Serpent's Kiss (Elder Races #3)(97)

Dragos said, “Later. Has she bound you with that favor you owed her, or restricted your ability to act in any way?”

The pointed question threw Rune off track. “No,” he said again. “Forget about that, it’s no longer important. Listen—”

“All right,” Dragos interrupted. “Here’s what has been happening in the rest of the world. I’ve been consulting with the Nightkind King, and also with other members of the Elder tribunal. Julian had quite a tale to tell. Apparently Carling’s been blanking out and affecting the physical landscape around her. Have you seen any of this for yourself?”

Rune set his teeth. “Yes,” he said. “That’s what we’re dealing with right now. What else did that bastard say?”

“He petitioned the tribunal to remove Carling as Councillor for the Nightkind demesne. He claimed she’s no longer fit to hold office. They agreed with him. I talked with Jaggar and Councillor Soren. Carling’s been removed from the Elder tribunal.”

Jaggar was the Wyr Councillor on the Elder tribunal. Soren was the Demonkind Councillor and head of the tribunal. If Carling was no longer a tribunal Councillor, she no longer had the authority or the weight of the Elder tribunal behind her. If anything happened to her, the Elder tribunal would no longer act in retaliation. She was now completely isolated, without anyone backing her. Julian had just set her up to take her out. Rune’s hand tightened on the phone. He heard something crack.

He said evenly, “Is there anything else?”

“Yes,” Dragos said. “The other gryphons are weirded out. They’ve insisted three times now that something has changed, twice over the weekend and once today. Only they can’t verbalize what that is, they just know something has happened. Graydon said it was like reality had shifted, only he couldn’t tell what might have changed. Have you experienced anything like that?”

“Look, you’re going to have to let me get a word in edgewise here,” Rune said between his teeth. “Yes, Carling and I have caused some things to happen—”

“Three times?” Dragos said. “You and she caused something to happen—you caused reality to shift three times?”

“Let me f**king explain what we did,” Rune bit out.

But the dragon’s anger was roused. He growled, “When Carling blanks out, she affects the landscape around her. Then you and she do something that Bayne, Constantine and Graydon felt all the way from here in New York, and you did it not once but three times? What the f**k did you do?”

Rune looked out the window at the spray of stars and electric lights. We changed history, he thought. We changed each other. We changed the world.

“Tell the other gryphons not to worry,” he said. “It’s going to be all right.”

“It better by-gods be all right,” Dragos said grimly. “Tell me about the rest of it later. I want you out of there, immediately.”

“I can’t do that, Dragos,” Rune said quietly. He stared out the window as he watched the end of his life approach.

“You said Carling had not restricted your movements,” Dragos said.

“She hasn’t.”

“Then you can do it. Julian’s preparing to take Carling out, and I don’t want you anywhere near that fallout when it hits.”

“She was a good ally to you,” Rune said to the male who had just become his former friend.

“Yes she was, but the Wyr can’t be involved in this problem too. We’ve still got border tensions with the Elves, and we’ve involved ourselves too deeply in the Dark Fae problems for too long. We’re overextended, understaffed and short on political tolerance. And anyway, I don’t blame Julian. If someone was that unstable and posted that kind of threat to my demesne, I would be making moves to do the same thing. So get out of there and get your ass home.”

“No,” Rune said.

That was when the dragon’s voice got very quiet. “I don’t think I heard you correctly.”

“You heard me correctly.”

“What do you mean, no? Have you lost your f**king mind?”

“I mean no. I quit. Effective right now.”

“You can’t quit. I won’t let you.”

“Think I just did,” Rune said.

“You’re making a very big mistake,” growled the Lord of the Wyr.

“What’s that you say, Dragos? I can’t hear you. You’re breaking up,” Rune said as he crushed his iPhone.

EIGHTEEN

In the bedroom, Seremela tactfully looked out the window as Carling stripped. Carling had lost all vestige of modesty within her first hundred years of existence, but for the doctor’s sake, she slipped on a hotel bathrobe. Then she patiently put up with a very thorough medical examination.

“I’m not sure what to make of this,” Seremela murmured. “But your temperature is elevated.”

“Is it?” Her eyebrows rose. “By how much?”

“A good five degrees. No doubt you already know that Vampyres tend to reflect the temperature of their surroundings, which in most rooms tends to be around seventy to seventy-two degrees. You’re running hot at seventy-six point five.” Seremela popped the plastic off her thermometer and tucked the thermometer away in her physician’s bag.