That book was important. It was his ticket to bigger and better things. Riggs didn’t need anyone. Not even Karina. All he needed was the book. Capturing Varkas would be the icing on the cake.
Riggs tucked his notebook back in his pocket and then smashed the GPS unit against the floor. He wasn’t sure it was totally destroyed so he stamped on it with his boot and pocketed several of the pieces to dispose of later.
He was the only one who knew exactly where Varkas and the librarian had been. He sure as hell wasn’t sharing it with Temple. It remained to be seen just how much he revealed to Karina. He’d have to think about that.
With the younger Temple out of the way, if he removed the elder one, he’d move up in the Knights. He wanted the power and the longevity that came from being in the upper echelons of the organization. And he had the skills to get what he wanted.
Riggs left the plane and hurried down the steps. “Have you put a tracker on it?” he asked one of his men. He fully expected to capture Varkas, but better safe than sorry.
“Yes, sir.”
He nodded, expecting nothing less. These were all tough, highly-trained operatives. He’d handpicked them himself for this job. “Let’s go. We need to follow the road and see where it leads us.” And if he found the book and was able to capture Varkas, all the better for him.
He wasn’t about to wait for Temple or Karina to call the shots. He wanted Varkas for himself.
Chapter Twenty-Seven
Darius was waiting by the door as Sarah finished putting on her boots. She was dressed again in her jeans and one of his shirts. She hadn’t bothered putting on underwear, stating she wasn’t wearing them again until they were washed.
Knowing that she was naked under her jeans was making it hard for him to concentrate.
She gathered her bag and slung it over her shoulder. “I’m ready. Do you have everything?”
“Yes.” His knapsack had several changes of clothing. Sarah didn’t know it, but he had a handgun and extra ammunition tucked in the front pocket as well. He wasn’t anticipating trouble, but it paid to be prepared.
He opened the door but shut it just as quickly. “Someone is coming. I can hear footsteps.”
Sarah glanced toward the window. “Maybe it’s just a hiker.”
He shook his head and dropped his knapsack to the floor. “There’s more than one set of footsteps. I’d say there’s at least a half dozen men, maybe more.” He hated to frighten her, but she needed to know the truth. Plus, she’d more than proved she could handle herself in a crisis.
“What do you want me to do?” She set down her bag and clenched her fists by her sides. She was pale, but her shoulders were set with determination. He strode to a cabinet on the far wall. When he opened the door, it was empty. A quick tug on a hidden lever and the wall behind slid out of the way to reveal a weapons locker. “Can you shoot?”
“No. I’ve never fired a weapon before, but I can aim and pull a trigger.”
He passed her a gun, checking to make sure it was loaded first. “Here’s the safety. Make sure it’s off before you fire, otherwise leave it on.”
“Gotcha.” She held it in her hand with the barrel pointing down.
“Never aim at anyone you’re not willing to kill. Take your time when you squeeze the trigger and remember there will be some recoil.” That was as much of a lesson as he had time for. “Hopefully, you won’t have to use it.” He grabbed a knife with a foot-long blade and tucked it into the waistband of his jeans. A knife was a much quieter way to kill a man than a gun.
There was a large stone fireplace in the middle of the far wall. Darius grabbed her free hand and dragged her toward it. He hadn’t bothered lighting a fire, for which he was eternally grateful. Thankfully, the hearth was relatively clean. He kicked the logs out of the way and motioned to her. “Sit or crouch in there. If bullets start flying, it’s the safest place for you. The stone is thick enough to stop just about anything.”
“Where will you be?” Sarah knelt on the floor and crawled into the small space, getting as comfortable as she possibly could. It was a snug fit, but she sat with her back against one wall with her feet braced against the opposite one.
“Outside.” When she started to protest, he leaned down and kissed her. “I have to. I have to know who’s out there. If it’s the Knights, I can sneak around behind them and start picking them off one by one.”
She grabbed his arm. “Be careful. Promise me you’ll be careful.”
