Finding His Dragon (Dragon Blood Book 3) (4 page)

Still he grinned at her as though she was of no consequence, sliding his hand up higher until she could feel the warmth of it at the juncture between her legs.

Unable to control the dragon, she snapped her teeth only inches from his face, growling. She brought a leg up and kicked for all she was worth. In her seated position, she couldn’t reach anything but his leg, but she hit him with all she had. He grunted before lifting his hand and smacking her across her already painful jaw. She twisted herself so that she faced him more squarely. The force of her kick sent her into Pete, making the truck swerve and the tires squeal.

“Hold her down, or knock her out, for fuck’s sakes,” Pete yelled.

“She’s a fucking menace. We should be getting paid double for this,” he said as he wrapped his hands around her neck.

***

After he’d let his fury out, Jace stopped roaring and looked around him. There was no sign of struggle, nothing out of the ordinary. He took a breath through his nose, the scent, or rather scents, were faint, but they were there. Two males, both dragons, had been there.

His heart thundered in his chest as he reached into his pocket for his phone. He’d started dialing when a shuffling sound to his right caught his attention.

“I saw them,” said a boy, no older than ten. “I saw them take your truck, mister. And he punched her, too. I saw him hit the girl right in the face. My mom used to tell me that boys shouldn’t hit girls, but he did.”

His whole body tightened, and everything around him turned red as the dragon surged forward. The little boy’s eyes widened, and he took a step back. “Did you see which way they went?” Jace barely got the word out through his clenched jaw.

The boy shook where he stood, but he nodded his head.

“It’s okay. I won’t hurt you. But you have to tell me so I can help her.” Jace crouched down, making himself a little smaller. The boy was filthy, and had no shoes, but he held his head up high as he lifted his arm and pointed to the left.

“They drove that way. You better hurry. She wasn’t awake anymore when they drove off.”

“Thank you, kid.”

Jace dialed fast, knowing he had little time to talk. The dragon wouldn’t be held back for long. It was scratching and roaring for freedom, and this time, Jace was more than ready to relinquish control.

“Luke, I need your help. Get Austin and whoever else is at the estate and come down. Fast. Two dragons kidnapped my mate. They took the truck. I’m going after her.” Already he was pulling his shirt off, taking the phone away from his ear only long enough to slip it over his head.

“Where are you going? We’ll catch up.”

“They’re headed toward the highway.” His voice was becoming rougher and more garbled as his teeth started elongating.

“On our way.”

If Luke said anything else, Jace didn’t hear it. He walked over to the kid and handed him the phone. “Can you hold on to this for me? And my stuff?” He waited until the boy nodded and held out his hand before handing him the phone and his wallet. “Keep it all safe for me.”

“I can do it,” his little chest puffed out with pride.

With a nod, Jace turned away and got rid of the rest of his clothes before allowing the shift. He didn’t care that he was in the middle of a parking lot, or that he might freak the whole neighborhood out by shifting right there in the open. All that mattered was getting to Charlotte before the bastards who took her got away, or worse, hurt her more than they already had.

They had a good few minutes on him, ten at the most, and although the Inn was close to the interstate, it would still have taken them a couple of minutes to get there. Even going full speed, they couldn’t have made it far. He had to stop them before they could ditch the truck and take to the air. If they kept Charlotte knocked out they could carry her off, and finding her would be a hell of a lot harder.

With his black scales, he didn’t have to worry about causing a wreck by scaring some innocent driver. He blended into the night sky. Someone would have to have incredible eyesight, and be looking straight at him to be able to catch a glimpse of his hide. Even so, he was careful to check each vehicle from behind, dismissing them before he surged ahead to the next one. He’d come across two other similar trucks, but had yet to locate the one he was so desperate to find.

A slight movement to his right alerted him to another dragon’s presence. The indigo scales were almost as hard to spot as his black ones, but Brycen kept high enough to evade detection. His friend had made it down the mountain in record time, and if he was there, the other men would soon follow. Jace nodded, acknowledging him, before surging ahead.

