his veins, but she must be far away. He could ignore the summons when it came from such a distance, and he only hoped that his fellow Pyr didn’t notice its subtle glow.
He certainly wasn’t going after the selkie, wherever she was.
Rhys turned into Kristofer’s farm just as the first flakes of snow began to fall and saw that he was one of the last to arrive. He knew there must have already been a lot of discussion about the Others and the path forward, but he’d decided on his own course. Arriving later was strategic—it gave his fellow Pyr less time to notice the firestorm and try to change his mind. Rhys parked his black pick-up beside Quinn’s and Kristofer strode to meet him.
“Did you find that maple syrup place?” Kristofer asked, surveying the coolers in the back of the truck.
“Yes, thanks. I bought all they had.” Rhys laughed at Kristofer’s shocked expression. “I’ll take most of it back to the restaurant, but some is for tonight. You were right: it’s really good. Pure.”
“So you tasted it?”
“When they found out that I was interested in a large quantity, they opened a bottle for me.” Rhys smiled. “I think they were as shocked as you that I bought it all, though.” He opened a large cooler to display the fresh salmon he’d bought in Manhattan that morning. “Look at these beauties. You won’t believe how the maple syrup glaze transforms the flavor when the salmon is grilled.”
“We’re going to feast tonight,” Hadrian said, clapping Rhys on the back as he joined them. He glanced at his hand with a frown and inhaled, then studied Rhys. So much for none of the Pyr noticing the firestorm’s faint spark.
“Look at you!” Rhys said, pretending the glow of heat was from Hadrian. “Picking up tips from the Smith already?” Hadrian was an artisan blacksmith like Quinn, although his studio was in Northumberland. He did a lot of historical restoration work.
Hadrian grinned. “Trying. Do you ever worry that we invite you just to ensure we eat well?”
Rhys shook his head. “No, because I make you work for it.”
“True enough. Mr. Perfection with his prep.”
“Everyone’s ready to be sous to your chef,” Kristofer said, lifting out the cooler of fish with a grunt. “Just tell us what to do.”
“You’re on,” Rhys said. “But it looks like Quinn is ready to get down to business first.
“He says the forge is ready,” Kristofer admitted.
Rhys cleared his throat, knowing he needed to ask one question. “What happened with the gem of the hoard?” He kept his tone light, as if the answer was less important to him than it was. He knew that Kristofer’s mate, Bree, had held the piece of amber for centuries without realizing its importance to the ancient dragon prince, Embron, who had recently been awakened. He also knew that it was the responsibility of the mate to give a gift to ensure the repair of her dragon’s missing scale.
If Bree had offered the gem of the hoard, that would make Kristofer a target for the dragon prince forever—and it would feed all of Rhys’ suspicions about Bree’s true intentions.
“Rafferty brought it back,” Kristofer said easily. “He said we should have all the tools we might need to succeed against Embron.”
“But where is it?” Rhys insisted, aware that Hadrian was watching closely.
“Safe in my hoard. We’ll decide tonight who’s going to take charge of it until this is over.” Kristofer’s expression lit as Bree came out of the house. Rhys watched the way the new couple smiled at each other and wondered if his friend really did know enough about his new mate.
It had been only ten days since they’d met, after all.
And she had been a Valkyrie. It had been her task for centuries to harvest souls.
There was no spark of the firestorm when Bree stood beside Kristofer, which meant the genuine one that had sparked between them had been satisfied, and that she’d already conceived. They were in it together now, Rhys thought, for better or for worse, and he silently wished them well.
He still had his doubts, though.
“At least there’s that,” Hadrian muttered to Rhys as they carried groceries into the house.
“What do you mean?”
“The firestorm is satisfied,” Hadrian said quietly. “She surrendered her immortality to be with him. Both good signs, even if I’m not quite convinced.”
Rhys met his gaze and nodded, knowing that his suspicions were shared by at least one other Pyr. Then Hadrian surveyed him again, his expression