Tori’s nervousness was clear; he didn’t readily let go of Baldewin. He looked perfectly ready to turn right back around and leave that very second. Baldewin leaned in to kiss him, gentle and sweet. Against his lips, he promised, “I have you.”
There was an answering kiss, just as sweet. “You’re the only reason I have the courage to return here. Just don’t set fire to the place.”
“You’re taking all the fun out of this,” Baldewin accused, mostly to make him smile.
Tori snorted, but he let go and opened the door, cool wind blowing past them. Baldewin followed him out and felt instantly that he’d set foot on enemy territory. And wasn’t that an alarming sensation?
Alric turned and gestured, and Tori went to him, Baldewin following.
“Tori, I think it’s best you knock on the door and announce us.” Alric indicated the red house in question.
“Oh, trust me, she already knows you’re here.” Tori turned and faced the small, single-story house before raising his voice. “Pormestari! Come and meet your guests.”
The door opened with a bang, a short and stocky woman walking out. Stomping out, really, as she made for them.
Mathilda Taavi’s greying hair was in a simple bun at the back of her head, tough jeans and a worn-in work shirt making it clear she had been in the middle of something when interrupted. She shook a finger at Tori as she moved, her voice rough with anger. “You! You dare to leave us and then bring back dragons?!”
Alric stepped forward, smoothly cutting her off before she could reach Tori and forcing her to a halt. His Finnish was impeccable as he introduced himself. “I’m Alric Burkhard, King of the Fire Dragons. With me is Rodrigo Valerii, King of the Ice Dragons, and our retinue. Who might you be, madam?”
She stopped, eyeing him with poorly disguised hostility. “I don’t really care who you are. You’re dragons. I know what you did in the war.”
“You’re entirely wrong in what you know,” Tori said. His voice was firm, shoulders squared. “Everyone in this clan is. When I escaped from here—”
“Ran,” she corrected with a sneer.
“Escaped,” Tori repeated with an equal sneer. “I encountered the Jaeggi in Helsinki. You know what they did? They tried to kidnap me. They tried multiple times. I watched them drain another mage of magic. They attacked a female mage, Pormestari. They’re no allies of the Taavi.”
She frowned at him, her expression clear that she wasn’t truly buying it. “Why would they do that?”
“Because their magic is broken.” Evora stepped forward, as graceful as the ice queen she appeared to be. “When Kaiser Jaeggi enacted the spell to destroy the mage clans, it backfired on him. It killed him and destroyed the mages of his family, damaging their magic line. We’ve all encountered this in varying degrees.”
“I was kidnapped by them,” Cameron piped up, “about a month and a half ago, and I had to fight free. They’ve been kidnapping mages for generations now and trying to drain them of magical power. You’ve been safe from them only because they don’t know how to find you.”
“I have only your word on that.” Mathilda stared them down, and she did not look at ease with this many facing her.
“And the word of the lost mage clan leaders,” Gunter interjected. “I have brought the personal journals of Alistair Dandin, Rebecca Vonn, and Abigail Kovel—all the leaders of the Dandin, Vonn, and Kovel clans. Three of the original twelve major mage clans, as I’m sure you know. They all wrote about Kaiser Jaeggi’s betrayal of the dragons and all the mage clans.”
For a moment, it looked as if surprise flashed across her face, but she covered it up quickly. She pulled out a phone from her back pocket and typed something rapidly into it, then let it drop in her hand. “Why are you here? To warn us of the Jaeggi?”
“In part.” Rodrigo gave her a charming smile. “In part because we’re excited to know that a magical clan still exists. So few of you do. We wish to make friends, as dragons and mages have always done.”
“What makes you think we’d be interested in that?”
“I don’t know what you’re interested in. That’s the whole point of us sitting down and talking properly with each other. We know nothing about each other except what we are.”
Rodrigo was smooth, Baldewin had to give him points on that. He just wasn’t sure if it would be enough. This woman was very antagonistic. And she kept looking at Tori, as if dealing with him was her real priority and she only wanted to send the rest of them away.
More people came out of the gas station, a wide mix of men and women. Most of them appeared to be in their twenties or thirties. A few teenagers stood on the fringes, seeming to ignore orders to get out of there and leave this to the adults.
Baldewin automatically tracked the growing crowd. He was ready to shove people to the ground if necessary. They looked ready to start a fight then and there. His dragon inwardly snarled and paced in his brain, demanding to be set free. It would be good to remind them why dragons were known as such accomplished protectors, but he would not be the one to start this fight.
Evora edged in such a way that she kept herself between them and her own group, no doubt with a shield at the ready.
“Tori’s back,” one of the men said with a grunt. “Couldn’t make it out there on your own after all? But what’s with the dragons, eh?”
Tori was quick with a riposte. “I made it just fine, Verner. I’m working full time as a mage now, which is more than can be said of you. Turns out the rest of the world doesn’t have the same stupid rules that this clan does. Male mages aren’t discriminated against, not that Mathilda wants you to know that. Or any male of this clan to know that.”
There was a low murmur among the crowd at Tori’s words, but Baldewin couldn’t quite make out what they were saying. Their expressions seemed to be a mix of disbelief and confusion.
Verner’s eyes narrowed in anger, but he was suspicious, too. He didn’t look like much, a homely sort of face to him, and his physique suggested he spent more time physically working hard for a living rather than employing any magical skills. “Who’d hire you?”
“Me,” Alric stated in that mild-mannered way of his that suggested he was seething on the inside. “I’m Alric, King of the Fire Dragons. And I welcome all mages of skill. The Accords did not see fit to deny anyone based on gender—”
“Do not speak of that!” Mathilda cut through quickly, her voice rising in panic. “We do not adhere to the old laws!”
“You should,” Evora informed her flatly. “It was the breaking of them that led to the Dragon War. Using forbidden anti-spells is what destroyed the magical clans.”
“And we follow the Accords.” Rodrigo gave the man a smile that could melt butter. “Don’t you think it would be better if all mages could use the talent they’re born with?”
Baldewin expected that to hit a mark, but it didn’t. Instead, Verner seemed to grow angry. Had Tori’s barb about working as a mage been to a point? Did Verner not have the talent necessary to work as a mage? The way the man flushed and glared hinted that might be the case.