Raluca didn’t move. Nor did Nick. His gun hand was steady as they sat together, ready for the end.
A burst of flame lit the alley. Hot air buffeted Raluca and blew Nick’s hair back.
A golden dragon swooped down. Three people rode him, but he was moving too fast for Raluca to recognize them. More enemies? Raluca had another cousin who was gold...
The dragon breathed another billow of flame. Yells arose from farther down the alley.
“Can you see the dragon?” Raluca asked.
But Nick obviously could. Despite his pain, his face cracked into the biggest grin she’d ever seen. “It’s Lucas! And he’s brought the cavalry!”
The golden dragon landed. Now Raluca could recognize his riders: Hal, Rafa, and Destiny. They were armed and wore bulletproof vests, but they’d obviously come in haste; Hal’s vest was strapped over pajamas, and Rafa’s over his bare chest. Destiny still wore her pretty club dress but, Raluca noticed with a touch of envy, had switched out her dancing heels for sturdy boots.
Hal, Destiny, and Rafa scattered to do batt
le with their hidden enemies. Lucas launched into the air, then arrowed along the alley. Bright sparks whirled above a dumpster, and then a brass dragon flew up to meet Lucas in mid-air.
The crack of gunshots made Raluca jump.
“Don’t be scared,” Nick said. “The team will protect us.”
The absolute confidence in his voice made Raluca relax as well. More in fascination than fear, she watched as the two dragons soared upward, out of the narrow alley, and began to battle in the sky, high overhead. They darted in and out, flashes of brass and gold, lighting the darkness with bursts of orange flame.
A blur of motion caught Raluca’s eye. Before she could open her mouth to shout, something big and heavy slammed into her and Nick, knocking them both down. Raluca’s shoulder and elbow banged against the ground, and Nick’s gun flew from his hand and skidded across the cement.
Raluca had only a confused glimpse of black fur and white fangs before Nick shoved her out of the way. Hard. She went flying, and again landed painfully. Dazed, she lay still for a moment. Then she realized that Nick would only have done that if she was in deadly danger. Which meant that he must be in deadly danger.
She scrambled up, and saw two wolves where Nick had been. It was the first time she’d seen Nick’s wolf, apart from the photo, but she recognized him immediately: the wiry body, the soft gray fur, and the green eyes, now blazing with battle rage. The wolf attacking him was big and black, with yellow eyes.
Nick’s wolf lay sprawled on the pavement with two legs limp and useless, his fur stained everywhere with blood. But he was fighting anyway, propping himself on his good legs and snapping ferociously. Incredibly, Nick was keeping the black wolf at bay. The black wolf darted in and out, forcing Nick to turn quickly back and forth. With his injuries, that had to be excruciatingly painful. He was holding his own out of sheer determination. But any moment now, he’d move a fraction too slowly, and the black wolf would kill him.
The black wolf had to be Price, Raluca realized suddenly. Who else could hold such hatred in his yellow eyes? Who else would be so honorless and cowardly as to attack Nick when he was wounded and barely able to defend himself?
She looked around for help, but nobody was in sight. Raluca shouted anyway. “Hal! Destiny! Rafa! Nick needs you!”
But from the yelling and gunshots, and the roars and growls and howls, the team was busy fighting their own battles. She doubted they’d even heard her.
Then Raluca remembered Nick’s gun and ran to pick it up. She pointed it at Price, then hesitated. She’d never fired a gun before, and the two wolves were practically on top of each other. If she shot at Price, she’d probably either miss entirely, or hit Nick.
Price snarled, feinted, then rushed in, biting at Nick’s throat. A scream burst from Raluca’s lips. Nick whipped his head around, protecting his throat, but the black wolf sank his fangs into Nick’s shoulder.
Raluca bolted forward and swung the gun like a club. Price didn’t have time to release his grip. She connected solidly with his head.
Price let go of Nick with a snarl of pain, then his yellow eyes fixed on her. His lips writhed away from his shining fangs as he gathered himself to leap for her throat.
A hand closed over hers, twisting her wrist. The gun fired.
Price fell dead at her feet.
Stunned, Raluca looked down. Nick sat naked and bleeding among the shredded ruins of his clothing, his hand still wrapped around hers with his finger on the trigger.
“Thanks.” Nick’s voice was barely audible. His skin had gone from white to ashen, his features taut with pain. Sweat beaded his face, but he was shivering. “I... I think I’m...”
She dropped to her knees, letting go of the gun, and caught him just as his eyes slid shut. He collapsed against her chest, his head falling to the side to rest against her shoulder.
Raluca could feel him breathing, shallow and fast. He was very cold. She held him close, hoping to warm him with her own body. Then she reached out for the remains of his shirt. Maybe she could use it for bandages.
A man stepped out of the shadows. For an instant, Raluca thought it was Shane; he was about the same height and had the same leanly muscled build, the same predatory grace, and even the same way of emerging from darkness. Then she saw his sharp features and eyes black as a midnight sky. The man was a stranger.