"We just don't have the space. Sorry. But I'm sure the, uh, cousins would like to share a room together tonight. Eh, ladies?"

"Oh, yes, General," the lady dragon crowed. "Thank you!"

Now those two, Branwen and the blue-haired dragon, were definitely related and viewed each other as such.

Izzy finally pulled herself from the dragon's arms, spun around, and slapped at his chest and shoulders with her hands.

Rachel leaned in and whispered in Maskini's ear, "I certainly hope she's better in battle than this."

"That makes two of us."

"Maybe we shouldn't wait. We should go looking tonight," Izzy pushed.

Brannie pulled on a loose, white cotton shirt and soft cotton leggings. Her usual clothes for sleeping whenever humans were around.

"Maskini already sent out her troops. You gave them detailed instructions. I don't know what you think we can do. We don't even know this city." Brannie looked over her shoulder. Izzy stood on the other side of the bed they'd be sharing, dressed in the same style as Brannie but her shirt was blue. "You're anxious, Iz. Why?"

"Don't know."

Bran settled on the bed, her legs crossed. Izzy always got like this when she had to wait to go into battle. Like Annwyl, she wasn't good with the waiting. Unlike Annwyl, however, Izzy could go ages without a good war to keep her busy. As long as she got in her daily training and spent time with her troops, she was fine. But when she knew a battle was imminent, Izzy hated the occasional delay that happened before she could dive in and start the killing. That's when Brannie had to be careful because it was easy to start fights with her cousin.

"Don't worry, Iz. We'll get this cleaned up, get Elisa's agreement about your sister, and take it from there."

"Right. Of course."

Bran knew her cousin had given up that fight much too easily, which made her think there might be something else going on. Something beyond all the doings of witches and sand.

"Are you going to tell me what's going on?" Brannie demanded quietly, so as not to disturb the rest of the house, which had settled down for the evening.

"What are you talking about?"

"You. You're anxious. Practically crawling the walls."

"I've got a lot on my mind."

"Does what's on your mind have really big hands and blue hair?"

"Let it go, Bran."

"You fucked him, right?"

"So? It's not like he's the first."

"There's fucking, Iz, and then there's something more. Or at least that's what I've been told."

"And?"

"And, it looks to me like you've got something more."

"With eibhear? Lord I-Can't-Get-Too-Close?"

"He doesn't seem to mind getting too close now. Doing it in front of your human kin, too. With all of them glaring at him. The fact he hasn't run off screaming I find admirable."

Izzy chuckled and sat down on the bed. "They probably don't like him because he's dragon."

"They tolerate me well enough. Not an unkind word or terrified scream of panic yet." Bran studied her friend. "You falling for him, Iz?"

Izzy snorted, shook her head, and said, "Come on, Bran. I fell for that idiot when I was sixteen. Now I'm in love with him!" Izzy grabbed a pillow and began to rip it into shreds, feathers flying all over the room. "Because apparently my life isn't ridiculous enough!"

"Well," Brannie reasoned, stopping to blow a white feather off her nose, "as long as you're handling it well . . ."

When the knock came, Uther scrambled across the room-ignoring the fact that he was stepping on actual chests in the process-and snatched the door open.

One of Izzy's aunts held a tray piled with food and drink. Although she looked ready to bolt at the sight of Uther's overeager face.

"Is that for us?" he asked; then he smiled.

That didn't seem to soothe her.

"Uh . . . thought you all might be hungry. And my father wanted to make sure you wouldn't turn on us in the middle of the night because you hadn't been fed enough."

"Good plan!" Uther said, taking the tray from her.

eibhear quickly stepped to the door and gave his warmest smile. "Thank you so much for this. We appreciate it. And you can tell your father he need have no fear of us."

"Yeah." She looked them over. "Right."

eibhear watched the woman walk away before he closed the door and rounded on his comrades. "Is there something wrong with all of you?" he demanded.

"Now that we have food . . . no."

"You're an idiot." eibhear stomped back across the room and, still fully clothed, dropped facedown onto the bed.

"What's wrong with you?"

"I'm trying to ease the discomfort of these people, but you lot aren't helping."

"Why bother?" Caswyn asked around a mouth full of food. "It's not like we're staying here forever."

"They're Izzy's kin."

"She seems to get along fine with them."

"Yeah, but . . . I'm just saying . . ." eibhear growled. "Forget it. I don't know why I bloody bother."

"I have no idea what you're trying to tell us, but you sound particularly pathetic."

"What he's trying to say," Aidan offered, "is that he wants Izzy's human kin to like him. Unlike his own kin, who can barely stand the sight of him."

"Thank you for that. That was very nice."

