Kiss of the Dragon (41 page)

Evgenii was stunned. Her challenge was clear. He took an
unconscious step back, thankful for the dimness of the cave. It would have
proved most embarrassing if this small slip of a woman knew how much her
statement bothered him. If it was a bluff on her part, it was a good one, but a
bluff assuredly.

He stared at the lovely face of Bianca de Neige and
understood why so many men scrabbled for her favor. Then Evgenii mentally shook
himself and took several deep breaths. He could not afford to let this woman’s
beauty sway him or her brave words rattle him. It was time that he put the fear
of God into her. Yea, perhaps a heavy-handed threat to show her how powerful he
was was what Bianca de Neige needed. He raised his fingers to stroke his
trimmed beard and spoke in a mild manner, his words nothing less than a veiled
threat.

“The Dragon is far from here. It all comes down to you and
me, my beauty.”

“You filthy beast,” Bianca spoke in a too-quiet voice. The
lack of affliction in her tone disturbed Evgenii more than he cared to admit.
Looking closely at her, he tried to decide if she was conceding to his demand
or getting ready to strike again.

Verily, Bianca was much too furious to even think clearly.
If she had been, she surely would never have been so bold as to taunt this man.
He was twice her size and would think nothing of using all his strength to beat
her down, to force her to submit. But the fear faded in that moment and in its
place grew a slow, burning hatred fueled by desperation and self-preservation.

“I may look like a sweet young maiden, a prize catch on the
marriage market, but in truth, I am a spoiled daughter of a duke and, as such,
I was instructed in the art of self-defense. I am well able to protect myself.”

Evgenii looked at her standing in front of him in a filthy,
ripped, soaking wet gown and threw back his head and laughed long and hard. His
reaction to her words was not what Bianca had expected and she let down her
guard as she watched him. That was a mistake. His burst of laughter cut off so
fast, taking her unaware. His face twisted into a vicious snarl.

“I am sure that there are a few things I can teach you that
were left out of your education thus far.” Evgenii advanced on her, his hands
moving to unfasten the jade and gold brooch that held his black wool tunic
together at the neck.

Bianca did not wait a breath longer as she edged around him,
Evgenii following her every step, slowly stalking her. Even as she moved, he
crowded her until she found her back against the opposite wall. She watched
with growing horror as he loosened his leather belt and dropped it to the
ground, all the while advancing on her like a predator going in for the kill.

There was only one way out of the cave and Bianca knew that
Evgenii would never let her get that far. A noise coming from the entrance
reminded her that even if she made it past him, his men would be waiting to
intercept her.

Bianca glanced around frantically and realized she had only
two choices. She could make a dash past Evgenii hoping that he could not catch
her and face whatever lay outside the cave, or she could flee in the opposite
direction into the darkness at the back of the cave and hope to find sanctuary
there. It was not much of a choice but she had no intention of letting Evgenii
beat and rape her without doing her utmost to save herself.

Then Bianca saw the large stone lying on the cave floor just
a little to her left. She glanced at Evgenii to see if he too had noticed it,
thinking that if she could get to it, she could use it for a weapon. But
Evgenii must have noticed her furtive glances. He smiled, as if knowing exactly
what she had in mind.

Aware that she had but a split second to react, Bianca lunged
for the stone. She was small and therefore more agile and determined that she
had a good chance of reaching it than he did. But she had not taken into
account that Evgenii would kick out his long leg and catch her in the knees.
Bianca cried out as she landed on the rocky floor, bruising her hands as well
as her legs.

“Whatever were you thinking, sweetheart?” Evgenii laughed
cruelly. “You should be more careful. It would be unfortunate if you were to
injure yourself in such a clumsy manner. We have yet to consummate our
alliance. Please take more care of my… property.”

Bianca scrambled quickly to her feet and took him completely
by surprise by dashing toward the back of the cave, disappearing into the
darkness. Evgenii’s laughter followed her sending chills down her spine as she
stumbled and fell over an outcrop of rock in the dark. But she did not let that
stop her. Frantically she felt around carefully with her hands and feet as she
crawled away as fast as she could.

