Mercy Burns (25 page)

It meant the connection I’d felt last night was very real, and very strong. But it was also very useless in the long term. Because I was draman, and that would never change.

Damn it, I thought, blinking back the sting of tears, what had I done to fate to turn her into such a bitch? First she steals Rainey from me, then she throws me into the path of a man who could be everything I ever wanted, and yet who is everything I can never have.

Death was dangerous, all right, but not in the way Janelle had warned. Unless she
had
meant just this.

I crossed my arms and leaned against the window frame, my gaze on the curve of the road and tension thick in my gut. Sure enough, after a few minutes, the white car reappeared. I stepped back a little more behind the cover of the lace curtains, but the car slowed anyway. It didn’t stop, but it was just creeping past. I swore softly and opened my mouth to warn Damon, but the car took off before the words could emerge. This time, it didn’t disappear up the sea road, but turned left and disappeared into the trees lining the street that ran past the house.

I turned and ran for the bathroom. Damon was toweling himself dry, but stopped the minute I burst in.

“He’s stopped?” he asked, voice brusque and body still glistening with moisture.

“Worse. He’s turned down this street.”

He swore softly, then tossed the towel down on the rim of the bath. “Go out the back door and head down
to the trees, following the path we took up here. I’ll meet you at the car in ten minutes.”

“What will you be doing?” I pressed back against the door as he passed, then followed him back into the bedroom, watching as he, too, went through the closets.

“Taking care of our problem.” He glanced at me, his expression like stone. “And do
not
tell me to go easy on the bastard. He tried to kill you once, and he may just succeed the second time.”

There wasn’t anything I could say to that. He was right. This was the best option open to us, but it still didn’t sit right. I didn’t
want
to kill, didn’t want to be a part of it. Didn’t want
him
to be a part of it, even if it was his job.

That was just plain stupid. The man was never going to change who and what he was, especially for someone like me.

Besides, these people had killed Rainey, Angus, and countless others in the draman towns. So why the hell was I giving them such consideration when they’d given absolutely none to anyone else?

Even though my mouth was dry at the thought of what I was condoning, I nodded, then leaned forward and kissed him quickly. “Be careful.”

He smiled and cupped his hand to my cheek, his flesh so warm against mine. “I’d offer you the same warning, but I’ve got a feeling it’ll probably fall on deaf ears.”

I couldn’t help grinning. For a man who didn’t really know me very well, he’d sussed out that part of my nature easily enough. “Don’t worry about me. I can—”

“Take care of yourself,” he finished for me, voice dry. “Yes, I know. But a little bit of caution never hurts.”

“For you, I’ll try.” I kissed him again, my lips lingering a little longer than necessary, then with a sigh, I turned and made my way down the stairs.

I peered out the side door for a long time, my gaze probing the shadows still lurking among the trees to make sure no dragons were hiding within.

When I was sure it was safe, I scooted out, running across the grass as fast as I could, feeling exposed and vulnerable even though I knew I wasn’t. But I’d seen the lengths to which these bastards would go, and deep inside I couldn’t escape the notion that sooner or later, my turn would come.

Fear ran through me, but I pushed it aside, concentrating instead on slipping through the trees as quietly as possible. The day might be stirring, but the immediate vicinity was quiet, with little moving except the wind through the leaves. Dawn’s energy was fading, leaving a sparkly resonance that tingled across my skin. I slipped down the slope, moving from shadow to shadow, my gaze skimming the path ahead even as I strained to hear if anything was coming up behind me. But everything continued to be silent.

When I neared the road, I slowed, keeping to the protection of the trees until I knew for sure it was safe to cross. I ran into the RV park and remained as close as possible to protection, be it the RVs or the trees, until there was little other choice but to step into the open and walk the rest of the way to the car.

But just as I was about to, one of the shadows moved.

M
y heart slammed into my throat, and for several seconds I couldn’t even breathe.

