Page 22 of Tempting Her Dragons (Embracing The Bond #10)

Chapter Twenty-Two

Kingston

I ’m fucking pissed. We spent all night tracking this asshole, and we found him in a shitty motel, drinking. I missed a night of sleeping next to my sexy mate, only to be in Ryker’s dungeon with a whiny human with the face of the sick fuck we killed.

Mav showed up in time to go with me to bring him here. He tried to fight us off, but he was no match to us, and his movement was slow. Bishop and Laken are here along with the vampires. River came along, ready to chase him down. Heath stood in the corner, his hands folded over the top of his cane, watching the sniveling man with disdain.

“He’s fucking drunk,” Bishop says.

“This is who you were worried about?” Heath asks. I’m quite disappointed, too.

“He won’t stop crying,” Ryker says, his fangs showing.

“I left my mate for this,” Micah drawls.

“Are we sure he’s the one?” River asks, his head tilted. “He pissed himself.”

“Apparently, he is only brave when he tortured that woman and covered up his brother’s kills,” I say. He has to be acting. Shade saw the picture of the woman he fucked up.

“That bitch had it coming,” the twin snarls.

“There it is,” River says.

“He’s tough when it’s someone weaker than him,” Laken states.

“I get it, but this is ridiculous,” River says.

“I tend to agree,” Mav mutters.

“You wanted to find me,” I say, and he focuses on my face. Looking into his eyes, I see the demented side of him.

“You’re the dick that killed my brother,” he spits. “You took him away from me.”

“I did,” I confirm. “What were you going to do when you found me?”

“Kill you,” he says harshly.

“Really?” I can’t understand the two sides of him. I have seen many men switch personalities when they are on the losing side, but this is extreme. He is struggling with his situation. Most abusers believe they are untouchable, so when they are at someone else’s mercy, they either think they still have the upper hand, or they crumble.

He is crumbling.

“You have to pay,” he thunders.

“What is your name?” I ask.

“Shane.” He pulls on the chains he is hanging from.

“Do you know what I am?” I ask. His gaze is locked on Ryker and his fangs.

“Yes, the man who took away my brother’s work.”

“Work?” I step close. “He tortured women. I was thrilled to kill him.” That penetrates, and he jerks his head my way.

“Motherfucker, you had no right,” he roars. “He was doing good.”

“This guy is seriously off,” River says.

“You threatened our mate, Shane,” I say.

“My brother would have loved her,” he smiles. “Her body.” He licks his lips. “I wanted a taste.”

“Oh shit,” Bash says. I strike out with my hand, wrapping it around his throat.

“Shane, you had no idea who and what you were trying to find,” I whisper. “You decided to step out from behind your computer and enter a world you know nothing about. I wasted precious time finding you. The time I could be spending with our mate, and I’m furious.” He laughs manically, and Mav is instantly beside me.

“Let’s kill him and be done,” Mav growls, and I press the back of my palm to his chest.

“How did you find me?” I ask.

“I’m good with computers. I used my skill to cover up my brother’s actions and to find you. My brother always checks in, and sends me the information on the women he needs to disappear. When he didn’t, I knew something happened to him.” He smiles sickly. “I was pleasantly surprised to see you with a woman.”

“So you left the note,” I state.

“Yeah, it was a good way to get your attention.” He loses the grin when I elongate my nails.

“Do you like my attention?” I snarl, digging into his skin slightly.

“Shit, please,” he begs.

“You wanted it? I’m giving you what you wanted,” I snap. A flurry of movement at the top of the stairs breaks through my rage, and I turn my head.

“Kingston.” Sally sprints down the stairs. “Maverick.”

“Sally?” I frown.

“Saphira is gone,” she rasps.

“What?” I whisper furiously.

“We went to the coffee shop. She went to get another coffee and disappeared.” Her eyes are filled with anguish. “Your mom is tracking her. She sent me to get everyone.”

“No,” Mav says, stricken.

“Saphira,” Laken rasps, and Bishop’s face whitens.

“Fuck,” she says. “I would have called, but the coffee shop’s not far. Roxanne said you will be able to track her. Can you?”

“Yes,” I reply faintly.

“Damn, you lost the hot girl?” Shane taunts, and I turn my burning gaze to his face.

“Fuck you,” I rumble. I transform my hand, my claws penetrating his neck, my poison seeping into his body. “You can join your brother,” I say, my voice filled with my dragon. I pull and sever his head from his body. As it rolls across the floor, I call on my fire and direct it to his chest. My fire is pure gold in color, and I will it to burn.

“Holy shit,” River whispers.

“Astonishing,” Sally says.

Mav wraps his arm around my chest and presses his head to mine. “Brother, it’s done.” His voice calms me, and I grind my teeth as I call back my power.

“Nothing but ash,” Ryker says.

“Who is he?” Sally asks.

“The man we have been looking for,” Bash informs her.

“Then who has Saphira?” she asks. “I thought it was him.”

“We don’t know,” Mav says. “Did you see anything suspicious?”

“No.” She shakes her head jerkily. “We were having a nice conversation. We knew the twin had been to the business and thought we would check it out.”

I run for the stairs, Mav beside me. “Call everyone,” I demand. “We will find Saphira tonight. Sally, come with us.” The stairs vibrate as everyone follows. “Tell us everything. I want all the details, no matter how small.”

“Okay.” She keeps pace as I run through the empty club.

