"So the volcano is the place to go if you want to ask Kifirin for something?" That made me chuckle. Honestly, I wondered about the volcanic scent I smelled around him at times.
"The Dragon's Teeth are nearby, too. That is the way for the High Demons to ask Kifirin for something. They should have asked long ago for him to wake and control the copper Ra'Ak. They did not."
"So, how did he wake, then?"
"Someone finally remembered how to wake Kifirin when it was nearly too late. The Dragon's teeth require blood. The blood given was almost too dear."
"That seems a little drastic," I said.
"It was," Roff nodded.
"It sounds like you've had a tough time," I gave him a quick hug.
"I would endure it all again if it would mean I could come to you," he sighed.
"Roff, you need to stop, you're going to make me think I'm more important than I am," I said. "And we don't need that." I patted his shoulder and walked toward the door. "Do you need help carrying anything downstairs?"
"No, Raona. I can get this easily."
"Merrill wants us downstairs in fifteen minutes. I'm going to grab my things. I'll meet you there." I trotted down the hallway. I'd left Gavin in his bedroom, packing his bags. At least he could do that for himself.
Gavin hadn't just packed his things; he'd carried all our bags down to the garage. He and René were making Tony load up the back of the Range Rover. Poor Tony—he was the rookie, looked like. Tony didn't seem to give a damn; he was having fun flinging heavy bags around as if they were throw pillows.
Griffin and Amara came to see me off; Griffin told me they might drop in on us now and then, just to say hello. I nodded. Amara hugged me. Griffin got a hug and a kiss before letting me go. Franklin and Greg got big hugs too. I was worried about Greg but afraid to say anything—his blood scent was far from normal. Roff appeared, carrying his bags easily; he truly was stronger than he looked. He and Tony got the last bags loaded in and we were ready to go.
The Council's jet was flying us to Dallas, and we were packed to the roof inside the Range Rover. Gavin held me on his lap, which was against the law since I wasn't wearing a seat belt. Roff was scrunched between Tony and René in the back seat. Merrill drove us to the airport and we were loaded on the jet in very little time. I recalled that I hadn't flown with Gavin since our trip back from Florida. This time I sat next to him, while Roff sat across the aisle. This was old habit for Tony; I figured his hands were itching to send emails or something as he and René found seats. Roff was excited; he'd never done anything like this before.
We were in the air for nine hours, stopping once to refuel and landing in Dallas around midnight local time due to the time difference. Winkler, Rhett and Dalroy were waiting there to meet us. Winkler provided two of his company-owned SUVs, so we were loaded up and hauled off to Winkler's home outside Denton.
"Are you sure this is safe?" I asked as Winkler stole a hug while Gavin stood by, frowning. I didn't want to put him or his unborn children in danger by staying with him.
"It'll be all right," Winkler grinned at me. "I'm putting all of you in the guesthouse. We haven't closed on your house next door or I'd let you stay there." So many things had happened; I'd forgotten he was buying it for me.
In the meantime, I was no stranger to the guesthouse. Gavin, Roff and I got the top floor for old times' sake; René and Tony took the bottom floor. The only difference was that this time Gavin and I shared a bed; Roff slept in the second bedroom. "Do you know how many times I wanted to come in and climb in bed with you?" Gavin asked as I hefted a suitcase on the king-size bed and unpacked a few things. Winkler had renovated since we'd stayed before—the bath had new tile and granite counters, the bedroom had new carpet, drapes and blinds. He'd spared no expense, I noticed.
"Hmmph," I grumbled at Gavin's question. "You didn't stop yourself from coming in and undressing me before digging around in my shoulder for that bullet."
"Cara, the feel of your skin under my hands almost drove me wild," Gavin came to nuzzle my neck. "I had to force myself to focus on the task instead."
"Uh-huh," I said. "Don't go down that road, Gavin. You know what happened not long after that." He'd placed compulsion and hauled me off to the Council. That still pissed me off every time I thought about it.
"Cara, put that out of your mind, I beg you," Gavin said, turning me in his arms. "This is our first time traveling when we are truly together. I do not wish to ruin this."
"You know what I remember?" I said. "I remember dancing with you at the wedding reception that we crashed. You had your eyes closed on the last dance, Gavin. I always wondered what it was you were thinking about right then."
"You wish to know this?" He blinked at me before lowering his head to steal a kiss. I shrugged when he pulled away. "For just a moment, I pretended that you were mine," he admitted. "That there was nothing standing between us and that you loved me. I wanted to take you to my home and keep you, cara. That is what I was thinking."
I let my forehead droop against his chest and he wrapped his arms around me. "I love you, cara mia. More than I have ever loved anything. You have to forgive my desire to lock you away at times; I only wish to keep you safe."
"What would you have done if the vote had gone the other way?" I leaned away from him and studied his eyes—they were a beautiful, deep brown. I stroked fingers through his thick, close-cropped brown hair before trailing a finger down his cheek. "You were set to kill me, Gavin. What would you have done afterward?" My fingers traced the line of his jaw. It was strong, that jaw, his lips fine and well-shaped. He quirked a dark brow and a corner of his mouth lifted slightly at my touch.
"Probably what I did anyway," he replied, kissing my fingers. "I drove straight to El Diablo and proceeded to get as drunk as I could. Flavio had to haul me away; I spent the day in his townhome afterward. I was terrified that you could never bring yourself to speak with me or care for me."
"Flavio," I huffed, moving away from Gavin. "He couldn't wait to tell Wlodek how I'd misbehaved in New Mexico."
"Cara, he was only doing his duty."
"Yeah? If they were discussing a beating for you, do you think I'd just let them do it? They'd get an earful, I think. There would be no doubt in their minds as to what I thought of all of them, too."