Page 37 of Surge of Fire

He shakes his head again. “That’s a negative, Sir. The road isn’t suitable for landing, too much loose debris."

“Fucking land this thing! Now!” I shout, my patience wearing thin as I try to keep an eye on the sky in every direction. Fucking civilians, I think. If this had been a military operation, the damnpilot would have followed the order, then told me why it was a bad idea.

“At the institute. It’s not too far.”

I’m about to argue again, when I see movement directly above us. “Down!” I shout as I cover my head and duck.

Glass shatters all around us, and the roar of the blades is nothing compared to the roar of the dragon. I peek out and see its talons clamped onto the front of the chopper, stopping the blades from spinning. Then it leans in, smashing the glass dome around us, and rips the pilot out of his seat as he screams. The dragon pushes off of the aircraft, carrying the pilot in his mouth.

I think I see him begin to chew, but then the helicopter is spinning, falling, and finally hits the treetops. It descends through the trees, losing velocity on its downward journey. The branches reach in through the gaping hole the dragon left. They tear at my flesh. The ground comes rushing at me. The helicopter snaps in two, and what's left of the nose crashes down, causing the seat I am sitting on to come loose from the frame. I’m ejected to one side, and I leave the chopper behind me on the road as I slide across it.

When I finally stop, I unbuckle with shaking hands. If the dragon has scented this thing, I have to get as far from it as possible.Anywhere that isn't this empty road in the middle of nowhere.

Fuck.

I untangle myself and my bag, spot my smashed phone, then jump out of the seat onto the open side of the road. I have one minute to gather my wits when a truck screeches to a halt in front of me. The woman waves at me to get out of the way, but I shake my head. This ismyride. If I don’t get on it, chances are that dragon will be eating me soon.

Lifting my badge, I show it to her. It doesn’t technically mean much outside of our base, but she doesn’t know that. Hopefully.

The woman shakes her head, and points for me to get out of the way.What. The. Hell.

I pull out my gun and point it at her. To my surprise, a look of blind determination flashes in her eyes. She doesn’t blink. She doesn’t move.

Killing her would be a hell of a lot of paperwork.I put my gun away, irritated.I’m still getting her vehicle. I need to get to the Phoenix Institute and communicate a plan with the base to capture this dangerous dragon.

Moving as if I’m going around her to let her go, I act quickly, darting and throwing open her passenger door even as she presses on the gas. I manage to dive into the truck, clinging to the seat as my body threatens to fly out onto the road.

She curses and slows.So, I guess the asshole is willing to disobey an officer, but not let me fly out of the truck. Good to know.Fully climbing in, I slam the door behind me, suddenly overwhelmed by the stench of a man’s cologne. And not a good one. But that’s not my focus right now as much as it disturbs the senses.

“Turn around! I need you to take me back up the mountain!” I command.

“No fucking way!”

Irritated, I turn to face her and stop short. She’s easily the most beautiful woman I’ve ever seen in my life. She has curly bright auburn hair, freckles, and green eyes. She’s also wearing clothes that have been torn to shreds, as if by sharp claws. The bloody slashes run across her chest, stomach, and thighs, openly soaking her clothes in blood.

This woman already encountered the dragon, and somehow, lived to tell about it. At least, for now. But how? Just pure luck, like me?

As I stare while she drives like a maniac down the road, swerving around the debris from the helicopter, I watch herwounds rapidly healing before my eyes. They knit back together until they’re nothing more than pink scars.How the hell is that possible?

Unable to help myself, I reach out and touch one of the marks. But it’s exactly what it looks like: a scar. A scar as if from a deep wound, although several weeks old.

She jerks and smacks my hand away, her green eyes blazing with anger. “I’ve already been attacked once today. You try it, and I’ll end you.”

My mind starts working. The scientists had theories about the dragons. One was that they were sleeping, but another was that they were immortal… well, immortal in a strange way. Born anew with each generation in a new body. Basically, reincarnation. This theory had been debated over and over again, because the only way it worked was if the dragons could take on human form. Mankind would, of course, see dragons in the sky otherwise.

But what if both theories were right?

“Did the dragon attack you?”

I can practically feel her heart speed up, and judging by the visible pulse at her throat it was already going fast. “Dragons aren’t real.”

She’s swerving around the road, trying to avoid rocks, abandoned vehicles, and even trees. Her hands are at ten and two. Her gaze is focused, although I can sense panic humming underneath her pale skin.

“Well, the green one that attacked my helicopter and killed my pilot certainly felt fucking real.”

Her eyes widen and swing to me for the briefest moment. “He killed someone?”

My mouth quirks. “How do you know it’s ahe?”

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