Chapter Thirty-two
Kari looked up at the man towering over her as she sprawled on the floor. The pain in her shoulder inflicted by a bony hand digging into her joint flared with each heart thump.
She needed to answer his question quickly. “You wouldn’t let me invoke the force, so I had to say an extra prayer.” With a huff, she picked herself up and dusted off her hands. Fortunately, that gave her brain a few moments to think. The old wives’ tale of how cats killed babies came to mind. How or why, she had no clue. She was just rolling with it. “He’s ready now. Kneel down and lean over his face. You’re going to steal his breath and his wolf along with it.”
“Steal his breath?” Goddard said. “What nonsense is—”
Kari put her hands up. “I’m telling you what I know. It’s your choice—”
“Yes. I recall that from earlier.” He leaned over Bryon’s face. “How do I steal breath?”
“Whenever he exhales, you do inhale, sucking his air to you. This will draw the wolf spirit to the surface to protect its human form.” By God’s grace, the demon bought it. If something sounds logical . . .
“Keep going.” Kari knelt on the other side of Bryon. “His body should begin to shift into his wolf as it comes forward to save his other half. It’s the last stage of the wolf’s ability to hang on.” Please let Bryon or his wolf be conscious. Please. When nothing happened, she cleared her throat. “I said the wolf will shift as—”
When the sound of a bone cracking ripped through the air, she nearly passed out from relief. The poison had worn off. About fucking time. “Keep breathing, Goddard. Open the animal’s mouth and stay with it. The wolf is fighting you. You have to take it. Now!” She shoved the wolf’s back. Nothing happened. “That’s the cue. Now!”
As the prince looked up at her, the wolf lifted its head from the floor and sank teeth into the old man’s scrawny neck. Snapping it instantly.
A black mist escaped the prince’s mouth and dissipated in the air.
It happened so quickly that the guards were still chanting the Lady Gaga song lyrics she had taught them minutes ago. When realization hit, black robes went flying into the air, whipped off by the guards in record time. Guards who still had guns.
Kari lunged in front of the wolf, hoping to keep it from getting shot. “Wait! Stop!” Among the confusion of men running toward their deceased prince, men running away, and robes catching fire on the candles, the armed guards stood over her as she blocked most of the wolf with her body. One big guy shouted to others and pointed to the fires breaking out around the room.
“Woman . . .” The man in charge looked at her with steely anger. Then his eyes slid down her body. Her clothes were torn, revealing more of her than she would ever allow. Chills ran through her and the wolf growled against her back. “Step away from the beast and we will let you live.” The grin on his face told any idiot that he was lying through his teeth.
In the confined space, the room quickly filled with smoke. Throat already dry, Kari coughed with the first wisps of contaminated air. She seriously doubted this lower hold was equipped with a fire extinguisher. She pulled the front of her shirt over her nose. It helped some. Not enough. The riflemen steadied their aim at her and her mate again. She shook her head and coughed.
The guard who spoke to her lowered his brows and snarled. “So be it.” He lifted his gun and she squeezed her eyes shut. Behind her, the wolf had dropped the king’s body and leapt toward the men lined in front of her.
Two shots fired. She waited for the burning sting she was sure a bullet wound made. The room instantly became silent except for the popping and snapping of the fires and two thuds that sounded like bodies hitting the floor. She peeked through a slatted-open eyelid and saw two dark forms in the smoky air lying face down on the ground. The others were turned, gazing at the stairs.
On the steps, men in camouflage with guns poured in. They yelled in the native tongue and guards put hands up and fell to their knees. This had to be the rescue party, right? When Sheldon appeared on the steps, tears sprang to her eyes. Part relief, part acrid smoke.
They were saved.
He caught sight of her and wolfy Bryon and headed their way. She wrapped her arms around him in gratitude then coughed against his chest. She mumbled a sorry. A growl began behind her. She laughed through tears and bent down to hug her mate. “We’re alive. You saved us, my love.” She placed a kiss on his ear. He started his shift and she sat back realizing then he was naked and turned her eyes to Sheldon. This was so embarrassing.
In human form, Bryon man-hugged Sheldon. Bryon hollered over the ruckus, “Let’s get out of here.” But it was too late for her. With each hack, she sucked in more smoke. Her throat swelled from the burning irritation, cutting off her air. Her heart sped wildly. Her hands scratched at her throat. Forcing her lungs to expand, she sucked in hot air, making it worse.