“I promise.” He kissed her again—a hard, quick one that left him wanting more. “I have a lot to live for.” He left her curled up in the fireplace with only a single gun for protection, one she didn’t really know how to use. No matter. He didn’t plan on allowing anyone close enough to touch her.
Darius went into the bedroom, kicked aside the rug, and yanked up a trap door. If he thought he could manage it, he’d have snuck Sarah out this way, but the men outside were too close, and he couldn’t risk her being hurt or killed.
He jumped down into the hole and hurried along the path that he’d gouged out of the earth decades ago. It wasn’t a long tunnel, and he paused and listened before pushing open the hidden door at the other end. He was about ten yards from the house.
He was about to make his move when he realized his phone was in his pocket. He yanked it out and crushed it in his hand. He had to plan for the worst-case scenario. He couldn’t allow the Knights to get their hands on Tarrant’s number. Muttering a curse, he closed his hand around the electronic components and smashed his fist into the dirt wall of the tunnel. The earth gave way, and his fist went about three feet back. He opened his palm and released the pieces of the phone. Then he pulled his hand back out. The earth flowed back into the space. No one would be able to know by looking that there’d ever been a hole there.
Satisfied he’d done all he could to hide his phone, he listened. When he was sure there was no one nearby, he hauled himself out of the tunnel and slowly closed the door. No need to advertise the escape route. He might need a way to get back to Sarah.
He sniffed the air and quietly moved off to his right. It was time to go hunting.
…
Sarah shifted in the confined space of the fireplace, trying to discover a more comfortable way to sit. She didn’t find it. She rested her right arm on her bent knee. The gun felt unnatural in her hand. And heavy, far heavier than she’d ever imagined one would be. She was grateful her injured fingers were on her left hand and not her right, or she’d never be able to use it.
“You can do this,” she muttered. She’d never fired a weapon in her life, had never even considered killing another human being, but she’d do it if she had to in order to protect Darius from the Knights. No way was she going to allow them to capture him so they could drink his blood and perform experiments on him. Her vision had showed her what the Knights were capable of, what they’d done to that other poor drakon.
She forced herself to take a deep breath and then another. The cabin was quiet now that she was alone. She wasn’t even sure how Darius had left. He hadn’t used the front or back doors. He’d disappeared into the bedroom. The window maybe? Or another fancy hidden door? She had no idea and wasn’t about to leave her hiding place to find out.
“He can take care of himself.” He’d been outwitting the Knights for thousands of years. She, on the other hand, had been in this war for a matter of days. She wished she were tougher, one of those women who knew how to handle a weapon with ease. Darius would have been better off with a woman like that. Instead, he was stuck with a librarian.
If she survived this, she was determined to start working out, maybe take up martial arts or weapons training.
Who was she kidding? She hated exercise, unless it was walking or yoga. But she could learn to shoot. That was something she could do. It was good to have a goal.
Where was Darius? She wished she knew. The not knowing was worse. Time seemed to drag on. How long had he been gone? Realistically,
she knew it was probably less than five minutes, instead of the five hours it felt like.
“Sarah Anderson?” The male voice startled her, and she almost answered before she caught herself. “I know you’re in there.”
He couldn’t know. Not unless she gave herself away.
“It’s Matthew Riggs. I don’t know if you remember me or not.”
She did. He was Herman Temple’s head of security. She’d always found him cold and a little frightening.
“Mr. Temple is sorry you got caught up in this situation,” he continued.
Sarah snorted. Situation. Is that what they called wanting to kidnap, experiment on, and potentially kill Darius? A situation? Her palm grew damp and she transferred the weapon to her other hand long enough to wipe her right one on the leg of her jeans. When this was over, she’d need more than new clothes, she’d need another shower.
“We only want to talk to Darius Varkas. I don’t know what tall tales he’s spun for you, but he’s a danger to national security.”
