Embraced by Fire (34 page)

Ryu stretched his senses along the newly minted life-bond he shared with Kait and tried to asses her state of mind. Damn it, he was too unfamiliar with the link to make sense of anything except that her heart was still beating. He flexed his mind, trying to settle the link more comfortably. The sensation reminded him of a new pair of jeans. Initially too tight and stiff, but once worn in soft and flexible.

He sighed, he had little more than his father’s warnings to go on when it came to bond dynamics, and he didn’t know any other linked dragons he could ask. Like so much in his life he would have to muddle his way through and hope he didn’t balls it up completely.

“We’re in.” Adrian’s words came clearly through his ear clip.

Ryu imagined them moving carefully through the building and wondered if the inside looked as run down as the outside, or if its appearance was as deceiving as Johnny’s jovial one.

A whisper of sound caught his attention and he leaned forward, focusing on the side of an adjacent building. He waited, patient as any predator. There it was, movement. Someone was creeping along the side of the building deep in the shadows.

“Possible target sighted,” he muttered tersely into his radio, giving the location.

On Adrian’s go, he double-checked the angle of the light, he didn’t want to give his location away to his prey, and let the dragon rise close to the surface. He banished the clothes covering his upper body into
Elsewhere
. Taking a controlled breath, he felt the exquisite pleasure-pain in his back signifying the emergence of his wings.

He wished he could transform completely as he had last time he exited via roof top, or the night of the fire, but dragons ate their prey, they didn’t arrested them. He rolled his shoulders, unfurling his wings, and jumped over the edge of the building.

He felt the wind hit his wings, felt them catch and hold, slowing his decent. His feet dropped to the ground with barely a sound. Reluctantly, he let his wings retreat and returned his clothes. Pulling out his gun, he stepped forward lightly and began tracking the shadow. The other man was moving faster now, as if he no longer feared capture—big mistake.

For a moment, a ray of light flickered through the clouds breaking up the increasing darkness. A moment was all Ryu needed to confirm his suspicions.

“Target confirmed, in pursuit,” he murmured. “Caution on approach, target armed.”

He heard Adrian giving orders and knew two others were heading out after him as backup. He secretly hoped he got to Johnny before they did. He wanted to punish the other man for his gall in trying to burn Kait alive. Sick bastard.

Ducking through the shadows, he darted around a corner in time to see Derek fall. Shock tore through him. He acted without thinking. Instinct, as well as years of training, taking him past the pain of losing a friend straight to action.

Forgetting stealth, Ryu ran straight for Johnny who was lining up for another shot. Kait obviously didn’t know where the previous shot had come from because, despite backing further into the van, she was still in plain sight. Fear gave him wings, metaphorical rather than literal this time, but he could feel the dragon fighting to be free, to protect his mate.

****

Kait stared at Derek’s body, then she saw it, his chest moved. He wasn’t dead, but he was bleeding out fast. Her eyes flicked to the shadow of the shooter. All she could see from where she was hiding.

She needed to get out and stop the bleeding, but if she moved she was dead.

Her breath came in frantic pants as her eyes darted between Derek and the man with the gun. She couldn’t stay in the van, she couldn’t let him die without trying to save him. But she couldn’t get out, if she got out they were both dead.

Maybe she’d be okay, maybe when he saw she was unarmed he wouldn’t shoot. She started to move, then stopped herself. No. She wouldn’t stand a chance. This man was a killer.

Her desperate gaze fell on the lifeblood spilling from Derek’s neck. Unable to help him, she was going to watch him die.

The sound of feet pounding rapidly over the gravel reached Kait. Her eyes jerked away from Derek and she peered cautiously around the seat.

She didn’t see the owner of the feet, but she could now see the shooter; a man who looked eerily like Johnny. He was down on one knee, and he was aiming a nasty looking gun directly at her.

Shit
. The blood in her veins flash-froze. If she could see him, he could see her. The van offered no protection.

She was going to die…

She stared, unable to blink, unable to move, her world narrowed down to that length of nightmare metal.

Crack!

The rifle shot echoed around the parking lot, followed by a sharp ping as the bullet lodged in the side of the van.

