“Okay,” Abbie relented, tears dripping from her reddened eyes.
Gryke and Vaulcron grabbed onto Zaureth’s feet and slowly began to drag him from the room, while Fiona led them across the hall to a small testing area. Once they were all inside, she shut the door and removed her mask.
“Shove something against the bottom of the door to prevent the tear gas from getting inside,” Fiona ordered Gryke.
He grabbed a lab coat from a hook on the wall and packed it against the exposed area.
Gryke straightened. “I should not have allowed you to come—”
Fiona drew back her fist and slammed it against his jaw, effectively cutting off his words. “That’s for rendering me unconscious.”
Though his head jerked to the side, Gryke showed no outward reaction to her retaliation. “I did what I had to do. Would you rather I used my fist?”
“I would rather you stop treating me like a child. It’s not for you to make decisions for me. I was in more danger lying unconscious in that closet.”
Gryke’s gaze softened. “I am sorry if I hurt you.”
“How long will it take you to get the bullet out?” Fiona asked Abbie, turning away from Gryke. She was still too angry to deal with him at the moment.
Abbie had removed her safety glasses, but her mask remained in place. “I’m not sure. But I need my medical kit if I’m to do anything. It’s down on the first floor where they keep the test subjects.”
“Test subjects?” Fiona had a feeling she knew what test subjects Abbie was referring to.
“Mutated Incola cases.”
Fiona pinched the bridge of her nose. “I was afraid you were going to say that.”
“I will go after the medical bag,” Vaulcron offered, moving toward the door.
Fiona nodded. “I’ll go with you.”
Gryke caught up with them in the hall. “I will get the bag, Vaulcron. Stay with Zaureth.”
Vaulcron glanced at Fiona before spinning back toward the room.
Keeping her head low, Fiona hurried off down the hall, stepping over bodies as she went. She didn’t have to look back to know that Gryke followed on her heels. She could feel his presence as surely as she could feel his anxiety.
“I truly am sorry that I hurt you, Fiona.”
The whispered words through her mind eased some of her anger. She knew that Gryke had acted out of desperation, thinking to protect her. It just needled her that he thought her weak and helpless.
“I do not think you helpless,” he insisted, obviously reading her thoughts. “I have never known a female warrior with such bravery.”
Fiona’s steps faltered. He thought of her as a warrior. “If I am such a warrior, then why do you feel the need to hide me away every time there is danger?”
“Even the bravest warriors bleed and die.”
Jerking the door open to the stairwell, Fiona rushed inside, descending the stairs as rapidly as possible. “Yourself included.”
Gryke followed close behind. “Will you forgive me?”
Fiona stopped at the door leading to the first floor and turned to look at him. “Yes. But don’t ever do it again.”
“I will always do what I feel is necessary to keep you safe. I cannot change who I am.”
Shifting her attention back to the door, Fiona checked both directions before slipping out into the hall. “That goes both ways.”
Chapter Thirty
Gryke wanted to grab Fiona and make her understand his feelings for her, make her see that he would do anything to keep her safe. Even if it meant angering her.
Instead, he followed her into the hall and to a room labeled DO NOT ENTER.
Several cages were lined along the far wall, housing obviously sick humans strapped down to beds.
Fiona stopped next to one, staring into the cage with a look of pity in her eyes. “This is inhumane.”
Gryke couldn’t agree more, but the sounds of gunfire coming from outside seemed to be growing louder and more frequent by the minute. “We must make haste. There is nothing we can do for them.”
Fiona moved away from the cage and darted across the room to grab what Gryke could only assume was Abbie’s medical bag.
An explosion suddenly rocked the building, sending debris flying through the room.
Gryke threw himself in front of Fiona, shielding her body from impact.
Fiona abruptly stiffened as she hovered half beneath him. “Listen!”
An incredible rumbling sound could be heard in the distance, growing louder by the second. “What is it?”
“That’s the good guys,” Fiona announced, straightening to face the now gaping hole in the wall. “And they’re about to bring the rain.”