She had to give him props for trying. He was very convincing. If she didn’t know better, she might actually believe his lies. She balanced her arm on her knee for support and braced the butt of the gun with her left hand like she’d seen them do on television. The extra support helped steady her aim. Then she thumbed the safety off the gun.
“If you come out, I can get you away from here,” Riggs promised. “Take you home. You don’t need to be a part of this. You took something from Mr. Temple, and he wants it back. Return the book, and you can walk away from all of this.”
She rested her head against the hard stone of the fireplace. It was too late for that. It was too late the moment she’d come to Herman Temple’s attention, too late when she’d found the book. Whether she wanted to be or not, she was a part of this secret war. As strange as it was to admit, she wasn’t sorry she was involved. She would never have met Darius otherwise, and she wouldn’t change that for all the safety in the world.
When they got away from here and were safe once again, she wanted lasagna. Maybe French fries. And ice cream. Chocolate, too. Eating was her way of dealing with stress, and right now she was ravenous.
“You have ten seconds, Sarah. Then there’s no going back.”
She kept her lips sealed and started counting. She was at nine when she heard the scream. It was high-pitched but undeniably male. She knew it wasn’t Darius.
A fierce gladness welled up inside her. As much as she didn’t want anyone to die, it was their choice to be here. All they had to do was walk away and leave her and Darius alone.
Riggs shouted instructions. The front door burst open and a man came in low. He was dressed all in black with some kind of mask or hood covering his face. He was also holding a wicked-looking rifle in his hands. Sarah didn’t stop to think. She steadied her arm, aimed the gun, and pulled the trigger.
The man dove to one side and returned fire. The bullets tore into the fireplace and shards of stone flew, gouging her skin in several places. She kept shooting, taking time to aim as best she could. The man was obviously a professional.
A roar shook the foundations of the cabin. Sarah almost smiled. Darius had shifted, and he wasn’t happy from the sound of things.
“Parker, get out here,” Riggs yelled.
The man who’d broken into the cabin quickly crawled to the door, using the cover of the sofa to block her view. She took another shot but missed, and then he was outside.
She knew she should stay where she was. Knew Darius would be angry with her if she didn’t. But she couldn’t stay hidden while he was fighting. She might not be the best shot in the world, but she might be able to be of some help.
Her muscles were cramped after being contorted into an unnatural position for so long, but she dragged herself out of the fireplace. Something dripped down her cheek and she swiped at it, not surprised to find blood. Her right arm hurt, too, but there was no time to bother with that now.
She crawled toward the living room window and snuck a look out of the corner of the glass. Five men circled Darius, their faces all showing fear but determination. She wondered how many of them had actually seen a drakon in his animal form before. Not many, if any. The Knights probably wouldn’t want to share any knowledge with the men they deemed expendable.
Her brain was her best asset. She knew the leaders of the Knights would protect themselves with money, power, and men like these. They’d keep themselves safe until the dirty work was done and then would step in to claim the spoils.
Darius’s tail whipped out and caught one man in the neck. It snapped and he fell to the ground. She’d seen him in his dragon form before, even seen him sparring with Tarrant, but she knew now that she’d never really seen him fight.
Her drakon was a brutally efficient fighting machine.
Gunfire rang out but was deflected off the thick scales that covered his body. Darius opened his mouth and flames roared out. One of the men caught fire and ran screaming into the woods. Sarah slapped her hand over her mouth so she wouldn’t make a sound and distract him.
“This isn’t working,” one of the men yelled. “Why isn’t he running? Aren’t they supposed to run?”
“Not anymore.” Darius’s voice was so low and guttural she almost didn’t recognize it. “We left you alone, but no more.” He flicked out his powerful tail and caught another man unawares. He cried out as he was thrown about fifty feet away and landed with a solid crack against the trunk of a tree. She knew he was dead before he hit the ground.
“Retreat,” Riggs called. “Get back to the plane.”