He’d missed.

Her blood melted and she slumped down, unable to support her own weight. He’d missed.

There was a harsh grunt and the sound of spraying gravel outside. Desperate to know if she was still in danger, she forced herself to her hands and knees and looked cautiously outside.

Ryu!

She didn’t think she’d ever seen a more welcome sight. His must have been the running feet she heard before the shot. Once again, he was her saviour.

Kait gripped her hands together to stop them trembling. She heard the other man shouting, but not clearly enough to distinguish the words. Ryu pushed him down to the ground and the two men struggled ferociously.

Now was her chance. She had to trust Ryu to take down his opponent. Moving carefully she jumped out of the van and onto the ground beside Derek.

Close-up his face was paper white. She pressed her hands against his neck. She hoped the pressure would be enough to slow his bleeding. She had to keep him alive long enough for real help to arrive.

She caught sight of the blood splattered over the side of the van. Unable to look at either the van, or the man dying beneath her hands, she looked instead at the fight.

Ryu was trying to twist the shooter onto his stomach, presumably so he could cuff the other man, but the man’s greater bodyweight was making things difficult.

Ryu shifted to avoid a knee in the ribs and the man managed to tug one of his hands free, whacking Ryu across the face. Kait sucked in a sharp breath as Ryu’s head snapped back. While he was still reeling, the shooter managed to squirm free. He wriggled along the ground trying to get the gun lying a few feet away.

Desperate to grab the gun herself, Kait almost moved before she remembered Derek. Common sense quickly asserted itself. Derek was relying on her, besides she wouldn’t get there in time and Ryu didn’t need the distraction. She’d only make things worse.

Her breath hitched as Ryu grabbed the man’s ankle, catching him before he could reach the weapon. The sweet, metallic taste of blood flooded across her tongue and she realised she’d bitten through her lip.

Pressing her lips together, she watched as Ryu dragged the man toward him, dodging his free leg as the shooter tried to land a kick. She could see a line of blood running down the side of Ryu’s face, glinting blackly in the dim light.

Ryu dropped the leg and grabbed the man’s shoulders, blocking a wild punch as he did so. This fight was nothing like TV. It was rougher, without smooth choreography to keep things moving, the grunting breaths she heard on the wind more visceral. As she watched, Ryu landed a firm punch of his own.

Ryu’s hand…Kait blinked her eyes. His hand looked strange, was he wearing gloves? She blinked again. She couldn’t focus properly.

Ryu seemed to shimmer as if she was looking at him through a heat haze, but it wasn’t that hot. She glanced at the sky. Dark clouds hung menacingly above but nothing that would explain why she thought Ryu’s skin looked copper.

A piercing scream pulled Kait’s focus back to the fight. The shooter was crouched in front of Ryu. With his back toward her, she couldn’t see Ryu’s face, she couldn’t see what made the man scream. Ryu picked him up as if he weighed next to nothing, and with an animalistic roar, threw him against the wall.

Eyes wide, Kait’s lips trembled. Was he dead?

More running feet rang out and some of Ryu’s team raced around the corner as he made his way over to the slumped figure. Just when she thought the shooter must be dead, he moved, struggling to sit up.

Ryu said something to Hass who nodded and glanced at her. Leaving the fallen man to the others Ryu ran toward her. Part way there his hand came up to his ear and his step hesitated. Hass too, looked like he was listening to someone. Ryu smiled, and increased his pace toward her, and she knew.

It was over. She couldn’t believe it. It was all over.

Her eyes moved back to Derek’s still body, almost over. His warm blood seeped between her fingers.

“Is he dead?” Ryu’s voice cut across the sound of Derek’s laboured breathing.

“Not yet.” A sob caught in her throat.

Ryu took one look at her bloody fingers and yelled over his shoulder. “Medic! I need a medic here now.”

Suddenly Hass was pushing her out the way, an open medical kit beside him. Ryu helped her stand, grabbing some medical wipes as he moved them both out of the way.

She blinked as he positioned himself between her and Derek, blocking her view. Gently Ryu wiped her hands clean of blood. The comforting warmth of his fingers dissolving her numbness.

