Page 140 of Scales ’N’ Spells: Volume One

“What are you thinking?” he prodded.

“It’s a big city, and we can’t give you too many definites on his location, but you have run into each other a few times now,” she started slowly.

“Yes, usually in or around Esplanadi Park.”

“That means if he wanted to avoid you, he would just have to avoid that park. You might not run into him again if he did that. I think you keep seeing him because he’s curious about you. And I think it’s going to be easier to see him again. You’ve given him information that his own clan lied about, plus you’ve proven to be a source of funds if he runs low again. He might actually have less reason to run now.”

His tension eased, reassured by her words. It did make more sense for him to stay if Baldewin was tossing money at him. He didn’t think Tori felt threatened by him, but then he’d never suspected an entire clan of mages could actually believe that dragons would hurt them or betray them. It was so very illogical and counter to everything he believed. Why would dragons ever hurt the very source of their joy?

“Thank you, Cassie. Your words have eased my mind. I think you’re right.”

“No problem, Big B. I’ll keep an eye on him, call if he starts getting too close to the train, bus, or ferry stations. I got your back.”

Baldewin ended the call and nodded to Warin, who released a relieved sigh. Now that his panic had subsided, there was little doubt in his mind that Cassie would have helped him even if he hadn’t agreed to her extortion attempt. She was of the same mindset as the rest of the clan—they helped each other no matter what. They all believed in and supported each other. Every new mage made them all stronger, not just the dragon who was lucky enough to find a mate.

It was also clear to Baldewin that Tori had not been lucky enough to grow up in a supportive clan like that. The mage needed a true home where he would be loved, supported, and cherished by his clanmates. He needed to be brought to Burkhard.

But how the hell was Baldewin supposed to get him there when he believed the very worst about dragons?

This was the strangest cat and mouse game he’d ever played in his life. Every time Tori looked around, he’d catch sight of either Baldewin or the other dragon apparently called Warin. He’d go into a building, submit an application, and they would be lurking outside every time. They never engaged, never tried to speak with him, but they always seemed to be right on the fringe of his peripheral vision.

It was sort of like stalking. Or maybe just an unwanted protective detail. Baldewin was adamant about the whole mages-being-kidnapped thing. He didn’t mistake this as anything other than protection.

It might have been sweet under different circumstances. As it stood, it was just annoying. They had no cause to protect Tori. He wasn’t one of them and never would be.

First off, he still didn’t entirely trust the dragons thanks to thirty-five years of having it pounded in his head that dragons were evil.

Yes, thirty minutes in the library had proven everything Baldewin had said was the truth. Stacks and stacks of books had said the same thing—the Jaeggi started the Dragon War over jealousy and a need for revenge. He still didn’t know if his own clan leaders had known the truth or had been fooled as well, but that was the least of his concerns.

Secondly, a mage might be the mate for a dragon, but his real purpose in life was to cast spells, to work magic. Tori was a failure as a mage. While the Burkhard dragons might not have a problem with him being a man or gay, they would undoubtedly have issues with his lack of ability. After a lifetime of rejection from his clan, why the hell would he ever set himself up to be rejected by another clan? That was insane.

No, he was safer and better off on his own. No one to judge him. No one to call him a failure.

All he could do was ignore his hopeful stalkers and go about his own business. Really, finances alone forced him to be practical and not try to flip the tables on them somehow.

He entered the Uudenmaan TE-toimisto, an employment center, and went through the jobs listed there. It was a plain, red-brick building that looked rather governmental and efficient, and the interior matched.

Well, someone had thrown in octagonal stools of bright greens and blues to liven up the color scheme a bit, but the white walls and acoustic ceiling tiles and grey floor overpowered all color attempts.

He sat down on one of them anyway to review his options. Even a seasonal job would do at this point. He was quickly eating—no pun intended—through the money he’d gotten from Baldewin.

His motel was paid up for a week, so at least he had shelter. But constantly eating takeout was getting expensive quickly. He had no means of cooking at his motel room, so buying groceries wasn’t really an option, unless they were frozen meals he could reheat with the tiny microwave in his room. Which he did, as much as possible. But food was expensive.

Hell, life was expensive.

For one wild moment, he considered taking Baldewin up on his offer to go and see the clan, if for no other reason than they’d take care of his expenses for a few days while he waited to hear back from an employer. The hiring process was slow, sometimes taking months, and it was time Tori didn’t have.

But no. No, that was a poor life decision. He didn’t trust Baldewin and Warin enough to go with them, for one. For another, if things went poorly—and he fully expected them to—it would leave him stranded in a foreign country where he didn’t speak the language. And traveling back to Finland would be expensive as hell.

Besides, knowing his luck, as soon as he was out of the country, he’d get a job offer and wouldn’t be in the right position to take it.

Yeah, okay, no. Let’s not do crazy things, Tori.

He found three jobs he felt he had a good chance at, so he filled in the applications for those. By the time he was done, his phone was fully charged.

It was well past lunch time, and his stomach moaned plaintively. He couldn’t afford to feed it. One meal a day was all he could do, but water sounded like a good idea. Maybe with enough water, his stomach wouldn’t feel so lonely and rejected.

Tori turned in the applications and headed out. Water first, then back to the motel so he could do some laundry. His two other outfits needed a wash if he was to have clean clothes for tomorrow, and maybe he’d throw in the sheets this time, have clean bedding tonight. The one upside to the crappy motel was that it had its own laundry room.