Braeden grimaced. “No offense, but that’s the last thing on my mind right now. Who’s got time for love when someone like Steele is out there? You saw him. Something’s not right. And I’m determined to find out what’s going on.”
“First thing to do will be to find their hiding place.” Timothy tilted his head at Braeden. “But then, that’s probably not a secret to you...”
“They might have moved,” Braeden said, shrugging. “They assumed I betrayed them. That’s why they kept coming after me.”
“Wait a minute,” Liana said slowly. “They wouldn’t come after you if they didn’t think you were a danger. So there’s something you must know. Something they’re afraid of.”
“I assumed it was just because I know their location.” Braeden paused for a moment. “Of course, they could have moved meanwhile—but it would be easier to just kill me to keep the secret from getting out.”
“There it is then,” Jared said triumphantly. “You know. Where are they hiding?”
“It’s my secret.” Braeden hesitated. Then, obviously annoyed, he said, “I’ll tell the chimera before I leave. Just in case, you know. But I don’t want any of you to interfere while I’m trying to get in. Anyway, they’re not all bad. All you’ve seen is Steele’s lackeys. But there are families as well. More reasonable fire dragons. Maybe, if I were to talk to some of them, see if they know anything...”
“That’s the stupidest plan I’ve ever heard. So you're going to fly straight into a fire dragon stronghold?”
Even though Timothy was glad that he’d finally get a break from constantly having to babysit a fire dragon, that didn’t mean that he wanted Braeden to die on a suicidal mission.
“You don’t know anything about us,” Braeden said, glaring at Timothy. “Anyway, you better hope I’m successful. Your last encounter with Steele didn’t go all that well, did it, oh mighty dragon of water?”
Timothy glared back. And then, out of nowhere, the water in the glass in front of Braeden rose up all by itself, only to splash straight into Braeden’s face.
Braeden sputtered, then jumped to his feet. And even though he knew it wasn’t exactly the adult way of dealing with all the stress they were under, Timothy couldn’t stop smirking at the way their dragon of fire looked exactly like an extremely pissed off, bedraggled cat.
Timothy kept smirking, even though there were now flames dancing in Braeden’s eyes.
And then Ginny banged on the table with her fist, looking furious.
Everyone fell silent and looked at her with an expression of shock. Ginny, who was usually so shy and soft-spoken, now looked extremely put-out.
“You’re the council of elements,” she said cuttingly, “and you behave like a crowd of spoiled teenagers. Really, Timothy, Braeden, I expect better from both of you. And that goes for all of you as well.”
Damon and Gregory sobered, their own smirks immediately vanishing off their faces.
“We’re under attack, and you’ve all got mates to care for. Instead of looking after them, you’re fighting. In my kitchen! And I won’t have it.”
Ginny stood with her hands on her hips, looking at them with an expression of deep disappointment.
Timothy felt guilt well up inside him.
Ginny was right. It was a formidable threat. And he needed to remember that most other shifters didn’t have their powers to protect them.
Ginny wouldn’t be able to defend herself against a fire dragon. Neither would their human mates, or most of the shifters in his own home town.
Maybe it was time to stop arguing and work together instead.
“She’s right,” Braeden said after a moment, looking chagrined. “I’m sorry. I’ve accepted the chimera’s mission, and I’m going to do my best to eliminate the threat. But if that doesn’t work out, I’ll return and tell you everything I’ve found. Steele needs to be stopped, and it doesn’t matter how.”
Timothy stood and held out his hand. Braeden hesitated, then clasped it.
“Ginny is right. We’re a team now, all of us,” Timothy declared. “If we want to defeat this threat, we’ll have to work together.”
“I know you’ll do all you can to stop him,” Autumn said. She gave Braeden a worried look. “But you’ve got to promise you’ll come back and ask for help if you need it. You’re my friend, Braeden. I don’t want you to get hurt.”
“None of us want that,” Liana said in agreement. Then she gave Braeden a small smile. “Anyway, you’ve got to come back. Now that your powers are unlocked again, we’ll need your dragonfire for our next beach barbecue.”
Timothy nodded. “I’ll bring the fish, you bring the fire?”
“Deal,” Braeden said, and then they shook hands again.