“Do not flee, my beauty. Who knows what you might find
lurking in the dark.”

Bianca remained quiet as she listened for the sound of
pursuit behind her. She knew that it would only be a matter of time before he
came after her, but for now, she tried to convince herself that his voice
sounded fainter. The acoustics of the cave were strange and noise, even faint
noises, seemed distorted.

Bianca crawled until she found a large boulder in her way
and she felt her way around it. She squatted behind the barrier, hoping the
size would offer her some protection when he came after her. She sat there
nearly immobilized by the fear that coursed through her veins. Her heart
thundered in her chest and she gasped for air.

Bianca was trapped in this nightmare and as far as she could
tell, there was no way out. Over the years, she had made up numerous fairy
tales and stories and many times she tried to imagine what Hell would be like.
But nothing could possibly compare to this real Hell in which she found
herself. Sitting in the black dampness, her nostrils filled with the smell of
her own fear, a madman out to capture her and wreak his own havoc on her, was
much more than her writer’s mind could have conjured up. It was all much too
much to be real, but there was no denying what was happening to her.

Sitting there in the dark, her body shaking from the shock
of her situation, Bianca nearly gave up all hope. She dropped her forehead to
her knees and cradled her drawn-up legs with her arms for warmth and comfort.
Bianca stayed that way for several moments, sending up every prayer she could
think of as she bargained, pleaded and promised everything she could think of
as her lips moved in silent prayer.

Whether it was the result of her prayers or the influence of
her self-preservation, Bianca felt a sense of warmth spread through her cold
body, giving her the strength she needed to make one last effort.

With scraped and bleeding hands, she searched the ground
around her. She needed something large enough to do some damage when she faced
Evgenii again. But her search proved fruitless. She found only useless pebbles
and other bits and pieces of debris much too small to inflict any amount of
damage.

“Bianca, come out here. You cannot escape me. Come out
before I lose what patience I have left.”

Bianca refused to be drawn out to answer him as he wanted.
She gritted her teeth to keep them from clattering as she fought the cold fear
that gripped her. She caught a sob of frustration as she heard foot falls
echoing off the walls of the cave. It would only be a matter of moments before
he found her hiding place. Bianca silently cursed when she saw the splash of
light brightening the dark recesses of the cave as he came closer.

Bianca crawled as far back as she could go, stumbling into a
small crevice in the floor that offered some concealment. She watched
helplessly as Evgenii came ever nearer, rounding the corner with a torch,
filling the back of the cave with dim light. Then he was on her and the look of
triumph in his eyes made her physically ill. Desperate to keep out of his reach,
Bianca crawled out of the hole and began to edge around the cold, damp walls of
the cave.

She half walked, half crawled as she eased along the wall,
never taking her eyes off the monster stalking her. At the hungry look in
Evgenii’s eyes, Bianca remembered that the front of her torn gown gaped open
giving him a good view of her soft white breasts and belly.

Evgenii dropped the torch to the ground and quickly
discarded his tunic. He then began undoing the laces of his breeches with
fingers that visibly shook in anticipation.

“My Beauty. Come now. I have had enough of your games.”

Bianca froze much like a doe cornered by a hunter, paralyzed
with fear. She tried to see beyond him to determine if she should make one last
attempt to dash past Evgenii, thinking that she would rather take her chances
with all his men than let him get his hands on her.

Evgenii seemed to read her thoughts as if she had spoken
aloud. “Do not anger me further, my sweet. You would not like to feel the
extent of my rage.”

But even as he warned Bianca against running, her hand came
in contact with a sharp, jagged edge in the wall behind her. She wriggled it
slightly and found that it was loose. She worked it free, nearly shouted with
joy that she now at least had a weapon with which to defend herself. As fate
would have it, at the same moment, Evgenii turned his head away to look behind
him. It gave Bianca the opening she needed and she took her chance. She flew
across the cave at him and with as much force as she could muster, she struck
out.