Gryke ushered her toward the door. “I am assuming that means we need to move.”
Deafening sounds of gunfire sprayed from the skies, only to be swallowed up by the shouts of its intended victims.
Braum’s voice suddenly swept through Gryke’s mind. “We are here, my friend. Is everyone safe?”
More than a little relieved, Gryke hurried into the hall behind Fiona and locked the door behind him. “I do not know where Oz, Tony, and Melvin are, but Hauke and Abbie are safe, as is Fiona. Zaureth has been injured.”
Anxiety filled their connection. “How bad?”
Gryke followed Fiona into the stairwell. “I am not certain. He was shot. Abbie says that the bullet remains in his chest. He cannot be moved until she has extracted it. Fiona and I are taking Abbie’s medical bag up to her now. They are on the third floor.”
The door to the stairwell abruptly flew open. Gryke spun around with lightning speed, gun in hand.
“Whoa,” Tony called out, lowering his own weapon. “It’s us.”
“The others are now confirmed safe,” Gryke informed Braum. “I will see you soon.” He severed the connection.
Filling Tony, Oz, and Melvin in on what all had happened since they’d parted ways earlier, Gryke continued up the stairs to the third floor, tight on Fiona’s heels.
“We tried holding them off as long as possible,” Melvin responded, jogging along behind them. “Until we ran out of ammo.”
Fiona glanced back. “We are dangerously close to being out as well. Thank God those choppers arrived when they did.”
“I thank Braum,” Gryke rumbled, stepping inside the room where Zaureth lay bleeding out.
Had it not been for Braum, the president wouldn’t have known the situation from the inside.
“We are being rescued,” Fiona announced to the room at large before handing Abbie her medical bag.
Vaulcron nodded. “I have been in touch with Braum.”
So, it was Vaulcron who gave Braum and the human president the information needed to pull off the rescue, Gryke thought, touching Vaulcron on the shoulder. He gave it a quick squeeze, telling Vaulcron without words how grateful he was.
Abbie began barking out orders as she sifted through her medical bag. “I need blankets, towels, gloves, and alcohol. Now.”
“I’ll get them,” Fiona offered, hurrying from the room.
Gryke wanted to rush after her, to insist she allow him to go with her, but he locked his jaw and stood where he was. If he continued to treat her as a child, she would end up resenting him.
“What can I do?” Gryke asked, feeling helpless as he stared down into Zaureth’s pale face.
Abbie ran the back of her hand across her forehead. “Get everyone out. I need this room cleared. Hauke can stay and assist me.”
Gryke nodded and waved the others from the room. He glanced down the hall toward the direction of the janitor’s closet, wondering if Fiona had found everything Abbie needed.
“Fiona?” Gryke mentally called, only to be met with silence.
His heartbeat kicked up a notch. “Fiona? Is everything all right?”
Her fear mixed with anger suddenly penetrated his psyche. “Stay back, Gryke.”
Something was wrong with Fiona. Gryke’s fangs desc
ended, his barbs became erect, and his protective lenses slid into place. He blasted down the hall with the power of a Bracadyte, sailing over bodies as he went.
Rounding the corner, Gryke stopped in his tracks, a snarl of rage ripping from his throat. There, standing in the doorway to the janitor’s closet was his Fiona, her eyes sparking with fury as Jefferies stood behind her with a gun to her head.
“Damn you, Gryke,” she mentally hissed. “I told you to stay back.”
Gryke ignored her, concentrating instead on Jefferies. “You will not be quick enough to kill us both. If you shoot her, I will be on you before you can pull the trigger a second time. And I will take great pleasure in ripping the windpipe from your throat.”
Uncertainty flickered in Jefferies’s eyes. He pulled the hammer back on the gun.
Melvin, Oz, and Tony eased up behind Gryke.
“Throw down your weapons,” Jefferies demanded, his gaze flicking nervously from person to person, “or I swear to God, I will blow her brains all over him.” He nodded to Gryke.
Gryke kept his gaze trained on Jefferies as he spoke to Fiona through their link. “As soon as we lay our weapons on the floor, Jefferies will relax slightly. When I give you the word, I want you to drop to your knees.”
