Fire Dancer (Spellbound in Sedona #2)

Chapter Twenty-Six

PIPPA

Ingo, Delaney, and I sat in the sweeping driveway, watching the building burn. And burn and burn.

Jananovich was dead. Several other vampires too. Ingo, Delaney, and I had survived. So, mission accomplished.

But damn, had it been close.

Ingo leaned into me, his furry shoulder soft against my leg. I wrapped my arms around him and held him close.

Years ago, we’d sat together like this on mountaintops, wondering about the future. Now, we were in that future, and for all the chaos around us, hope blossomed in my heart. Especially when Ingo sighed wearily and turned, coming nose-to-nose with me.

My chest warmed. We used to do that too, back when we were head over heels in love.

I spoke into Ingo’s mind, quickly correcting myself.

Still madly in love.

He flashed a tired canine smile, then nudged my side. Are you all right?

I sighed and plucked at my sleeve. “Not bad. Just a little ashy. What about you?”

He dipped his muzzle in a nod. Good enough.

He was playing it down, because I’d seen the blood. Thank goodness for accelerated shifter healing. I only had a few bruises myself, though I was dead tired from directing the fire.

Sirens blared in the distance, and people ran to and fro. From the looks of things, Kyle had enacted Plan B — calling in local police, claiming he’d received an urgent, anonymous tip about human trafficking at La Puebla.

So, whew. The police had acted quickly enough that the wolves of Twin Moon Ranch didn’t have to reveal themselves. I could sense them nearby, though, keeping a close eye on things.

Then, whoosh! A pair of dark shadows fell over us, and we all flinched.

Delaney looked up, and her eyes went wide. “Dragons?”

I nodded as Erin and Nash swooped by in dragon form.

I leave my kid sister alone for a short time, and this is what happens? Erin joked into my mind.

I grinned. You were the one who dragged me into a lightning fight.

She chuckled, then glided in a long, smooth arc while glancing around. Do we care that people are fleeing?

We do if they’re vampires, I replied.

Ingo must have communicated the same sentiment to Nash, who roared into the night and took off, belching fire. Erin joined him, and I couldn’t help being a little awed.

My sister, the dragon shifter.

And she wasn’t the only one who’d rushed to help me. I could sense Abby back home on the ranch, panting from the exertion of tapping into a vortex. Somehow, she’d channeled some of that power to me despite the intervening distance. When I got home, I would hug her.

Ingo leaned against my legs, telling me I was just as amazing. And thinking back on the past few hours… Well, maybe I was, at least a little.

“Wow.” Delaney stared as staccato bursts of dragon fire lit up the mountainside.

I decided she won my vote for most amazing tonight. She was just human — well, mostly — but she’d kept herself together enough to kill vampires, to handle the sight of Ingo shifting into wolf form, and now, to process the existence of dragons.

I was sure she was a relic, but I doubted she was aware of that part.

“No one can know,” I warned her.

She snorted, her eyes still glued to the dragons. “No one would believe me anyway.”

We watched Erin and Nash. Their eyes glowed in the dark, their wings beat, and their massive tails lashed. Every now and then, when they spat fire, an anguished cry would slice through the night.

Delaney nodded in approval. “Another one bites the dust.”

I made a mental note to ask Ingo if the agency was recruiting for vampire hunters.

But first things first. Police were pouring into the area, and fire trucks were grinding up the mountain behind them. Human police and human firefighters. It was time for Ingo to shift back to human form. But Delaney had already gotten up close and personal with enough supernatural activity for one night — plus, shifting would leave Ingo in the buff. A very buff buff, so to speak, but still.

“Over here.”

I led him to the dressing room I’d used earlier. It was eerily quiet now, except for the flash of red and blue police lights against the windows.

I retrieved my belongings while Ingo gave himself a massive nose-to-tail shake, making ash and dust fly. A short time after I rejoined Delaney, Ingo emerged in human form, wearing a pair of slacks and boots and fiddling with a shirt.

My girl parts fluttered. Did I mention my true love was buff?

He pulled on the shirt, then wrinkled his nose. “I still reek.”

