Rogue Dragon (2 page)

* * * *

Synda stomped her feet to bring feeling back to her toes as she watched her partner break up the fight of the two drunk men, who’d just discovered they were sleeping with the same woman. She crossed her arms and rested her hip on the hood of the patrol car enjoying the heat of the engine bleeding through the thin steel. Ember, her partner, slid on a patch of ice, and the wrestling trio fell down again. Next time her buddy would think twice about betting with her. Since Ember lost the bet on who would win the hockey game, Synda didn’t have to help break up the fight. At least it was her choice whether to help. The two guys looked nasty, and she wrinkled her nose as a whiff of one of them assaulted her senses.

The slew of cuss words that flowed from her friend’s lips made her smile. The two men were up first and tried to run in opposite directions. One pumped his legs as he tried to climb a snow bank, and the other skidded down the hill, weaving, barely able to stay on his feet. Synda rolled her head on her neck.

Ember came to her knees. “Don’t just sit there, go after one of them.”

“Really, you need my help now, Super Woman? Ms. I-have-a-handle-on-this, sore loser?” Synda retorted.

“Forgive me, Oh Consummate Leader, for thinking I could be half the officer you are. And you cheated.” Ember bowed her head. “Now will you go after one?”

“Which one you want?”

“The fat one stinks. I’ll take the skinny one.”

Synda tapped down back the bile that rose in her throat. “Thanks a lot.” She pushed off the car and took a deep breath of the crisp air while peering down the hill. “Why do I always get the gross ones?” Then she answered the question herself. “Because you always ask
which one,
dumbass.”

The crunch of ice filled the air as her boot sank through the thin layer of frost. Synda took another step to get her footing and took off running. She blinked, her sight changing to infrared as she scanned the darkness for the man. A faint outline appeared at the bottom of the hill, darting between the large mounds of snow the plows had left behind. She jumped from the drift, tucked her legs beneath her and landed in a crouch on the walkway. She stood, let out a hoot and jogged down the concrete sidewalk. It was too bad she couldn’t make heat like her dad. She’d have melted the snow. She flailed her arms to slow down when she realized how quickly she was picking up speed. Unable to stop, she twisted her body and fell ass first into the embankment.

An icy chill skittered up her back, and snow coated her uniform as a flurry of flakes fell on top of her from above. She huffed and rocked to work herself free, repeating the same words her partner had uttered only minutes ago. A hand appeared from the darkness, and she wiped the ice from her eyes. Pale fingers wiggled in front of her face. She grabbed the hand and was unceremoniously yanked from the snowy cocoon. A quick brush off and she raised her head to thank the stranger. Her words got stuck in her throat.

Her rescuer was dressed in boots, threadbare jeans, a shirt of some sort, and a dark wool coat.

Not the expensive kind of outerwear you normally see in this neighborhood.
Synda continued to take in every nuance of his appearance. His jaw was tight, and a muscle ticked in his cheek. He had a slightly crooked nose that gave his way-too-handsome face some character. She met his gaze and was taken aback by the clear blue of his irises. They were the color of the hottest flame. His dark hair hung loose around his shoulders, framing his face. She leaned in closer and felt an extraordinary amount of heat exuding from his body. Stepping back, she resisted the urge to burrow under his coat and bask in his warmth. Lately she was always so cold.

She pressed her lips together and cleared her throat. “Um thanks, you didn’t happen to see a fat man with bad body odor run past, did you?”

He lifted his hand and pointed behind him. There was the perpetrator she’d been chasing. The man sat docile with his arms wrapped around him, rocking back and forth in the walkway. Every few minutes his eyes would stray to the sexy stranger standing before her.

She pushed past the Good Samaritan, mumbling another thanks. Her radio crackled with static, and her partner’s voice broke through the line. “I got mine, did you get yours? ’Cause if you didn’t that puts me ahead in the next bet.”

“You wish. I got my perp, and I’m on my way up.” Synda released the button to the mouthpiece attached to her shoulder and glanced behind her, but the man was gone. She shook her head and grabbed the drunk by the elbow. “There was a man here, right? Tall, hot, white…”

“I didn’t see nothing, lady. Just take me to jail ’cause I think I finally drank too much.” The perpetrator kept his face forward and refused to look into the shadows around him.

“Dude, you said a mouthful.” Synda helped him and they trudged up the hill.

Chapter Two

Kirill took a deep breath. The smell of jasmine tickled his nose. He lifted his arm, sniffed his coat and groaned. His automobile skidded on the ice, fishtailing, and forced him to focus his attention on his driving. He whipped the wheel into the turn, drifting on the road until the car righted. He’d barely come in contact with his assignment, hell he’d simply grasped her hand and already he carried her scent. He rolled his shoulder, the throbbing pain never abating. Something was happening. He had an idea what but he needed confirmation. If he was right and the legends were true, then it would cause more problems than he was prepared to handle.

Fuck it, he’d have to cross that bridge if and when he came to it. Kirill rubbed his fingers along his jaw in thought. A true mating hadn’t occurred in hundreds of years, maybe longer than that.

There was only one person he could trust. If he went to Drago, that bastard would find a way to twist the situation to suit his nefarious schemes. Kirill shook his head and sighed. He pushed the button that lowered his driver’s side window. Flurries whipped through the interior and tiny flakes started to cover his shoulder exposed to the elements. Snow coated the side of his face and melted into droplets of water on his skin. The persistent ache traveled down his ribcage, spread through his torso and intensified. He reached inside his coat, skimming his hand along his shirt, and searing heat flowed over his palm. He swallowed. The signs were there, if the stories the old ones used to tell were true.

He pushed the button with the handset icon on the steering wheel. An automated voice responded to his request.

