Chapter 26 Frustrated and Tired
Frustrated and Tired
“Hit me, Nik.” Therian Firebreath lifted his wrapped hands and made a ‘come get me’ motion from where he stood on the other side of the large gym mat.
His long blond hair was in a bun, and he wore a threadbare navy-blue T-shirt and loose shorts.
One might think his attire was due to their location, but dragon shifters always ran hot. “You know you want to.”
Nikhail eyed his friend. They were alone in the apartment complex’s gym, and even though Nikhail knew River was upstairs on a video call with Ember, he still felt an ache in his chest from being away from her. It seemed to be constant, this urge he felt to be near her.
Still, he needed this. A week had passed since they’d first arrived, and frustration had been steadily growing beneath Nikhail’s skin. Frustration and exhaustion.
By the Blessed Obsidian Sands, Nikhail was so. Fucking. Tired.
Tired of being gone from dusk until dawn, returning in the early morning, exhausted and defeated. Often injured.
Tired of being in the same space as River but too fatigued to do anything more than kiss her before collapsing onto the bed, falling into a restless sleep.
Tired of chasing Gale Harringdale across the region and being one fucking step behind him at all times. The rebel leader always seemed to know they were coming. Nikhail was convinced now more than ever that there was a leak, someone who was tipping the rebels off about their movements.
Nikhail was tired of it all, and his fuse was shortening with every passing day. He wasn’t the only one on edge; every member of his team was feeling the effects of this wild goose chase.
Tempers were short, arguments were being had, and mistakes were being made.
This was an outlet he desperately needed.
Earlier today, after their briefing, the Chancellor had made the call to send for reinforcements.
It was a slap in the face, if Nikhail was being honest, but he was capable of admitting that they needed the help.
It felt like he was trying to solve a puzzle, but key pieces were being held from him.
Therian had arrived an hour ago, along with a few other soldiers from Golden City. The dragon shifter had taken one look at Nikhail’s face and suggested they make their way to the gym while Dalyn debriefed the others.
“Be careful what you ask for.” Nikhail rolled his shoulders, then cracked his neck.
“I know exactly what I asked for,” Therian retorted. The shifter was standing casually, as if he didn’t have a care in the world.
Nikhail lifted his wrapped hands and eyed his friend. “Don’t hold back.”
“Are you going to fight me, Galebringer, or are we going to keep chatting like a couple of schoolgirls?”
Therian was clearly baiting him, hoping to enrage him, but he was also right. Nikhail did need this. He couldn’t remember the last time he’d been so frustrated and tangled up inside.
Before this past week, he would’ve told anyone who asked that he was unflappable.
It was what made him so good at his job.
No matter what he encountered in the field, he could deal with it.
It was a silver lining of sorts. A skill he’d acquired early on, after having to deal with his father’s leaving.
Despite his young age, he’d had to step up and help his mother.
Nikhail was steady and patient, able to deal with whatever came his way… or so he thought.
Now, he was irritable and anxious. He wanted to put this matter to rest, once and for all. Find Gale Harringdale, then track down the leak. After that, he planned to ask for vacation time so he and River could get settled back in Lakewater.
But first, he needed to get his head on straight. And that meant getting rid of his pent-up aggression so he could think properly.
Nikhail charged towards the dragon shifter with a roar. He feinted to the right before spinning at the last second. His fist slammed into Therian’s side.
“Cute,” Therian said, barely moving. He smirked, dancing out of the way of Nikhail’s follow-up left hook.
Damned dragon shifter.
Nikhail growled, calling a sphere of wind to his palm and launching it at Therian while he charged him again. This time, the dragon shifter grunted at the impact. Nikhail’s victory was short-lived. Therian punched Nikhail’s side, and the air fae wheezed, stumbling back.
Maybe it was a good thing River was upstairs. She might have had a heart attack if she saw the two men right now.
Soon, it was all Nikhail could do to avoid Therian’s fists. The muscular dragon shifter was as powerful as he was fast. His kind was known for their strength, which was one of the reasons the Crimson King had tried to eradicate their species all those centuries ago.
Fighting Therian was exactly what Nikhail needed.
Right now, he wasn’t a commander of a team that was, in the Chancellor’s words, struggling to achieve their purpose.
He wasn’t an air fae desperate to keep the woman he loved safe.
He was just a warrior, training. This was where he felt comfortable and in control.
Right now, he was able to focus on himself.
He wasn’t thinking about last night, when he and his team had tracked Harringdale to a run-down warehouse in the Southern Region.
Nor was he worrying about Indira, who had gotten injured when the rebel leader shifted into his bear form and went on a rampage.
Even though Nikhail had tried to shield his team, Indira had still taken claws to the stomach.
The bear had ripped through her skin as though it were made of paper.
By the time they got her to the hospital, Indira had been clinging to life. Nikhail stayed there for hours, pacing in the waiting room. It wasn’t until the surgeons updated him, assuring him that she would pull through, that he’d called the Chancellor and gave her an update.
Nikhail wasn’t even thinking about the verbal flogging he’d received from the head of the Republic when she’d heard about their failings. Ignatia Rose had made it clear that she was holding Nikhail personally responsible for the fact that Harringdale was still at large.