We all did, though I was more concerned with the gashes on his arms and shoulders.

“Are you really okay?”

“I’ll be fine,” he assured me, though he winced a little, then sighed. “As far as injuries go, at least.”

I squinted into the flashing lights of law enforcement vehicles. “Is the agency already here?”

“No. But they will be.”

And when they appeared, they would question why Ingo had been on the property of a vampire he’d been ordered to avoid.

I tapped my lips, thinking. “Well, who’s to say you were here at all?”

He tilted his head. “What do you mean?”

Slowly, I worked it out, then whispered my plan to him and Delaney. Shortly after, Ingo disappeared into the darkness while Delaney and I walked directly toward the police.

“Remember, no mention of vampires, dragons, and definitely nothing about a wolf,” I whispered as we drew close.

“Wolf? What wolf?” she murmured. “And I didn’t see Ingo either. Never even met him.”

We raised our arms and walked into the melee at the security entrance, where a handful of police were doing their best to corral witnesses and potential suspects — including Delaney and me. Within minutes, though, Ingo appeared among the law enforcement officers.

“Who are you?” the nearest policewoman demanded when he asked to be let through.

“Special Agent Kemper,” he said.

“He’s with us,” another officer — a really hot one with spiky hair and soulful eyes — assured the first.

And just like that, Ingo was through. A few minutes later, he and Spike led us to a squad car parked close to a thick patch of woods.

“Thanks, Kyle.” Ingo patted the officer’s shoulder.

Ah, so this was Kyle Williams, the wolf shifter from Twin Moon Ranch.

“Thanks for keeping us out of this.” Kyle nodded at the woods.

The bushes rustled, and I glimpsed canine eyes glowing in the dark. When low snarls sounded, three men hurried back into the lit area, turning themselves in to the police with their hands raised.

Delaney looked at me, but I signaled that I would explain later. The Twin Moon wolves were keeping a low profile but still contributing by keeping Jananovich’s cronies — human or otherwise — from fleeing. With Erin and Nash incinerating any escaping vampires, I decided I could sleep soundly that night.

Ingo squeezed my hand, and I grinned. I would definitely sleep well tonight.

I’d done a quick head count, and all the escorts had made it out alive. They were now in police custody, but that sure beat vampires. Whatever happened next, I hoped they would steer clear of pointy-toothed supernaturals in the future.

“How will they explain themselves to the police?” I murmured, watching Kelly and Rob being led to a squad car.

“The truth, more or less,” Delaney said. “That was part of escort training. If we ever got picked up by police, we were supposed to say we were part of an escort service, and we didn’t know the details of anything higher up. Which is the truth — except for omitting the vampire part.”

A big omission, but it made sense.

Another blast of fire appeared higher up the mountain. How would Kyle explain that to his human colleagues?

He must have caught my expression, because he answered with a totally straight face. “Drones.”

I chuckled. “Drones that do what?”

He shrugged. “That will be for the ADMSA to figure out.”

Ingo sighed. “If I’m still on the job by then.”

I meant to console him, but I did a little fist pump instead.

“Hey!” poor Ingo grumbled, thinking I meant his job.

“No — I meant that. Him.” I pointed to Stacy’s bear shifter driver being handcuffed by the police.

A female officer waved for Kyle’s attention, and he excused himself. Delaney leaned against the front of the squad car, while Ingo and I moved a few steps away, watching the blaze light up the night.

“What a mess,” I murmured.

He shook his head. “A mess is when things end with a high body count. And luckily, vampires don’t leave bodies.”

“That’s the only good thing you can say about them.”

He slid an arm over my shoulders. “I just feel bad about your glass.”

I pictured my beautiful decanter and glasses. The heat of the fire would melt them to lumps, much like the raw materials I’d started with.

“Yeah, all that work… Totally worth it, though,” I decided.

Ingo shook his head sadly, and his voice cracked. “Not sure any of this was worth it. My obsession with Jananovich could have gotten you killed.”

I turned, clasping his hands. “You’re not obsessed. You’re highly principled.”

He looked rueful. “Probably a bit of both, to be honest.”

