Read Online Flight from Mayhem by Yasmine Galenorn - Free Book Online Page B

iPad to record the conversation. “Please, go ahead when you’re ready.”
    Lydia swallowed, hard. “I really fucked up. I was practicing opening gates—portals. And I let something through that I couldn’t control. I can’t send it back and it’s loose in the city now.”
    I groaned. “What did you summon?”
    â€œThis morning I was out in Wedgewood Park, and I opened a gateway to the realm of Fire. I invoked a salamander. I was just hailing it, I didn’t mean for it to enter through the gate, but one barged through anyway. I just was trying to . . . salute it, I guess. Anyway, it broke through, destroyed the gate behind it, and ran off into the park. It’s about the size of a giant crocodile or Komodo dragon. I tried to follow it, but the damn thing is fast. If we don’t find it and send it back, it’s going to do some damage.”
    I rubbed my forehead. I knew something about salamanders, thanks to Chai, who came from the realm of Fire himself. They were magical beasts and they had voracious appetites. And they had no compunction about eating people, pets, or anything else that fit in their mouths.
    â€œGreat. When was this?” Alex leaned back, shaking his head. “And what on earth were you doing opening a gateway to the realm of Fire?”
    â€œAround five this afternoon. And it was part of my lessons. I’m an apprentice with a witch who lives out near Talamh Lonrach Oll—the Fae Sovereign Nation. Only I wasn’t supposed to do it on my own. I was supposed to be supervised, but I thought there wouldn’t be any harm to it. I haven’t told her yet.” She grimaced. “She’s going to be so pissed. I thought, if I could find the salamander first and send it back . . .”
    Alex finally broke into a light laugh. “She might go easier on you? Oh, girl, we all try that one—depending on what mess we’ve gotten ourselves into. Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn’t. Fine. We’ll help you. We need a retainer of two hundred dollars, though.”
    I glanced at the girl’s clothes. They were clean and neat, but not really in style, and her shoes were scuffed. I could sense the conflict running through her. “That two hundred would probably be part of your rent money, wouldn’t it?”
    She bit her lip, but shook her head. “No, but it’s my electricity money and bus fare for the month. I was hoping . . . you might take payments?”
    I shot Alex a long look. He rolled his eyes, but shrugged.
    â€œFine. You can pay us ten dollars a month till it’s paid off. How about that?”
    As she nodded, a grateful smile on her face, he motioned for her to go with Ralph. “I want you to give Ralph all the information on where exactly you were, and when this all happened. He’ll fill out a payment form for you to sign. Then we’ll do what we can to track down the critter. Now go on.”As he shooed her out of the office, with Ralph following her, I closed the door behind them and turned back to Alex.
    â€œYou did the right thing.”
    He let out a snort but pushed back his chair and motioned for me to join him. I slid behind the desk, facing him as I straddled his lap. Our lips met, and his soft, chill touch registered against my own warm skin. As his tongue slid between my lips, he wrapped his arms around my waist, his hands slipping under my shirt to caress my back. I moaned gently, leaning in, my arms around his neck as the kiss wound on and on. I wanted him—here, now.
    Alex pulled away. In a ragged voice: “Lock the door.”
    I jumped up and hurried over to the door, locking it. But he was at my back, pressing my breasts against the cool reinforced steel as his lips brushed the back of my neck. I managed to turn around, breathless, my back to the door, and reached down, fumbling for his buckle as he unzipped my jeans. In a flurry