“Hey,” he yelled.
Shit.
“Boss! I spotted them,” he bellowed, his feet pounding for us.
“Fuck!” Ryker turned back for Croygen. “You remember where Joey’s place is?” Ryker didn’t even let him answer. “Run. Get her out of here. We’ll distract them.”
Croygen did not hesitate, and with Lexie in his arms, he sprinted forward. Ryker waited for the fae to come from the alley before turning the opposite way Croygen went. I had to trust he would keep her safe.
“Boss, they are heading toward you,” the guy shouted into the night. Footsteps and yelling voices filled the air.
“You think Vadik will ever give up searching for you?” a thick Irish accent hollered into the night. “There is nowhere you can go he won’t find you. Or her,” Garrett called out, his voice echoing off the buildings.
Ryker’s jaw clenched as he turned Amara and me down another alley. We weaved in and out of lanes, the blond, skinny fae right on our tail, yelling out our location. He had to go. I stopped and spun around. My sudden switch in direction startled the boy. I didn’t recognize him from Garrett’s normal gang. He looked no older than seventeen but was probably hundreds of years old.
“Zoey!” Ryker’s voice boomed.
“Come on, pretty boy.” I shoved up my sleeved, disregarding Ryker’s call. I yanked the messenger bag off me, curling my fingers around the knife. Sprig squeaked when I set him down but stayed put.
The fae grinned and came straight for me. I stood my ground. The moment he was on me, his sword swiping for my chest, I fell to the ground, kicking out. My boots slammed into his ankles, and he stumbled back. The boy had to be fairly new, not even seasoned enough to know simple fighting tricks. I jumped up and smashed the hilt of my knife into his forehead. He hit the ground. I pounced on him, striking him with everything I had. The blood in my veins sparked to life. Adrenaline propelled force down my arm, expanding my chest with exhilaration.
The high of the fight bloomed under my skin. The world disappeared.
His head bounced off the cement like a ball. His body went limp, his head rolling to the side.
“Zoey, enough.” Ryker’s voice startled me out of my tunnel vision. “He’s unconscious. Let’s go.” He pulled me to my feet. The body on the ground lay bloody and beaten. He was fae. He would be fine, but it still chilled me how easily I could hurt someone. And feel nothing about it.
Shaking out my hands I turned around.
Amara stood with her mouth open. “Damn.”
“Told you not to mess with her, Mar.” Ryker waved me forward.
“She wasn’t that good when I fought her last.”
“Yes, I was.” I grabbed the bag, hearing snores inside, and knocked into her shoulder. “I went easy on you.”
A huff came from her as she followed Ryker and me. The tingling of my skin told me more fae were descending on us. Anxiety danced in my bones. The three of us rounded a corner and came to a sudden stop.
Garrett, Cadoc, and Maxen stood in front of us.
The Irishman’s eyes wandered over each of us, a smug smile on his face. “How nice. The three I was looking for. Thank you for meeting me here. Much easier to capture you when you come to me.”
Ryker gripped the large hunter’s knife in his hand.
“Seriously?” Garrett chuckled at the weapon. “You think that is supposed to scare me? A human breadknife? Where is your axe, almighty Wanderer? Did it leave you too, because you weren’t fae enough to handle it?”
Ryker inhaled, staying silent.
My back prickled sensing fae moving around us. Shit. We were surrounded.
“Always so loquacious.” Garrett took a step forward. “Sorry. Was that too big a word to use?”
Garrett wasn’t especially tall or built, so he played the clever card as if he had to make up for not being brawny.
My gaze went wildly around us. More and more men moved from the shadows, boxing us in.
“Why should I bother when all you want is to hear yourself talk?” Ryker’s eyes darted to the side, picking up on the force coming in on us. At least twenty fae moved in closer, all with swords or spears. Wolves rounding us up like sheep.
Shit. Shit. Shit.
Ryker stepped closer to Amara and me, brushing up against my back. It was the best position. The three of us, our backs to each other, were going to have to fight.
