Filed To Story: A Claim of Fortune Book PDF Free by Jaymin Eve
Talon leaned closer, and I swore that he was hanging on my every word.
“You need to understand, they only made them for a few years, and they were so rare. It was a literal multi-million-dollar car just sitting there in this old garage. Mack was one of the best mechanics in the state, but still… that was beyond.
“He didn’t let me touch it of course, and I didn’t really know about the car at the time, but once he explained how rare and precious it was, a sliver of hope bloomed inside me. Hope that maybe better days were coming.” A sad laugh escaped me. “It’s ridiculous that a car gave me hope, but even at twelve I knew it was special and felt the awe in its presence. Thinking about the shimmer of orange, with the sunlight hitting it just right until it glowed, kept me sane through a lot of bad days.”
Talon’s expression was unreadable, but deep in the icy darkness of his eyes there was the slightest flicker of a flame. “What happened to the car? Did you take the engine apart?”
He had finished the food now, the tray empty and the plates and bowls neatly arranged from smallest to largest across the surface.
I shook my head. “Nothing happened. They were having a small issue, but Mack was able to fix it up in an hour, and then we said our goodbyes to the beauty. He didn’t even let me breathe on it, let alone take the engine apart.”
“Do you drive?”
My eyebrows drew together as I considered if that was a serious question or not. He didn’t show any indication it wasn’t, so I answered. “Yes. I have my license for cars and motorcycles.”
Talon considered that, and I wasn’t sure if it meant anything more to him other than learning a new fact about me. I couldn’t get a read on this dragon.
“Do you drive?” I returned the question his way.
With a hooded gaze he shook his head. “Dragons fly.”
My mind flashed right to the memory of Slade squished into his Lambo or soaring on his bike. “I’m sure nothing compares to flying, but fast cars and bikes are a close second. Or as close as those of us without wings will ever get.”
I hadn’t realized that I was leaning toward him until he straightened with the tray and I almost fell onto the bed. “I will take you flying and you can tell me which is better.”
My heart pattered hard in my chest, and I forced myself not to soften.
No.
Just no. I’d already Stockholm’d myself into a relationship with four assholes. There was no room for a fifth. Even if the other four turned out to be the best alphas I’d ever met. Including the surly ones.
Talon was part of the bad guys, ready to destroy the fabric of our world and send us back to the Dark Ages. He might be a victim here as well, but while he refused to change his path and loyalty, I had to treat him as the enemy.
With the conversation over, Talon got up with the tray and opened the door to return it. I caught a glimpse of a dark hallway, and a mildewy scent filtered in from outside, disappearing when he closed and locked the door once more.
When he settled into his seat, ready for another few hours of staring at my face, I asked, “What are Fletcher’s plans? Once you forcibly steal my energy and are all powered up, what will he have you do?”
There was no evasion in his stare or tone as he replied, “I don’t know. He doesn’t tell me the plan. He just sends me out to ensure it happens.”
“You’re the muscle, not the brains,” I snarked meanly.
Talon shrugged, unconcerned by my little dig. No doubt that was the least of the insults he’d heard in his life. “I am whatever he wants me to be. But yes, mostly a weapon.”
“You can’t let him do this,” I whispered, swallowing roughly. “He’s already destroyed too many lives. So many omegas taken and hurt through his experiments. I know he said there weren’t enough of them to truly experiment on, but that doesn’t mean he didn’t hurt the ones that were around. And they were innocent. You understand that, right? They didn’t deserve what happened to them, and I don’t deserve it either.”
For the first time, I caught a flicker of unease in his expression. Pushing forward, I hurried to try and chip away at his icy exterior. “Do you know what will happen to me if you drain all of my essence?”
More silence.
“My wolf will fade. My wolf will fade and I’ll be a shell of a shifter, unable to touch or call my beast. In the end, I’ll wish for death… and maybe even seek it out.”
Mom hadn’t been able to take the echoing silence in her head any longer or the weakness in her veins. She’d chosen to end it all, and I’d been the one to cut her down from the rope that stole her last breath.
Talon surged to his feet suddenly, and at first I thought I’d gotten through to him, only to hear another knock on the door, one he clearly hadn’t been expecting.
When he crossed to the solid door, he placed his hand against it, as if to sense who was on the other side. There was a beat as he reached for the chain again, pulling it from his shirt, and when he clicked the lock open, the door burst inward. I’d have thought it would catch the dragon by surprise except he was too fast, jumping out of the way of the bear who surged into the room, a dead shifter speared on his massive claws.
I was on my feet now too, and a gasp escaped me.
I’d only seen this bear one other time, but I knew his huge, menacing presence immediately.
Finley Thornton had come for me.
EMME
There was a brief pause from Talon as he assessed the situation. At no point did his expression change. The steady thrumming of his heartbeat remained even too.
Finley, on the other hand, was a raging inferno of fired-up shifter.
His bear threw his head back again, roared into the ceiling, and tossed the body of the shifter aside. When the deafening sound of his rage faded, the bear’s inscrutable deep black eyes locked in on me. His gaze ran over me more than once, taking in every inch from the dirt on my bare toes to the top of my smooth hair.
When the bear sidled forward, Talon snapped into action, launching himself between us. “Wait,” I called, almost reaching out to touch Talon, before I remembered he was the enemy. A powerful, dangerous, possibly sociopathic enemy. “It’s Finley. One of my pack. Don’t hurt him.”