Chapter 5

A few agonizing hours later, Kristine’s phone rang, and she pounced on it. The kidnapper explained that he wanted her to go to Central Park. There was a bridge as part of the jogging trail through the woods, and nearby behind a rocky outcropping, she’d find a murse.

“What’s a murse?”

The kidnapper sighed. “It’s a man-purse. Like a messenger bag, but thicker. It’s made of heavy leather. Very manly. And this one is fireproof.”

“Okaaay—”

“Hey, don’t get fresh. It’s spring and might rain. I don’t want the papers you’re going to steal for us to get wet.”

So, “us” means there’s more than one of them. “From that building on Madison Avenue?”

“Yeah. You’re not as dumb as I thought.”

Kristine was tempted to give him a piece of her mind. But when dealing with her mother’s kidnapper, who probably thought he was smarter than everyone, it might be smart to play dumb.

“Okay. Tell me what you want me to do.”

Kristine received her orders. She’d have to show up at work when she wasn’t expected or needed, and that was a little suspicious right off the bat. But she couldn’t think of another way to do this. She had to get the proximity card.

Some older buildings in the suburbs left keys to the outer doors in the trusted hands of the local fire department. Or there was a locked box on the wall outside, and the fire department had a key to all the boxes in that area. In the city, anyone who wanted to get in could and would break into one of those boxes, so there was a special access card. Protected by none other than the captain himself.

Now Kristine had to hope the proximity card was in the kitchen drawer in the firehouse as it usually was and not in the captain’s pocket. He had been known to accidentally go home with it on occasion.

Strolling in at 9 p.m., she waved to a couple of surprised firefighters having a card game. They had been playing for money, but paused. One of them asked, “Scotty, what are you doing here?”

“Hi, Alex. Hey, Murphy. I was out for a walk and had a hankering for coffee, but then realized I’d left my wallet at home.” She chuckled at her lame-ass excuse and hoped they’d buy it.

The one called Murphy eyed her with suspicion. “You wanted coffee, and you came here? You could have walked a couple more blocks to get your wallet. Sounds like an excuse to me. Does it sound like an excuse to you, Alex?”

“It sure does… Maybe she misses us.”

“Or did you lose all your money playing against this asshole?” He tipped his head toward Alex. “And you’re here to win it back.”

The other guy laughed. “Get your coffee and sit down. We’ll deal you in.”

“Thanks, but I’d rather hold onto my paycheck.”

Alex bellyached, “Aw, c’mon. I haven’t got quite enough for my Gold Coast mansion yet.”

“Are you sure about that?” Murphy asked.

The banter wasn’t unusual, so Kristine felt she hadn’t tripped any alarm bells among the guys. That was good. As soon as they went back to their game, she surreptitiously glanced over at the drawer that held the card she needed.

The tones rang out. The guys rose and stuffed their money into their front pockets, leaving the cards where they were.

“I guess your summer house is gonna have to wait a little longer,” Murphy said as he exited the kitchen.

“Don’t touch our cards, Scotty!” Alex called over his shoulder.

“I won’t.” She pretended to sip the coffee and casually listened to the announcement. A possible gas leak on Eleventh near the ports. Good, she’d be able to avoid her cronies on her way to Madison Avenue. As soon as she heard the trucks rolling out, she grabbed the card from the drawer and stuffed it in the flat fanny pack she had hidden under her sweatshirt. She didn’t want to risk losing it by tossing it into the kidnapper’s murse.

As a dragon, she couldn’t exactly fit into her sweatpants. She did what Jayce had suggested earlier and left a pair of sweats on her roof…right next to the ones he’d left there. When she’d spotted them earlier, she’d smiled. Realizing he might be coming back despite her tossing him out on his ear made her feel wonderful. She had been abandoned by the most important men in her life and was beginning to wonder if she could trust any man to stick by her when the going got tough.

Kristine had to hurry. The sooner she got this over with and returned the card, the better off she’d be. If someone noticed it was missing, they’d probably assume the captain had it. Unless it was the captain looking…

She really couldn’t get too caught up in the “what ifs” or she’d panic and blow the whole thing.