I gave his hands a little shake. “I chose to go in there, and I chose to stay after I got the camera set up. So, I get it now — why you do what you do. And I’m sorry — so sorry — for giving you such a hard time about that.”

He shook his head. “Well, I get it now, too — what you always said. Knowing you were in danger killed me.”

I wrapped him in a hug, then whispered in his ear. “Maybe we can find some kind of compromise.”

“We will.” He held me tighter, rocking from side to side. “I promise.”

* * *

I did sleep well that night. At least, what was left of the night after we stumbled home — my home — in the wee hours of the night. Ingo and I even slept in, though sleeping wasn’t all we did when the sun came up. But, hey. I’d survived an evening with a hoard of hungry vampires. I deserved it.

After dozing off, I woke up feeling dreamy, satisfied, and so proud of myself, it was practically criminal.

Leave it to reality to bring me down a few notches.

“Wakey, wakey, sleeping beauties.” Erin knocked on the frame of the stall that served as my bedroom.

The clock showed nine — which really wasn’t that late, considering.

“We have company,” she finished, keeping her eyes averted.

I cringed. “Is it Mom?”

“Even worse,” she said, dead serious.

Ingo groaned. “Captain Edwards?”

“Bingo,” Erin said. “He’s over at the main house, demanding to see Ingo, pronto.”

Ingo flipped the covers over our heads. “Leave it to Edwards to know where to find me.”

The question was, what else did Ingo’s boss know?

We washed and dressed quickly, then headed over to the main house, where a tank of a man sat on the porch, surrounded by Claire and her horses.

Abby winked as Ingo and I approached. I told him he’d have to wait, and he got all huffy. Then Claire worked her magic.

I grinned. Ah, to be a cute eight-year-old again. The things I’d gotten away with back then…

Ingo cleared his throat. “You wanted to see me, Captain?”

Edwards spun, his gaze going from soft to blistering. “You bet your ass, I did.” Then he froze and looked at Claire. “Er, I meant ass, as in donkey.”

Claire giggled, while Abby sent him a withering look that said How dare you use such language around my daughter?

Never mind that Claire had heard worse from Abby and the rest of us.

“Let’s go, sweetheart,” Abby snipped, gathering Claire and her toy horses.

“Bye, Mr. Eddie,” Claire called sweetly. “Say bye, Seabiscuit.”

She made a nickering sound, and Captain Edwards waggled his fingers. The minute she left, he transformed back into a hard-nosed law enforcement officer.

A very hot, silver fox of a law enforcement officer. Not my type, but still.

Except, ugh. He was my mother’s type — or had been when they’d had a fling many years ago. I’d met Edwards once under equally regrettable circumstances, when his ire had been aimed at Nash. Now, it was aimed at Ingo, who had defied direct orders to keep away from Jananovich.

“Bye,” Abby muttered on her way to the car with Claire.

I raised a hand, then dropped it. Thanking Abby for her help would have to wait. She and Claire were already late for school and work.

We moved inside, and Edwards took a seat at the dining room table. Ingo and I stood, and for a long minute, the only sound was the tap of Edwards’s fingers over the table.

I crossed my arms firmly. This was my house — sort of — and my property. Well, one-third my property. But still. He’d better not expect me to obey any commands.

Tap, tap, tap, went his fingers as he glared at Ingo.

I wondered what that spelled in Morse code. And, huh. Was Edwards old enough to know Morse code?

Tap, tap, tap.

What kind of supernatural was he? Dragon? Wolf? Warlock? All I got from his scent was Calvin Klein Eternity.

Tap, tap, tap.

I rolled my eyes. “How can we help you, Captain?”

His eyes strayed toward the kitchen. Had the tapping been Morse code for Aren’t you going to offer me a coffee?

I kept my gaze level. No. I wasn’t.

He made a face, then spoke, studying us for our reactions. “I’m here about the fire.” When neither of us replied, he scowled and went on. “The fire at Victor Jananovich’s property.”

I lifted one shoulder. “Oh. That fire.”

Edwards snorted. “What were you doing there?”

The question was aimed at Ingo, who answered evenly. “I heard the call on local police frequency and followed it.”

