Fraser, it is. And these are merely the first two to be recorded. There were five others, all with nearly the same strength estimate.” She paused. “One, in particular, possessed power beyond any of the sorcerers present. I’m having our best artist working on that rendering now.”
“And no one had ever seen him before?”
“Her,” the boss corrected me.
Oh crap.
I resisted the urge to look over my shoulder. “Your sister isn’t in town, is she?”
“No, she is not. I would almost prefer if this woman had been her. As I said, the devil you know . . .”
And I’d met that devil before, up close and personal—and in my head. Before she’d tangled with her sister in the sky over Times Square, Tiamat had herself a little fun taunting me with how her grendels and their dozens of hatchlings were going to eat their way through the New Year’s Eve crowds beginning at midnight. Having a crazy, megalomaniacal dragon traipsing through my gray matter was a sensation I did not want repeated.
But it had happened again tonight with Viktor Kain. He hadn’t used words in my head, just images, like showing me his personal scrapbook of evil.
“That level of power does not simply appear overnight,” the boss was saying. “There have been those like Mr. Sadler, but they are the exception rather than the rule. We’ll start the files on the new ones, and share what information we may be able to uncover. Every attempt will be made through our international offices and contacts to keep them under surveillance, but considering that tonight was the first known record of their existence, they obviously know how to maintain a low profile.” She blew out a weary breath. “Agent Byrne, I believe you have a contact or two in the supernatural fine art black market?”
“Yes, ma’am.”
“Please reach out to them regarding any sudden actions such as gatherings or transfers of large sums of money or gold—either in this world or the supernatural realms.”
“I’ll get right on it.”
“Monsieur Moreau is having a list compiled of suspects capable of putting harpies into suspended animation, and who would benefit either from owning or selling the Dragon Eggs. Our Research department is investigating what, if any, magical capabilities the Dragon Eggs possess—either individually or combined. It would go a long way towards explaining Viktor’s anger at having the diamonds stolen. If he had wanted to sell them, he could have done so perfectly well from St. Petersburg or any other location where he has homes. There was no need for him to travel here. He would never risk coming here for a mere auction. There is one thing I can always count on my Russian nemesis to have—a plan that goes ten steps beyond what he wants me to think he is doing.” She scowled. “I dislike having an opponent with an advantage.”
I shifted uneasily. I didn’t know if Ms. Sagadraco realized what had happened tonight between me and Viktor Kain, but if she didn’t, she needed to—and I needed to know why it was happening to
me
, and if there was anything I could do to stop it from happening again. I didn’t want anyone in my head, least of all psychotic dragons.
I wouldn’t be the first person in my family to pick up a strange, new ability. My cousin Charlie could communicate with birds. The other men in the family thought the only time that was useful was during duck season. My aunt Blanche swore up and down that she knew exactly what each one of her fifteen cats was thinking. The rest of the family pretty much took that claim with a grain of salt, and told Aunt Blanche she needed to get out of the house more.
To the best of my knowledge, I was the only Fraser whom dragons could talk to telepathically. Though considering how rare dragons were, I might have been the only member of my family who’d ever been close enough to a dragon to have a chat.
“Uh . . . Ms. Sagadraco?”
“Yes, Agent Fraser?”
“Viktor Kain and I had a
“And no one had ever seen him before?”
“Her,” the boss corrected me.
Oh crap.
I resisted the urge to look over my shoulder. “Your sister isn’t in town, is she?”
“No, she is not. I would almost prefer if this woman had been her. As I said, the devil you know . . .”
And I’d met that devil before, up close and personal—and in my head. Before she’d tangled with her sister in the sky over Times Square, Tiamat had herself a little fun taunting me with how her grendels and their dozens of hatchlings were going to eat their way through the New Year’s Eve crowds beginning at midnight. Having a crazy, megalomaniacal dragon traipsing through my gray matter was a sensation I did not want repeated.
But it had happened again tonight with Viktor Kain. He hadn’t used words in my head, just images, like showing me his personal scrapbook of evil.
“That level of power does not simply appear overnight,” the boss was saying. “There have been those like Mr. Sadler, but they are the exception rather than the rule. We’ll start the files on the new ones, and share what information we may be able to uncover. Every attempt will be made through our international offices and contacts to keep them under surveillance, but considering that tonight was the first known record of their existence, they obviously know how to maintain a low profile.” She blew out a weary breath. “Agent Byrne, I believe you have a contact or two in the supernatural fine art black market?”
“Yes, ma’am.”
“Please reach out to them regarding any sudden actions such as gatherings or transfers of large sums of money or gold—either in this world or the supernatural realms.”
“I’ll get right on it.”
“Monsieur Moreau is having a list compiled of suspects capable of putting harpies into suspended animation, and who would benefit either from owning or selling the Dragon Eggs. Our Research department is investigating what, if any, magical capabilities the Dragon Eggs possess—either individually or combined. It would go a long way towards explaining Viktor’s anger at having the diamonds stolen. If he had wanted to sell them, he could have done so perfectly well from St. Petersburg or any other location where he has homes. There was no need for him to travel here. He would never risk coming here for a mere auction. There is one thing I can always count on my Russian nemesis to have—a plan that goes ten steps beyond what he wants me to think he is doing.” She scowled. “I dislike having an opponent with an advantage.”
I shifted uneasily. I didn’t know if Ms. Sagadraco realized what had happened tonight between me and Viktor Kain, but if she didn’t, she needed to—and I needed to know why it was happening to
me
, and if there was anything I could do to stop it from happening again. I didn’t want anyone in my head, least of all psychotic dragons.
I wouldn’t be the first person in my family to pick up a strange, new ability. My cousin Charlie could communicate with birds. The other men in the family thought the only time that was useful was during duck season. My aunt Blanche swore up and down that she knew exactly what each one of her fifteen cats was thinking. The rest of the family pretty much took that claim with a grain of salt, and told Aunt Blanche she needed to get out of the house more.
To the best of my knowledge, I was the only Fraser whom dragons could talk to telepathically. Though considering how rare dragons were, I might have been the only member of my family who’d ever been close enough to a dragon to have a chat.
“Uh . . . Ms. Sagadraco?”
“Yes, Agent Fraser?”
“Viktor Kain and I had a
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