In the next instant, she was lifted and carried upstairs and out the back door where several military vehicles were parked and more men milled around the area. She fought for a breath of fresh air now that she was in the sunlight at last. She’d never take the sun for granted again.
Her coughs went so deeply, her gagging reflexes kicked in. She squirmed out of Bryon’s arms, fell to her knees, and puked the little food in her stomach. Her throat loosened and air slid into her lungs, but her chest still felt like it burned on the inside. A tin cup of water was handed to her and she swished it around her mouth and spit out, drinking the remainder until she suddenly coughed it up.
Bryon picked her up and carried her to a car. He sat with her in the backseat as Sheldon drove. After a few more gagging fits, her lungs and throat started to feel better. She collapsed against her mate, exhausted for the sudden exertion and drain of adrenaline.
“Where are we going?” she asked.
“Sheldon is taking us to the airport. By plane, we can be at the U.S. military base in Liechtenstein in thirty minutes. They have equipment and medicine to take care of our dehydration and make sure your lungs are clear. I don’t like the sound coming from your chest.”
“I’m feeling much better. We don’t need to go to the base. That’s way too much hassle.”
Bryon’s face scowled. He was angry. “Don’t think for one minute I don’t know how to take care of my mate, missy. You’re going to a military hospital I can trust not to try to kill you while you sleep.”
She laid her head back on the seat and sighed, which started another short bout of hacking. “Fine.” But she really was feeling better. All she wanted was toxin-free water to drink or a glass of refreshing lemonade would be awesome.
She noted he wasn’t naked. “Where did you get the clothes?”
“Sheldon has your suitcases in the trunk. These are his.”
She nodded and coughed. “Did you tell him about the warehouse?”
“Some,” Bryon said. “Enough to get his men on the move.”
Kari sprang forward on the seat. Saving the women being tortured by the traffic ring was more important than her dang cough. “Sheldon, how many men do you have here?” she asked.
“Half of the base I’m sending you both to,” he replied. Another cough crept forward. She motioned for Bryon to tell Sheldon whatever else that needed to be relayed. If Sheldon’s men would surround the facility, they could take care of the criminals and free the women. Sheldon pulled his phone from his pocket and made a call. She hoped it was to get more men there. There could never be enough men. She almost laughed at that. But it was no longer true for her. One man would be more than enough for her.
Her heart ached for those who’d already left the warehouse before she could help them. She remembered one of the girls shoved into the van as she was escorted to theirs in the warehouse. The woman with beautiful dark flowing hair and big eyes. There was something about her that drew Kari’s attention. She could see any man wanting a female like that.
Meanwhile Bryon debriefed Sheldon on what had happened the past twenty or so hours. Was that it? It felt like days. But she did have one question that couldn’t wait. “Sheldon, how did you find us in the castle?”
“Your tracker beacon suddenly popped up on the radar. We just followed it,” he said.
She looked at her wrist. Some of the costume jewelry she donned with her earlier disguise remained. “Then why didn’t you find us earlier?”
“We were underground,” Bryon said. “Unfortunately, the bracelet’s GPS doesn’t work in places like that. As soon as we came out, they received the signal.”
Not that it mattered, but she would’ve liked to have known that from the get-go. She slapped a hand on her forehead. God, she wanted to go home. Wanted to be in a deep Jacuzzi with bubbling water floating around her. And Bryon on the other side of the tub in all his naked glory. Hmm. The things she wanted to do to that man.
“Hey,” Sheldon said from the driver’s seat, “keep that smell to yourself. We’ll have none of those thoughts in a car with a guy who is still mate-less.” He smiled at her with sad eyes in the rearview mirror. Her heart broke for him. She remembered how much he wanted a mate and family. He would make a great dad and husband to the right woman. She prayed he would find her soon.
She glanced at her mate. The past day had been incredible. She’d gone from being lonely to the happiest person in the world with a wonderful man. And his eyes shined with exactly what she was feeling: wanton desire.
The car slowed. “Saved by the airport,” Sheldon mumbled. “Thank god we’re here. I was going to step out if things got any smellier back there.”
Bryon laughed. “Just you wait till you find yours. You’ll see.”