“True.” Garrett grinned. “You won’t understand anyway. So let me put this in a language you do.” He jerked his head for his men to act. They reacted instantly, springing for us. We were outnumbered and certainly out-gunned.
From every direction swords, spears, daggers, and sticks with multiple spikes came for us. I whipped my head around, trying to gauge the leading threat. Our knives only shrank under the menacing weapons, doing little but quivering in our hands against the odds.
I swung my arm wildly, striking my blade at anything reaching my space. I quickly acknowledged the odds. But even when I had no hope, I still never quit. I always fought till my body shut down, which was why the bosses in charge of the fights always enjoyed me in the ring. No matter my odds, I fought to the end.
And I would do it here as well.
With my back to Ryker’s, three men were on me. A sword drove for my gut. I jumped, lurching a low side kick into the tall, blue-haired man with the spear, my boot hitting the tendon behind his knee with force. He stumbled back with a cry. I rebounded, centering myself for the next attack. I ducked as a curved blade whooshed toward my neck, the tip slicing across my temple. Blood oozed down my face.
I didn’t feel anything through my adrenaline and fear. I didn’t even see faces anymore as reflex impelled me deeper into survival mode, my muscles moving like a machine. I felt the hits, the knife marks the fae engraved to say they had been there, but I also sensed my comrades fighting next to me. Mostly I focused on the men coming at me in multitudes.
“Zoey!” My name rang through the air with a terrorized crispness. My head automatically jerked out of my fighting haze. And that’s when I saw it. The blue-haired fae’s arm pointed in my direction, his javelin hurtling through the air, the arrow heading straight for my chest. I didn’t even have time to blink before the tip was a breath away from kissing my skin, embedding itself into my heart. A hand yanked me so roughly, I flew back. Ryker’s arms grasped me as our collective force toppled us like dominos, his body crashing into Amara’s back, taking her down.
With a whoosh my world spun as if someone had thrown me into a spinning dryer. My lids shut as the earth whirled.
My ass hit hard concrete with a painful bite. Warm arms shielded the rest of me from the impact, holding me so firmly I lost my breath.
I heard Amara cry out. The sound of skin and fabric slapping cement.
The spiraling stopped.
Quiet and darkness.
I cracked open my lids. The buildings in front of me swayed before they righted themselves, revealing a quiet alley. Overflowing dumpsters and the smell of molding food, piss, and foraging rats were our only threats.
The sensation of Sprig’s warmth on my lap drew me out of my haze. I placed my hand on my bag, feeling him breathing inside. I exhaled with relief that he was okay.
A noise came from behind me, and I craned my neck to see Ryker, with Amara lying face-first on the ground, halfway underneath him. Garrett’s men were gone, no attackers descending on us. The grungy setting of Fremont no longer surrounded us.
“Holy shit.” I gaped. “You jumped us.”
“Yeah.” He frowned, searching the alley. “But not on purpose.”
“Fear,” I responded, remembering the many times I had accidentally jumped because of fear. For the longest time it seemed the only time my powers kicked in. “It triggered the jump.”
His gaze landed on mine, a pointed look deep in his eyes. Fear for me.
“Are you hurt?” He let his arms drop from me, his fingers grazing the cut at my head.
“No.” I
touched the tender slice into my hairline. “It’ll heal.”
“Yeah, yeah. Your concern is so sweet I want to puke. Now could you both get your heavy asses off of me?” Amara growled, struggling to move under our combined weight. “Now.”
I climbed to my feet, taking inventory of the rest of my body. The wound was closing at my temple, blood congealing there. Other than a few cuts and bruises, I was fine. And most of all I didn’t have an arrow sticking out of my chest. If it had touched me, it would have come with us, and I’d have been dead, jump or no.
Ryker saved me. Saved all of us.
He got his feet, helping Amara up.
“You guys all right?” I asked.
“Yeah.” They both nodded. They also had surface nicks, but nothing serious. I took a relieved breath.
“Where are we?” Amara asked, brushing herself off, twirling her head around, and looking down the lane.
