Chapter 23
CLEAN UP THIS MESS
Ziara
It was him. No question. A shemagh covered most of his face, but I knew that body. Shirtless, because of course he was, there was no mistaking his dark skin, broad shoulders, and the muscles rippling across his chest.
The chest I’d plunged both my daggers into.
How the hell?
Everything inside me went cold. He radiated power even in stillness, a predator zeroing in on his prey.
He’d found us.
Across an ocean, through a sandstorm, and beyond a city that should have buried our trail, he had tracked us down.
My eyes betrayed me, dragging across his body before I could stop them. The revulsion I felt toward myself was immediate and absolute. This creature wanted to destroy everything I loved, yet some twisted, broken part of me couldn’t look away.
The sneeze I’d been fighting finally won. My eyes squeezed shut as it exploded from my face, the sound cracking across the silence like a whip. When I could finally blink and refocus, I wished I hadn’t.
His silver gaze found and locked onto mine, and I didn’t need to see his mouth to know he was smiling. Victory shone in the cocky asshole’s eyes.
My legs gave out. Mack’s hands caught my arms, steadying me, and then he followed my eyes to the dock.
“Who is that, Zee?”
I didn’t answer. I couldn’t.
“Alpha, you should see this guy.”
Mack tugged me away to make room for Dad and Rust as he sat me on one of the filthy storage boxes and knelt at my feet, studying my face.
“Who is that guy?”
I tried to answer, but my throat felt like sandpaper. Nothing came out except a rasp.
“The dragon,” Rust said, recognizing him at once. “But how?”
Mack’s eyes widened.
“Impossible,” the alpha boomed, watching the dragon until the ship turned and the dock disappeared from sight. “We could have teleported anywhere in the world. He had no way of knowing where we went. Unless—”
Dad turned and focused his anger on me.
I shrank. “I was planning to tell you, but then we were in such a hurry and I—”
“Tell me what?”
“It wasn’t real. I mean, I thought it was just a dream. A nightmare.”
“Jesus, Ziara.” The alpha stormed toward me, his eyes glowing with anger. “You told the enemy where we are?”
Rust swore and looked away. The hurt radiating off Mack felt like a punch in the gut. His focus locked on me, his big brown eyes full of betrayal.
The alpha loomed over me, crossing his arms over his chest. “Start at the beginning.”
“I… I….”
A shrill shout sounded from above, interrupting the thoughts I fought to organize. More shouts of alarm joined the first. Dad turned and looked out the porthole, swearing.
The dragon!
Heart pounding, I leapt to my feet and peered around him, scanning the horizon.
But it wasn’t the dragon.
An enormous creature darted through the water, shooting toward our ship like a missile.
“Brace!” Dad shouted.
Before I could move, the creature rammed us.
The Fiery Stormbird pitched to the port side, flinging me away from the starboard porthole.
I went airborne. Flailing, I reached for anything to break my fall.
Rough canvas slammed into my shoulder, and I caught myself on a hammock and held on tight.
The starboard porthole, now entirely submerged, was under my feet and water gushed in. The ship was on its side.
Wood groaned, and we rolled again. I held onto the hammock for dear life. Canvas dug into my hands as the vessel righted itself with a bone-shaking splash. Pain erupted across my tongue, and my mouth filled with blood.
Dad and Rust rolled across the floor before springing to their feet while Mack clung to the hammock beside mine, his expression wild with fear as the starboard porthole darkened.
Orange and black scales slithered past it, blotting out the light.
Snakeskin grated against iron and wood until the port side window was also covered.
It had wrapped around the ship, leaving us in unnatural darkness, with all external sounds muted.
At least the water had stopped pouring in.
The ship groaned and rocked again. Dad staggered to the starboard porthole, raised his rifle, and squeezed the trigger, unloading a three-shot burst into the creature.
An ear-piercing hiss bounced off the walls, followed by more rocking of the galleon.
More shots. One ricocheted off the iron bars and whizzed back into the cabin.
My stomach lurched, but the shot slammed into a storage box.
Dad released his rifle to hang from its sling again and staggered to the nearest hammock.
A high-pitched screech sounded from the front of the galleon, followed immediately by the stench of fire and burnt reptile.
Wondering what fresh hell this was, I tightened my grip as another ear-splitting screech accompanied a hissing bellow.