Therian kicked Nikhail’s legs, sweeping them out from under him. He landed on his back with a whoosh and a grunt.
Before Therian could pin him to the ground, Nikhail rolled. He jumped to his feet, calling the wind to his palm. He threw several spheres of air at the dragon shifter in quick succession, pleased when the man took several stumbling steps back.
His advantage was temporary. Through some dragon trickery, Nikhail soon landed on his back again. This time, Therian used his body to pin Nikhail to the ground, trapping his arms at his sides with his thighs. Nikhail struggled but soon realized the futility of his actions.
“Yield,” he groaned, slapping the mat. “I yield.”
Therian dipped his chin and clambered off him. He offered his hand, and Nikhail took it, rising to his feet. Sweat poured off both men, and they staggered to the edges of the mat. Nikhail squirted half his water bottle down his throat, using a towel to wipe away the worst of his sweat.
“Feel better?” Therian asked.
The dragon shifter was a man of few words—he always had been, as long as Nikhail had known him. The most he’d ever heard Therian speak was during the Choosing, when the shifter had wooed his now-wife, Hallie.
“Much.”
“Good.” Therian wiped his face and strode towards the showers. “Then let’s get this show on the road. The sooner I get back to Hallie, the better. I always hate leaving her, but now that her due date is approaching, it’s a special kind of torture.”
Nikhail caught up, pushing open the door to the showers. “Two months to go, right?”
“Yes.” Therian grinned, pulling off his sweaty T-shirt. “It feels like it’ll never get here, and yet, time is flying. There’s still so much to do and learn.”
“I get that. My sister’s wife is pregnant, too.”
Laurie and her wife, Krystal, underwent reciprocal IVF a few months ago. Laurie’s eggs had been harvested and artificially inseminated, but Krystal was the one carrying their child. She wasn’t due for another six months, but already, Laurie was talking about how nervous and excited they were.
Nikhail was looking forward to being an uncle. He couldn’t wait for the baby to arrive and spoil them every day. Yet another reason to put an end to this debacle with the Black Night as quickly as possible.
Surely, once they apprehended Gale Harringdale, things would go back to normal, right?
“Don’t wait up tonight, Princess.” Nikhail stood in the doorway of the safe house, checking his weapons one last time. “I’m not sure how late we’ll be.”
Three days had passed since the reinforcements arrived.
Rather than continuing to chase after the rebels, always one gods-damned step behind, they’d altered course.
Nikhail and his ever-growing team had spent hours combing through the now-abandoned warehouse, searching for evidence of the rebels’ movement.
They’d left no stone unturned—or in this case, no empty crate, stack of papers, or piles of broken electronics.
It was during this arduous, tedious process that Nikhail had uncovered a clue. A deed to a desert property an hour outside the city. The yellowed slip of paper had been buried in a shoe box among a stack of receipts from years ago, and he’d almost missed it.
A week ago, he might’ve written the deed off as inconsequential—the name wasn’t one he recognized—but after combing through the warehouse, he realized there was a certain order to things here. The deed had been so out of place that it felt impossible to ignore.
When he relayed the information to the others, they’d agreed. Further investigation had revealed more information about the isolated location, and Nikhail was sure this was where they’d find Harringdale.
River drew her bottom lip through her teeth. The nervous gesture was endearing. “You’re going to the desert, right?”
Nikhail nodded. “Yep. Sandbanks is a small village near where we’re heading.”
For security reasons, he couldn’t give her the exact coordinates.
“That’s near where you grew up, right?”
“It is. How did you—”
River’s feet shuffled, and she glanced at the floor. “A year or so ago, you were telling Ryker about your mom, and you mentioned the town’s name.” River’s cheeks were a dusty rose. “I wasn’t intentionally eavesdropping, but I couldn’t help but hear you both talking. The tidbit stayed in my mind.”
He stepped closer to River. A coil of warmth wrapped around his lower half, his body far more focused on the stunning woman in front of him than the team waiting for him downstairs. If only he could stay here all night and lavish her with attention as he desired.
One day, when the immediate threat had been taken care of, he would do exactly that.
“And you remembered the name?”
Her cheeks and neck were red. “Yeah. I don’t know how to explain it, I just… I remember a lot of things about you, Nik. Even when I was trying to convince myself to stop, that it was a bad idea, I was still paying attention to you.”
Had he wanted her before?
Now, his pants were uncomfortably tight. Heat coursed through him, and the air sizzled between them.
Three words hovered on the tip of his tongue, but Nikhail kept them inside.
Not because he didn’t want to say them, but because when he did, it wouldn’t be in a rush when he had to leave.
River deserved to have the words whispered to her as he kissed every part of her, worshiping her the way a goddess like her deserved to be adored.
Even so, Nikhail felt himself drifting closer to River. She backed up until she hit the wall. His name escaped her on a breath. Even if he wouldn’t say the words, he would ensure she knew exactly how he felt before he left.
Lowering his head, he exhaled her name before slanting his mouth over hers. He kissed her ardently, fervently, pouring everything he had into the kiss.
Stepping back was one of the hardest things he’d ever done.
“I’ll miss you,” he said, hand on the doorknob. “Remember—”
“Don’t open the door for anyone,” she finished for him, as she had every day since they’d first arrived. “I won’t. I promise.”
“Good girl.”