Stealing the Dragon’s Heart by Kiersten Fay

37

Onnika slumped half on the floor half against the wall, huddled near the metal bedframe that took up one corner of the narrow room. Her head still spun from the power of Tag’s last backhand. She wiped blood from her lip and glared up at him. “Where’s Caryn?” Her uncompromising tone concealed how truly terrified she was.

Instead of answering, Tag demanded, “Where’s my stone?” his big frame looming over her. “You said you had it.”

Between the electrical jolts and physical blows, Onnika had fought off Tag as best she could while he unleashed weeks of rage. During the struggle, she was pretty sure he’d knocked her left shoulder out of its socket. Her arm lay unresponsive, and a shooting pain ran all the way up her neck.

“Promise me that Caryn won’t be harmed in any way, and you’ll have it.”

“You think you can make bargains now? If you have it, then it’s on you somewhere. Don’t make me strip you to find it.”

Playing the only card she had left, she looked him straight in the eye and promised, “Do that and I’ll hate you forever.” Would his need for her to desire him still provide leverage?

“You’ve used that line far too often for it to be effective now.” He advanced on her. The look in his eye said she was out of luck and out of time. In a cold tone, he sneered, “I’ll have that rock, then I’ll have you, and we’ll see if I want to keep you afterward. Now, where is it?” He reached down and tore at the thin fabric of her dress.

She used the last of her energy to fend him off, kicking and punching, but it did no good. Especially with only one functioning arm. In no time, he had her pinned.

“Don’t do this!” she pleaded.

Ripping sounds drove her to panic. Tears clouded her vision and spilled over her cheeks. She felt her mind slipping into a protective shell.

Then a blurred figure came up behind Tag.

Onnika blinked, disbelieving her eyes. Aidan was here! And he looked crazed. She hardly recognized the savage twist to his features.

Tag registered that someone had entered the room, but assumed it was one of his men. “I said leave us be!”

Onnika met Tag’s gaze, and she felt her lips curl into a rueful smirk. For a moment too long, he stared down at her with a look of bemusement.

With a terrible snarl that sounded part animal, Aidan clamped a hand around Tag’s throat and hurled his massive body across the room, slamming him against the bulkhead. Tag managed one pathetic groan before Aidan attacked again, landing several crushing blows with his meaty fist. Tag tried to deflect and retaliate, landing a few hits of his own and pushing Aidan back to the center of the room, but it was clear he was dazed, while Aidan was riding a high of pure adrenaline and fury. He wrenched his arm back and then drove it foreword into Tag’s jaw. A sickly crack sounded as Tag’s head snapped to the side and he stumbled back.

Looking woozy, Tag threw a punch, but Aidan easily dodged it. The recoil drove Tag off balance, clumsily falling against Aidan’s aggressive frame. They both stumbled in Onnika’s direction from his unchecked weight.

Pulse beating in her throat, Onnika scurried onto the cot and curled up in the corner, cradling her arm. Her wounds throbbed painfully. If she interfered, she’d only be in Aidan’s way, and it was clear he had full control over this fight.

Aidan wrapped his powerful arms around Tag’s torso, lifted him off his feet and then plowed him into the hard metal floor, where he proceeded to savage him with unmerciful blows. Aidan struck over and over again until Tag’s eyes danced wildly in their sockets, until his extremities went pathetically loose, until bloody spittle left his mouth with each furious strike, until his face was caved in, until the skin on his own fist began to break and bleed. And still he didn’t cease.

The brutality was too intense to watch. Too gruesome. Onnika tried to look away, to shield her eyes, but a primitive instinct made it impossible, as though if she glanced away, the violent attention would shift to her. Maybe she was in shock. Her heart still thumped in her chest, and she struggled to catch her breath. Her body felt strange, heavy, shaky, like it wanted to move, to take action, to escape. At the same time, every muscle was frozen in place.

Tag’s blood splattered the walls, his clothes, the floor. Still, Aidan continued his violent assault, not stopping until there was nothing left of Tag but broken bones and tendons.

Caryn was still somewhere on this ship, in need of help.

Onnika opened her crisp, dried lips and muttered Aidan’s name through the desert landscape of her throat. The sound was so small and quiet, but Aidan’s clenched fist paused mid-air, and he glanced up at her, his teeth still bared like a wild animal. But in the next instant, everything in him softened, and his gaze swept her body with concern.

Her debilitating terror drained away, and all she wanted was to be in his arms. As if reading her thoughts, he crossed the room to embrace her. She buried her face in his neck and let out a weak sob. “You came after me.”

“Yeah, well,” he said with heavy breaths as he pulled her more tightly against him, “you still owe me money.”

She didn’t believe she could laugh at a time like this, but she did. Then she kissed him and he kissed her back, both of them so desperate it bordered on clumsy, kisses landing on cheeks, noses, chins, anywhere their seeking mouths could find.

