Rendan (Scifi Alien Dragon Romance) (Dragons of Preor Book 4) (14 page)

* * *

A
t some point
they managed to lead Rendan across the room, place him on a
ryaapir
platform and treat him. He did not remember, but his injuries were healed. His wing no longer hung limply from his back and his arm no longer burned with the break. He flexed his hand and relaxed his fist, searching for any discomfort, and found none.

Yes, they’d healed him as he’d been lost in a mixture of heart-deep agony and physical pain.

No, no longer merely heart deep. The torment reached into his soul and tore at his insides, ripping him to shreds.

He wheezed, breath leaving him in a low
whoosh
. “She will not see me?”

Had he spoken the words aloud? He’d hardly heard himself and he was not sure if the others did.

“No.” Chashan would not look at him. The healing master stood near one of the windows, staring out at the rolling waves. “And I will not force her.”

“Of course,” he murmured. No one would force a female to do anything. “Did she say why?”

The elder healer spun, wings shaking and fury sliding over his features. “
You know why.
” Smoke slipped from Chashan’s nose, further proof of the male’s anger. “You had me believe the injection was at her request. You had me believe the worst of a female I had come to respect. I vented my anger on her. Chased her from medical because you—“ Chashan bit off his words and fisted his hands. He took a deep breath and released it slowly, carefully, before speaking again. “Your actions—my actions—placed her on that roof, Rendan. Your lie and my words forced her to jump from the ledge. She attempted to end her—“

Rendan stumbled back a step, falling against the nearby wall. He leaned against it for support, needing the solid surface to keep him upright. “You believe she…”

“Why else would she have climbed to the tower’s roof? Why else would she have avoided every warrior in the tower and sneaked up there?”

“No, I cannot believe she would…” Rendan shook his head. No. He could not imagine his mate—his smiling, laughing, frustrating mate—would attempt to take her life.

“Then explain.” Chashan’s voice no longer held the hardness from before. Now it was simply defeated, broken.

“I…”
Cannot
.

“She didn’t jump. She was led there.” Grace eased into the room, her mate Kozav at her heels. The male appeared ready for battle and Grace seemed ready to tear someone to pieces. “Someone gave her access to one of the building’s original emergency stairwells.”

“What?”

Grace nodded. “I know what Chashan said about her jumping.” She shook her head. “Carla would never. She just isn’t like that.” Chashan opened his mouth to speak but Grace held up a hand, requesting silence. “I know what books and other doctors say. I know that there is no ‘type’ when it comes to suicide, but…” Grace shrugged. “But she’s lived through worse than a man’s betrayal.” The female gestured at her mate. “I got Kozav to pull security footage so we could track her movements—where she went when she left medical.”

Rendan’s heart lifted with Grace’s words, hope rising when her beliefs supported his own. But Carla had been led to the roof?

“Who? Where? Are you sure?”

“The cameras followed her movements until she got to the junction of corridors One East and Six South.”

“Then?”

Kozav’s voice was deep and grim when he spoke. “The surveillance systems failed. There were no rooms or doors nearby. Simply the entry to the stairwell. I opened the door and the dust had been disturbed.” The teal male’s wings twitched. “Two sets of footprints—one large, one small. The largest before the smallest. We followed until we nearly reached the roof. That is where the largest turned back and the smallest went on alone. We do not know if the largest gained access elsewhere and joined her. I believe the largest may have pushed her. Grace agreed to speak with Carla to discover the true sequence of events.” Then Kozav breathed deeply and said the words that swirled through their minds. “Only the Preor can gain access to those stairs.”

Rendan’s legs truly lost their strength at that moment and he slid down the wall, not stopping until he sat on the carpet. He brought his knees up and propped his elbows on the joints, burying his face in his palms. His fault. If he hadn’t asked for the injection, if he hadn’t lied to Chashan, if he hadn’t…

He would not cry like a dragonlet. He would not sob for his
dam
or ache for his
sire
. He’d lost them both long ago and there was no purpose to wish they were alive once more to help him with the mess he had created. Created through his own stupidity.

The humans were correct—males were stupid. But he would not be stupid any longer. He would find the male who led her up those stairs. The male who had pushed Carla off the building.