“Do you really think I’m going to let you escape?” Darius asked. His tone was calm, almost conversational. He was downright scary when he was like this.
“It’s up to you.” Riggs yanked a grenade off his belt and pulled the pin. “You can come after us or you can maybe save Sarah. What’s it going to be?” Then he tossed the grenade through the open door.
She screamed and dove to the floor. The grenade rolled across the hardwood and came to a stop just inside the fireplace.
The explosion smashed her against the wall. The windows blew out, sending a shower of glass rocketing through the room. Fire roared, flashing outward from the point of impact. She dropped the gun and buried her face in her arms as the heat blasted over her.
She heard a roar but wasn’t sure if it was the fire or Darius.
“Sarah.” Strong arms lifted her and hurriedly carried her away. They didn’t go out through the front door but toward the bedroom. Then they were somewhere dark and damp. Darius was moving quickly. A tunnel? She couldn’t concentrate. Her ears were ringing and everything was a blur. The world whizzed by her at such a fast pace her stomach roiled and she was afraid she might throw up. She closed her eyes and tried to breathe deeply, but it hurt.
“Sarah. Don’t close your eyes. Look at me.”
She frowned at the fear in his voice. Were the Knights still here? Was he in danger? It wasn’t easy, but she forced her eyes open. Darius’s chest gleamed with sweat and was marred with dirt and soot.
“Where?” She wanted to ask where they were going but could only manage one word. She was so weak. It was also hard to hear with her ears ringing.
“Almost to the plane. Stay with me.”
He shouldn’t be taking her there. Riggs and the others would expect that. “Not safe,” she managed. She’d tried to yell, but it was more like a whisper.
“I’ll keep you safe.” A muscle in his jaw tightened. “I’ll do a better job, I promise.”
She knew he was blaming himself. “Not your fault,” she got out before she started to cough. That quickly turned into a groan of pain. She hurt everywhere. She felt as though her entire body had been beaten.
She heard the roar of an engine and then Darius swore. “They’re taking off. I don’t know what they’ve done to our ride.”
Darius burst across the runway and up the stairs of his plane. She tried to figure out why the stairs
were already down. He took her to the back and gently laid her on the plush leather sofa.
She got her first good look at him. “You’re naked.” She didn’t know why she was so surprised. She knew he’d shifted, which meant he’d either stripped or shredded his clothes.
He didn’t smile. If anything he looked more worried. He grabbed a towel from the bathroom and pressed it against her cheek. “You’re hurt. I don’t know how badly.”
Darius tried to be gentle as he checked her arms and legs, but she cried out several times as pain shot through her.
“I think your right arm is broken, but I can’t be sure. I know it was grazed by a bullet.” He carefully pressed against her stomach, and she gasped. “I don’t know about internal injuries. I can’t take you to a hospital. The Knights would find you within a couple hours, a day at the most.”
She licked her lips and fear shot through her. “Am I going to die?”
“No!” He shook himself. “No, you’re not going to die.” He stood and strode away. She wished he’d stay with her. The world was getting darker by the second. She knew she might not make it, not without medical intervention, and she didn’t want to die alone.
Then Darius was back carrying an empty glass and a knife. She frowned. How would an empty glass help? Her thoughts were totally muddled.
He sat on the floor next to her and set the glass beside him. He lifted the knife and casually cut his arm. Blood flowed. As she watched in shock, he caught the blood in the glass. The wound was already closing, but he managed to fill the glass half full.
Darius’s expression was fierce as he eased one arm beneath her head and raised it. “Drink.” He brought the glass to her lips. She shook her head and tried to pull away, but he wouldn’t let her. “You have to. It’s the only way to save you. Please, Sarah.”
She stared up into his beloved face and was shocked to see tears in his eyes. Or maybe it was the tears in her own eyes making her see things. There was no way to be sure. “You can’t leave me,” he told her. “Drink. Please drink,” he pleaded.
Drakon's Promise (Blood of the Drakon) Page 28