“Mav, call Shade. We need the footage of the coffee shop within the next fifteen minutes,” I say.

“Calling,” he says, and we burst out the front door. Sally jumps in the car with us, and I don’t look to make sure the others are following.

“Where am I going?” I ask, grinding my teeth. Sally reaches between us and enters the location into the navigation.

“He’s not answering,” Mav says.

“Fuck,” I growl, pounding my fist on the steering wheel. “Keep trying.”

“She was only gone ten minutes,” Sally says. “She wanted to talk to her friend and get another coffee. We didn’t think anything was wrong.”

“Did you talk to the workers?” Mav asks.

“No. Your mom tracked her scent from the bathroom to the back door. She told me to find you and took off,” she says. “Shit, I’m sorry. I should have gone in with her.”

“It’s not your fault,” I say. “I had the bad guy. We didn’t know anyone else was a threat.”

“I’ll call Quinn,” she says, reaching for her phone.

“Tell him to meet us there.” I barely get the car in park before I jump out and run for the door. I pay no attention to the curious looks of the customers. “Where is the owner?” I ask the man behind the counter.

He looks from me to Mav. “He’s on his way,” he says cautiously. “Is there a problem?”

“Yes, there is. Our woman was taken from here, and we need to see the cameras,” I snarl, and his eyes widen. He backs up, and I know my dragon is just under the surface, and my skin is glowing.

“King,” Sally says, touching my arm lightly. “Maybe I should talk to him.” I grasp the counter and drop my head, trying to gain control.

“Hello,” Sally says, stepping beside me. “Could we talk somewhere more private?”

“I think I need to make a phone call,” he says.

“No, you don’t,” Mav growls, his fist pounding on the wood.

“Friend,” Micah says, appearing beside me. “I’m sorry about my friends, but a member of our family was last seen here, and we want to find her.” I look up to see his eyes trapping the worker in their depths. “You are going to take us into the office, show us your security cameras, and sit calmly while we watch the recordings.”

“Okay,” he says and moves around the counter.

I glance around to see Ryker and Bash speaking to the customers, covering for us. Saphira’s brothers are following. River is close behind them, but Heath disappeared. I prowl behind the man, impatient at his slow, robotic pace.

We enter a small office and have to leave the door open, Laken, Bishop, and River having to stop at the threshold.

“I want to see the footage from an hour ago until now,” I demand, and he freezes.

“Do everything he says,” Micah instructs.

Flexing my fingers, I rock back and forth, restraining the urge to rip off the innocent worker’s head.

“What’s going on?” Quinn asks as he arrives. I tune out their words, watching the interior of the coffee shop appear on the computer.

“Move,” Quinn rumbles, and the chair is vacated. He settles in it, and his fingers fly over the keyboard. “We will find her. Keep your shit together until we do,” he says, looking at me briefly and then Mav. “Save all your rage for the asshole who took her. You can tear him apart.”

“Yes,” I hiss, ready to kill.

“No one will stop us from killing him,” Mav says. “Fuck, there she is.” We lean over the desk on either side of Quinn as Saph appears. We see her stop at the counter and speak to the woman behind it. Their conversation is brief, and then our mate walks out of camera range.

“Hold on,” Quinn says, pressing more buttons until we see her progress to the bathroom. My heart aches, waiting for her to appear again.

“What the fuck?” Her friend enters the bathroom. “Who is that?” I demand, turning my furious gaze toward the employee.

“Rach,” he says. “She left suddenly. Her shift isn’t over.”

“Fucker,” Sally gasps, and I look back at the screen. Rach is holding Saphira close, guiding her to the back door.

“She’s stumbling,” Mav whispers.

“Who the fuck is this woman?” Bishop growls.

“Saphira comes here all the time. Rach was here when I got drinks for us. She’s a coyote and has been nice and knows her coffee. I thought they were friends,” Sally says.

“Obviously not,” I snarl.

“What is the Rach’s full name?” Quinn asks.

“Tell him,” Micah demands, pushing the human against the wall.

“I don’t know,” he answers.

“It doesn’t fucking matter.” I turn to Mav. “We’re going after them.” Mav looks at me gravely and nods. “We can track our mom. We’ve been on plenty of jobs with her. She will leave clues for us. I don’t give a shit who comes. Whoever doesn’t, find out the bitch’s name who took our mate.”

“I’m coming,” Sally says.

“Our sister is in danger,” Laken rumbles. “There’s no way we are staying behind.”

“I’ll stay here,” Quinn offers. “I’ll find any information I can and send it to Micah.”

“Thank you.” Sally keeps pace as we move to the back door. Saphira’s scent lingers in the air, showing us the way. If the woman puts her in the car, it will be harder to track, but we know our mom’s methods. My dragon wants out. My senses would be stronger in my animal form, but it’s still light out. I can shield my form while flying, and it takes a lot more energy to do so.

“I want to shift,” Mav says, clacking his lighter. He hasn’t had to fiddle with it for days. His need shows his anxiety.

“I know,” I say. “We have to wait.” I crouch down at the end of the block, picking up a piece of rope.

“What is that?” Bishop asks, and I look up.

“Mom, guiding us,” I say, and straighten. She kept the other half of the rope. She knew I would know it was her. She always said the rope didn’t have to be thought of as confining us but the thing that held us together. A family. Saphira is our family.

It enrages me that she has been kidnapped again. I swore I would protect her. I don’t care about the reasons the woman took her. She will die for daring to take our Firefly.