Authors: Aliyah Burke
Heart pounding, Dane crouched in the
darkness and reached for his tiger. Dane felt renewed energy pour
through him when it answered. Stronger than before and definitely
angry. Trusting him, Dane moved through the blackness until he knew
he’d found him.
“
Let’s go get our mate,”
he uttered as the tiger’s spirit returned to him.
It purred and swiped
affectionately at him.
We are both
injured.
Touching the teardrop
pendant, Dane smiled.
We’re together
again. And therefore unbeatable.
Bleeding and tired, Dane headed for the
sliver of light and reached into it, using his hands to tear it
wider. Light flooded the darkness, and he narrowed his eyes from
the brilliance. A thin line shot out and slammed into his chest,
knocking him back to hit the ground hard.
Aida.
Aida waved goodbye to Kees. He’d stopped by
again in the morning to help her out. He’d also brought some more
meat for the tiger as well. Finally alone, she cast a look around
nervously before going back inside. Kamau lifted his head slightly
and wagged his tail.
Tears pricked her eyes, and she sat on the
mattress beside him. “Good boys. Come on now, I need you to pull
through. It’s not time for me to let you go yet.” She kissed them
and walked to the tiger that lay there. His coat no longer shone
but was instead dull and stiff. The wounds no longer bled, but the
cat remained listless.
“
I don’t know how to help
you any more, tiger-mine. You have to do something. Don’t go giving
up on me.”
Three deadly growls filled
the room, and Aida couldn’t stop the whimper of fear from escaping.
Heart pounding uncontrollably, she got to her feet and snuck a peek
outside. A figure approached. The walk was extremely
familiar.
Dane!
Her heart thumped even harder. He wore all black but his
stride confident.
Aida frowned. Glancing
behind her, she saw the tiger lying there, still bearing his
teeth.
How is this possible?
Anger grew within her, pushing aside the fear.
Why was this happening? Stepping out of the house, Aida closed the
door behind her.
Time to protect you,
Dane.
It was uncanny. The man approaching was a
dead ringer for Dane Sidorov. And she would have believed it to be
him if not for two things. One, the tiger laying in her living
room, and two, the way her skin recoiled when those eyes fixed on
her.
“
Dane,” she said,
injecting joy into her tone. “I didn’t expect you back so soon. Are
you okay?”
He grinned, which felt more like a bearing
of teeth to her. “I missed you.”
Damn, even the voice is
his.
Aida walked toward him, wanting this
imposter to stay away from the house. His eyes raked her form
again, and she couldn’t hide the revulsion it gave her. She
couldn’t pretend. “You’re not Dane.”
“
Of course I am.” He
beckoned to her. “Come to me.”
Aida stopped and shook her head. “No. I
don’t know who you are or what you want but I know you’re not
Dane.”
One lip curled up in a sneer. “True.” He
waved a hand and his entire body became covered in a black hooded
cape. “Do you want to know who I am?”
Not really.
“I don’t care who you are. Leave.” Aida could
taste the fear in her mouth, and she spoke with way more bravado
than she felt.
“
You can call me Master.
I’m here to kill you and collect what belongs to me. Dane’s soul
is
mine.
”
This is the darkness he
was talking about.
“No!” she gasped. “His
soul will
never
be yours.”
“
Do you really think he’ll
be able to control his rage when your beaten and raped body is
dropped before him?”
Lifting her chin despite
the terror coursing through her, Aida said, “I
know
it. You don’t have power over
him, not anymore.”
The air was ripped from her body as some
force closed about her neck, lifting her off the ground. Unable to
do a damn thing but dangle and claw at the invisible grip, Aida was
pulled closer to him. Her heart seized when she found herself
looking into a face of evil. She had no other way to explain it.
Scelerate eyes of black flames bore into hers. The thing opened its
mouth, exposing pointed teeth, aged yellow. The putrid scent of
sulfur poured from it. As she hung there, the lower jaw split in
two and distended. Multiple tongue-like organs stretched toward
her.
