In the Shadow of the Tiger (The Fighter Series Book 2) Page 11

  “It’s okay.” He said aloud.

  “Who are you?” She asked. Her lips smacked together and a trickle of blood formed. She raised her finger and wiped it away.

  Dragon didn’t say anything.

  “Where are you taking me?” She asked.

  She stared at him. He saw the fear, but explaining anything at this point seemed senseless. A strand of hair fell across her face covering her eyes. He looked away revealing the backside of the tattoo on his neck.

  “Did my aunt put you up to this?” She asked. Her voice hit a higher pitch.

  “You’re Aunt?” He asked. He sped up on the straight a ways. “No.”

  “Where are we going?”

  “You ask a lot of questions.”

  “Take me home. Now.” She demanded.

  “Where’d Candy pick you up at? Anywhere close to your home?” Dragon muttered. “It doesn’t matter. She knows where you live.”

  “What the hell does that mean?” Her tone rose. She sounded agitated and afraid.

  He turned toward her saying nothing.

  “It means they’ll be looking for the both of us.” He replied dryly slowing down.

  Dragon never expected her to unbuckle her seat belt and rise out of her seat. He tried to stop her, but when the car darted out from under him, he thought twice. He decelerated. She leaped towards him. Her hands out and her hair flying around her. Fingernails connected with his face, and he felt his skin ripped away. Both of his hands left the steering wheel setting the car free. Realizing there was no control of the wheels, Dragon grabbed out while pushing the girl off him. He undid his belt so he could lean into her holding her down with one hand while driving with the other.

  “You’re going to make us wreck.” He shouted reducing his speed even more.

  The corner of the Viper nipped the side of a building. A splash of concrete showered the window. The car bounced on two tires leaving Dragon to try to force the other two back onto the ground. It was already too late. Instead, the car started to air-born, and Dragon caught himself just in time. Wrapping himself under the seat, he braced himself for the rollover. Dragon and the girl dislodged from their chair. The girl was half way across the center. The moving car propelled her back into her seat. As if in slow motion the car took flight, bucked and then smashed to the ground sending a cloud of shattered glass air born. Metal screeched as tires separated from the rims digging into the cement. Instantly they were upside down still traveling down the road, and the smell of gasoline filled the within the cab.

  Dragon felt a sharp pain in his leg soon as the car touched the cement and went sliding. Sparks were exploding underneath them popping close to his face. The air bags opened pushing them further into their seats in an awkward and dangerous position. When the car came to rest, the tires were spinning, smoke was pouring from under the crumpled hood, and a thin stream of gasoline ran down the driver's door pooling not far from Dragon's head. Something resembling thunder roared inside his head.

  He looked over at the girl who moaned as her eyes fluttered open and then shut. He'd finally met his equal. Fearless, she’d fought for her freedom even if that meant dying. The smell of gasoline stung his nose and the thin skin just inside. He let himself drop towards the roof of the car now a full half foot closer to his head. A shooting pain burned in his leg. He ignored it crawling out of the car. He left a distinct trail of blood behind him.

  The streets turned quiet as the sun climbed into the sky. Long shadows hung like giants along alleys and past windows. Dragon half crawled half walked to the passenger side of the car. Gas was beginning to pool under the car. The tires were still moving slowly in circles. His cut hands bled as he reached inside the cab of the car and untangled her from the car. She dropped like a rag doll into his arms. Smoke was beginning to pour outward into the morning air. The black plume of smoke might draw others out. The last problem either of them needed was a gang of Markers joining in for a weenie roast.

  He pulled the girl until she was in his lap just outside the passenger door and then began to drag her away from the car. Just as he made it to the sidewalk, she woke. The car exploded into a ball of flame filling the inside of the cab with a black cloud.

  “Holy shit.” She muttered looking at Dragon

  “I liked that car.” He said in a low tone. “You owe me a new one.”

  She pulled herself up and looked at the car. For a minute he thought she’d run. “I don’t owe you anything.” She responded.

  Black smoke billowed upward. The heat from the fire reached Dragon who sat upright on the curb. He’d pulled up his pant legs to see a shard of glass protruding from his left lower leg. Blood trickled down his face, and it stung like mad.

  "We need to find a car." Dragon ripped his pant leg open exposing more cut flesh. Blood flowed from the open wounds.

  She drew back. “That doesn’t look good.”

  “Now’s your chance to run.” He said taking a chunk of flesh and replacing it. He held it with his finger as blood oozed outward. She winced making him grin.

  The girl kept her eye on Dragon. Blood ran down her forehead and across her cheek. Blood splattered her ripped and shirt then she took a few steps away from him. The girl turned walked a few steps in the opposite direction and then stopped. For a moment Dragon thought she might have changed her mind. Just as the morning sun crested between some sky rises, the girl took off at a dead run.

  There wasn't a damn thing Dragon could do about it. There was a fifty percent chance she'd come back, but he doubted it. He watched her disappear, and then the sound of her footsteps faded. A split second later the gas from the car connected with some unseen flame. The car exploded shooting body parts into the air. All Dragon could do was drop to his elbows and shield his face from the raining pieces falling from the sky. His leg felt like it was on fire throbbing with the beat of his heart. Then a sharp shooting pain in his head began making all of his other wounds seem trivial. The sun was starting to creep its way through the openings. Five minutes later, he was sitting in full morning sun.