It didn’t take long before he caught sight of a truck weaving and swerving on the highway. His heart stuttered. He could face any dragon, but the thought of Charlotte getting hurt in an accident nearly had him tumbling from the sky. With another burst of speed, he caught up with the truck as it righted itself on the road. Inside, two men sat with Charlotte wedged between them. One of the men had his hands around her neck. Jace dove with Brycen right behind him. With a mighty roar, he let out a massive plume of blue-white flames, illuminating the truck and the surrounding countryside.

The truck swerved across the line, and the engine revved as the driver gave it more gas. It wouldn’t matter. Brycen was already in front of them, facing the vehicle. Too busy looking for the threat behind them, they hadn’t even noticed the dragon ahead. Brycen landed on the road ahead, his wings outstretched, and roared. His dragon’s fire came at them, and they had no choice but to brake and veer to the side. The truck skidded to the right, then to the left as the driver tried to regain control, but it was too late. They careened across two lanes, then crashed into the ditch, coming to a hard stop only a few feet from a steep ravine.

Jace landed, shifting to his human form, running toward the smoking vehicle. His whole body was numb, but he kept running. Flames from the engine licked at the bent hood. He heard another roar nearby, then another. His men—his friends—had arrived, as he knew they would.

“Charlotte!” he screamed. Right above, Brycen circled the vehicle still in his dragon form. The smell of gasoline stung Jace’s nose as he reached the passenger door. He ripped it open, not caring that his palm would blister. With a mighty growl, he tore the man who had had his mate’s neck between his hands and threw him from the truck. He landed in a heap inches from the drop-off, but he didn’t care. One of the others would make sure the bastard didn’t get back up.

Inside the truck, Charlotte moaned. He reached in, heedless of the flames coming into the cab through the vents and beneath the dash, and tried to pull her free, but her leg wouldn’t budge. The flames licked dangerously close to where it was pinned.

“She’s stuck,” he yelled loud enough for his clan mates to hear.

In an instant, great gusts of wind fanned the flames lower, and claws dug into the metal above their heads. The truck jerked, and shuddered. The sounds of metal bending and tearing filled the cab as the roof gave way to the night sky. Blood dripped from the dragon’s clawed feet as it carried the top of the truck away. Another dragon swooped low, using his massive feet to grab at the burning dash. He hissed and roared in pain, but didn’t let go, pulling harder and harder with each strong beat of its wings. The truck groaned, but then in an instant, Charlotte was free, and in his arms.

Careful not to jostle her, Jace pulled her away from the wreckage. He didn’t make it a hundred feet that the glow of the fire intensified, and its heat warmed his naked back. The male, still trapped inside, screamed in agony for what seemed like forever, until the fire consumed him and took his miserable life.

They’d been lucky. There hadn’t been any other vehicles around to witness the carnage, but their luck was about to run out. The soft hum of an engine was rumbling closer. They were a few miles out, but that distance would be eaten up in little time.

He turned to his clan who stood back, some in dragon form, others shifted, waiting for his instructions. Charlotte’s limp body hung in his arms, and it was all he could do to keep from roaring long, and loud.

“What do you want me to do with him?” Brycen asked pointing to the man on the ground.

Jace looked at the man still curled up a short distance away, his vision still tinted red. It would be a long while before the dragon’s rage subsided enough for the haze to recede. The fury roiling inside him had streams of smoke wafting from his nostrils. He’d kill the bastard himself if it weren’t for the fact that he’d have to set his mate down to do so. As it was, he’d trust his clan brothers to do the job for him.

“Get all the information you can get out of him, and then do whatever the hell you want with the bastard.” Jace set Charlotte on the ground only long enough to shift before he took her in his claws and headed home.