“Despite the restraining order?”

“Yes, sir. I felt it important an agency member was present to pick up on what human law enforcement might overlook.”

Edwards didn’t look impressed. “What a coincidence.” Then he turned to me. “What about you?”

I flashed an innocent smile. “I was in the catering crew.”

“Catering,” Edwards echoed in the same disbelieving tone . “And what about the fire? Any idea what set it off?”

I opened my mouth, nearly blurting something like, Yes, I did, and it was awesome. I had to coax the fire over from all the way across the house.

Ingo coughed into his hand, and I reworked my answer. “I don’t know, but Jananovich did have a fire going in the fireplace and lots of candles. Maybe that started it.”

And, oh, the irony. I had finally controlled fire, but I couldn’t even take credit for it.

Edwards made a show of checking a notebook that probably didn’t hold anything more incriminating than pizza delivery numbers. “I understand your father is a pyromancer.”

I arched an eyebrow. “And my mother is a dragon. But you know that, don’t you?”

Ha. A hint of a blush showed on his cheeks. I just hoped that was chagrin and not a flush of longing.

“Ah. Your mother. I don’t suppose she’s in town?” His firm voice went wobbly for the first time.

God, I hoped n—

The door swung open, and my mother sauntered in. Just like that, as if this were her home and not ours.

“What is this I hear about vampires?”

No hello. No hug. No Oh my goodness. Are you all right, sweetheart?

Edwards lit up like a golden retriever greeting its long-lost owner, but she took no notice until he whispered dreamily.

“Virginia…”

She glanced over, dismissing him in a nanosecond. “Oh. Hello, Todd.”

“Tom,” he murmured.

Textbook proof that hope springs eternal.

Edwards dragged his eyes away from Mom’s svelte figure just long enough to check his hair in the mirror.

“I didn’t know about the vampires when I took the catering job,” I fibbed.

Edwards scratched his chin. “Well, you and your sisters certainly have a way of finding trouble. That was quite a blaze that consumed the property.”

Mom beamed with pride. “So I hear.”

I heaved an inner sigh. All those soccer games I’d played my heart out in as a child… Had she ever shown any interest?

No. Never.

My most beautiful glassworks… Did any of them elicit the slightest hint of approval?

Not a glimmer.

But burning down a multimillion-dollar property — that tickled Mom’s pickle. Maybe that came with descending from generations of fire-breathing dragons — the love of reducing things to ashes.

“It was terrible,” I told Edwards, and it had been. Just not the way he imagined. “All I could do was call for help and do my best to get people out of the building.”

And stake a few vampires along the way, I wished I could add.

“There. You see?” My mother sniffed. “All quite innocent. And there wouldn’t have been any trouble to get caught up in if you had been doing your job at that agency of yours.” She looked at Edwards, all miffed and haughty, like she was the one who’d dedicated her life to public service.

“That was his job,” he grumbled, pointing at Ingo.

“Not when it came to Jananovich,” Ingo said. “As per your orders, I couldn’t go near him or investigate his activities.”

The sour look on Edwards’s face was priceless.

My mother scoffed. “Vampires.”

As if dragons had such a spotless track record.

Edwards continued his monotone interrogation. “Jananovich is presumed dead, as are several other vampires, including Gregor Hadik. I don’t suppose you saw him there?”

I shook my head. “I didn’t recognize any of them, sorry. Well, one looked like John Lennon…”

Edwards didn’t seem interested. Not in that one anyway.

I shrugged. “It was my first time catering for vampires.”

“First and last,” my mother grumbled.

She didn’t mean the vampires part. More like catering, a job beneath the dignity of a dragon.

Edwards pulled out one of those sketches the police made when they didn’t have a photo of the suspect. And, oh. Was it just that they’d never snapped one, or because vampires didn’t show up in photos? Or had modern technology changed that since digital cameras didn’t use mirrors?

I made a mental note to ask Ingo later.

Edwards tapped the sketch. “Gregor Hadik. Ring a bell?”

“Not the name, but I saw him there,” I said.

I also saw Ingo kill him, but why bore Edwards with such details?

