advisor has been excitedly spouting this nonsense in my ear that you’ve located a mage. And then your strange email. I thought it all a cruel joke. What’s going on?”
Alric could see the king’s advisor just behind his shoulder and nearly laughed to see the man roll his eyes. He just smiled at Rodrigo. “It’s true. I would never joke about this.”
“A mage? You found a mage. The first in five hundred years.”
“Yes.
Rodrigo fell back in his seat, swearing softly under his breath. He rubbed his lips with his hand and seemed to stare off into space, his brain still digesting this information. It was a lot to take in. He had a feeling that like Alric, Rodrigo had all but given up on finding more mages for his clan.
Rodrigo lurched forward in his chair suddenly. “How? Where?”
“I will admit it was purely by luck. One of my clansmen was in town for the Dragon War festival.” Rodrigo’s lip curled in disgust at the mention of the holiday, but he said nothing. “He ran across the mage, though the poor man had no idea his family comes from a line of mages.”
“What do you mean he had no idea?”
“Just that. His grandmother told some stories, but there’s no one in his family who knows how to use magic. He had little knowledge of dragons and mages. The true stories.”
“Impossível,” Rodrigo breathed. Alric knew the feeling. It wasn’t that the king didn’t believe Alric. It was just hard to stomach that there were mages out there who had no idea they were mages.
“Speaking with him, we’ve learned he’s from the Noh Clan.”
Rodrigo nodded. “Sim. I remember the clan. Small clan. Good with seeking spells. Have you investigated his entire family? Is there just one mage?”
“We’ve found three so far. Cameron, his twin sister Cassie, and their grandmother. Unfortunately, their parents are not. The rest of the family line is in Korea, and we haven’t spoken with them yet. The mages are being brought to Burkhard castle to begin learning about their heritage and how to use magic.”
“And to find mates, I would wager,” Rodrigo said, his voice becoming a low rumble. The older dragon shook his head. “I will not lie and say I’m not jealous. Three mages, Alric. That is quite a treasure you’ve found.”
Alric leaned forward. “I like to believe we’ve only found the first three of many more to be discovered.” He narrowed his eyes and allowed the excitement he felt to finally creep into his voice. “Think of it, Rodrigo. We’ve been searching for entire conclaves of mages, believing they would stick together for their own protection. We never considered they’d be so scattered that they’d lose their own heritage, that they’d never know how important they were. It means they could be living right under our noses, and we just didn’t know it. We merely have to learn how to search for them better—smarter.”
Rodrigo chuckled softly, ending in a sigh. “You’re right. I’m happy for the Burkhard clan and grateful you have shared this news. I will be cutting our surfing season short so we can redirect our efforts. You’ve given us new hope.”
“It’s not the only reason I’ve called. There is dark news as well. The newly discovered mages are being hunted.”
“What?” Rodrigo shouted, sitting up in his seat. It was one of the few displays of extreme emotion Alric had seen in the dragon since he’d known him.
“Cameron was nearly kidnapped off the street with me standing no more than a few dozen feet away. His sister Cassie was also nearly kidnapped, and she was in her home in America.” Alric had to fight to keep his voice calm and even as he spoke of the two events. There was no question in his mind a mage had been watching them on their date, looking for an opportunity to make another grab at Cameron. Just the thought of someone touching Cameron again made Alric want to tear the person apart with his claws.
Rodrigo swore, straightening in his seat, a flush painting his cheeks. “Who? Who would dare?”
“We’re still trying to figure it out, but we believe this group might also be mages. There is something off or tainted with their magic. We don’t know why they are attempting to kidnap the mages or what they intend to do with them. It’s critical that if you find a mage that your people are vigilant. The mage might not be willing right away to believe our