* * *

Jayce wasn’t sure he should be doing what he was doing. If Kristine found out, she’d probably rip out his tail feathers. But he had to do something. She had no idea what she was up against. It could be one human or a whole pack of werewolves. She needed backup—a lot of it.

That’s why six phoenixes followed him, soaring above the New York skyline. Every one of his Boston brothers, including rule-following Miguel, was defying their father and getting involved.

Papa Fierro had lectured Jayce on his responsibility to the family. Jayce was to take over for him someday, and he’d better start becoming responsible…lead by example, put family first, and blah, blah, blah… Jayce believed that’s exactly what he was doing right now.

Of course they had their mother’s blessing. She said Jayce had changed, and she suspected the woman he called Kristine had everything to do with it. She kissed each of her boys and whispered a short prayer with her hands over her heart…and then distracted the old man so they could get as far away as possible before he found out and decided to take off after them.

Before Jayce left New York, he’d found six black sweat suits and stashed them on an adjacent roof—just in case he needed the cavalry. He’d had to find a secondary hiding place since Kristine had stashed some black clothes next to his dark-blue FDNY sweats. He didn’t want her to know he might be bringing his whole family to her rescue. She’d kill him—or want to.

He’d had only one idea on his way to Boston, and it was a bit mad, but his brothers were on board. That’s all that mattered. They landed where he did…on top of the building next to Kristine’s. When the brothers shifted, they put on the black sweat suits, and then Jayce flew to the next rooftop to shift and change into his. He pointed them toward the door to the stairs, and they jogged down to the sidewalk.

He gave two of them the address of the Madison Avenue building that Kristine had visited that night. They were to keep an eye on that building’s entrances. He asked three more to keep an eye on Kristine’s building. And his little brother Luca went shopping with him. He needed a very special item to complete his plan.

After they bought what they needed, they checked with the brothers at Kristine’s apartment building. They hadn’t seen her exit. He returned to the roof, stashed what he’d just bought, and shifted into his winged form.

He flew to the Madison Avenue building and saw his brothers—one in front of the building, one across the street. As he swooped over each one, they just shook their heads to let him know they hadn’t seen her either. So he returned to the apartment building in Hell’s Kitchen and flew by Kristine’s windows.

There she was on the couch, speaking on the phone and nodding. He landed on her windowsill and watched. After a few minutes, she hung up and then dropped her head in her hands. Her whole body shook as if she were crying.

Jayce knew she would be upset if he were to get involved, but he was glad he’d made the decision to do something whether she liked it or not. He couldn’t stand to see her like this.

She rose, straightened her clothing, marched to the mirror over the fireplace, and looked at her tear-streaked face. She wiped at her tears and disappeared around the corner, probably to go to the bathroom and pull herself together. Jayce’s heart broke for her.

Soon she exited the building and was on the move.

* * *

Kristine jogged to Central Park as instructed. She was unsure if she’d find the right place. She finally found the rock with the murse behind it. Lifting it, she realized it was heavier than she thought, but the long strap would make it easy to put around her dragon neck, and her dragon strength wouldn’t have a problem carrying it from the building on Madison Avenue to her building in Hell’s Kitchen. The trick would be making sure nobody saw her as a dragon. With so many tall buildings and many apartments with curious onlookers using telescopes, it would be almost impossible not to attract some kind of attention. All she could hope for would be that whoever reported seeing a full-size dragon flying around the city would be considered a nutcase.

Looking both ways for anyone using the jogging trail or coming out of the woods, she found that she was alone as far as she could tell. Just out of curiosity she glanced up. There was a bird in the trees above her, but she couldn’t be sure if it was Jayce because she hadn’t seen his other form. She hoped it wasn’t. This mission would be hard enough without interference.

If she could carry fifty pounds on her back up several stories of a burning building, she could certainly handle this stupid murse. It wasn’t balanced very well, so she wore it cross-body, with the bulk of it resting against her butt. Then she jogged out of the park, which took several minutes.

It was quite dark and pretty late, so she figured a lot of people might have gone to bed. It was a weeknight, and she prayed most people wouldn’t be partying into the night. They might call New York the city that never sleeps, but some people worked for a living and had to go to bed at some point. Fortunately Madison Avenue was mostly dedicated to daytime businesses.