  The black smoke from the car was beginning to turn a grayish white. The smell of metal and rubber was toxic masking the aroma of the fresh ocean air. Dragon lay back on the cement letting the sunshine kiss his bleeding face and exposed flesh. The soft crackling of fire coming from the demolished car subsided as the distant sound of an oncoming car arose.

  The driver brought the car in hot. Too fast, to avoid all the scattered debris but she did it and did it well. Her taste in cars didn’t surprise him either. After all, it was in her genes. For a moment, Dragon thought she was coming at him intending a direct hit but then the tires of the new Camaro caught. She drifted the car sideways. Dragon looked at the girl and car unmoving and unafraid. When she stopped, she smiled.

  The passenger door pushed open. There was nothing for a moment, and then the girl appeared from the other side. Locking her arms under his shoulders, she hoisted Dragon up. As his body rose so did his arm, which he suddenly realized, was broken. He moaned out in pain clamping his teeth together so not scream. Dragon silently said a mouthful of profanity. Trying to help with his one good leg, it put an incredible amount of pressure on the glass still caught in his leg. The movement created a searing sensation that went all the way to his stomach. The pain was horrific. He struggled not to pass out. He clamped down his lips even tighter keeping his discomfort to him. Dragon didn't moan nor did he flinch. Better yet, he didn't piss his pants from the pain. He fell into the seat, and it dawned on him he was screwed. He was just like a bird with a broken wing. He’d become wounded prey.

  She dropped down into the driver’s seat. “Summer,” She said. “My name’s Summer.”

  “Norris Canyon Estates.” He said. “But we’d better stop to get this fixed first. Drive, I’ll let you know when to turn.” He paused readjusting his arm. “Nice car, by the way, Summer.”

  CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE

  Riley stood in the harbor office with the rest of
the team waiting for a debriefing. She was holding two colorful drawings of horses dancing in the moonlight from Jonah and Megan with a Christmas list.

  “I hope you have a lot of money,” Ryan said smiling. “I think Jonah wants a pony too.”

  “Hey, that’s all Eric.” Riley teased.

  “Nice drawings Relay.” Conman said. “Can you draw me one too?”

  “Funny,” Riley said. “You only wish you could draw half this good.”

  When Jack entered the room, he glanced over at his team. He was hard to read sometimes, Jack Colton. Riley doubted she’d ever grown tired trying. To her, his quiet manner only strengthened his elusive personality. It made him even more mysterious than he already was. For others, he was hard to read. If you didn’t know him, he seemed arrogant, but he wasn’t. Riley knew what he felt like and she knew how it felt to be touched by him. That’s all she needed to know. The man could honestly talk with his hands and lips.

  “You brought home sixteen kids.” He said drawing everyone’s attention to him. “You guys did a good job. There’s going to be some happy people.” Jack paused waiting for the first question to arise.

  “Did we get the one in charge of that mess?” Blake asked.

  “Axel’s working on that now,” Jack said.

  “Anything on Summer?” Sam asked.

  “We’re going back out," Jack answered, but Riley could tell he wasn't happy about it.

  A man equal to Jack’s height stepped into the room and stopped to stand next to Jack. Like some people with a natural ability to look distinguished, the man did right down to his faultlessly smoothed suit. Riley guessed him to be the famous Axel. He tapped his thin-rimmed glasses covering soft blue eyes. His hair was short and slicked back with streaks of salt and pepper.

  The man gave Jack a heartfelt pat on the shoulders. “Adam,” Jack said. “This is your team that mopped up the Queen Mary for you. Team, meet Adam AKA Axel Harrison.”

  “Hi, guys and gals.” He said with a slight southern drawl.

  Jack stepped aside. “They're all yours.”

  “Thank you. All of you. I’m sure there is great satisfaction in knowing you saved those kids.” Axel crossed the room just as the lights dimmed and a large picture of a girl appeared on the wall. “Unfortunately this one is still missing. Summer Quintero is sixteen years old. She went out the day before yesterday and never returned.”

  “Your daughter?” Mustang asked.

  Riley saw Axel hesitate. “No, but her uncle is a friend of mine. They try to keep her under a tight rein, but she slipped past security the other day." Axel said.

  “Why not just wait. Maybe she’ll come back on her own.” Mustang said.

  “She’s important to us. All of us.” Axel said. “Now back to….” Mustang cut Axel off.

  “Why is she so important to all of us?” Mustang asked. “When I go on a mission, I want nothing left out.”

  “We’re getting ready to train her, groom her.”

  “For what?” Cobra repeated.

  “Profiling, helping us stop things before they happen,” Axel said then hurried to change the subject. Riley watched him close trying to read into his words and or thoughts. “After you folks cleared the way, we went aboard and found a ship full of drugs. People are calling the drug SX16. It’s addictive. In the end, not attractive at all and it kills. The shift took three-quarters of our population, but this junk will take the rest. It's that bad." Axel replied.

