Free Me and My Shadow by Katie MacAlister Page A

discuss the issue of the Modana Phylactery.”
    â€œWhat is there to discuss?” Kostya asked, his eyes narrowing. “I agreed to let your mate use the shard to re-form the dragon heart if you supported my sept within the weyr. That was our agreement. You gave me your word. You cannot change the terms now.”
    â€œI do not intend to do so. But I am curious as to whether or not you found the phylactery when you found the lair. Do you have it?” Gabriel asked, his lovely voice as smooth as oiled silk.
    Kostya’s gaze slid to his brother for a second. “Not yet. But I will.”
    â€œWhich means you, too, found Dauva.”
    Silence filled the room for a moment as Kostya absorbed Gabriel’s words. Smoke wisped out of Kostya’s nose as he took a step toward us. “I might have known you would try to violate the agreement.”
    â€œI’ve done nothing of the kind,” Gabriel answered, his expression and voice pleasant, but beneath my hand, his muscles were tense. “I’m simply ensuring that we don’t have to wait years for you to get around to bringing the shard to May.”
    Kostya looked like he was about to burst, but evidently he was more in control of his emotions than he had been in months past. “So you found the lair, as well?” he asked through gritted teeth.
    â€œWe know of its location, yes,” Gabriel said.
    I decided a little defusing wouldn’t hurt the situation. “Gabriel’s agent didn’t enter the lair. He couldn’t. So if you’re worried about us running off with all sorts of black dragon goodies, you can relax. Not that Gabriel would, anyway. I assume there’s some sort of rule about wyverns stealing from other wyverns.”
    Silence filled the room as Gabriel, Drake, and Kostya all looked away.
    â€œYou’re kidding me,” I said, noting that no one bothered to agree with me. “You guys steal from each other?”
    Once again, they avoided my eye.
    I raised an eyebrow at Drake. “Are you telling me that if you had the chance, you would take stuff from Gabriel’s lair?”
    â€œThe green dragons are particularly adept at . . . liberating . . . items,” Drake said, somewhat defensively, I thought.
    I turned to Gabriel. “You’d steal something from Drake?”
    â€œDrake is one of my oldest friends,” he said smoothly, taking my hand so he could rub his thumb over my knuckles. “Of course I wouldn’t steal from my friend.”
    â€œNor would I steal from him,” Drake said quickly, not to be outdone on the altruism front.
    â€œI value his friendship over anything,” Gabriel said.
    â€œIt is unthinkable to imagine I could steal from him,” Drake agreed.
    â€œCompletely unthinkable.”
    â€œUtterly out of the question.”
    I eyed the two of them.
    â€œUnless it was gold,” Drake admitted.
    â€œYes, of course. Gold is another thing entirely,” Gabriel said, nodding. The other dragons nodded with him.
    â€œIf you’re willing to steal from your oldest and dearest friends, then how did you get anyone to agree to let us use their dragon shards?” I asked, wondering if I’d ever get used to dragon society.
    â€œThat’s different,” he said with a little shrug. “The dragon heart is the most powerful thing known to dragonkin.”
    â€œThen shouldn’t it be harder for you to get the shards brought together?” Cyrene asked before I could.
    â€œIt would be suicide to attempt to use the dragon heart,” Drake answered.
    â€œIt is too dangerous,” Gabriel said, nodding. “There is no dragon alive who possesses the ability to wield the heart—for which you should be thankful, little bird, since the use of it would have far-reaching repercussions.”
    â€œHow far-reaching?” I asked.
    Gabriel looked thoughtful for a moment. “Think destruction of at least half of