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I grasped the corners of the trunk and lifted an eyebrow. “Why that?”
“Mirum may be a pit of ignominy regarding its dark markets and even darker contracts-” he mused as he nodded at the closet door, “-but it does have some fine culture, and the Master would no doubt appreciate attending some of their fine galas given by his oldest friends.”
My eyes widened a little. “You mean other dragons?”
He nodded. “I do. Many reside in that city, and it has been well over ten years since we last visited there.”
I smiled at him. “I’ll be sure to pack all the suits that will fit after I get the socks in.”
Raines bowed his head and left me to the packing. Fortunately, in my past life I had once worked as a stocker in aclothes department and the chore was soon accomplished with some decent success. The trunk was full to the brim when I hopped onto the lid and locked the clasp.
I was still sitting on my triumph when Thorn made his reappearance. He paused in the doorway to admire me. “Have you finished already?”
I folded my arms over my chest and grinned. “Yep. What about you?”
“The house is shut up but for the windows in this room,” he told me as he strode across the room and shut the covers. “Raines is even now harnessing the horses to the carriage.”
“He told me you had a lot of friends in Mirum,” I mused as I watched him move over to another window.
“Quite a few,” he admitted with a fond smile as he darkened the room. “We will be boarding with one of them during our stay, or so I hope.”
I lifted an eyebrow. “Why wouldn’t they take you in?”
He turned to face me and some of his good humor failed him. “Three years ago there was an attempted kidnapping of his bride.
His words rekindled a memory within me. “You mean Lord Torch?”
Thorn’s eyes widened a little. “You know of him?”
“My kidnappers, not the ones you hired but the other ones, mentioned him and his bride,” I revealed. “Speaking of the ones you hired, did they ever come back?”
“Yes, while you were sleeping,” Thorn revealed as he reached into one pocket and drew out a small stone. “But you’re really asking for this, are you not?”
I hopped off the trunk and moved over to study the small gem. It was a beautiful sapphire with such clarity that I could see right through it. “That’s the chosen stone?”
“Mychosen stone,” Thorn corrected me as he set it in my hand. “Each of my kind goes in search of a magic stone in the quarries of our ancestors in order to find ourselves a bride. I picked this gem up some five centuries ago.”
“Wow,” I breathed as I held it out to him.
He shook his head. “I swore to you that you could have the stone. Consider it a wedding present.”
My eyes widened and I clasped the stone in both hands against my chest. “Really?”
Thorn smiled. “It belongs to you as much as it does to me.”
“Sir?” The call came from the doorway where Raines stood. “The carriage is prepared.”
Thorn offered me his arm. “Shall we go?”
I looped my arm around his and nodded. “I’m ready.”
Or so I thought.
CHAPTER TWELVE
I couldn’t helpbut poke my head out the carriage window for the two-dozenth time. The vehicle was a large affair with two seats opposite one another. Raines sat atop the box with a pair of fine brown steeds to pull us along.
The scenery was completely unfamiliar to me and so was all the more exciting to behold. We passed through the forest where I had been kidnapped by the trio and their traitorous horsemen. I couldn’t help but study the spot where their wagon had been parked and look over my shoulder at my host.