“
I’d offer up a bet,” it
hissed, “but you’ll be dead so you have nothing to bargain with.”
One mucus-colored tongue trailed along her skin, bringing tears to
her eyes at the thousands of needles of pain which stabbed her. “I
want to hear you scream.” The words crawled over her skin. “You’ve
seen your last day.”
Spots began flickering before her eyes, and
while she struggled to find some remaining air, Aida quoted a
proverb she grew up with. “There are many dawns.”
A piercing shriek filled the air and a chain
of silver lightning streaked between her and the grotesque thing
who’d been holding her. Aida fell hard, desperately gasping for
breath even as she scrambled backward, torso aflame with pain as
her ribs took yet another beating from the fall.
The creature squealed in pain and hissed. A
large golden eagle lowered between them only to shift into a man at
the last second.
Oh fuck. Will this day
ever end?
Aida didn’t know how much more
of this she could take.
“
You can’t defeat me, Van
der Ness,” the evil voice ground out.
“
Doesn’t matter. I’m not
here to kill you. I’m here to protect Aida.”
The front door stopped her
from crawling back any farther.
He knows
my name. Why does he know my name?
She
stared at the tall man standing between her and the being who had
tried to kill her.
“
I will tell you this.
Hunter Adamek Nervig has picked up your trail and
he’s
coming for
you.”
Black eyes snapped over to
her. “We
will
meet again, Aida.” Just like that, the thing
vanished.
The eagle-man turned
slowly and faced her.
Shit.
Aquiline features, golden-brown eyes, and in the
lobe of his left ear a small diamond stud sat. His dark hair,
tousled on top, was short on the sides. He wore distressed jeans
and a black t-shirt. And some black boots on his feet. Handsome or
not, she squeaked when he stepped toward her.
He stopped immediately and held his hands up
like he meant no harm. It didn’t make her feel any better. Her
teeth chattered so hard, Aida was sure he could hear them.
“
Are you hurt?” he asked
in a concerned tone.
“
I’m fine.”
“
I mean you no harm,
Aida.”
“
Who are you?”
“
My name is Aren. Let me
heal you.”
She shook her head. “Stay away.”
“
You are Dane’s mate. I
could never harm you. Something happened to him. Where is
he?”
“
I don’t know.”
“
Time is of the essence.”
He looked past her. “His tiger is there. Your fear is agitating
him. How can I make you believe I am only here to help?”
“
I don’t know. I don’t
understand anything,” she said, trying desperately not to
cry.
“
Dane sacrificed a part of
himself for my mate. Allow me to help him in return.”
“
Lady Zora is your
mate?”
“
No.” His gaze narrowed.
“My mate is Lady Nahia.”
Unsure of how else to ensure her safety and
double check who he said he was, Aida got slowly to her feet and
opened the door. Aren strode past her and froze before hurrying to
the tiger. She watched him sink to the floor beside him with a low
curse as she rubbed her sore neck.
“
Mijn vriend. Mijn broer.
Vechten niet. Laat me je genezen
,” he
muttered.
My friend. My brother. Do
not fight. Let me heal you.
Wringing her
hands, Aida continued to watch, not saying she understood what he’d
said in Dutch. “Can you help him?” she asked.
Aren looked over his shoulder at her then to
her dogs. “Let me heal you first. And your dogs.”
“
That’s not an
answer.”
Aren moved to her beloved pets, ignoring
their warnings. One hand settled upon each, he dropped his head,
and they were surrounded by a gentle silver glow. When it faded,
Aida couldn’t see more than a few of the new scars on them, and
they both slept comfortably.
“
Now, you,” he said with
compulsion in his tone.
Narrowing her eyes, she shook her head at
the push she experienced. “No. Help Dane.”
Aren huffed and muttered, “He’s gonna kill
me.” Crouching at the tiger’s back, Aren placed his hands over the
feline. One hovered above the neck and the other near the
stomach.
