Chapter 11 #2
Kai was stunning. The red gown flowed around her like liquid fire, catching the light with every step. Her golden hair had been styled to fall in soft waves around her face, and even from this distance, I could see her bright and fierce amber eyes.
But it was her stance that stole my breath. My mate didn't walk onto that stage like a captive. She walked like a queen. Head high, shoulders back, every movement graceful and deliberate.
The crowd erupted in appreciative murmurs and applause.
Kai's eyes scanned the crowd, and I knew the moment she found me. Our gazes locked, and the mate bond surged between us with such force it nearly drove me to my knees. I saw her hand move—subtle, casual—sliding under the edge of her costume to touch the inside of her right wrist.
Our mark.
My hand immediately went to my chest, pressing against the phoenix feather burned over my heart.
Her lips curved into the tiniest smile.
We've got this, I tried to tell her with my eyes. Together.
She stopped next to a golden table that the clowns placed near Mortis. She turned her attention to Mortis as he continued his speech, her chin held high.
That's my girl.
"The royal phoenix is a magnificent creature," Mortis said, circling her like she was a prize he was showing off. Which, to him, she was. "Born of flame, sustained by sunlight, capable of regeneration that defies death itself."
The crowd gasped appropriately. Mortis was playing them perfectly, building anticipation. My eyes caught our President and Fang—both of them appeared to be just as captivated.
"But tonight," he said, moving to stand beside Kai, "you will witness her transformation. Her rebirth. A sight normally reserved for gods." He turned to face her, and his voice dropped to that commanding tone I'd heard him use before. "Transform, my pet. Show them your true form."
His words, "my pet," caused me to place my hand on my gun. My gorilla roared, preparing for battle. Kai was no one's pet, and anyone who thought differently could deal with me.
You fucker, just for that comment alone I'd kill you.
My eyes never left Kai. For a moment, nothing happened. Kai stood there, still human, still beautiful in that red gown. Then I saw it—a flicker of gold in her eyes, a shimmer of heat distorting the air around her. She rose to her tippy toes, then jumped and transformed.
A massive bird with a wingspan that had to be twelve feet across flapped, suspended next to Mortis.
Her feathers weren't really feathers. They had the shape, but they looked as if they were made of fire flames.
Her body burned brightly like the sun. The beak that had burned her mark into me blazed orange.
Those same amber eyes I'd fallen in love with shone.
She was the most amazingly beautiful creature I'd ever seen.
I'm just a dumb lug gorilla, I thought, completely mesmerized. But she—she's a fucking blazing phoenix. My mate's a damn phoenix.
The crowd's reaction was immediate and explosive. Gasps, shouts of wonder, and thunderous applause as Kai bounced up and down, slowly pumping her wings. The movement sent reflections of golden light cascading through the tent, and I swear I felt the temperature rise ten degrees.
Then she took off.
Kai launched herself into the air with a single powerful beat of those massive wings.
She soared toward the peak of the tent before banking into a graceful spiral.
She flew with the confidence of a creature born to the sky, her feathers leaving trails of golden sparks in her wake.
Her spectacular tail feathers streaked behind her.
The crowd was on their feet, phones out, capturing video even though Mortis had explicitly forbidden recording. But nobody was paying attention to his rules now. They were captivated, mesmerized by the phoenix dancing through the air above them. As was I.
And she was magnificent. Every movement was grace and power combined—aerial loops, dives that brought her skimming just above the crowd's heads, climbs that showed off the full spread of her wings.
The musical score swelled to match her movements, and I realized just how many times she'd done this act before.
My heart ached for her. Trapped, made to perform whenever Mortis demanded it.
She's a phoenix. A strong, valiant phoenix. She wasn't made to be his prisoner. She was made to soar.
"Beautiful, isn't she?" Mortis' voice cut through my awe, bringing my focus back to what I was here for. I glared at his back. "She's a creature of legend made flesh. But even legends must come to an end. Or do they?"
He snapped his fingers, and Kai's flight pattern immediately changed. She wheeled around, heading back toward the stage. She landed on the golden table with precision.
Smart move, Mortis, I thought bitterly. You get your show, a damn phoenix to impress the crowd, and a golden table to hide the gold that's coming. No one in the crowd's the wiser. He calculated and controlled everything.
