Page 55 of Stripe for the Picking
Rylan backtracked through the course, his enhanced speed carrying him past confused competitors. "Listen up!" he barked, his commander voice cutting through the chaos. "Defense Nexus is under attack. I need you to escort the Council and the esteemed guests to the secure floors. Can I count on you?"
The other eleven competitors—leaders from across Nova Aurora—nodded grimly. Prince Zarik might have been a backstabbing coward, but these shifters understood duty.
Rylan sprinted toward the command center, taking the stairs three at a time. General Kael was already coordinating evacuation protocols, his weathered face set in grim determination.
"Wren's missing," Rylan said without preamble. "I need to find her, but?—"
"Go." Kael's tone brooked no argument. "I've got Defense Nexus covered. Your mate needs you more than we do right now."
Gratitude and respect flooded through Rylan. "Thank you, General."
"Bring her home, son."
Rylan plunged into the maintenance tunnel, his enhanced senses immediately picking up Wren's delicate lavender scent mingled with fear and something else—leather and gunpowder. His tiger snarled, muscles tightening as fury ignited his bloodstream.
They took her when the comms were down. Smart bastards.
He followed her scent trail, his jaw clenched so tight it ached. The tunnel led to a stairwell that went up to the main level. As he ascended the stairs two at a time, he could hear the sounds of combat growing louder—shouts, gunfire, and the distinctive crack of energy weapons.
When he opened the door to the main level, he was met by three black-clad operatives, their assault rifles raised. Rylan didn't break stride.
The first attacker barely had time to register the blur of motion before Rylan's fist connected with his solar plexus. The man crumpled, wheezing. The second operative swung his rifle like a club, but Rylan ducked under the arc and drove his elbow into the man's temple. The third managed to squeeze off a shot that went wide before Rylan's palm strike to his nose sent him sprawling.
"Amateurs," Rylan muttered, stepping over the unconscious bodies.
Through the reinforced glass windows, he could see at least fifty more operatives flooding the building. Muzzle flashes litup the corridors as Kael's forces engaged the invaders. Every instinct told him to stay and fight, to protect his territory and his people.
But Wren's terror pulsed through their bond like a beacon, and his tiger chose his mate over duty without hesitation.
He burst through the rear entrance into the small parking lot, then cursed as her scent vanished at the asphalt's edge. Vehicle exhaust and engine oil masked any trail.
They drove off with her.His hands clenched into fists, his breathing ragged.How much time do I have?
Her emotions flickered through their connection—fear, determination, and underneath it all, an unshakeable faith that he would come for her. That trust humbled and energized him simultaneously.
Hold on, beautiful. I'm coming.
Rylan shed his clothes in efficient movements, his skin already rippling as the shift began. His bones lengthened, his muscles expanded, and his senses sharpened to supernatural clarity. His tiger form emerged—five hundred pounds of black and gold fury, built for speed and violence.
He launched into a ground-eating lope, following the invisible thread of their mate bond across Nova Aurora's landscape. Purple forests blurred past as he pushed his enhanced form to its limits, his paws finding purchase on rocky outcroppings and alien terrain.
The bond pulled him north, toward the Ice Mountains where wolf shifters ruled. His tiger's lip curled in a snarl.
Of course Arvox would take her to his home territory—the coward needed every advantage he could get.
An hour passed before the bond's pull intensified, directing him to an abandoned building squatting like a malignant tumor among the blue snow and jagged peaks. A black SUV sat outside, its engine still ticking with residual heat.
Rylan shifted back to his human form behind a cluster of ice-covered boulders, his body steaming in the frigid air. He jogged to the SUV and popped the trunk, relief flooding through him when he found spare tactical clothing—probably left by Arvox's operatives.
He dressed quickly, his enhanced hearing picking up muffled voices from inside the building. One of them made his blood run cold.
"If Rylan doesn't cooperate with me, then I guess it'll be the end of the road for you, my dear."
Arvox. The slimy bastard actually thought he could threaten Wren and live to tell about it.
Rylan moved with predatory silence to the driver's side of the SUV, his enhanced senses cataloging every sound from the abandoned building. The click of the door handle seemed thunderous in the mountain stillness, but his luck held—a sleek tactical pistol lay nestled beneath the driver's seat like a gift from the heavens.
Rookies,he thought, checking the clip.Fully loaded.
