Mr. Fuentes stood and came around the table to kiss Eva’s hand. “A pleasure to make your acquaintance,” he murmured.
A threatening growl echoed from Bal, and Balthazar held himself in check as Mr. Fuentes held out his hand to him. “Mr. Andal.”
Remembering his manners, he stood and shook the man’s hand. Mr. Fuentes smiled slightly and squeezed. He had a very strong grip. “I’ve heard so much about you and your work, and I’m proud to be a part of Professor Jimenez’s team. And to finally meet you.”
Mr. Fuentes hadn’t released his hand, an indication that he was showing his dominance. Two can play that game. Balthazar’s grip tightened suddenly, and he watched in silent satisfaction as Mr. Fuentes’ smug expression changed to pain. The man was a younger shifter and didn’t have the mature strength to fight him. “The pleasure is all mine,” he replied before finally releasing the man’s hand.
Mr. Fuentes tilted his head in acknowledgement, then turned to give Eva a wide smile before sitting down. “So,” he said. “Professor Jimenez mentioned that you and your father have discovered some exceptional Icelandic artifacts. I would like to hear more about those.”
Eva leaned forward slightly, her attention focused, and an inexplicable stab of jealousy hit Balthazar in the gut. He glanced around the room and spotted Lancelot two tables away. He caught his brother’s attention and nodded, hoping he picked up the indication that the strange shifter sat at Balthazar’s table.
“My father and I discovered quite a few items in the Snaefellsnes Peninsula. There’s a complete Viking skeleton with his battle gear and some of his skin intact. We’re going to use a sample to date the year he died. We found decorative plates in bronze and gold that had runes engraved around the edges. We actually found a couple of swords with the raised engraving used by Ulfberht as well.”
“Ulfberht swords are a rare find,” Mr. Fuentes said, raising his eyebrows. “Congratulations.”
Eva beamed at the compliment. “We also found some pottery pieces with battle scenes on them. One in particular had been very carefully preserved—the colors were quite distinct.”
“What are the images?” Balthazar asked.
She used her hands for emphasis. “A couple of pieces showed Viking armies battling each other. Another displayed landscape scenes and animals, which is fantastic—it shows us how Iceland looked during that period.
“But the most unusual—and I have to say, most fascinating piece—is a small vase.” She paused. “It shows a battle of two dragons fighting each other.”
Balthazar perked up at that. “Is the scene in detail?”
She nodded. “There are stick figures around the base of the vase, which I take to be Vikings watching the fight, but the dragons are quite distinguishable.”
“Fascinating,” Mr. Fuentes said. The shifter glanced at him. “Perhaps you can describe the dragons for us.”
“The first one was a deep red, while the second was a striking shade of deep blue.” Her eyes shone with excitement. “Teeth bared, fire spouting from their mouths, claws into each other. It’s quite the scene.
“And,” she added, “there’s a third dragon in the background.”
“A third dragon?” Mr. Fuentes looked at him again, longer this time. “What did this one look like?”
“Like a sunset. All orange and red. So beautiful.” She sighed.
Balthazar’s throat constricted and he suddenly coughed. By Odin, she had just described his family. He grabbed a glass of water and finished it in one gulp.
“You mentioned figures at the base of the pottery,” Mr. Fuentes said. “What were they doing?”
Eva frowned. “Hiding, I think.”
“That would make sense. No one would be foolish enough to get in a dragon’s way.”
“I tend to agree,” Balthazar added, eyeing the man.
“There is one scene that’s puzzling,” she continued. “A Viking held something in his hand—a small blue circle the same shade as one of the dragons.”
“Now that is fascinating.” Mr. Fuentes leaned forward. “Do you think it was a dragon scale?”
Balthazar watched the man closely. Mr. Fuentes glanced occasionally in his direction as he spoke, no doubt hoping that Balthazar would react to his particular question. Balthazar knew better and kept still, not giving anything away. Still, he almost groaned aloud. If what Eva said was true, then his scale was surely lost.
She shook her head. “I don’t know. It was pretty small.”
“While I admit that this story is intriguing,” Professor Jimenez interrupted. “That’s all it is—a story. There’s no such thing as dragons.”