“Pioneer Square,” Ryker responded, heading toward the alley opening. “The guy I was fighting reminded me of this son of a bitch I did a job for years ago. He owns the Mediterranean restaurant right there.” Ryker pointed to the back entrance of a hole-in-the-wall joint. “Obviously why we ended up here.”
“Huh. That’s kind of funny.”
“Why?” Ryker glanced over his shoulder at me.
“Well, I was about to be speared like a shish kabob. Kind of fitting, don’t you think?”
Ryker’s lips thinned and he turned away, checking the street, and then motioned us forward. “The garage is actually not far from here.”
Amara brushed by me. “I think it’s hilarious.”
Yeah. Even more so if I actually had been impaled.
On our ten-minute walk, Sprig’s snores provided traveling music. When we finally made it to Joey’s, my feet hastened the moment I saw the sign. Two people remained on my mind.
“Croygen?” I ran into the garage. Tools, cars, and parts stuffed the place. The smell of oil, metal, and gasoline saturated my senses, stinging my nose.
“We’re here,” his voice rang back.
Relief zipped through me when I saw him. He sat on a bench seat that had been pulled out of a car. Lexie curled up on her side next to him, her head on his lap.
I rushed to them and dropped to the ground, needing to touch her and make certain she was really there. Sweat beaded on her face, and she struggled to breathe.
“She’s burning up.” He frowned. “She’s gotten a little worse just since we’ve been here.”
I brushed back her hair, her labored breaths slashed at my heart. What did I do? Was getting her out of DMG actually her death sentence? I pulled Sprig from my bag and placed him next to Lexie. He nuzzled into her stomach, falling into a deeper slumber.
“We’ll let her sleep for a bit more, but she needs to drink something soon to stay hydrated. If we can get food down her, even better.”
He nodded in agreement. Amara’s and Ryker’s footsteps sounded behind me.
“Garrett found you guys, clearly.” Croygen tipped his chin at our wounds.
“Yeah, but Ryker jumped us.” I stood up.
“Really? That’s good. Your powers are coming back then.” Hopefulness clipped Croygen’s words.
“Yeah, but we both are still poor at controlling them.” Ryker scoured his thumb over his forehead.
“Still, it’s something.” Croygen shrugged.
I twirled around taking in our new location. “Are you sure Joey is all right with us being here? She doesn’t need to work or anything?”
“Not lately. Not many needing an oil change.” Ryker wandered around, investigating the dark corners and hiding places. He thumbed back toward a door. “There’s a shower in the employee bathroom. The hot is actually cold, just warning you.”
Amara immediately darted in the direction he pointed.
“Not going to ask how you know that,” I replied.
“Good thing. I’d rather not sleep with one eye open all night.” Ryker poked his head into a room, flicking at a light switch. “Great. No electricity.”
“Shower doesn’t work either.” Amara stomped back into the room. “And with no electricity, the refrigerator and microwave in the breakroom are useless.”
“Those taunting little sluts.” Croygen stretched his arms above his head, yawning.
Amara rolled her eyes, mumbling under her breath. She made her way to where Ryker was, helping him search the other rooms attached to the garage.
I grabbed the bags and took them to the windowless breakroom. While in Target, I added flashlights and candles to our plunder, considering we might have to stay in places like this. I struck a match and lit one of the candles. The walls glowed with dim yellow light. The room contained a table with four chairs, and cabinets lined one wall. A sink and a microwave were next to a refrigerator. The bathroom entrance was to the right. Posters about customer service and a board with the employees’ schedules covered the walls.
Turning back to the sacks, I set out the food, water, and medication, finding the wipes and cleaning the blood off my face, losing myself in thoughts.
“I’ll sleep in here during the day.” A deep voice came from behind. I twisted around to see Ryker stepping into the room, the candlelight flickering off his features. “And do the guard shifts at night.”
“I can do them too.”
He shook his head. “Amara will help.”
My jaw cracked.
“You can’t be guarding and taking care of your sister. She needs you more.”
The bristling anger evaporated as fast as it came. “She is getting worse.” My voice splintered.