“Are you sure about this?” Fiona questioned, nervousness evident in her voice.
“I am.”
Giving the signal to the group behind him to lower their weapons, Gryke slowly bent and laid his own gun on the floor.
“Now kick them away from you,” Jefferies demanded, watching them all like a hawk.
Gryke’s gaze zeroed in on Jefferies’s finger, resting on the trigger of the gun he held to Fiona’s head.
“What’s taking so long?” Abbie demanded, rounding the corner.
Jefferies’s attention shifted to Hauke’s mate.
“Now,” Gryke mentally growled.
Everything seemed to move in slow motion as Fiona dropped her weight, catching Jefferies off guard.
Gryke leapt forward with all the power he possessed, slamming into Jefferies, sending him flying backward into the janitor’s closet with Gryke’s weight landing on top of him.
“Run,” he snarled at Fiona, slamming his fist into Jefferies’s face.
Uncontrollable rage overtook Gryke in that moment. He swung again and again, pounding the bones of Jefferies’s face with all his strength.
Blood sprayed along the walls, and the sound of bones shattering could be heard over the thundering of helicopters attacking from the skies.
Gryke wasn’t sure how much time had passed before a hand touched him on the shoulder.
“He’s dead, Gryke.”
Fiona’s voice finally penetrated Gryke’s fury. He lowered his fist and stared down at the carnage beneath him. What once had been the secretary of homeland security was now an unrecognizable pile of bloody tissue.
With his breath punching in and out of his chest, Gryke pushed to his feet and enfolded Fiona in his arms. “Are you hurt?”
“No. I’m fine,” she whispered, hugging him back.
“I am sorry, Fiona. I should have been with you.”
She pulled back, her gaze locking with his. “Don’t blame yourself. I’m the stubborn one who refused to accept help.”
“I need those supplies,” Abbie called out, pulling Gryke up short.
He ushered Fiona into the hall and picked up the things she had been gathering for Abbie. He handed them over.
“Thank you.” Abbie accepted the items and rushed off to help Zaureth.
Chapter Thirty-One
Fiona couldn’t take her gaze off Gryke. She’d seen a man die at the hands of another before, but she’d never seen one mutilated the way Gryke had mutilated Jefferies. He’d beat Jefferies soft. Literally.
The sounds of the choppers landing nearby told Fiona that the fighting had ended. They were safe for now.
“Let’s go get you cleaned up,” she whispered, taking Gryke by a bloodied hand. He allowed her to lead him to a bathroom across the hall. “Are you okay?” she questioned.
Gryke’s head tilted to the side. “You are the one who had a gun to her head and you worry for me?”
“Well, you’re the one who took a man’s life with his bare hands. I know that couldn’t have been easy.”
“He deserved to die,” Gryke growled as they entered the bathroom. “He will no longer be a threat to you or Andrew.”
Fiona’s heart turned over. “Thank you for saving my life.”
“You would have done the same.”
Gryke began removing his clothes. “Kerik and Rueben Howell are still out there, somewhere. I will not rest until they are both destroyed.”
Fiona looked away when Gryke peeled down his shorts. The last thing she wanted was to be caught drooling over his amazing body after he’d just killed a man. He’d surely think she was a freak.
“I would never think that,” Gryke rumbled, reading her thoughts. He stepped over to the sink and turned on the water to soap up his arms and face. “I find it difficult not to imagine you unclothed as well. Even now.”
Lifting her gaze to the mirror, Fiona stared into Gryke’s beautiful emerald-green eyes. “The second it’s safe to do so.”
Easing up next to him, Fiona set about helping him wash Jefferies’s blood from his body.
The choppers had finally shut down, leaving the quietness almost deafening. “We’re going to need more ATVs to get everyone safely back to Aukrabah. Do you think Hauke and Abbie will return with us?”
“I do not know.” Gryke accepted the paper towels Fiona handed him, dried as best he could, and redressed. He sat on the edge of the toilet seat to pull his boots on. “I think it would be wise, considering that Howell and Kerik are still at large.”