But the moment was selfish. They were using time they couldn’t afford. Pulling back, she said, “We have to find Caryn.”

“Ash is looking for her.”

“Ash is here, too? How did you both get on board?”

He pointed to himself. “Dragon, remember? Lear’s somewhere about as well.” He shrugged out of his coat and draped it around her, noticing how she winced when he brushed her shoulder. “Are you injur—?” His words choked off and he froze as something on the left side of her face caught his attention. He blinked twice, shook his head, his mouth opening and closing as if he was suddenly robbed of speech.

With her good hand, she reached up to touch her cheek to check if she was bleeding, but he caught her hand in one of his and searched her gaze for a moment. Her confusion must have been transparent, but he schooled his features and began to examine her hurt shoulder. A zing of pain made her wince.

“Looks like it’s out,” he muttered in a strangled tone, his gaze still briefly darting over her face as though he were seeing her for the first time. “I’m going to have to put it back into the socket.” He whipped off his belt and folded it in half. “It’ll hurt. Bite down on this.”

She took the leather strap between her teeth and braced herself. Still, she cried out when he snapped her shoulder back into the socket and the mind-burning pain zinged through her body. Vision blurring and stomach swimming in nausea, she swayed where she sat. Aidan held her steady until the dizziness assuaged.

“I’ll carry you if you need, but it would be better if you could walk. Our presence must be known by now. I’m surprised no one else has rushed me yet.”

She pulled the belt from her mouth. “I can walk. There are three others on board that I know of. I assume one would be on the bridge, flying the ship. Two are likely wherever Caryn is.”

Suddenly she felt gravity shift, and the entire ship dropped in altitude. She let out a yelp. Visions of crashing into a mountainside filled her thoughts. Slowly, the ship righted itself, but then dropped once more to the sound of churning engines.

“Come,” Aidan said. “I’m getting you off this ship.”

“But Caryn—”

“Has an iron giant and a dragon looking out for her.”

Onnika used her gift to scan the passengers. She found evidence of several individuals, but couldn’t tell one from the other, only echoes of violent intentions muddled around a single solitary desperation for escape. Caryn.

“She’s scared,” Onnika whispered.

Aidan gave her a strangely subdued look. “We’ll find her.”

With that, he guided her out into the long passage that ran through the ship. As they carefully made their way through the rocking ship, they crossed under an oddly peeled back hole in the ship’s hull. When she glanced through it, a shadow passed by. She thought she heard an animal roar but couldn’t be sure with the ear-piercing wind battering the opening. Her lungs had to work harder for oxygen as her hair whipped wildly.

At the far end of the passage, sounds of a struggle emerged from a room ahead. Through the hatch, she saw a silver-skinned figure come into view. Asher. He was fighting off three bloodied individuals. Three? So who was flying the ship? Where was Caryn?

Both she and Aidan quickened their pace, but before either of them could move in to assist, Rice appeared wielding a blaster aimed at Asher. He shot several times in quick succession. Asher roared in pain. From somewhere within the room, Caryn screamed.

Another ear-splitting roar came from outside, and the ship lost altitude again. Everyone stumbled, losing their balance, and were forced to brace themselves on whatever they could grab.

Metal screeched. The sound was so terrible that Onnika had to cover her ears.

Glancing up, she saw the terrifying visage of claws and teeth tearing their way into the ship from above, the metal hull bending unnaturally under a savage dragon’s assault.

Then, suddenly a violent crossflow of wind slammed its way through the ship, so strong it dragged Onnika several feet into the room. Aidan caught her by the wrist, his other hand gripping the edge of the hatch to keep his own body from being swept up by the fierce tempest.

One of the bloodied men who’d been clinging to a bolted table lost his grip. Faster than Onnika could process, his body was sucked through the newly opened gap.

Still Lear lacerated the ship, widening the fissure, appearing almost maddened in his task. The gale intensified. Onnika’s feet left the floor, and she felt her grip on Aidan’s hand slipping. She glanced back at him, registering his worried and desperate expression. He was yelling something, not at her, but at Lear, his voice drowned out by the calamitous gushing wind.

Slipping, slipping…

When their hands separated, she screamed as her body took flight. Her body slammed hard into something before she was sent spinning into the blinding sunlight. Her world became a kaleidoscope of color and shape. She glimpsed the planet’s surface, tilting all around her, the ship she’d just been expelled from growing smaller by the second. The whipping wind was like sandpaper grating along her skin, stinging her eyes and stealing her breath. In a panic she fought for air, gasping, managing only to draw in enough to stay conscious.

Heart thundering, she splayed her limbs out wide, gaining a measure of control over her tempestuous fall, the planet’s surface rising up to greet her for a very messy, very pointless end. If she could have conveyed one last thing to Caryn, she would say how sorry she was for not being stronger. For not protecting her better. She should have hugged her more and told her what a blessing it was to have her in her life. How deeply proud she was of her every day. Every minute.