Rendan removed his hands from his face and lifted his head, searching out Grace’s sympathetic stare. He did not want her pity when he deserved her hate. If she truly understood what he’d done… He wished to apologize for his actions, but there was only one person who would hear his words first—his mate.

“Tell her…” he sighed. “Tell her I care for her, deeply. Tell her I worry for her. Tell her I’m…” No, he would beg forgiveness from Carla directly, not through another. “Tell her I will find the one who led her to the roof. That we will make him pay for his actions.”

“We do not
know
she was pushed,” Chashan’s soft voice floated through the room and Rendan frowned, thinking over Carla’s poor rescue.

“She… was.” He recalled the emotions that’d plagued him, the twisting and turning feelings that’d sent him careening from the training platform and back to the tower. He rubbed his chest, those memories choking him with their strength. “I know she was shoved from the roof.” He thumped his chest. “I know it here.”

That belief spread, sliding through every inch of his body, from his toes to the tips of his wings. It consumed him, filled him, overwhelmed him in its strength. Once that certainty eclipsed all else in his body, Rendan was ready.

Ready to hunt.

I
f it wasn’t
for two Preor, Carla would be dead. If it wasn’t for Preor technology, she’d be dead. If it wasn’t for one particular warrior, her heart wouldn’t be broken and she wouldn’t feel like she was dead.

Empty. Hollow. A husk. It’d been two days since her “accident” and while she was healed, she didn’t want to leave the safety of medical. Rendan wouldn’t step across the threshold and Carla couldn’t leave. Win-win.

“He came to see you,” the low, feminine murmur drew Carla from her musings and she turned her head to meet Grace’s stare.

“Hmmm?” Carla could play dumb with the best of them.

“Rendan,” her tone was flat. “You know, your mate?”

“Ahhh…” As if she could ever forget the male who’d turned her world upside down. The male who had her jumping off buildings, hoping for a future, and then
falling
off buildings.

“He asked about you.”

Of course he would. The Knowing had already informed her they’d go crazy without each other. She wasn’t just physically attracted to him. She was biologically driven to be with Rendan. Forever.

“You weren’t the only one hurt, Carla.” Grace chastised her, tone grim and sharp.

Carla knew that. She remembered clinging to Rendan, the struggle to stop, the other dragon’s assistance, and then… blood. Blood and pain and she knew it hadn’t all been her own. A spear of regret and worry struck her heart, sliding quickly through the muscle.

Her eyes stung, tears blurring her vision as she imagined what her mate had done to save her. “Is he okay? Can he still fly?”

She hated that part of her wished he couldn’t. As precious as the ability was to the Preor, as long as Rendan could fly, he could fight with the other warriors.

“Yes.” Grace reached for Carla’s hand, giving it a gentle squeeze. “Why don’t you explain what’s going on? I can see that pushing him away hurts you, but you’re still doing it. Why?”

Carla released a rueful chuckle, groaning when a throbbing ache followed. Maybe she wasn’t as healed as she thought. She gripped her ribs, freezing in place while she worked through the pain.

“What the hell?” she groaned.

“The
ryaapir
platforms have the data on human biology, but Chashan was concerned about healing you completely since it hasn’t been tested before. There’s bruising, but nothing is broken or at risk of tearing or re-opening.”

Yeah, she just bet he was “concerned.”
Asshole.

“Right.” She breathed through the last roll of dull pain.

“Are you
ever
going to tell me what’s going on, Carla? This silent treatment is bullshit,” Grace snapped and Carla recognized the tone in the woman’s voice. It was one she’d often used when they both worked at East Fortuna Medical.

In the past, Carla would cringe beneath the woman’s anger. But that was the past. The new Carla was too tired to be a pushover and too sore to be nice. They—both Kozav and Grace—had been asking her the same questions for two days. She was ready to answer.

“You wanna know? Fine,” she snarled right back, pushing herself fully upright while she slipped her legs over the side of the bed. A girl couldn’t be intimidating while lying down. “My mate, the one who gave me this magical gift of the Knowing,” she didn’t think it was very magical at the moment, “took it upon himself to get an alien vasectomy.
Then
, he didn’t tell me about it.
Then
, he informed Chashan it was at my request. And what happened when I came to work?” she curled her lip. “The amazing
Healing Master Chashan
showed me what it’s like to be treated with honor and respect.” Carla flushed, the memories of Chashan’s distaste ringing through her mind. “
Then
I fell off a building!”