The white-car guy hadn’t come alone.

I had no idea why we’d thought he had, considering these people had a tendency to hunt in packs. But I backed away and leaned against the outside wall of an RV for a moment, closing my eyes and breathing deep.

What now?

Waiting for Damon to take care of the problem was the obvious solution, but I just felt too exposed here in this park—if only because the travelers would be waking soon and would start questioning why I was hanging around. That meant I needed to find somewhere more secure—somewhere downwind and in deeper cover.

I shifted and peered around the corner again. And again, my heart just about stopped.

The shadow had disappeared.

Fear clenched my gut and the litany that ran through my mind was little more than a rambling, panicked,
oh fuck, oh fuck, oh fuck
.

But neither panic nor that litany was going to help me, so I took a deep, calming breath and tried to think sensibly.

Obviously the watcher had moved back through the trees; anything else I would have seen. I had no idea whether he’d seen
me
, but I had to presume he had. Which meant getting out of here.

Fast.

I pushed away from the RV and ran to the next one, dropping to my knees and crawling underneath. The asphalt was cool and smelled of oil—evidence of the number of leaky vehicles that had parked here over the years. Once through, I climbed to my feet and ran to the rocky shoreline, jumping down the slight embankment and keeping low as I ran toward the pier. I was heading away from the car, but right now that was probably the safest option.

I reached the ramp that crossed the water to the pier, then risked taking a peek at my surroundings. Though a nearby RV was blocking the majority of my view, I couldn’t see anyone in the immediate vicinity. But people were stirring in the various vehicles, and lights were beginning to flicker on—yellow blooms whose brightness wouldn’t last long against the growing light of day. I had to get to the trees before then.

I bit my bottom lip, torn between ducking under the ramp and getting wet, and taking the higher, less secure route through the RVs.

The higher road won. I wasn’t about to run around all day in wet shoes.

I pulled myself up the rocks and ran for the back of the nearest vehicle. Murmured conversation rode the air, followed by the buzz of a microwave timer going off. I peered around the RV’s corner, saw that the blinds were still shut, and ran for the next vehicle. There were three more RVs and a long stretch of nothingness before I reached the tree line. It seemed a mile away.

I blew out a breath, and once again told myself that Damon would be here soon. All I had to do was stay out of harm’s way long enough.

And as much as the thought of relying on someone else to get me out of trouble rankled, it was definitely my best option now.

I ran for the next RV, pressed my back against the metal side and listened intently for any sign that the shadow might be near, then repeated the process.

Then that huge expanse of empty parking lot was upon me. I contemplated it warily, mouth dry and heart racing. Of course, it was always possible I’d seen nothing more than one of the campers out for an early morning stroll, but I did not dare take that chance. Not with the way fate had been playing my cards of late.

Even as that thought crossed my mind, the wind shifted and suddenly I knew I was no longer alone. My gut twisted and with a soft cry of denial I half turned, my fist rising, ready to punch, to fight. But it was already too late. A leather-clad arm snaked around my neck and forced me back against a body that was thick and muscular, and smelled of ash and death.

But he was draman, not dragon.

“Got you at last, my pretty,” he whispered, his harsh tones whispering past my ear.

Just for one second, the fear that churned my gut
got the better of me, freezing my limbs and turning my thoughts to mush. But as his arm tightened around my neck and started cutting off my air, adrenaline surged.

I shifted my foot and stomped down on the top of his as hard as I could, then clenched my fist and elbowed him in the gut. His grunt was an explosion of air and his grip released a little, giving me air but not freedom.

I twisted my chin to the side, dropping it down into the pit of his elbow so he couldn’t cut off my airway any further, then reached for my flame, dragging it through my body and pushing the explosion of heat back into his.

Such was the force that it wrenched him away from me. His arm tore away from my neck, his watch catching and cutting my skin, but I spun around and kicked him, as hard as I possibly could, in the groin. He might be draman, and therefore tougher than most humans, but he was still a man. He made an odd sort of groaning noise and dropped like a stone.