Aida sat by the tiger’s head and asked. “Can
I touch him?”
“
Yes,” Aren replied
without looking at her.
So she did, needing to have contact with
him. Kept a hand on his cheek and scratched the large skull between
his ears. Aida didn’t say a word when Aren sighed heavily, and that
same soothing silver light flowed from his hands and encompassed
both her and the tiger. Within her, Aida could feel the pain from
both her ribs and throat disappear, and she realized he’d healed
her.
She watched in total quiet, her eyes going
from the big cat to the man. Aren was covered in sweat when the
glow faded. Aida hurried to his side yet still hesitated before
touching him.
“
Are you okay?” she asked
after removing her hand from the brief contact.
His intense eyes met hers, as if they saw
more than she wished them to. “I will be. I’ve done all I can for
him. He has to finish the journey.” Aren stood effortlessly. Aida
followed and worried her lower lip. He reached for her hand and
bowed over it, placing a kiss on the back. “Thank you, Aida.”
“
Why are you thanking me?
I’m the one who—”
“
No,” he interrupted. “You
saved him. I merely did some mending, but you, you Aida, saved him.
I am in your debt.” He grinned. “I look forward to seeing you
again, Aida. Tell him…tell him, I think Dane is a very good
name.”
Aren walked out into the
dark and vanished.
What did he mean by
that?
She hadn’t even seen it get dark
out. Locking the door, Aida curled up against the tiger, resting
her hand deep into his once again plush coat.
Good night,
tiger-mine.
It may very well have been her
imagination but she swore she heard chuffing in her
head.
When morning came, Aida went about her
business, and when she came back in, in the afternoon, her heart
leapt to her throat. There no longer lay a tiger in the room. Dane
lay there instead, on his side, dark hair falling over his face,
obscuring it from her eyes. The blanket was around his waist and
keeping it in place was Ruger’s large head.
Dane lifted his head and moved the hair from
his face with an elegant yet decidedly masculine sweep of his hand.
Aida bit her lower lip when she saw his beautiful tawny-green-gold
eyes peering at her.
“
Hey, tiger-mine,” she
whispered, settling by him and touching his skin.
“
Solnyshko
moyo
.” His voice just as deep and
seductive as in her dreams. Dane stirred.
“
Stay put. What do you
need? I’ll get it for you.”
“
You.”
Without a word, Aida curled up against him.
His chest at her back. Dane slid his arm around her waist and drew
her in close. He nuzzled the side of her neck and sighed
heavily.
“
Solnyshko
moyo
.”
Feeling safe for the first time since the
attack, Aida gave herself over to the cradle of rest.
Chapter
Eleven
It had to be a dream. That could be the only
explanation as to why he felt Aida’s curves pressed against him.
The light scent of vanilla, soft apple, and cinnamon flowed through
him.
Aida?
He felt torn between opening his eyes to see if she was truly
there and not. His heart pounded. Inching closer to his woman, Dane
held onto his belief she was real and gave into his body’s demand
for rest.
The smell of food woke
him. He opened his eyes and took in the surroundings. He recognized
the furniture.
Why am I on the
floor?
There was warmth at his back, and
he turned slowly to see Ruger lying against him. The dog’s
intelligent eyes stared at him from the confines of his scarred
face, one which had the fresh markings on it that hadn’t
faded.
You risked your life to fight at my
side. Thank you.
Two thumps of a tail were all he got before
Ruger closed his eyes. Dane smiled and struggled to a sitting
position. Peering under the sheet, he rubbed a hand over his face
and dressed himself in a pair of black satiny lounge pants with
green-gold bolts down the side.
He had just pushed to his feet when the door
opened and Aida walked in carrying a basket. Dane’s mouth grew dry.
She wore a tatty gray shirt and a loose skirt, her hair unconfined
and free. With her foot, she kicked the door shut behind her and
set the basket down. Kamau moved by him.