  “A 16-year-old girl profiler. She must be special?” Blake said changing the subject and Axel wasn’t happy about it.

  “Yes.”

  “How special?” Blake asked digging.

  “Mind reader or some shit like that!” Conman chided.

  “Yes, some shit like that.” The word shit didn’t come out of Axel’s mouth the same as it had Conman’s.

  “She’s psychic?” Riley whispered.

  "Let's just say she's not your average teenage girl. In the wrong hands, she can do more damage than good. All the girl wants to do is help." Axel paused, but no more questions came. "I've got five dead kids that we've found. Long Beach isn't Prescott, Arizona and where one city ends, another one starts. This drug is ugly. I need your help." Axel replied. “Summer has no fear, yet.”

  The lights dimmed, and another picture appeared on the wall. Riley stared at the girl and then at the man. His jet-black hair bleached at the ends cropped high and tight. On his tanned neck was an elaborate and well-tattooed dragon that reached up and around his neck. The dragon's nose stretched well on his cheek. Both human and beast looked right into the camera. Riley studied the photo. There was something she couldn’t put her finger on, but a refinement, the wisdom of old and then the words strong and good-looking entered her thoughts.

  Riley walked around the others staring at the photos on the wall. For an instant, she felt a twinge of recognition, a familiarity of such great importance; she felt it in the center of her mind. She’d never been to Long Beach before now. Maybe she’d seen him in Sacramento. Either way, Riley felt a pull to stare into the dragon man’s blue eyes as if knowing something about him. People’s lives had changed in the chaos, some for the better; she felt he was still a work in progress. Searching her mind to place his face, Riley swore she could even hear his voice. Even the girl seemed familiar to her. Why did the dragon man take Summer with him? It was right there, and yet Riley couldn't put her finger on it.

  “You got something Riley?” Jack asked.

  Riley nodded not ready to share her thoughts on this one, but Jack was asking her, and that suggested he was starting to believe her.

  “Dragon.” She whispered. Then Axel’s voice sliced through her thoughts. A chill passed over her arms.

  "Eric doesn’t believe he's the ringleader though he was in charge of the crew. However, if we can find him, then maybe Dragon can lead us in the right direction. We find Dragon. We recover the girl.” Axel said.

  “Big city,” Sam said.

  “Dragon has a fetish for cars. Maybe we can draw him out." Several more photos came up on the wall each one showing a man stealing expensive cars.

  The room hummed. Riley gazed at the screen. When Axel came to the pic of a wrecked Mustang, Axel paused. The car was so torn; broken and charred it was barely recognizable. Thoughts rushed through Riley’s head as she tried to put the pieces of the puzzle together.

  “We had a little action down around the Marina Stadium this morning involving a car said to be moving through the streets at a relatively high rate of speed. That's Dragon's MO, but he spoofed it, and the car went into a rollover. There was a good amount of blood at the scene, and the car was still smoking. If we wait, we lose Dragon. If she doesn't show up, she's in trouble." Axel replied.

  Riley glanced over at her twin brother when he entered from the back of the room. He looked at the wall and chuckled.

  “I see you’ve met Dragon.” He said.

  Butterfly stitches decorated Eric's face while the bruises and shallow cuts stood out. He resembled her brother but in a Frankenstein sort of way. She stood her ground not wanting to embarrass him by a show of emotion. He lifted his hand to her and then turned to Axel.

  “Axle,” Eric said extending his arm. They shook hands.

  “Sorry about the trouble,” Axle said.

  “This,” Eric pointed at his face. “Nah, they could’ve killed me and then you would’ve been apologizing to my sister over there. Your face would’ve looked like mine when she got done with you.”

  Several chuckles fell over the group. Riley played along, smiled, and then Axel moved in her direction.

  “Riley Collins.” He said extending his hand. Riley accepted, feeling the warmth of his skin blanket hers. The palms of his hands were soft and the shake genuine.

  “Nice to meet you, Axel. Jack speaks highly of you.” Riley said.

  “And he of you.” Axel leaned in towards her and whispered, “I’m looking forward to dinner tonight on the boat.”

&n
bsp; Riley nodded pretending to know about the dinner party. “I also.”

  “Listen up the team. If Eric’s up to it, he’ll fill you in on his adventures meanwhile I’d like to check on the children. It seems we’re having some difficulty finding all the families.” Axel said.

  Eric crossed his arms and leaned against the counter. “Okay! So I’m sure you want to know how this guy got the upper hand on the Kid.”

  CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO

  The soft rolling of the waves hitting the boat was like a sedative calming Riley to sleep. She awoke to the sound of clanking dishes in the galley. Cracking the door open and blinking the sleep from her eyes, Riley caught sight of a woman. Feeling a moment of panic, she stared at the long ebony hair tied behind the woman’s head. Anything else you’d like to tell me, Jack Colton. She said to herself while the voice in her head roused her jealousy. The woman turned in Riley's direction. Full lips transformed into a grin, lips that could make any man want them.