Several minutes later she arrived at the target building, huffing and puffing. She checked up and down the street. Cabs drove by, but not a steady stream of them. She’d just have to work to avoid headlights. She retrieved the card, walked up to the front door, and scanned the pad, and, thankfully, something clicked. Then she snuck inside, closing the door behind her. She didn’t think anyone saw her.

Jogging up thirteen flights of stairs rather than using the elevator and possibly alerting a security guard, she found the office with the lawyer’s name on it, and then she had to get in. She opened her fanny pack, found the card again, and slid it into the spot between the doorjamb and the lock, and sure enough the door popped open. “I’m surprised people don’t update their locks in this day and age. Someone could easily break in,” she muttered while at the same time realizing the irony of her words.

Leaving the door open, she strode in, found the pile of mail, and started going through it. She was looking at the return addresses for the one she needed. At last she found it. It was a PO box, but it was the right one. A PO box on Long Island. Interesting.

The mystery of her birth and parentage seemed to be coming into play—maybe. If she knew whom she was dealing with, she might be able to complete the puzzle. Is that why the kidnapper—kidnappers?—knew who and what she was? She shrugged off the thought, knowing it was a stretch. Clearly her father was on her mind.

Opening the envelope, she slid out the papers. She wasn’t supposed to, but she couldn’t help being curious. Besides, there might be a clue as to where her mother was being kept.

It was a contract, all right. And oh my God. It was a contract to kill someone. “Holy fuck,” she whispered. Stuffing the contract back into the envelope and making it look as if it had never been opened, she tucked it into the murse. Now she had to make it back up to the roof…but the kidnappers wanted a fire started. How the heck was she supposed to do that? She was a firefighter. That went against every ethical bone in her body.

And then she thought of her mother. Carrying out the kidnappers’ instructions to the letter might be the only way to get her mother back. The building wasn’t much higher than the floor she was currently on. She could shift into her dragon form, scoop up her black jeans and jersey, blast the place with fire, and then jog to the nearest staircase. After padding up three more stories to the roof, hopefully it would be unlocked or she’d be able to punch her way out. Like she told the monster on the phone, a lot could go wrong.

She looked around for a logical place for a fire to start. To look innocent, it would have to be an electrical fire. With no one in the office, anything else would be suspect. There was one outlet with a lot of extra electronics plugged in, and she figured that might be looked at as an overload. It would have to do.

She shifted and blew fire on that section, making sure the wall caught. Then she spread her fire breath up to the ceiling until that caught too. Then she torched the desk as she grabbed the murse and her human clothing and backed out of the room. She made sure the door locked behind her, hoping to put it back the way she’d found it and minimize the damage to one room.

Now she had to get out before the smoke alarm went off. She flew to the nearest stairwell, managed to open the door even in her dragon form, flew up to the top floor, and then found the door to the roof. There was a lock on it, but it was on the inside and hooked up to an alarm. She shrugged. Oh well…the smoke alarms would sound soon anyway. She broke the lock with her dragon strength. Pushing her way onto the roof, she was shocked to see seven birds clutching black satin sheets in their talons. Three on each side of the door.

Holy shit. Jayce had come to her rescue after all, and it looked like he brought his brothers. She slipped between the two rows of birds, which took off when she did, their black sheets shielding her from both sides as she flew through the night.

She landed on her apartment’s roof, grabbed her clothing, and raced around to the opposite side of an air-conditioning unit. One of the birds dropped out of formation and landed on her roof. The others flew to the next building. As soon as she’d hopped into her clothing, she ran back to where Jayce stood, holding the FDNY sweats she’d given him.

His brother-phoenixes landed in two straight lines, holding the sheets in their beaks, and then they rose up as full-sized men, covering their nakedness with the black sheets held between their smiling lips. Jayce waved to them, and they waved back. They shifted again, dropped the sheets, and flew off.

As soon as Jayce and Kristine were both dressed, they made their way to the rooftop entrance and quietly jogged down the stairs to Kristine’s apartment on the third floor. The fanny pack had served her well, holding her keys and phone.

“I take it those were your brothers.”

“Yup. You guessed it,” Jayce said.

Kristine fiddled with the lock until the door opened and they were able to scoot inside, closing it behind them with a soft click. She threw herself in Jayce’s arms and breathed a heavy sigh of relief.

