Warriors of Wind and Ash (Merciless Dragons #2)

Hinarax starts pissing, and I turn away to inspect one of the sinks. I’m fascinated by the way the water pours from the opening of the pipe and instantly drains away into a hole in the bottom of the sink. “This seems wasteful,” I announce.

“It’s running water,” says Meridian. “No more wasteful than the flow of a stream or a river. And now, if you’ll turn off the water, Kyreagan, and if Hinarax will put his dick away, we can settle in. I have a feeling tonight’s ‘delectable fruit’ may be of interest to us.”

“You think it’s the Princess?” Hinarax asks, turning toward us with his cock still out.

“For god’s sake—shake it, don’t stand there dripping,” Meridian says.

Hinarax shakes his dick over the toilet, tucks it into his pants, and buttons them up again.

“Now you flush it,” Meridian prompts him. “Use the chain.”

Hinarax tugs on the chain hanging near the toilet. There’s a rushing, sucking, swirling sound, and the yellow water in the toilet disappears. Within seconds, clean water rushes in to replace it.

“By the Bone-Builder,” breathes Hinarax in awe. “Are you sure this is not magic?”

“Far better. It’s science.”

I step forward, intrigued in spite of myself. “Do it again.”

Hinarax pulls the chain, and we watch the water swirl away. The sound is most satisfying.

“Try it,” says Hinarax, so I grip the chain and pull. Again there’s the pleasant, rushing swirl of water draining away, before more water takes its place.

“And this will carry away shit as well?” I ask.

“Yes,” Meridian replies. “Human-sized shit, not dragon-sized. God, we’re going to have to figure that out, aren’t we? Or perhaps you could just avoid shitting while in dragon form. You’re flushing it again, Kyreagan? I think that’s enough for now. Come, Hinarax, and I’ll instruct you in the use of soap.” He steers Hinarax toward the sinks.

“I already know about soap,” I comment.

“Excellent. Thus far neither one of you seems to sweat or smell as heavily as most men do, but perhaps you should wash yourselves before the feast tonight. I suppose I shall have to teach you how to bathe.”

“I’ve bathed before, with the Princess,” I tell him. “I can do it myself.”

Hinarax gives Meri a sly smile. “I have no idea how to bathe. I’m not even sure where I would start. Perhaps you could join me in the bath, and show me how it’s done… to make sure I’m clean everywhere.”

Meridian tries to stifle a grin and fails. “Perhaps I could. It’ll be a terrible imposition, of course, but such little sacrifices must be made in the interest of the greater good. Off you go, Kyreagan, and explore the rest of the rooms. Hinarax and I have bathing to do.”

For the next hour I prowl the suite, trying to ignore the groans and sighs of pleasure from the bathing room as I familiarize myself with various objects. I’ve heard of some of the items, either through Serylla or the rebels. Others are strange to me. Fortunately Aeris accompanied our group, playing the role of a bodyguard, so I ask her the names and uses of several things, and she’s good enough to answer patiently.

To my surprise, many of the items on the dressers and shelves of the suite are purely decorative. I’m especially fascinated by a porcelain figure of a dancing woman, whose gold-painted hair is frozen in a gleaming swirl.

“That’s supposed to be a figure of the Princess,” comments Aeris.

“Her nose isn’t right,” I peer at the small statue. “And her collarbones aren’t so straight—there’s a curve to them. Her belly swells a little more, just here.” I point to the figure’s lower stomach. “And her thighs are thicker. But her ankles are more delicate.”

“You know her so well,” Aeris says softly.

“I know the scent of her skin,” I murmur. “I know the arch of her foot, the hollow of her hip, the texture of her hair. I know the smell of her fear and her lust, the curve of her lower lip, the shape of her navel, the strength of her thighs when they’re pinned around my face…”

“I get the idea,” Aeris says with a breathless chuckle. “Can you sense her at all? Hinarax said you can feel her when she’s nearby.”

“She’s close enough for me to sense her, yes. But the link between us is a vague, distant awareness. I don’t think she’s on this floor of the palace.”

“We’ll find her,” Aeris assures me. “We’ll figure this out. And we got lucky with the size of these rooms. Instead of smuggling you out of the city when you need to change, you can simply rest here in dragon form tonight, after the ball. We can keep the servants out of the suite until late morning.”

“I’m hoping we won’t be here that long,” I tell her. “If the Princess attends the ball, I’ll find a way to speak with her. Once we know if she’s truly linked to Rahzien, we can proceed with rescuing her and killing him.”

“And if she doesn’t appear tonight?”