Fiona was thinking the same thing.
The two of them left the bathroom and trailed off down the hall to join the others gathered outside the door where Abbie worked on Zaureth.
“Any news yet?” Fiona asked, turning at the sound of footsteps coming from the opposite direction.
“Not yet,” Oz answered, reaching for his weapon.
Braum rounded the corner with several men in military attire behind him. He stopped next to Gryke, locked arms with him, and pulled him into a brief hug. “It is good to see you, my friend.”
Gryke nodded. “You as well.” He took a deep breath. “We are waiting for news of Zaureth. Abbie is in there with him, attempting to remove a bullet from his chest.”
Braum leaned against the wall, tilted his head back, and stared up at the ceiling. “If he does not survive, I fear that Amy will not recover.”
Fiona’s heart ached for the two Bracadytes as she watched them interact. They dealt with so much hate, prejudice, and bigotry, simply because of who they were.
They were different, sure, but they loved their families and were fiercely loyal to their friends. They were honest to a fault and innocent by nature. But also deadly when they had to be, she thought, remembering the savage way Gryke had killed Jefferies.
The door abruptly opened, and Hauke poked his head out. “Abbie was able to safely remove the bullet. She is stitching him up now, but he is going to need blood.”
“I’ll do it,” Fiona offered, taking a step forward.
Gryke was in her face before she could lift her other foot. “No.”
“No?” Surely she’d heard him wrong. “What the hell is wrong with you?”
Hauke answered for him. “Amy is his bonded mate and therefore the only human that he can take blood from.”
“You would bond with him,” Gryke whispered, softening his gaze. “It is forbidden.”
Understanding dawned. Fiona felt helpless. “Then how do we get him the blood he needs? Amy is back in Aukrabah. Even with the ATVs it would take almost three hours to get him to her.”
Braum pushed away from the wall. “We will take him by helicopter to the gulf entrance. I will swim with him to the Pool of Enlightenment and s
ee to it that he safely reaches his mate.”
Clearly relieved, Hauke sent Braum a grateful look and softly closed the door.
“The president thinks that you all should return home while we secure the area,” one of the soldiers announced.
All eyes shifted in his direction.
Though apparently uncomfortable under their scrutiny, the young soldier stood his ground. “Those are the president’s orders.”
Braum grinned at the guy. “I told you that they would not bite.”
Gryke peeled his lips back, showing the soldier his fangs. “Braum does not speak for me.”
The guy’s eyes grew round, eliciting a grin from Gryke as well.
“What about Hauke and Abbie?” Tony moved to stand next to the door his niece remained behind.
Braum turned to face Abbie’s uncle. “President Pratt feels that it would be safer for them to return below. He wants to speak with Klause about having a lab built in Aukrabah for Abbie, perhaps even a hospital where she and Zaureth can properly treat the sick.
“But won’t that mean a delay in an Incola vaccine?” Fiona interjected.
Braum shrugged. “It will, but if Abbie does not survive, there will never be a vaccine. She is the vaccine.”
Fiona thought about Andrew and the risk of him becoming exposed without Abbie’s help. “That makes sense.”
* * * *
Rueben Howell stared out the window of the house he and Kerik were holed up in. He’d just gotten a call that Pratt had destroyed the army of rebels that Kerik had sent to help Jefferies abduct Doctor Sutherland.
“If Jefferies hadn’t insisted on those damn scrolls, we would be home free right now,” Kerik snapped, pacing the floor behind Howell.
Rueben kept his vigil at the window. “Doug was always a hothead. And it cost him his life.”
The pacing stopped. “Are you sure he’s dead?”
I have a man on the inside. It looks as if one of those aliens beat Doug to death.”
“Jesus,” Kerik growled, resuming his continuous trek across the floor. “We know where the entrance is to Aukrabah. I say we send a heat-seeking missile through that opening and straight up their alien asses.”
Gryke: A SciFi Alien Romance (Enigma Series Book 6) Page 11