Charlotte’s head spun and her stomach rolled. A cold wind gusted all around her in strong, heavy beats, sending her long hair whipping around her face and shoulders. Opening her eyes, all she could see was the massive underbelly of a jet black dragon. She tensed for a half second, but then Jace’s scent permeated her foggy brain. She took a deep breath, then another. She was safe. He wouldn’t hurt her. She didn’t have to know him to know that much. The way he carried her, with one huge claw securing her hips, and the other cradling her neck and shoulders told her as much. Even in dragon form, the man held her as gently as a newborn babe.

“Jace,” she croaked in a husky whisper. Lifting her hand, she stroked his warm chest with the tips of her fingers. “Thank you for coming for me.” She couldn’t raise her voice, but his dragon would hear.

The soft rumble vibrated in his chest, making her smile. Turning her head to the side, she spotted not one, but two dragons keeping pace next to him. Looking to the right, she saw yet another. Jace didn’t seem concerned, so rather than fight the fatigue making her eyelids heavy, she closed them with a sigh and drifted off to sleep.

Charlotte didn’t wake until soft blades of grass tickled at her skin as her black dragon set her on the ground. She tried to sit up, but her spinning head had her lying back just as quickly.

“Stay where you are,” Jace said from right next to her.

When she peered up at him, he was standing there in all his naked glory. If she weren’t in so much pain, she might take more time to admire the view. As it was, her heart sped, and her breaths quickened. Licking her lips, she opened them to speak.

“Don’t,” he said. “Don’t talk. Your jaw is swollen and bruised. I don’t know if it’s broken. Not to mention what they did to your neck. It would be best if you didn’t speak until we can see the extent of the damage.”

With each uttered word, his body became more rigid. His fists clenched at his sides, and his voice became more garbled. He was furious, yet he’d carried her with such tenderness. She shook her head, blinking back tears. It had been so long since anyone had cared about her wellbeing.

“It’s okay,” she whispered, wanting to at least ease some of his worries. “It’s not broken. My throat does hurt, though.” Even swallowing her saliva was like swallowing shards of glass.

Jace took a step back, then another, not taking his eyes off her even as he reached for a bundle at his feet. Shaking it out, he slid into the jeans he’d grabbed, but left them undone before coming back to her. “I’m taking you inside. My clan mates have already gone in.”

“I’d like to walk,” she said.

Before she could sit up, he was there, lifting her into his arms. “Your leg was pinned in the truck. I don’t know the extent of the damage, but the truck was on fire. It’s going to hurt to put pressure on it. Once we get you situated, you can shift and heal.”

The last thing she wanted to do was give his clan any reason to dislike her. She wasn’t weak. She wanted them to know she would be a good mate to their friend. “I’d prefer to meet your clan on my feet,” she said with more strength than she felt.

“I’ve already instructed the men to give us some space, so you aren’t likely to even see anyone. But even if I hadn’t, none of my clan would look down on you for letting me take care of you while you’re injured. It’s what mates do, Charlotte,” he insisted.

Charlotte wanted to argue, but her head pounded. Keeping it upright took more energy than she had to spare. It wouldn’t do to walk in there only to fall flat on her face. She nodded, then let her head rest against his shoulder as he took her inside.

When they had arrived, Charlotte hadn’t looked at the building itself. She imagined it to be a house, much like any other, but one look at the entry hall and she knew it wasn’t. The vaulted ceilings had to be at least three stories up. The room itself was bigger than her entire house back in Morganville. Okay, so she’d lived in what amounted to a shack, but still, the room was huge. Oil paintings hung on the walls. Heavy drapes covered the windows. From the expensive tiles on the floor to the crazy high ceilings, everything was more luxurious than anything she had ever owned.

Before she could comment on how beautiful the entrance was, he was crossing the space, and taking her through a massive set of heavy wooden doors to the right. “I’m taking you to the great room. It’s a bigger space, and you’ll be able to shift and heal.”

The lighting in the great hall was softer than in the foyer, and immediately the throbbing in her temples eased a little. A faint scent of jasmine wafted around her, sweet, and soothing. Candles burned all around the room, giving it a cozy feel.