"What do you care if they like you or not?" Uther asked.

"Because it matters."

"Why does it matter?"

"Because."

"Because why?"

"By the gods of piss, blood, and death!" Aidan exploded. "Because he loves her!"

"Oh." Uther stared at eibhear. "Why didn't you say that then?"

eibhear pulled the linen bedsheet over his head and he was quite proud of himself for not tearing Uther's head off when the idiot pushed, "Well . . . why didn't you?"

Chapter 40.

It was the blade sliding under her chin that woke Izzy up. Otherwise, she didn't hear a thing.

With the blade resting against her neck, she slowly rolled onto her back. A Sand dragon in human form stood above her. She could tell by the hair and that bronze overlay. With the curved sword under her chin held in one hand, he raised the forefinger of the other and placed it against his lips.

It wouldn't have mattered to Izzy. She'd risk a cut throat before she'd let someone drag her anywhere. But the Sand dragon wasn't alone. He had another dragon, also in human form, with him, and that one held a sword over a snoring Brannie's chest.

And that was something Izzy wouldn't risk. So she slowly got up, that blade never far from her throat, and let the Sand dragons lead her out into the city.

eibhear sat up and as soon as he was awake, the other M-runach woke up as well.

"What?" Aidan asked.

"Thought I heard something." He slipped off the bed and eased the door open. He listened again, but this time eibhear didn't hear anything. Yet he knew what he was feeling. Threatened. He just didn't know why.

Stepping out into the hallway, eibhear listened again. Still nothing, but he decided to check it out. He eased down the hallway, heard a creak, and stopped. Holding his hand out, Aidan placed eibhear's short sword in his hand. With a nod, he proceeded forward. As he reached the turn into the next hallway, he readied his weapon before he strode around that corner-and ran right into Brannie.

"Gods." He lowered the sword he'd almost skewered her with. "What the hells do you think you're doing?"

"Looking for Izzy, and, eibhear-"

But eibhear didn't wait for his cousin to finish, simply pushed past her and stalked down the hall to Izzy's room. He threw the door open and went in.

Izzy was gone, but her weapons were still there. Izzy wouldn't even go out to take a piss without a weapon. Suddenly eibhear realized the true value of that damn dog that was still at the Imperial Guards dog kennels-Macsen would have alerted them all to any threat near Izzy.

eibhear sniffed the air. He scented Izzy, Brannie, and . . .

"eibhear?"

"Sand Eaters. They were here." He turned and walked past Aidan. "Get everyone up. Now."

eibhear had been right. The Cult of Chramnesind was in the sewers but not living in the shit-covered tunnels. They'd built chambers directly off the tunnels, burrowing far into the center of the city. But Izzy still didn't know what they could possibly want from her or why they hadn't killed her yet.

Izzy was pulled into a chamber and her wrists bound behind her. With a hand against her back, she was shoved forward.

She could tell the zealots right away. She knew this even though some were dragon, others human, some neither of the two; some from the Desert Lands, others clearly from different territories. But what identified them as the most devoted to their god was the fact that the zealots had blood-and-dirt encrusted bindings around their heads, where their eyes had probably once been, and wore witch's robes. Some carried wands or staffs.

Those with eyes still in their heads were the converts, she suspected. And, like the zealots, they came from a wide range of species and territories. Some on their knees in supplication, others standing guard. She didn't know why because they didn't seem to be paying much attention to her.

"So what do you want?" Izzy asked the room.

"Who is that?"

Izzy turned toward the voice coming from behind her.

"Vateria," Izzy sneered.

"I asked a question," Vateria snapped, ignoring Izzy. "Who is this?"

"The one you wanted. Daughter of Talaith."

Vateria put her talons to her temples and rubbed them, sighing dramatically. "I said she was sixteen winters. Does she look like sixteen winters to you?"

"You said Daughter of Talaith," the dragon insisted. "She's Daughter of Talaith."

"The older sister, you idiot." She threw her claws into the air. "I am surrounded by stupidity!"

Vateria gestured at Izzy. "This bitch has no power. Her sister has the power. She's the one I want."

"Well, she's not here. So what do you want us to do with this one?"

"Kill her." She started to turn away, but then stopped. "Wait. Stop."

"They hadn't actually started."

"Shut up, human." She faced Izzy, looked her over. "Yes. Your sister is powerful. She'll feel your pain. Know your suffering. She'll come to protect you."

The Sand dragon behind Izzy sighed deeply. "I guess you're torturing this one too."

Izzy had to chuckle. "You sound so bored."

The She-dragon's eyes narrowed. "You don't fear me, do you, human?"

"I already know what you can do. What you're willing to do. To your own family, if need be."