“Call Timur.” He spoke over the rush of the wind. Metallic tones filled the inside of the vehicle. A soft click and the line started ringing on the other end.

“Speak quickly,” Timur casually answered.

“
Mhe hyxha nomollib
.” He spit the words out in Russian, his accent thickening.

“What kind of help? What’s happened?” Timur responded.

Kirill could feel the change coming. Sweat poured off him as his beast fought its way to the surface. He locked his jaws and tightened his grip on the steering wheel, willing the animal into submission.

“Kirill!” Timur yelled his name and his panic-stricken voice filled the interior.

Rows of serrated teeth started to fill Kirill’s mouth. He swallowed the saliva pooling around his tongue. When he huffed, a long stream of cinder-laden smoke blew from his nose. He worked his mouth, pushing the words past his teeth. The haze in his throat choked him as he spoke. “
Mon
apakoh
bopetcr
mehr.”

“You make no sense, my friend. You’re not mated and you came into your dragon over five hundred years ago. He has no reason to fight you.”

Kirill panted, his vision flipped from human to infrared. He drifted into the adjacent lane on the highway and swerved back onto the right track when the truck headed his way blasted a long warning blare. A snow bank loomed as his sedan jumped the median and flew a few feet over the outer lane. He could hear tires screeching and the sound of crunching metal that wasn’t his own vehicle. His head bounced off the steering wheel and snapped back. Timur was once again yelling his name. The vehicle lodged into an embankment and suddenly snowed poured into the lowered window burying him with blessed cold. He gave into the desires of his beast.

Glass shattered and the steel twisted as his body pressed against the confines of the automobile. Bolts pinged as they flew free, darting past his face. Clothes ripped, shredding into strips of fabric. His scales shimmered, reflecting the dim light of the pure snow as row upon row armored his body. He twisted at the waist and flexed his legs, which had been pinned beneath the dashboard. The sedan shook when he leaned forward and his wings were released, further lifting the roof from the rest of the car. He raised his head on his serpentine neck and rocked forward through the front of the vehicle where the windshield had been. Kirill peered along the bank line, a three-car pileup rested in a jumble a few feet from him. People rushed about helping each other and he took the opportunity to free himself.

He flapped his wings until the sedan rocked in place, teetering back and forth until he finally freed his thick legs. A quick hop and his nails sunk into the leather and foam that had covered his seat. He folded his wings tight to his body and squirmed through the front opening of his demolished car. Kirill punched his talons through the hood and tugged himself forward.

The remnants of his outfit were scraped from his body as he pulled free. One more glance around the area to note the human’s positions. He spread his wings and they melded into the background of the night sky. Kirill stretched his neck, dropped his wings, and shot up into the cover of the clouds.

As if he had an internal GPS, he knew exactly where his mate was. Riding the air currents, he glided through the mist and sneezed when the water crystals flowed up his nose. He headed for the city and the exact opposite direction he should be traveling in. The closer he got to the human population, the easier it would be to be seen, or worse, caught. The driving need to get to the woman that was his soul mate drove him, overriding even common sense. He did a spiral in the air and shot forward, the fire goddess was finally gifting him with a mate.

* * * *

Synda scrubbed her hands over her face before pulling her cell phone free from her pocket and checking the screen again for missed calls. Wind buffeted into her and whistled through the entryway as she pushed the glass door open. While standing on the concrete landing outside the back entrance of the police station, she used her finger and tapped the phone book icon. Scrolling through the list until she located the picture of her father, she slid her index finger over it. Her dad smiled up at her as the line connected and started to ring. She listened to his deep calm voice as he explained how to leave a message.

She chuckled. “Dad, it’s been a few days and I haven’t heard from you. If you’re on another one of your trips you need to let me know or I will be invading your privacy tomorrow morning bright and early and we both know how…” The machine cut her off. She resisted the urge to toss the phone and stabbed the screen again.

Standing on the stoop, she pulled her coat tighter when she was bumped forward and into the railing. A slim hand reached out and grabbed her arm. Synda glanced over her shoulder at her partner, still in uniform.

“Hey, why are you still here?” Ember adjusted her jacket against the cold.

“Trying to reach my dad and was leaving a message.” Synda held up her phone and waved it. “Why are you still in uniform?”

“You got out before the Sarge came through and asked who wanted overtime. I was still in uniform. Apparently, there is a pileup on the interstate and some unexplained nonsense about some kind of flying monster and how it may have carried a man off with it.” Ember rolled her eyes.

“A flying beast, like a vampire?”

Ember snorted. “Synda, seriously, no more scary movies for you. I swear every time someone mentions anything about some creature that goes bump in the night you get all strange. It was probably a drunk driver.”

”Yeah, yeah! That’s probably it.” Synda stare into the brightly lit hallway beyond Ember’s shoulder.

Ember added dryly. “I wish some people would learn to keep their asses home if they want to drink, or better yet sell their car and invest in a bus pass.”

A few officers strutted out and walked between them. One guy stopped on the top step and looked back. “You coming, Ember?”

He trotted down the stairs when she nodded. “Damn, but Jenkins ain’t some kind of fine. Ah well, at least there’s a silver lining to this call.” Ember turned her head and half smiled. “Want me to make a call to the station that handles Fire Island and ask the boys there to fly over and make a wellness check?”

“No, I’m off tomorrow. I’ll catch the ferry over and check on him. You be careful out there with the flying beast and all. I kinda like having you for a partner.”

“Ditto and watch out. Not only are the roads treacherous but it would appear so are the drivers.” Ember did a little wave and trotted down the stairway.

Synda waited until her friend was out of earshot. She stabbed the screen hard enough to make the tips of her fingers tingle. Following her friend’s footsteps, she took the opposite pathway toward the back lot where her car was parked. She counted the rings and she marched toward her sports car.