To Aidan, she should have been more honest. More open. More…everything. She wished she’d kissed him one last time. Held him in her arms longer. Told him she loved him. Her thundering heart ached. Out of everything, not telling him was her greatest regret. Fear and mistrust made her squander the opportunity. What she wouldn’t give for just one more moment with him, however brief.

Above her, a shadow darkened the sky. Aidan’s strong intention brushed her subconscious. Yes! In her panic, she’d forgotten what he was! One badass dragon, currently diving straight toward her.

She readied herself. And when his big frame swooped under her, she grabbed hold of his thick scales and plastered her body to his back, holding on as tightly as she could. Their rapid descent slowed, and she felt him pull up into an easy glide. Relief melted through her, and finally she was able to take in a full breath. He hovered over a patch of grass for a moment before touching down on all fours.

Debilitating adrenaline still crawled through her veins like poisoned sludge, and it took her mind a few seconds to realize the immediate danger was over.

She had to peel her stiff arms from around his thick neck before she could dismount. Her boots met cushiony grass that sparkled with dampness. The rain had stopped. For a moment it felt like the planet wobbled on its axis, but it was only her legs, loose and jello-y. Gravity felt too heavy, and she still had the eerie sensation of falling.

It wasn’t a problem for long. Aidan shifted to his normal form and then scooped her up in his arms. She threw her arms around his neck and slanted her lips against his. This kiss was brief, but it felt as though they packed in everything they wanted to say: I want you. I need you. I can’t live without you. Or maybe it was just her imagination. If so, that was all right. She was too elated to care. She still couldn’t believe he’d come for her, that he’d risked his life and the life of his crew to rescue her.

That sobered her. Were the others still aboard the ship?

Had they gotten Caryn out?

She broke away and scanned the skies. A billow of black smoke led her to a spot in the distance. The ship was plummeting like a stone.

“Caryn! Oh, gods! Caryn!” Panic fired in her bones as the ship fell below the tree line, crashing in a fiery explosion.

Devastation knocked her to her knees. “Did they get out? Aidan, I don’t see them!”

He knelt in front of her and pulled her into his embrace, though he said nothing to assure her. Because he couldn’t. His head tilted back, eyes furiously searching the sky. A heartbeat of utter silence passed, then another. Still no sign of them. Hope withered. Her throat tightened with choking grief. She fought her tears, but they breached her lower lids anyway, falling in fat waves. The salt stung her wind-whipped cheeks and the cut on her lip.

Then suddenly Aidan exclaimed, “There! I see them.”

Her pulse leapt. Sniffing, she swiped at her tears and gazed through bleary vision, following his line of sight. A small speck in the sky slowly grew in size. She made out the shape of wings, gliding toward them.

She shot to her feet in anticipation.

But there was only one rider atop Lear, and she couldn’t make out who it was. Then she caught the glimmer of Asher’s silvery skin and her heart broke once more, the pain nearly too much to bear. “Caryn’s not with them!”

“She is,” Aidan quickly assured. “He’s carrying her in one of his hind paws.”

Sure enough, Caryn clung like a barnacle to one sharp talon that was as long as she was tall. Onnika nearly collapsed from the rush of relief. Aidan steadied her with his body.

Lear landed on the far end of the grassy meadow, taking care with his occupants. Asher jumped off him directly and rushed to peel Caryn from Lear’s talon. Caryn seemed disinclined to budge, her eyes closed tight.

Onnika cried out her name and finally she opened her eyes, searching. Once she caught sight of Onnika, Caryn scrambled out of Lear’s paw and the two raced across the meadow toward one another, nearly crashing as they threw their arms around each other.

“You’re okay! You’re okay!” Caryn half-laughed, half-cried. “I thought you were dead!”

“I thought you were dead.”

“I’m sorry!” Caryn wailed. “I’m so sorry.”

“Don’t. This wasn’t your fault.”

“I should have felt it coming. Shouldn’t I have felt something coming?”

Onnika shook her head. “I should have seenit coming. This is my fault, not yours.”

“Stop it. You’re always taking the blame. Just stop it.” Hugging her nearly too tight for breath, Caryn buried her face in Onnika’s neck, quickly drenching her with tears.

“All right,” Onnika relented, wanting only to soothe Caryn’s distress. “We’re safe now. Everything worked out. We can argue about it later.”

Caryn gave a weak laugh and then sucked in several harsh breaths. “I’m so g-glad…you’re okay.”

Lear had returned to his normal form, and the guys had gathered off to the side, slapping each other’s backs and congratulating one other like they’d just saved the world. In a way, they had. They’d saved Onnika’s world by saving Caryn. If anything had happened to her, Onnika didn’t know what she would do, how she would go on—

She brushed Caryn’s back and met something wet. When she lifted her hand, she found red smudges on her fingertips.

“Caryn?”

Caryn listed to one side and then went limp in Onnika’s arms.