I turned and ran for the trees. I didn’t head for the car simply because I had no idea if it was safe to do so. I had no idea whether it was safe to run through the open parking lot, either. After all, these men had weapons and had shown a penchant for using them.

The thought sent a fresh surge of energy flooding through my limbs, and I made it to the trees in record time. I didn’t stop there, but ran deep into the middle. It might be only a small wood, but no one could get me in their rifle sights or creep up on me in here. The ground was too strewn with leaf matter and other rubbish.

I leaned back against a tree and tried to catch my breath. My limbs were trembling and my heart raced
like a wild thing. I might have defended myself, but—just like in the past—it had scared the hell out of me.

Maybe I should leave this to the experts.

Maybe I should just pack up and go home.

Only it was too late for that now. They knew who I was, where I lived, and what I did. There was nowhere safe for me to run, not without endangering the lives of everyone around me.

Besides, I didn’t have much left besides my integrity, and how could I live the rest of my life, knowing I’d walked away from my one chance to avenge Rainey and save her soul?

The strident blast of a car horn made me jump, and I looked out through the trees to see a green SUV come to a halt on the road almost directly opposite my position.

The fear leaped again, but even as I pushed away from the tree, ready to run, the window wound down and a familiar face appeared.

Damon
. Relief spun through me. I raced toward him and jumped into the passenger side of the car. He took off immediately, the tires squealing and no doubt waking those still asleep in the park.

“There’s more than one—” I said, grabbing the seat belt and buckling up.

“Yeah, I know,” he cut in. “We’re obviously dealing with a large organization, not just the half dozen or so I’d presumed.”

“But how could such a large group exist without the council or the other cliques getting wind of it?”

“The fact that no one
does
know suggests Julio’s fears could be right, and that there
is
a clique behind it somewhere.”

“But a clique wouldn’t back a draman uprising.”

“No, but they
would
use draman as foot soldiers in a war. Dragons are great manipulators. The draman might not even realize what they’re actually fighting for.” His expression was grim as he glanced at me. “And remember, dragons are collectors. Wealth, land, and power are all prizes worth fighting—and backstabbing—for.”

“So if all this is the beginning of a planned uprising against the kings, why kill a king’s son and risk possible exposure?”

“It’s possible they were given no choice. If there
is
a clique behind this, Lucian might have recognized one or more of the players.”

“Lucian being Julio’s son?”

“Yes.” He glanced at me, expression cool yet again. “And considering a couple of the men involved are from your clique, that should probably be our first avenue of investigation.”

I might not like my king’s or my clique’s ways, but I still felt honor-bound to defend them. After all, not everyone there had grown up to be an arrogant bastard—just a good percentage of them.

“That doesn’t necessarily mean clique involvement. For all we know, it could be an underground movement of draman.”

“But why would draman kill draman?”

I snorted softly. “Killing is an accepted part of dragon culture, and regardless of what dragons may think of us, we are a part of that culture. And for all we know, this whole mess could be nothing more than a territorial dispute between draman.”

“A territorial dispute won’t fly. Both towns were on separate, unclaimed dragon lands.”

“And draman can’t dispute property?”

“Of course they can, but a territorial dispute wouldn’t lead to such complete destruction of life.”

No, I guess it wouldn’t. “If there
is
a clique behind it, will you have to go to the council and make this an official investigation?”

“I can’t. Not until we know for sure what’s going on here.”

“That’s not what I asked.”

He glanced at me. “Yes. I can’t move against a clique unless I have the approval of all the other kings.”

“Then I’m praying like hell that there
isn’t
a clique behind it all.” Because if the council got involved, things could go
very
wrong. Not just for my own quest, but for draman in general. “So, what’s next?”

“We find Deca Dent and its owner.”

“You don’t think they’ll be expecting that?”