.

“I need time to think. This isn’t some battle I’m going into. This is my sister’s life. But trying to find time to think with this family . . . the twins will want me in the training ring, Rhi will want to talk dresses—although Keita’s here, so she may help with that—and my mother will keep staring at me, waiting for me to talk to her about it.”

“I’ve got the perfect thing,” Bran said excitedly. “Go to me da’s place.”

“Why?”

“He’s here to meet with Annwyl and Rhiannon tomorrow. The place is empty except for his assistant. And that one’s quiet as a mouse. You’ll just need to bring back one of Da’s all important papers.”

Izzy finally smiled. “I love your father. He’s so nice.”

“Isn’t he?”

“And yet none of his children—”

“Yes,” Brannie cut in. “We know. We know.”

Disgusted, Éibhear walked on, his hand around Frederik’s small shoulders.

“We don’t know why you’re mad,” Aidan argued from behind them. “It’s not like we haven’t done this before.”

“But to involve the boy—”

“We didn’t involve the boy. You did. You sent him.”

“To drag you lot off the floor of a pub. Not get you from the jail.”

“Still don’t see how that’s our fault,” Cas complained.

“And he didn’t have enough money for all three of us.”

Éibhear stopped walking, faced the dragons behind him. “What do you mean he didn’t have enough?” he asked Uther, who’d made the statement.

“He didn’t.”

“Then how did he get all three of you . . .” Éibhear briefly closed his eyes. “Please tell me you didn’t”—and he covered the boy’s ears with his hands, although it was more like he wrapped his hands around the boy’s entire head because the area was so small—“kill the jailer!”

“Of course we didn’t. Wait.” Uther thought a moment. “Could we have? I thought that wasn’t okay here.”

“If you didn’t kill the jailer, how did you get out?”

“The boy convinced him,” Cas admitted.

“And he was good, too.” Aidan smiled at the boy. “Could talk his way out of anything, I think.”

Now impressed, Éibhear patted the boy on the back, the slight youth stumbling a bit. “Excellent job.”

“Thank you, sir.”

The boy walked on and that’s when Aidan added, “Didn’t have to pay a gold farthing.” The boy stopped walking. “Got us out for nothing.”

Before Éibhear could not ask where the money he’d given Frederik was—he didn’t really care—the boy faced him, light grey eyes wide as he said sadly, “I just wanted to help you, my lord. You and your friends. It’s so hard,” he added sadly, his eyes now downcast, “to find out you’re not wanted. But maybe I can make myself useful here. Perhaps.”

Then, with a sad sigh, he turned and walked off.

“Oh,” Éibhear reasoned, “he’ll do well here.”

“Gods, that was brilliant,” Aidan laughed. “I couldn’t have done better myself.”

“Isn’t that your Iseabail?”

“She’s not my any—” Éibhear cut himself off, watching as Izzy slipped out of the forest from farther down the well-traveled road and joined the mass of people walking toward the nearby town. “Where’s she off to then?”

“Crazy thought . . . into town?”

Éibhear glared at Aidan before refocusing on Izzy. “With her horse and that damn, disgusting dog? And dressed for travel?”

“There’s Branwen.” Aidan pointed at Éibhear’s cousin, who was on the road back to Garbhán Isle. “I’m sure if you ask her nicely she might—”