Origin (Scales N' Spells #1) - A.J. Sherwood Page 0,83

be propped up, the view changing as she moved it. “There. Good?”

“That’ll work, thanks.”

They collectively held their breath as Sasha removed the duct tape over the man’s mouth. Cassie had been very thorough in securing the man. He looked like a duct tape sushi roll. And panicked—the whites of his eyes clearly visible as he looked up at the two dragons leaning over him.

Baldewin propped him up so he could speak a little easier before asking, “Why are you here? How did you find her?”

No answer.

Frowning, he repeated himself in German. Still no answer. He switched languages three more times, and the man stared at him but didn’t respond. Didn’t even try to speak.

“I think he understands you fine.” Alric leaned in a little more, his voice flat with anger. “He just doesn’t want to answer.”

Baldewin cracked his neck to either side. “Oh, I can make him answer. He might not like my methods, though.”

The man paled, wriggling futilely against the duct tape. He hadn’t the leverage to get it off, and it ended with him falling sideways again with a thump.

“I’ll get Cheryl.” Cassie went for the baseball bat lying nearby. “If we’re getting violent, I get first crack at this asshole. I’ll show you what it’s like to be at the mercy of others, you fucking bastard.”

Lisette abruptly leaned over, grabbing the phone and snapping out, “BACK AWAY FROM HIM, NOW!”

Wait, what? Cameron had no chance to ask for an explanation.

Neither Baldewin or Sasha hesitated. They immediately dove for cover, Sasha snatching up Cassie as she moved and taking her swiftly away. Cassie gibbered out a half-spoken protest and then they were all out of sight. In less than a second, Cameron understood Lisette’s order and alarm. The duct-taped guy lit up, magic in clear use, but it was wrong. All of it was wrong, not like the magic Cameron had seen. That he himself had performed. It was obviously unbalanced, the light twisting and writhing instead of flowing outwards, and it didn’t move smoothly. Instead, it seemed to furl back in on the caster, and it imploded with a dull thud.

The man jerked once, doubling in on himself, then flopped with all the life of a dead fish.

“Idiot,” Lisette snarled. “He just used an anti-spell to free himself, and now he’s dead because of it. We wouldn’t have killed him.”

Alric groaned low. “Panicked men make poor decisions. Baldewin, double check if he’s still breathing.”

Baldewin strode over and knelt on one knee, putting two fingers to the man’s neck. He shook his head immediately. “No pulse. This is beyond aggravating. Now what do we do with him?”

With a sigh, Dieter instructed, “Search his body. See if there’s any clues to his identity. Then fly his corpse away from the city and dump it somewhere not to be found. Water would be best.”

Baldewin gave them a nod. “I’ll do that. Do we have a flight back yet?”

“Not yet. I need Noh Ha Na’s information before I can buy all of your tickets. As soon as she arrives, give the phone to her.”

“Will do.”

In the background, Cameron could hear Cassie say in a soft, charming voice, “Thank you for shielding me, Sasha.”

“It was my pleasure,” Sasha all but purred back.

Cameron pinched the bridge of his nose, more than a little irritated with his sister. Of course the smoking hot dragon took precedence over a body in her living room. Of course she fucking did. He thought about verbally prodding her.

Then thought better of it.

Alric leaned in to murmur near his ear, “I promise you we will get to the bottom of this.”

Cameron lifted a hand up to squeeze the one still holding onto him. “I know you will. Sis, maybe focus on packing. And isn’t Halmeoni supposed to be there soon?”

As if his words had summoned his grandmother, there was a knock at the door. Halmeoni didn’t wait for someone to answer it before going right in. “Cassie!”

“Halmeoni, wasseyo?” Cassie hurried to her front door, narrowly scooting by Baldewin in the process. Her eight hundred square foot apartment really wasn’t big enough to hold this many people at once. “Be careful, we had something bad happen.”

His grandmother stepped just into visual range of the camera. She was in slacks and one of the billowy, loose shirts she favored, her purple hair done up in a sleek bun. She peered first at both dragons, then the man on the floor. “That one looks dead.”

“He cast an anti-spell and it backfired,” Baldewin