“Avery,” I snapped, outraged that he chased my prize away.
“What thefuckwere youthinking?” he roared, flaming. “You took him onalone? Youidiot.”
His anger only fueled my own. “I could have killed him,” I bellowed. “He threatened to kill you, Declan. What was I going to do? Let him? You shouldn’t have interfered, dumbass. I had him until you chased him away.”
“How’d you know he’d come alone?” Avery demanded, circling above me, glaring down. “What if he had two dragons with him? What if you couldn’t take him? You’d be dead now and Declan loses his mom.Again.”
“Don’t you bring Declan into this!”
“He’s your responsibility as much as he’s mine,” Avery screamed.
“Then why’d you leave him alone?”
Avery’s jaw clamped shut. Not speaking, he banked toward the highway and where the SUV, and the Mercedes, were parked. Furling his wings, he dropped lightly to the road beside them and shifted into his human self.
I, too, landed, but refused to shift right away. Avery glared at me, then jerked his head for me to get into the SUV. “Let’s go home.”
“How’d you know where to find me?” I demanded.
Avery curled his upper lip. “The car has a GPS unit installed,” he growled. “I set its coordinates into my phone in case it got stolen. Now get your ass in it.”
I shifted, but not before I raked my talons across the shining silver side of the Mercedes. Only then did I revert to my human shape and stalk to the SUV’s passenger side.
“Feel better?” Avery snapped, starting the engine.
“Yes, I do, thanks for asking.”
***
Max greeted us as though we’d been gone for weeks, not hours, his tail wagging so hard I thought it might break. Declan slept beside his cats, not waking even if they blinked sleepily in the light from the hallway as we checked on him. While I inwardly fumed at Avery leaving him alone, I also realized only his love for me would force him to risk everything.
Even Declan.
“Want a glass of wine?”
I sat on the couch, thinking of Carter and of how I nearly killed him. Or died with him. “What? Oh. Yeah. Thanks.”
Avery handed me a glass, then sat beside me with a sigh. “You scared the shit outta me.”
“I’m sorry. I thought I’d be back before you knew I was gone.”
“You thought you could take him?”
“Yeah.”
Avery took a deep gulp from his glass. “I have to say, you nearly did.”
“I burned him.”
“Yeah, I saw that.” Avery drank again. “When I hit him. He’ll think twice before challenging you again.”
We drank in silence, in near darkness, for a time. The house failed to creak, didn’t utter a sound, nor did I hear theclock ticking away the seconds. Instead, I heard once again my brother’s dire threats within my mind. I realized I’d wounded not just his skin, but his pride. His ego alone would send him hurtling in my wake yet again. His ego, and the dire threat I posed.
Next time, I might not see him coming.
“I have to kill him,” I said softly. “None of us are safe now.”
“There’s always Mexico.”