After disposing of the wipes in a medical waste bag, he finally looked at her. His eyes swirling pits of molten copper.

“Are you all right?” His voice was a deadly whisper.

He’d been afraid for her, she realised. Just like she’d been terrified for him.

“Hold me.” She looked up into Ryu’s face, desperate to feel his strength around her; his aliveness.

She let out a deep sigh as his arms wrapped around her, holding her safe. She pressed her head against his chest, listening to the steady beat of his heart.

Everyone else was busy but they were cushioned in a moment of stillness.

Ryu breathed in the sweet scent of Kait’s hair and squeezed her tighter against him. She was safe. His heart began returning to its regular beat.

“You’re never coming with me on a mission again. I don’t think I could cope.” He would never forget his horror when he saw the gun aimed at her. The dragon nearly ripped itself out of his skin and, in that moment, only years of training kept him human.

He felt Kait’s head nod against his chest. A little pacified, he flexed his fingers, remembering the satisfaction as his fist ploughed into the shooter’s face. He didn’t normally enjoy violence but the threat to his mate changed the rules. Thank goodness it hadn’t been Johnny as he thought. Instead, Razor was a second in command short.

Looking over Kait’s shoulder, he saw Adrian and the others arrive with three men in custody. One of them was Johnny. They all stopped near the downed shooter. A silent Johnny was pressed to his knees, Delilah restraining his hands behind his back. His skin was a pasty white, his eyes dinner plates of fear.

The shooter, on the other hand, was anything but silent. The bastard was on the ground crying a mixture of tears and snot. The bubbling, whuffing sound brought a derisive curl to Ryu’s lip. The man’s crying was broken occasionally by pleas and promises.

Pleas for his life, and promises to tell Adrian everything he knew and everyone who was involved. The fight hadn’t done more than free a little blood from the boundaries of the man’s skin. No, it was the sight, however brief, of the dragon living behind Ryu’s face that had brought him to this state. It was fear, pure and simple, loosening his tongue.

Fear—triggered by a hint of teeth, and glowing eyes, and flame, and nothing human.

Ryu wasn’t sure how well he’d managed to control his appearance but he knew it had slipped significantly. He closed his eyes. The thread tying him to Kait was still so new, so tender. If she had died….

If she had died then a part of him would have died along with her.

“I should never have brought you.” Opening his eyes, he shifted back so he could see her expression.

Lifting her face away from his chest, she looked up at him. “Why did you?”

His gut clenched. Now was his chance, but did he dare? To tell her the truth and then…to leave her.

“It’s complicated—”

“Ryu.” Adrian’s voice cut him off, saving him from decision time.

Ryu stepped away from Kait and turned to look at his boss. “What’s up?”

Adrian walked over to them and cast a quick look at Kait. “Police and paramedics are on their way. Johnny’s a minnow, he had no control over his compatriots, especially once Keilor started driving the play. That’s why the violence escalated so quickly.”

Ryu nodded. “He told you who else is involved? Keilor specifically.”

“He couldn’t wait to tell me, and the man you brought down has been even more helpful.” Adrian’s eyes tightened at the corners. “Seems something frightened him enough he thinks we’re more of a threat than the rather scary men he’s involved with. You got here before we did, I don’t suppose you know what scared him like that?”

Ryu winced before he could stop himself and he knew Adrian spotted it. “I just roughed him up a bit.”

Adrian’s eyes flicked over to Kait then back to Ryu. “You’re obviously scarier than I realised, Ryu. Either that or he’s on something. He kept babbling about demons.”

“Keilor wasn’t in the warehouse?” Ryu tried to move the conversation away from his lapse of control.

“No, we weren’t that lucky, but we’ll keep looking for him. Every time something happens we get closer and the evidence against him gets stronger. You coming back in the van with us?”

“Yes, give us a call when you’re ready to go.”

“Sure.” With another quick look at Kait, Adrian walked back to where Delilah was holding Johnny.

Ryu knew the conversation about his dragon coming to the surface wasn’t over, just postponed, his second slip in days. Adrian couldn’t have his non-human operatives revealing their true natures.