Evgenii was momentarily surprised by her attack, but managed
to step aside and duck back. It was enough to divert the blow that had been
intended for his heart. What he had not counted on was her quick reflexes when
she changed the angle of her attack and the long, ragged stone pierced him at
the base of his neck atop his shoulder. The stones ragged edge dug deep into
his flesh ripping a gaping hole in the most vulnerable part of his neck.

“Ahggaaa!! You little bitch! You will pay for this!”

Evgenii’s bellow was a mixture of pain and outrage as he
felt hot blood pouring down over his bare shoulder and chest. The amount of his
own lifeblood as it poured hotly down his body was alarming.

“God Almighty, what have you done?!”

His furious words had Bianca taking several steps back. She
stared at him, stunned that she had managed to do so much damage. The rock
dagger slipped unheeded from her now lifeless fingers as she watched in horror
as blood covered his body.

Evgenii looked at her in shocked rage as Bianca dropped the
makeshift dagger and she feared he would kill her then and there. It was when
he staggered slightly that she came to life and bolted around him. But his arm
shot out making a grab for her and she stumbled away from his grasp only to end
up sprawled on the cold damp ground.

It was his hands on her that had her screaming in terror.
But the only sound that passed her lips was a pitiful croak as she was lifted
off the ground and thrown brutally against the cave wall. The pain of his large
fist connecting with her face left Bianca feeling as if her head had exploded
into a million tiny pieces. She would have slid to the floor had Evgenii not
fisted his bloodied hand into her hair and yanked her up.

On the verge of a black abyss of unconsciousness, Bianca was
unable to do anything to protect herself from the next blows. She made a weak
effort to raise her arms to fend him off, but it was of no use. Her arms seemed
to be useless as her mind faded in and out of a black haze.

Evgenii was also weakening. Still, he had the strength to
throw her from him, sending her sprawling toward the back of the cave. He would
see her dead for the trouble she had caused him, this he vowed.

Bianca, covered in blood and the bruises and scratches that
he had inflicted on her, rose unsteadily to her knees and then, with great
effort, to her feet using the cave wall to help her stand.

“Oh God, oh God, oh God!”

Bianca struggled to stay on her feet. She took one painful
step after the other to put as much distance as she could between her and the
monster trying to kill her. She did not realize that she prayed as she moved.
She anticipated a final blow that was sure to come at any moment but when none
came, she turned to look behind her. What she saw left her swaying on her feet.

In the light of a lantern being held high, she could make
out Evgenii who lay on the ground, eyes wide open, in a pool of his own blood.
The hand that held up the lantern belonged to a great avenging angel who stood
over him.

Draco, his sword bloodied and dripping, stood over the
corpse of the faux Russian prince peering into the blackness at the back of the
cave. The lantern he held high illuminated his harsh features making him look
fiercer than she had ever seen him. The sight sent shivers down Bianca’s spine
but she was too weak to do more than sink to the ground and sob piteously.

She had known that her Dragon would come for her. She had
known that he would come and slay the monster that sought her ruin and then her
death. Bianca sobbed louder as she watched Draco move toward her as she sat on
the hard, cold ground. She loved this man with her whole heart and soul, and
she would trust him with her very life. She opened her mouth to call to him and
then she knew no more as the blackness overtook her.

Blissfully unconscious, Bianca was unaware of the roar of
fury that echoed throughout the cave and beyond. An enraged Black Dragon had
found his lady and the sight of her battered and bloodied body wrenched the
bellow of savagery from his very soul as he rushed to her side. She was unaware
of the gentle, tender hands that moved over her form to determine her injuries.
Nor did she witness the tears that poured from his eyes, wetting his cheeks as
he wrapped her in his great cloak. Teardrops fell on the woolen fabric as he
gathered her close in his arms and carried her out into the moonlight.

She did not hear the cheer that rose from the Dragon’s men
as their leader appeared with his lady. Nor was she aware that when he mounted
Inferno he had no intention of returning her to Castle Neige. Instead he led
his company of soldiers past the beautiful Castle Neige, heading north to the
shores of Normandy and his Castle of the Sun.