Yelling hurt but it felt damn good to get the words out, to unleash her anger and frustration.

“Fell?” Grace quirked a brow, not even reacting to her rant. That was disappointing. “Or pushed?”

“Huh?” Carla frowned. Even that hurt and she wondered if Chashan left some pretty bruises on her face as well.

“I…” Carla paused. No one had asked her what happened. They just ignored what caused her injuries and worked at repairing them. And until now, she’d been too injured to talk about how she’d ended up half-dead in medical. “I went looking for Rendan and ran into…” She tugged on the memories, luring them from the hidden reaches in her mind. “Ballakin. He told me Rendan was on the roof but I wasn’t allowed up there because of the removal of the balustrade.”

“But?”

“But he led me up a back entrance.” The dark had scared the hell out of her, but she’d been fueled by righteous indignation. A girl could get over a lot when she was mad. “And left me a couple floors down because he didn’t want to be caught.” She recalled the sun being bright and searing her eyes when she’d pushed the last door open and stepped onto the roof. “Except no one was there. I went to peer over the edge—I thought that maybe the warriors were just out of sight—and then I…”

There was the quick glance down and then a shuffle, a scrape of a shoe on pebble-strewn stone. Then nothing but air. “Someone pushed me.”

“I thought so.” Grace gave her a small smile.

Carla shook her head, the memory replaying once more. She’d peered down, cursing herself for getting so close to the edge and then… “It was a man…” She held up her hand, examining its small size. “His hand was big. Strong.”

“Anything else?”

Another negative. “No, I don’t remember anything other than falling—being afraid.”

And then Rendan saved her. Rendan who’d lied and—She cut off that line of thinking before it had a chance to sink its claws into her mind.

“Do they know who it was?” Who had tried to kill her?

“No,” Grace shook her head. “Security footage was erased. The last time you appeared on the vids was with Ballakin.”

That name made her shiver and shudder. “
Him.
”

Grace nodded. “Yeah, he’s not a favorite, but he’s a good warrior even if he is an asshole. His story lines up with yours.”

“Oh.” Well, that was good, she supposed. She cleared her throat body thrumming with a sudden need to move. As if it sensed something her mind had yet to understand. “When can I get out of here?”

“I can call Rendan—“

“No.” Carla wasn’t ready to talk to him—see him—not yet.

“Carla,” Grace sighed. “Preor aren’t like human men.”

“They lie easy enough,” she drawled and Grace winced.

“Okay, point taken. But what I mean is, their entire existence—their happiness—depends on human women, and Rendan…” Another sigh. “Something happened in his past—something Kozav won’t reveal—that makes him crave a mate, but deathly afraid of having dragonlets.” Grace gently squeezed her hand. “Talk to him. I’m not saying what he did was right, but you’ll never figure it out if you guys don’t talk.”

“I hate it when you’re right,” Carla grumbled.

“So you know I’m right when I tell you to give him a chance to explain. The Preor are honorable men—“

“They prefer
male
.”

“—but they’re still men. They’re not perfect just because they arrived on a space ship and are sexy as sin. They have flaws.” Another gentle squeeze. “Give him a chance to apologize and beg your forgiveness.”

Carla quirked a brow, ignoring the new ache that came with the movement. “Beg?”

Grace shrugged. “He’ll probably growl a lot and then fuck you like it’s the end of the world. It’s their way of saying ‘sorry.’”

Carla grinned at that, wondering if she might just enjoy his apology.

But not before they talked things out. Carla had been a pushover for her father. She wouldn’t be one for her mate.

“Fine,” she grumbled. “Where can I find him?”

“You—
and your new guards
—will find him at Ujal Station Tau. Several of the men went over there to review Ujal security footage on the off chance that their cameras caught something.”

Carla heard every word, but she was more concerned about the “new guards” portion of her friend’s statement. “New guards?”

“Yup.” Grace spun and headed to the small door of Carla’s room. “Be right back.”