The golden table gleamed under her light.
Mortis circled the table slowly, building the tension. "And now," he said, his voice dropping to that hypnotic cadence, "witness the ultimate transformation. The death and rebirth that defines the very essence of the phoenix." He turned to face Kai directly. "Rejuvenate."
Kai went absolutely still on that golden table.
Then her feathers shook as she turned, those amber eyes finding mine one more time through the crowd.
And then she burst into flames. The fire erupted from her core, golden and brilliant, with such intensity I felt it from thirty feet away. It consumed her completely, her wings spreading wide as the flames raced across every feather. She raised her head toward the top of the tent.
The crowd screamed and gasped, some backing away from the sudden heat, others pressing closer for a better view.
But I couldn't move. Couldn't breathe. Couldn't do anything but watch as my mate burned.
Every instinct I had was screaming. My gorilla was roaring inside my head, demanding I shift, demanding I stop this, demanding I tear apart everyone and everything that had ever hurt her.
My hands were shaking, my teeth clenched so hard my jaw ached.
Shift. SHIFT! SAVE HER! my head screamed.
My mate mark burned, reminding me of Kai's words.
This is normal. All phoenixes do this. It doesn't hurt. I'm alright.
I forced myself to take a breath. Then another. Kai needs me, I told myself firmly. She's helpless after this. She needs me in control, not rampaging. Hold it together. For her.
The flames intensified, growing hotter and brighter until it was almost impossible to look directly at them. Kai's form was barely visible within the inferno, a silhouette of wings and grace consumed by her own fire.
And then, as quickly as it had started, there was a flash, and the flames died.
Kai was gone.
In her place, on the golden table, was a pile of shimmering ash. It glittered in the spotlight, made to look like nothing more than a reflection of the table. Several in the crowd gasped, others stood to see the sight.
Mortis looked pleased—no, triumphant—as he gestured toward the ashes. "Ladies and gentlemen," he purred, "a royal phoenix. The rarest treasure in existence." There, in the center of the ash pile, something small and golden was moving.
Kai. My mate.
I sucked in a breath.
Mortis picked her up and placed her on top of the ashes. "Reborn as a small, fragile chick."
The crowd erupted. Everyone was on their feet, screaming, clapping, cheering.
The chick's eyes opened. Her head swiveled from side to side, looking confused. This was it. The most vulnerable moment for my helpless mate.
The moment we'd planned for.
I looked at the President, whose eyes were locked on that pile of gold with naked greed. Fang stood beside him, equally transfixed. Around the tent, my Silverback brothers were all staring at them, waiting for the signal.
The President caught my eye and gave a single, sharp nod. The President and Fang stood on the bench and raised their arms. Our sign.
President Bruno boomed over the crowd, "NOW! NOW! NOW!"
That's when chaos erupted.
The Silverbacks moved as one, pulling weapons and surging toward the center ring.
Diesel raised his gun and fired a shot into the air.
The VIPs and crowd screamed, scrambling out of their seats as the crowd turned into a panicked mob.
Mortis' head snapped in the direction of the shot.
His expression shifted from triumph to rage in an instant.
"You dare—" he started, his voice already deepening as his transformation began. He moved toward the stands, leaving Kai defenseless. The clowns surged forward from behind the stage.
But I wasn't watching him. I was moving. Kai first, then Mortis.
I shoved through the crowd, using my size and gorilla strength to barrel past anyone in my way. My eyes never left that golden table, never left the tiny chick stumbling through her own ashes.
Almost there. Almost—
One of the clowns—the orange-haired one—stepped into my path, his filed-tooth grin widening. "Going somewhere, big boy?"
I didn't slow down. Just shifted my fist mid-swing, letting my gorilla power flow through me as I caught him with an uppercut that sent him flying backwards into the crowd.
The table was right there. Right fucking there.
Somewhere, I heard the President shouting orders, heard Fang's distinctive laugh, heard the meaty sounds of fists hitting flesh as the fight spread through the tent. An occasional gun fired.
I saw a human man pushing people out of the way as he tried to plow his way to Kai. But he was too slow and no match for my speed.
I reached the table first.
"It's okay," I said, reaching for her even as I yanked my hat off my head. "I've got you, baby."