“We’ll figure it out.” Ryker took a step then stopped, balling his hands into fists. He looked down at his shoes. “Garrett is on our trail, and Vadik won’t stop till he has us.” He shoved his hands in his pockets, his voice cool. “I know you want to take down DMG, but right now I’m thinking we need to get out of Seattle for a while. Get some distance.”
My head bolted up, my mouth opening.
“Before you speak.” His eyebrows went up. “I’m not suggesting we leave Annabeth to her fate. We go after her. Soon. Maybe tomorrow night we check Vadik’s place out. Figure how best to get her and then get us the hell out of here. We are just sitting targets in this town.”
Maybe if we had a chance to breathe, Lexie would have time to get better, to heal. I could get her stronger drugs. We could have a moment to plan how to destroy DMG.
“Yeah.” I met his eyes. “Sounds like a plan.” Our gazes remained on each other. Desire was always there, boiling like a volcano, but this time I also felt its pain, the raw agony of being so close, yet so far apart. His white eyes pierced into mine, holding me prisoner. Neither of us moved nor spoke. Love and hate. Pain and pleasure. The air crackled, simmering over my skin, caressing my nerve endings.
“When I saw that spear heading for you…” He trailed off, his voice a rough whisper. He ran a hand over his head. “I want to touch you.”
I sucked in through my teeth. “I want to be touched.”
Ryker’s pupils dilated, his tattoo flickering down his neck. A growl hummed in the air. He stood in front of me before I could even blink, shoving me with his bulk until my back slammed into the counter.
“Where?” He licked his lips.
“What?” My head spun at his nearness, wanting to feel his heat seeping into my body.
“Where do you want to be touched?”
Air. Thoughts. Logic. They all vanished. I knew if I had them, I would know we were playing with fire, and one of us would end up barbequed.
“Show me.” He placed his palms on either side of the counter, boxing me in.
A warning bell deep in the back of my brain went off.
“Ryker…”
“Show me,” he demanded, his eyes blazing hotter. There was a fine line between the brutal Wanderer and his oath, between the man who liked it rough and kinky to the murderous robot who just wanted to strangle the life from me. Bu
t the danger, the thin line between the two, only urged me on.
I trailed my hands down my body to my jeans, slowly unzipping my pants. Ryker leaned in farther, rumbling as my fingers trailed along my underwear line. “Where do you want my fingers, human? My tongue?”
I dipped below the fabric, a breath exhaling from me, imagining it was him. The man didn’t even have to touch me and I was beyond ready.
“Deeper.” His voice strained with gruffness. His words became unclear. More alarms were going off, but I could only respond to his demand. “Harder.”
I groaned as my fingers moved quicker. On either side of me, the lip of the counter snapped, crumbled into bits, falling onto the linoleum.
“Imagine that’s my tongue.” He leaned into my ear. “Licking you.” My head fell back, his hot breath on my neck was too much. He whispered and breathed in my ear until I climaxed.
“Ryker. Please,” I whimpered. “I want it to be you touching me…inside me.”
A strangled sound came from his chest. “I can’t.” The words were so soft I barely heard them.
“Yes. You can.” My body felt like a live wire, and it didn’t care about the repercussions. It just wanted him.
He went still for a moment, then grabbed my hand, pulling it from my underwear. He brought it up to his mouth, curling his tongue around my fingers and nipped them.
I was done. Thankfully the counter behind held me up.
His grip on my hand constricted, his eyes shutting. “You taste so damn good,” he muttered, his lids squeezing together. When he opened his eyes, the man was gone. The robot had taken his place.
“Shit,” I said under my breath. I didn’t even get the whole word out before his body crushed into mine.
“I should have made you get me off first.” He snarled, his eyes cold, but his touch heated as his hands skimmed up my chest to my neck, his thumbs pressing down lightly on my vocals cords, as if he got off flirting with my demise.
“Go ahead.” I stared straight at him, pushing against my instincts to kick and fight back. My voice struggled to talk. “Kill me. End this.” Maybe if I died again my fae side would save me, looping this whole cycle into action again, or maybe I would truly die this time. I was willing to find out. I was tired of fighting him.
From Burning Ashes (Collector Series #4) Page 12