Door? She vaguely remembered Rendan bellowing that his mate would be placed behind walls so no others could view her beauty. She would have snorted—again—if she didn’t know it’d hurt so badly.

Grace was back quickly, as promised, two Preor males in tow, both of whom she recognized—Zadri and Luzan. Zadri because he wanted to fight with Rendan in the Trials of Syh and because he’d been the other dragon.

“It was you,” she whispered. “You saved us.”

Zadri’s tanned skin darkened to a deep red. “I helped a brother warrior and his mate.” He shrugged. “Nothing more.”

Carla grinned. “For a person who wouldn’t be sitting here if you hadn’t helped, I think it’s a bit more than nothing.”

He shrugged again and Carla slipped from the platform, making her way slowly across the small space. She reached out and grabbed Zadri’s hand, giving it a soft squeeze. “Thank you.”

Carla turned to Luzan, one of Taulan and Lana’s guards. “Any chance you can tell me where to find your offense master?”

* * *

A
pparently
, they couldn’t. Or wouldn’t. Carla wasn’t sure, but in the end, it didn’t matter because the result was the same. She stood on the boardwalk behind Preor Tower while one of her guards kept watch, the other disappearing to locate her mate.

Funny how he’d been fired up (heh) to speak to her and now he had to be dragged to her side.

Carla shook her head and sighed, exhausted both mentally and physically. The cool beach winds soothed her, washing away some of the tension in her body, but plenty still remained.

“Are you well, Carla?” Zadri’s voice sliced through the breeze, reaching out to her from the shelter of the tower’s overhang.

The briny winds and damp air were physically uncomfortable for Preor. The salt stung and dried their scales while water on their wings was almost a sure death depending on the volume and where they were. Flying over the ocean and get hit by a wave? They’re going down and not getting up again.

Besides, she was still within sight. A mere fifty feet away and in full view of Zadri.

She turned away from the railing and waved at him, shouting to be heard over the wind. “I’m fine!”

Movement to her left snared her attention and she spied a flow of women leaving the nearby building. Human females of all colors, shapes, and sizes went in and out of the low structure—Preor Choosing Station Tau. The “official” meeting space for Preors and human women. Where both races could come together and see if they experienced the Knowing. She wasn’t sure if any—or how many—Preor had found mates in that way.

Then the one person she didn’t
want
to see actually appeared.

Ballakin.

Her stomach churned, the unease she always experienced around him twisting and squeezing her belly. Her fight or flight responses kicked in, demanding she flee already. The hair on the back of her neck stood on end and goose bumps rose along her arms. Adrenaline filled her veins in a rush of blood and fear, and she struggled to breathe through the rising panic.

It was as if her body knew something her mind had yet to acknowledge, and she wondered if
he
was the one who’d pushed her over the edge of the building. Had he followed her? Crept after her and…

He drew closer with each long stride, wings ruffling with every step and rotted green scales slithering across his shoulders. As a primary defense warrior, he should have better control than that. The twitching wings were difficult for even the strongest Preor to master, but the scales… Even a young sixth warrior could suppress the tell-tale slither of color over their skin.

Which meant Ballakin was consumed with overwhelming emotions—ones that made his body betray him.

And that evidence caused her unease to skyrocket. To rise higher and higher until she thought she’d collapse in a heap of panic and fear.

But she wouldn’t back down. It didn’t matter if he closed in on her. It didn’t matter that the old Carla would stare at the ground and cower before that heavy anger. She was an all-new Carla. One who’d had enough of Preors doing whatever the hell they wanted when it came to human women. Hell, when it came to anything, it seemed.

New Carla wanted to tell him to go fuck himself. Instead, New Carla turned to face him fully, set her jaw in a hard line, straightened her spine and tipped up her chin. He continued his approach, stare darkening the closer he moved, and she fought the instinctive desire to quail. Okay, the “go fuck yourself” part would hopefully come later. Probably when he was gone because she suddenly decided she’d do baby steps.

Really, really baby steps.

He narrowed his eyes, gradually slowing before coming to a stop in front of her. His glare slid up and then down her body, his heavy stare pushing against her like physical hands.

It was as if he hated that she’d survived and another block of suspicion plopped into place inside her mind. He hated her—she was certain of that. But why?