Then she heard a female grunt of pain and Evie decided hiding wasn’t going to help anyone. It was time to see if they were here for her.
Stashing the laptop inside the cabinet of the island counter, Evie took a deep breath and peeked over the counter top. Charlie was taking on two people dressed in black with bandannas over the lower half of their faces in some kind of hand-to-hand combat she couldn’t identify. Glancing over at Nikki, the other dragonwoman was struggling to defend the blows from another person dressed in the same attire because of her injured arm and shoulder.
The clothing and height of the three invaders told her they weren’t dragon-shifters. If she were to place a bet, they were dragon hunters.
Which meant they were probably here for her. Nikki and Charlie would just be a bonus.
As Nikki stumbled from a blow to her injured shoulder, Evie made a decision and stood up. Clapping her hands together, she yelled, “Hey, hunters, looking for me?”
Her heart thundered in her chest as all eyes locked on to her face. Not wasting a moment, she continued, “My name is Evie Marshall. If you’re here for me, leave the two women alone and I’ll cooperate.”
Nikki said, “No, Evie, don’t do it.”
The person in black opposite Evie punched Nikki’s injured shoulder. Hard. The dragonwoman huddled over and moaned with pain.
Evie clenched her fists to prevent herself from rushing to Nikki’s side. Instead, Evie raised her eyebrow. “Well? Are you here for me? Otherwise, I have a secret weapon back here and I’m not afraid to use it.”
The person in front of Nikki walked around the hunched over dragonwoman and faced her. “Love, I’d bet a million pounds you don’t have a weapon back there. You’re bluffing.”
Her heart thumped harder, but Evie had years of practice concealing her emotions. She kept her face nonchalant, just barely. “You can either test me or answer my question. I would think if you’re here for me and I offer to go with you without a struggle, it would save you some time.”
One of the two people still keeping an eye on Charlie said, “She’s right. Who knows when the dragonman will be back.”
She detected a hint of worry in the person’s voice. They must be afraid of Bram. She could use that to her advantage.
The person closest to her, whom she designated as “the leader”, replied, “Protocol Y.”
In the blink of an eye, both the leader and the two people near Charlie pulled a tag on their black vests and tossed small, smoking metal objects at both Nikki and Charlie. As soon as the light purple smoke reached the faces of the two dragonwomen, they collapsed and didn’t move.
Evie caught herself before she cried out. Showing attachment to the pair might do them more harm than good. She would treat them as nothing more than bodyguards.
The leader looked her in the eyes. “Now that your dragon friends are out of the way, let’s talk.”
Remember, Evie, don’t look to Nikki or Charlie, or you might breakdown. After a deep inhalation, she said, “As long as you didn’t kill the two guards, my offer to cooperate still stands.”
The leader kicked Nikki in the side and Evie steeled herself not to react. The leader said, “As long as our scientists didn’t make a mistake with the dosage, they’ll live.”
Evie guessed he was telling the truth. After all, Nikki and Charlie’s blood was too profitable to waste on killing them, which meant no matter what Evie did or said, they would take her friends alive.
Since her capture was all but inevitable unless Bram suddenly showed up, her priority was to leave a clue for Stonefire to use when they searched the cave dwelling later. But what could she do?
Then she remembered the phone. From the corner of her eye, she saw the landline receiver laying on the desk. If she were lucky, someone was still listening in. She could communicate that way.
She focused on the leader and said, “Right, then tell me what I need to do to keep the two guards alive.”
The leader motioned with his fingers and his two team members flanked him on either side. He put out a hand and the person on his left placed a small vial into his palm. The leader held up the vial. “Drink this and we won’t shoot your friends.”
Evie raised an eyebrow. “You want me to drink a strange, blue liquid, no questions asked? How do I know you’re telling the truth and will keep your promise?”
The leader held out the vial. “You don’t, but this is the only time I’m offering it. Next, we’ll take you by force and kill them.”
They wouldn’t. She prevented herself from calling the man on his shit and put out her hand. “Hand it over.” Once the leader placed it in her palm, she curled her fingers around the vial. “Right, then just tell me this: are you with the Carlisle hunter gang?”
The leader growled. “We’re not a gang, love.” He took out a gun, unlocked the safety, and aimed it at Nikki’s head. “Now drink the bloody vial.”
Evie uncorked the vial. While the man’s words hadn’t been a full confession, they sounded like an admission to her. She only hoped the information reached Bram before it was too late. If she used the ‘correct dosage’ remark to make a guess, she decided Charlie and Nikki had probably been dosed with the periwinkle and mandrake root, which meant they couldn’t shift for a few days. They would be kept alive until they could be drained of blood, but who knew what the hunters would do to Nikki and Charlie in the interim.
There was only one option to take. Evie put the vial to her lips and drank the bitter liquid. She only hoped she could find a way to save her friends. Or, if nothing else, a few days was enough for Bram and the others to find her. Evie refused to think of the alternative.