“I can’t believe we got away with that. At least I hope we did,” she said.

“Do you mean as long as nobody saw a group of weird-colored birds flying in formation and thought it was strange enough to take a picture…”

She leaned away and stared into his eyes. “That’s exactly what I mean. I couldn’t see anything except the sky in front of me. Did you notice anyone staring out their windows or grabbing their cameras?”

“I don’t think so.” He gently rubbed her arms up and down and then escorted her to the couch.

Kristine sank down, and he sat opposite her on the coffee table, holding her hands. “So what happens now? Do you wait for the kidnapper’s instructions, or do you already know what he wants you to do?”

“I’m supposed to wait for him to call.” She bit her bottom lip and avoided his gaze.

“What aren’t you telling me?” Jayce asked.

“Nothing!” Kristine took a deep breath and let it out. She let go of his hands and flopped against the back of the sofa. Closing her eyes, she mumbled, “I didn’t tell you this before, but they said they were watching me. That makes me nervous as far as what they’ve seen. Like…have they seen you?”

“What do you think?”

“I don’t know.” Kristine sat up and faced him. “If they have seen you or they saw the little stunt up on the roof, I imagine I’ll hear about it.” She rubbed her temples, as if she had a headache.

Just as Jayce was about to say something, her phone rang. She dug it out of her fanny pack and answered with a nervous “Hello?”

“Did you get it?”

Kristine straightened and seemed to be pulling herself together. “Yes, I have it. It’s in the murse. How do we exchange this for my mother?”

After a brief hesitation on the other end of the phone, the monster said, “Not just yet. We’ll talk about that in the morning.”

Kristine shot to her feet. “Tomorrow? Do you mean to tell me you’re going to hold onto her another night?”

Jayce watched her pace past the windows. If anyone was watching, they’d see she was obviously upset.

The voice on the other end of the phone just said, “You’ll receive instructions tomorrow.” And the click on the other end signaled he had hung up.

Kristine threw the phone on the floor. Fortunately, it hit the thick rug and not the hardwood.

Jayce rose and approached her slowly, until he remembered he had to stay away from the windows. “He didn’t say anything about seeing you with a bunch of birds and sheets.”

“That’s right, but he didn’t say where my mother was either.”

Jayce stood with his hands in his pockets, unsure if he should reach out and comfort her or stay back. He waited a few moments, and eventually her posture sagged. She picked up the phone and returned to the couch. When she sat in the middle, she left enough room for him to join her. So he snuggled next to her and put his arm around her shoulders.

“I just wish this would end.” Kristine laid her head on his shoulder.

“I agree. You’ve done what he asked you to do. There must be a reason they have to wait until tomorrow.” He began rubbing her arm, trying to soothe her.

“I can’t imagine why. What if something’s wrong with my mother?” Kristine leaned over and dropped her head in her hands. “I feel so awful. The last words I said to her were not very nice.”

“You had a fight?” Jayce asked.

Kristine frowned. “You could say that. I was demanding to know something she’s always refused to tell me. I thought she was keeping it to herself just because I was young and she didn’t think I would understand. All these years later, as an adult, I figured she could tell me anything. But she still refused. I blew up at her and stormed out.”

Jayce rubbed her back gently. “You couldn’t have known that this was going to happen. You’ll see her again, and I’m sure you’ll be able to forgive each other and get past it.”

“I hope you’re right.” She leaned into him, and they shared a hug.

Jayce ran his hand over her loose light-red waves, planting little kisses along her jaw. “I’ll be right here if you need me. It will be all right,” he whispered.

Kristine hugged him harder. “I wish I didn’t have to wait until tomorrow. The suspense is killing me.”

He cupped her face between his hands “I can think of a way we can pass the time and release some tension…” He held her stunning turquoise gaze. He didn’t know how open she’d be, but he’d never know if he didn’t broach the subject.

She snorted. A tiny curl of smoke rose between their faces. “Are you one of those guys who thinks you can fix everything with sex?”

At least she was smiling. Jayce smoothed her hair away from her face and tucked it behind her ear. “No. Did I say anything about sex?”

She laughed. “Don’t pretend that’s not what you meant and that I’m the one with a dirty mind.”

“Sex isn’t dirty. Not between two people who care about each other.”

