“We all need to pee,” I said. “And some celebratory ice cream couldn’t hurt.”
“We have a dragon, a vampire, and the police looking for us,” he pointed out. “And we have the dragon scales in the car, which are very incriminating—”
“We. Need. To. Pee,” I explained again. “We’ll only be a second.”
If he argued, the sound of it was muffled as we slammed the car doors. Sinead and Isabel went to the bathroom while I stayed outside, breathing in the smell of gasoline while watching the car, just to make sure Kane didn’t decide he was better off running with the loot. When they came back, Sinead went inside the all-night store to get us some ice cream while I went to the bathroom. The tiny space stank, but I found a reasonably clean stall and peed for what felt like a blissful eternity.
When I came out, Sinead and Isabel were already back in the car. I quickly got in, smiling at Sinead.
“What did you get?” I asked.
“One container of chocolate chip cookie dough, and one peanut butter and fudge.”
“I love you, Sinead.”
“I love you too, sweetie.” She started the car, and steered it back into the sparse night traffic. I turned on the radio, and Katy Perry’s “Chained to the Rhythm” filled the silence. I raised the volume a notch and leaned back, shutting my eyes.
Something rumbled, followed by a patch of static, the radio hissing loudly. I tensed, could almost feel the predatory eyes from above.
“What was that?” Sinead asked.
Katy Perry was singing again, and I wanted to say it was a small earthquake, or distant thunder, but I knew better.
“The dragon,” I said. “It’s hunting for us.”
Another rumble, a roar. Did I imagine it, or did the light outside dim as the dragon’s body blocked the moonlight?
“Can it sense us?” Sinead asked. “Can it feel its scales?”
“I think we’re about to find out,” Kane said.
I could almost feel the oppressive weight of the dragon’s searching gaze. I imagined him above us, watching the tiny car, so easy to incinerate with one breath. Or he could swoop down, pluck us up, fly with the car in its clutches back to his lair, where he would take us apart, limb by limb. Fear thrummed through my chest, and wisps of smoke floated from my palms. I tried to breathe deeply, to calm down, clenching my fists as if that would stop the fires from erupting.
What did the regular citizens of Boston make of it? Did they think it was some sort of plane, flying low above the city? Were people pointing at the sky, at a dark shape far above them, thinking it was some sort of bird? Did some of them suddenly realize there were monsters in the night, that the world was a much darker place than they had originally thought?
And then came another roar, much farther off. The dragon was flying away. He could not sense us, could not find us. I let a victorious smile materialize again. We’ve done it.
Harutaka reached the meeting room of the Hippopotamus Hunting Trips office a few minutes before us. When I walked inside, a huge smile broke across his face. It mirrored my own smile, and I approached him, thinking of shaking his hand, or maybe slapping him on the shoulder. Then Sinead whisked past me and caught Harutaka in a long, squeezing hug.
“You wonderful, magical man,” she said, grinning at him. “You were amazing.”
He gave her an embarrassed smile, and then glanced at the shopping bag in her hands. “Is this it?” he asked, his voice full of awe.
“Yes, Harutaka,” she whispered. “The dragon’s safe had so much more than you’d ever believe.” She lay the bag on the table, and opened it to display the contents. “Not one, but two ice cream containers. One is peanut butter and fudge.”
Harutaka blinked, and I let out a snort of laughter. Kane strode forward, shaking his head in amusement, and drew the leather pouch from his coat pocket. “I have the dragon scales right here.”
He opened the pouch and poured its contents on the table. We all strained forward, looking at the small pile in awe.
“They’re beautiful,” I said softly.
On the smooth wooden table lay five scales. They seemed to be mostly blue, though they caught the light strangely, the color at the edges seeming to move and change constantly. Green, yellow, orange, red. Tear-shaped, each the approximate size of my palm. They glimmered hauntingly, emanating their own ghostly light.
Harutaka picked one up between thumb and forefinger, and raised it to the light. The scale’s light reflected in his eyes, giving them an eerie color.
“What about the box?” Isabel suddenly asked. “Do you have it?”
“Yeah,” I said, and pulled it from my pocket. I hesitated for a moment, then lay it on the table. I turned the key in the lock, and lifted the lid gently. Inside was a white crystal sitting atop a black velvet material. A thin golden chain was latched to it, a necklace, the crystal its pendant. I slid a finger under the necklace and lifted it, plucking the crystal pendant from its velvety home. A strange orange glow seemed to pulse inside the crystal, but I couldn’t decide if it was really inside it, or simply a reflection of the ceiling light.
“Is this the Yliaster crystal?” Kane asked. “Is there a soul inside?” His voice was intense, almost eager.
“I don’t know,” I admitted. “As far as I know, the Yliaster crystal is a myth. I’ve never even seen a picture or drawing of one.”
The crystal mesmerized me. I watched it, slowly convincing myself that the light really was within. A warm, pulsing, orange light. I had an urge to clasp the crystal, to touch it to my chest.
Instead I lowered it back to the box, closing the lid and locking it shut. This was Breadknife’s part of the loot.
“It’s ice cream time,” Sinead declared. She opened both containers and retrieved a dozen plastic spoons from the shopping bag, which she scattered on the table. I picked up one, and dug into the peanut butter and fudge container. The world is flawed and full of pain, and the only perfect thing in it is peanut butter and fudge ice cream. I put it in my mouth and closed my eyes, inhaling through my nose, becoming one with the euphoria in my mouth.
After a few minutes of eating, Sinead left the room, and returned with a bottle of Jack Daniels and a stack of plastic cups. She poured half a cup for each of us and toasted to Ddraig Goch.
Ice cream and whiskey blend well.