The ship lurched. The scales blocking the porthole shuddered and writhed, letting in flashes of light.
On deck, the fishmen shouted what sounded like a rallying cry in their strange language.
A third screech made my ears ring. The ship rocked so hard I thought we’d capsize for sure.
Firey scales lit up the port side window, followed by a pained bellow.
The snake rolled again, and a loud splash sounded.
When the flames flickered out, the monster was gone.
Slowly, the ship’s rocking ebbed, splashing less and less water into our cabin.
I scanned my team, assessing the damage.
Rust had a cut over his left eyebrow, already stitching itself shut, and Mackiel’s face was green.
“Don’t throw up in here,” I told him. If he blew chunks, I would follow suit, and the cabin already smelled nauseating enough.
He swallowed and nodded. “I’m good.”
He didn’t look good, but I didn’t blame him one bit. The jerky I’d had for breakfast was steadily creeping up my throat.
But we’d survived. Something had fought off that gargantuan snake, and I wasn’t about to question a miracle.
Rhythmic thumping shook the ceiling. Feet pounded in unison against the deck above us.
“What are they doing?” I asked.
The alpha’s expression curdled. “Getting us underway, I’d imagine.” He kept his grip on the hammock, so I kept mine. Rust and Mack held on without being told.
Smart, as it turned out.
Instruments joined the stomping, sounding like guitars that had been wound too tight, bright and twanging.
The tempo climbed. Voices layered in. The fishmen’s song started low and reverent before building in speed and volume until the melody became a frenzy.
The hammock swayed. The hull groaned. The entire ship vibrated with the music as if it were trying to match the rhythm beat for beat.
I shot a glance through the porthole, and my stomach dropped.
We were tearing across the water.
Our speed continued to increase, and I clutched my hammock for dear life once again.
This time, inertia forced me toward the back of the ship, plastering my innards against my backbone.
The hammock dug into my hands, gouging deep grooves into my fingers, but if I let go, I would fly into Dad and send us both crashing against the back wall, so I held on.
The crew above continued to dance and sing, and I feared they’d never stop.
Exactly how far away was that freaking island?
My arms trembled from the strain, and blood dribbled down my skin. Darkness clouded the edges of my vision, and my heart threatened to pound out of my chest. Swallowing back bile, I tightened my grip on the now-slippery canvas.
Just as my fingers began to slide, the chanting and pounding above us died down.
The unnatural speed slowed, and the g-force released me to slump forward, exhausted.
Finally able to stand freely, I peeled my bloody fingers from the hammock and stumbled toward the porthole.
My three companions bolted out the door, their footsteps echoing in the hallway and up the stairs.
Gripping the iron bars outside the ship, I yanked myself forward to lean out over the water and emptied my stomach into the deep.
When the retching subsided, I wiped my mouth with the back of my hand and turned from the porthole. The alpha stood in the doorway, jaw tight, mop and bucket in hand. Mack and Rust were nowhere to be seen.
The alpha set the cleaning supplies aside, folded his arms across his chest, and gave me his undivided attention. “Talk.”
I straightened, wiping my hands on my pants as I leaned against the wooden wall. “The dragon has visited my dreams four times now.”
Outrage widened his eyes. “And you didn’t think to mention this?” His voice stayed level, which was far worse than when he shouted.
“I thought they were just nightmares at first—”
“Thinking isn’t your job.” He stepped further into the cabin, arms dropping, fists clenched at his side. “I’m your alpha. You report to me immediately at the first sign of potential danger. That’s not a suggestion.”
The idea of reporting nightmares was preposterous, yet his reprimand still landed like a physical blow. He was right. I should have come to him after the second, or at least after the third, but I’d screwed up.
I lowered my gaze. “Yes, Alpha. I’m sorry.”
“What happened in these dreams?”
“Threats. Intimidation. But last night was different. He demanded to know where we were and showed me our den. He knew exactly where it was, and he ripped off the door and flooded it. Froze everyone inside.” My throat constricted at the memory of Tali screaming for help and Mauricio’s terrified face locked in ice.
“He threatened to keep them that way unless I told him where we were.”
The alpha went completely still. When he spoke, his voice dropped to something deadly quiet. “You told him.”
“He had our people—”