Kristine hesitated. She seemed to be mulling something over. At last she rose, holding his hand in hers until he followed.

She led him to the second door on the left at the end of the hall. Opening the door, she allowed him into a very girly bedroom. It wasn’t teenage girly—maybe he should call it womanly or feminine. One wall behind the queen-size bed was painted lilac.

The main thing that stood out was the bedding. The top blanket was like a sumptuous cream-colored fur from some animal that didn’t exist…or if it did, it would have to be about ten feet tall. He had to conclude that it was faux fur, not the hide of the abominable snowman.

Lots of unnecessary pillows rested against the shabby white headboard. She closed the door behind him, and he wondered why. They were alone. Perhaps it was just out of habit. That made him wonder if she’d brought men here before. The look she gave him as she came closer was a little shy, so if she had entertained in this room, it hadn’t happened very often.

She caressed his chest, and his arms enveloped her automatically.

“So, what were you thinking we should do to blow off steam?” she asked and leaned forward to nuzzle his neck.

He couldn’t help chuckling. “I’m sure we’ll think of something.” He walked her backward until they both fell onto the bed, and he rolled her on top of him. Their lips found each other easily. This time the kiss wasn’t as much passionate as tender…loving.

A gentle agreement.

“Kristine, are you sure you want to do this? And please don’t joke around by asking what I mean. I need to know.”

She took a deep breath and held his gaze. “Let’s play it by ear. I could use the closeness. I don’t know if I need the whole shebang. Yes, it would relieve tension, and I have plenty of that. But I don’t want to force anything.”

He nodded. “Got it. No she-bang.”

Jayce just held Kristine, letting her take the initiative. She knew he wanted her. But did she know how much he desired and craved her?

Her lashes fluttered, but she let him kiss her eyes. Holding and stroking what he could reach, he hoped his touch soothed her. At least it seemed to. He could feel her relax in his arms.

She brushed his hair out of his eyes. His stubble had grown, and he hoped it didn’t scrape her. Little nibbles and tastes of his neck and jaw didn’t seem to put her off.

He wanted to explore and worship her body, leisurely, and perhaps this was the best time to do that. He would just have to be sure he didn’t drown in his own desire.

She parted her lips and let him feast on her tongue. The flood of passion eventually consumed them both, and she sucked his tongue, reveling in his attention as if it were what she needed to breathe. He tried to hold himself back so he didn’t just ravish her. But the restraint he was showing was about to kill him. He caressed her rib cage, swirled his tongue with hers, massaged her shoulders, and snuggled. Eventually he cupped her bottom and nuzzled her neck.

“I’m not wearing granny panties,” she whispered.

“From what I gathered, you’re not wearing any panties.” Jayce trailed his finger down her abdomen. Her black jersey had ridden up to her midriff without any help from him. Pausing at her belly button, he gave it a little swirl and then found the snap to her jeans and popped it open.

He waited to let her continue if she wanted to. She opened the zipper with one hand and at the same time yanked open the tie of his sweatpants with the other.

It seemed that they were going to do this. He whispered words of adoration in her ear. She began to inhale deeper, and as he moved her jeans over her bottom, she raised it, allowing him to strip her down and reveal her precious secrets to him. “Do we need protection?”

“Not on my end,” she said.

“Nor mine.”

She wiggled out of the black jeans and moved his sweatpants over his hips. It was all he could do not to let out a growl when she touched him. She grasped his member and teased his erection. He almost choked, begging her to stop for a moment until he could get rid of the offending garments—all of them. Soon her top and his sweatshirt hit the floor, and they were finally able to romp without clothes in the way.

He trailed his tongue around her nipple and she gasped. When he took her breast between his lips and sucked deeply, she arched and moaned. He didn’t wish to torment her with long, drawn-out foreplay, but he knew she needed the maximum release he could give her. When he had thoroughly suckled that breast, he moved to the other and teased it just as thoroughly.

Eventually, he moved down her torso, trailing kisses along her heated skin. She hissed and gasped as he bestowed his loving attention on her sweet spot below. He instinctively knew how to touch her. And she touched him the same way, skyrocketing the electrified sensations to his cock.

