Dragon in the Dark (Kindred Tales)

He took several deep breaths, trying to calm the Fire that was still trying to rise inside him, filling his throat with molten flame.

Most other Kindred went into a state called Rage when their female was threatened. It was a state of berserker fury that took over a Kindred warrior’s mind and wouldn’t let him think straight until he had eliminated the threat to his female.

But with Drake Monstrum, it was different. Dra’vik had the Fire Breath—meaning he could literally breathe fire like a living blow torch. And not just a few little flames, either. No, he could have burned the spaceport to the ground if he’d wanted to—and part of him really had wanted to when he’d seen Iyanna chained to that damn machine, exposed and helpless and understood what those two bastards had been doing to her…

My fault, he thought grimly, as he struggled with the Fire inside him. It was heating his chest to a burning degree, yet Iyanna huddled in his arms, shivering as though she had just come in from the cold. I never should have left her alone—NEVER!

He needed to take her someplace private—someplace he could cool the Fire within himself and make certain she was all right. He was fairly certain he had gotten to her in time, before the bastards in the scanning room had raped her, but he needed to be sure.

Just then, he saw a small door to the right on the curving white wall. In curving, Lix’dorian script a sign read, Private Lounge. VIPs only! No others admitted!

Disregarding the sign, Dra’vik pressed the open pad with his elbow as he cradled Iyanna in his arms. To his relief, the door slid open revealing a nicely decorated lounge which was—thankfully—completely empty.

Feeling relieved, Dra’vik entered and the door slid shut behind him.

Maybe now he could find out from Iyanna what had happened…and find out if he really had been in time.

TWENTY-EIGHT

Iyanna wasn’t sure how far the big Drake carried her. She buried her face in his shoulder, breathing in his bonfire scent, and shut her eyes tight. His scaled skin was so hot it nearly burned her but she didn’t care. Away, she just wanted to get away! That was her only thought, drumming over and over inside her head as Dra’vik’s boots clicked on the white tiled floor and echoed across the empty corridor.

Then the swaying motion of his stride ceased and Iyanna felt herself being lowered to a soft, yielding surface. But when Dra’vik tried to put her down completely, she resisted.

“No! No, don’t leave me alone again!” she begged, wrapping her arms around his neck.

“I won’t leave you, little girl—I swear it,” he rumbled in her ear. “But my Fire is rising—I must be burning you!”

“I don’t care!” Iyanna shook her head and pressed her face to his hot chest. “I don’t care—I just don’t want to be left alone in this place again!”

“All right. All right.” He pulled her securely into his lap and settled down.

Opening her eyes, Iyanna saw that they were in a small room with plush, overstuffed furniture, all done in pastels. The couch Dra’vik was sitting on appeared to be made of pale green leather with lavender trim. There were two chairs facing it—both empty—and the white walls were covered in soothing, abstract murals, also done in pastels.

“Where…where are we?” she asked, her breath hitching in her throat.

Dra’vik shrugged, his broad shoulders tight. His eyes were still glowing—as was the center of his chest.

“Don’t know. Some kind of private lounge, I think. I just brought you in here to make sure you’re all right. And to cool down. I—”

“Where were you?” Iyanna interrupted him as her fury suddenly bubbled up to the surface. “Where did you go? You left me alone and they almost raped me, you bastard! Where were you!”

Tears blurred her vision and she struck his broad chest with her fists, so angry and hurt and upset she could barely breathe.

Dra’vik didn’t try to avoid her blows. He just sat there and let her hit him, let her beat and slap and shout until suddenly Iyanna found she didn’t have it in her to hit him anymore.

Collapsing against his broad chest, she sobbed helplessly as the fear and horror of what she’d just been through shook her like an earthquake.

“I was so scared…so scared,” she whispered, her breath hitching with sobs. “I thought…they said they were going to…they tried to…”

But she couldn’t get anything else out for a long, long time. Dra’vik said nothing—he simply held her, his arms wrapped tightly around her while she cried, silent and immutable as though he was just a piece of furniture she happened to be sitting on.

Finally, Iyanna was able to catch her breath and wipe her eyes on the long, trailing sleeves of her crimson outfit. The material wasn’t very absorbent, but it was better than nothing. She wished she could blow her nose too, but there were no tissues handy, so she just sniffed as she swiped at her eyes.