“Gregor?” My mother snorted at the sketch. “No loss there. Such a prick.” Then she chuckled. “Ha. Get it? Prick? Vampire?”

I frowned. “I could have died, Mom.”

“Don’t be so dramatic. I didn’t raise my daughters to die foolishly.”

More accurately, she hadn’t raised us, period. But there was no winning with my mother.

Captain Edwards returned to the original subject. “I can’t say I’ll mourn Hadik. Been wanting to put that bastard away for years.”

My hopes rose. If Edwards was pleased about that, he might not push hard about Ingo’s involvement in the whole episode.

“Well, then. All’s well that ends well,” my mother concluded.

It would be if law enforcement operated that way. But, heck. My mother had worked her magic on Edwards when Nash had been in the hot seat. Maybe she could do the same now.

When she yawned and asked for coffee, I seized my opportunity.

“We’re all out. But there’s a great place in town for brunch. Great views, great service…”

Mom didn’t look interested, but she did perk up when I threw Cute waiters into her mind.

“You really must buy a decent coffee machine,” she grumbled.

Yeah, just for her and her infrequent, unannounced visits. I would make a note to add that to our list of priority expenses, right up there with the thousands we owed in property taxes.

I drooped at the thought. We’d solved our vampire problem but not our financial issues. My hopes of winning the $25,000 prize had died with Jananovich.

Ingo touched my back, reminding me to look on the bright side.

I threw him a grateful smile. Yeah, it had definitely been worth it.

“Brunch is a great idea,” Ingo told Edwards. “I could write a full report of the incident while you’re there. I mean, the little I witnessed,” he added quickly.

“It’s an all-you-can-eat brunch, and they have the best espresso in town.” I threw a pointed look at my mother. Ask for Conrad.

Her eyes glittered. “Maybe I will try it…”

I nodded eagerly. “You really should. Plus, it would give you a chance to catch up with Todd — er, Tom.”

I was operating on Pavlov’s principle, because it could come in handy for Edwards to associate our ranch with the positive reward of my mother.

Which struck me as ironic, but I supposed one man’s reward was another’s worst nightmare.

Edwards scowled at Ingo, but his longing eyes betrayed hope when it came to my mother. Finally, he grumbled and stood.

“I expect a full report in two hours.”

“Or three,” my mother murmured, licking her lips. Was she thinking of coffee, Conrad the cute waiter, or Captain Edwards? Maybe all three?

I cut off the thought. I really, really didn’t need to go there.

Ingo nodded curtly. “Yes, sir.”

Edwards stepped to the door, nodding absently.

I ushered them outside. “The brunch place — the Chinchilla — is right in the middle of town. You can’t miss it.”

They stopped on the porch, sizing each other up. Then Edwards stuck out an elbow in a shy, hopeful gesture. My mother sighed — so much suffering, all before ten in the morning — but finally wound her arm through his and sashayed away. And — double shocker — I even saw her flash Edwards a coy smile when he opened his car door for her.

Dashing little bastard, wasn’t he?

“Wow. That went well,” I murmured as they drove off.

Ingo grinned, sliding an arm over my shoulders. “It did. Though, the last thing I want to do now is write a report.”

I looped my arms around him, coming face-to-face. “Ah, but when you’re done, you can take a few days off…”

He smiled ruefully. “True. I have accumulated a lot of vacation time…”

A lot? He probably had months . But I vowed to help him work that down in the near future.

I grinned, studying his lips. “You think you can survive a whole day off?”

He slid his hands up my sides. “Oh, I think we can find some way to fill the time.”

“Like helping me at the shop?”

He laughed. “If you need it, yes.”

“Or lending a hand around the ranch?”

He looked around, smiling at what he saw. “Just what I need for a little work-life balance.” Then he went all serious. “I swear, I’ll work on that.”

I smiled. “I swear, I’ll help you.”

We hugged, rocking back and forth slightly. Then we drew apart, and I walked him to his car, sending him off with a pat on his perfect ass.

“Go get that report written, mister.”

“And the request for vacation time filed,” he added, sliding into the Jeep. “See you later?”

I nodded firmly. “The sooner, the better.”