Broken Heart Tails by Michele Bardsley Read Free Book Online

animals, a chill wind tickling dead leaves. She shivered again, staring up at the night sky. The moon winked down at her, unaffected by her internal drama. Maybe after the Broken Heart investigation, she’d take her meager savings and go … well, somewhere. Her parents would understand. They’d even encourage her. They wanted her happiness, no matter what form it might take.
“Hey, Libs!” called her father from the doorway of the RV. “Your mom and I are mapping out the Broken Heart investigation. How do you feel about taking the cemetery?”
“Again?” she called. “I always get the dead people.”
He chuckled. “So long as they don’t get you.”
Her dad shut the door with a tinny bang. Libby scooted closer to the fire then returned her gaze to the sky as if her future were there, waiting for her among the stars.
     
* * *  *  *
     
“Synd is back,” said Elder Raine.
Sylphina put down her delicate china teacup, careful not to slosh the hot liquid. Fear spiderwebbed through her. Her brother was back? Unable to form words around the knot in her throat, she took a moment to study the drawing room. That’s what they called it—the drawing room. Brocade curtains, dark antique furniture, doilies sitting like snowflakes on the overstuffed furniture, and ceramic knickknacks crowding every surface.
“How?” she asked.
“We don’t know.” Raine’s gaze was as steady as always, but lurking in those teal depths was sadness. Sylphina knew then that her life was forfeit. An event Raine had predicted to her sorrow on the day of Sylphina and Synd’s births five-hundred years before.
Sylphina studied her friend and mentor. Raine was dressed in the traditional blue robes that denoted her status as a Council member. Her silver hair was plaited into a single braid that was so long it coiled behind her chair. Her teal eyes burned with ancient dragonfire. The gold-rope necklace with its fire-red jewel rested just above her bosom. Raine clung to the traditions of their kind, though dragons were nearly extinct.
Next to her, the only other remaining member of the old Council, Elder Amethyst, sat wringing her hands. She was nearly as old as Raine. In human form, she looked in her early sixties. She wore a crocheted white sweater with a pink dragon on it, purple knit pants, and thick-soled orthopedic shoes. Her lilac eyes were filled with dread.
“Oh, my,” she said. “Oh, my.”
Sylphina clasped her hands, mostly to keep them from trembling. After Synd made a bargain with a powerful demon, he lost what few morals he had. In his quest for power, he didn’t care who he hurt—humans, dragons, parakind. The Elders had tracked him down, subdued him and encased him in stone. They did it for her. Synd wanted from his sister what he had given away for power. He wanted Sylphina’s essence, and now … now he was free to pursue her. To take it from her. Synd had always been the stronger one, even before he gave in to the dark magic that now ruled him.
“I’ll call Ash and make arrangements,” said Sylphina.
“The soul shifter?” Amethyst’s eyes went wide. “She’s … not very nice.”
“Most assassins aren’t,” agreed Sylphina dryly. “But she’s got a moral code and a sense of honor. Giving her my soul and my powers is far better than Synd taking them.” Her gaze met Raine’s. “Is there any way…” She trailed off, already knowing the answer to her unasked question.
“I fear not,” said Raine. “He will find you. He always does.”
Sylphina nodded. “Then the sacrifice is necessary.”
“For good to endure, sacrifice always necessary.”
“Oh, my darling!” Amethyst popped off the couch and wrapped Sylphina in a warm, lavender-scented hug. “May your journey to Yalinia be a peaceful one.”
“Thank you, Elder.”
Amethyst let go, sniffling. She drew a tissue out of her sweater sleeve and wiped her nose.
Raine rose and embraced Sylphina. “I, too, wish you a peaceful journey, child.”
“My