He wondered if she knew how torn he was. His erection swelled even further, if that were possible. The strain of holding himself in check was difficult. But he didn’t want to succumb to his lust until she was right there with him.

He leaned back to pull out of her hand and moved down beside her legs. He bestowed little kisses on her upper thighs as his finger trailed down her abdomen. Her thighs trembled. He glanced up at her face, which was flushed. When he reached her clit and flicked his tongue right there, she jerked and then grasped his hair and tugged.

“Do you not want me to do this?” he asked.

She laughed and let go of his hair. Instead she grabbed his shoulders, giving them a squeeze. “No, I don’t want you to stop. I was just holding on for dear life.”

He chuckled and relished watching her enjoy the pleasure he was giving her. When he knew she was close, he eased up. He really wanted her to tumble over the edge with him. He was confident in the feelings he could elicit because she was so responsive.

“Don’t stop,” she rasped.

Okay…we’ll go for two.

He flicked her bud rapidly and repeatedly while she thrashed and convulsed, bucking and arching—almost lifting right off the bed. She screamed as she clenched the sheets and vibrated.

He didn’t stop what he was doing until she shoved him away. Her body melted into the mattress as she panted.

As much as he wanted to just drive into her and pound her with his steel-hard cock, he still held himself in check, crawling up beside her slowly. He kneeled at her side, brushed her sweat-soaked hair aside, and kissed her forehead, her nose, and finally her lips. She cupped the back of his head and crushed him to her as she drove her tongue into his mouth, and then, just as abruptly, she let go. Her arms fell to her sides, and she gazed at him with a look of wonder.

“How did you manage to do that?” She breathed heavily.

“Do what?”

“Take me right out of my body,” she said. “I felt like I was floating above the bed. That’s never happened to me before.”

“Maybe you just needed the right guy.”

She smiled up at him and parted her thighs in invitation. “I can’t promise to do anything that monumental for you, but it’s your turn, and I want you to take it.”

“Are you sure? I don’t want you to feel obligated.”

“Just to be perfectly clear,” Kristine said, “I want you to fuck me silly.”

Jayce chuckled. “I guess you can’t be clearer than that.”

He placed himself at her V. “I want you to come with me wherever I go. Be it out of body or just to a nice hilltop climax. We go together.”

“Like wine and cheese.” She chuckled.

He couldn’t help laughing, and perhaps he needed a moment to regroup, so he leaned back on his heels and said, “I’m going to bring you to the brink before I take my own pleasure.”

He let his hand roam while his lips kissed a path down to her curls. She wiggled when he got to her clit, but she didn’t squirm away. She twined her fingers in his hair and breathed deeply while he brought her close.

When she was trembling but hadn’t shattered yet, he pushed her legs open wider and positioned himself between her thighs. He plunged into her wet warmth and buried himself deep in her core. She sucked in a sharp breath.

“Are you okay?”

She sighed. “More than okay. Please…”

He didn’t have to ask what she wanted. He just rocked in the age-old rhythm, loving the feel of her warmth and sliding eagerly in and out of her tight, slick channel. Braced on one elbow, he didn’t lower himself completely. He left enough room between them to find and rub her sweet spot with his thumb. She immediately arched and moaned, grasping the sheets again.

As the tension built between them, he watched her carefully. The intoxicating rhythm was overwhelming. At last they both shattered. She screamed as the sensations took them somewhere indescribable.

Her muscles clenched his cock, and wave after wave of incredible release shook him to his core. He rode every last aftershock.

His own fulfillment was complete. He’d had a staggering orgasm. As soon as he’d floated back to earth, he embraced her and rolled onto his back, allowing her to decide if she wanted to withdraw and lie beside him or stay coupled.

She stayed. He couldn’t believe the beauty of that act. His hunger and longing for her were sated at last, which didn’t mean he didn’t want more. He would want this passion over and over again, whether it drove him to madness or ecstasy. When she gazed into his eyes, he saw sparkling pleasure and satisfaction, mirroring his own gratification.

There were no words between them. There were probably no words to express this euphoria—this elation. She turned her head to the side and laid her cheek on his heaving chest. They stayed like that for several long minutes. There was no doubt about his feelings for her. He loved this woman and would do anything to protect her.

She rolled up on her elbow and grinned. “Ready for round two?”