Slow Burn

by Sascha Illyvich

  After talking to Derrick, she decided this needed to be the last time incidents like this occurred. He’d proclaimed love for her after she told him they were mated.

  He had to be crazy.

  But she stood on the balcony with the phone in one hand and her other over her heart. Looking through the window at him made her shiver, he was that sexy.

  She hadn’t taken time to truly analyze her feelings for Derrick. Being mated meant a lot more to supernatural beings than it did the average human. Hell, marriage no longer held sanctity—the rising number of divorces showed that.

  But the number of matings that happened rose once shifters were declared citizens with rights the same as any human. New cultural norms were still being established, but in Sonja’s experiences, the shifter and human couples that did get together were often happier, and had tighter bonds and more compassion.

  Not like the Anti-Shifter League. They were unable to understand why unions of any nature were allowed outside of the human realm. They were homophobic, racist, and very overly religious, often using privilege to their advantage to step on those who they couldn’t understand.

  “God made man above animal,” they claimed. “Mating with these so-called beasts is a sin.” Their leader, a woman named Carmela was a vicious and vile being. They picketed Ark-KaotiK’s shows but the fans and police kept things semi-reasonable.

  All that hatred from Carmela wore on Sonja, too, but she screamed it out onstage. That was a plus.

  Having known Derrick’s past as a spy from the beginning would have been nice but he came clean with her. There had to be a certain amount of confidentiality involved in his former line of work, but he had been retired for how long?

  She stepped back inside, still unsure of what to do. She could go after her brother and his, but then he’d chase after her.

  Derrick stirred.

  She froze.

  His arm searched the bed.

  His awareness hit her and panic set in. Then she felt stillness in him as he stalked toward her.

  The look on his face showed his displeasure. “Hold the phone up.”

  She bit her bottom lip and did as he asked.

  Gruffness in his voice made him sound more sexy than angry. “Did you call the bear back?”

  “Not yet.”

  Derrick converged on her in a microsecond, his strong arms wrapped securely around her, his mouth on hers in a smoldering kiss that stole her breath and made her heart race.

  His hips pressed into hers, a gesture that sent her juices flowing.

  The phone fell from her hand as she sought to hold him. Fingers tangled in her hair tilted her head back and exposed her neck before teeth scraped against her skin, setting her nerves on fire, hotter than she could imagine.

  He nipped her jaw line.

  She moaned into him, smelling the forest and earthen scent of the puma below his skin. An image in her mind flashed of the puma stalking its prey. It was all lean and sensual, just like Derrick when he wrapped himself around her protectively, even in bed.

  The possessive way he nipped at her neck and lower lip told her how he would awake if they lived together.

  He pulled back from the kiss and stared into her eyes. “I worry.”

  His nostrils flared. With her clothes slightly out of place, the crotch of her jeans damp, and her hair mussed, she could only focus on her increasing need for him.

  He stopped panting.

  Her breathing slowed and she started crying, unable to stop burning tears from sliding down her cheek.

  Derrick pulled her closer. “Talk to me, baby.”

  His voice soothed her, wrapping around her like a fluffy blanket during a storm. Her breath hitched and the tears came harder.

  “They have Max and Rob.”

  If she weren’t standing so close to Derrick, she wouldn’t have heard him swear.

  His embrace tightened. “That was Max’s plan? I suppose he wants us to call him and set up a meeting.”

  She sniffled and pulled back. “I don’t understand.”

  “Max and I used to use the get-captured-and-learn-all-you-can-about-your-enemies plan a lot. Hated it, but it got us closer. Just essentially walking up to your enemy and asking to join them and learn about their organization.”

  “Sounds stupid.”

  “Max is good at what he does, but I’d never say he was less than a little crazy.”

  “You ever do anything like that?”

  “Few times. Impulsive is not my nature as much as it is his. I assume that fuck wants a deal?”

  “Yeah.” One of Derrick’s fingers brushed tears from her eyes. “They want a trade.”

  “You for my brother and yours.”

  She nodded.

  Derrick closed his eyes, pursed his lips together in a thin line. “We’ll call them back and set it up. I won’t let you down, Sonja.”

  Confidence flowed off him in full force and reassured her, but she still had her reservations. If Derrick spoke the truth about the drug lord, then this wasn’t going to be a cakewalk.

  * * *

  An hour later, they were on the road headed toward the location the bear shifter gave them. The directions were clear. Come alone before sunrise, just the two of them. Or Max and Rob would die.

  She wore his jacket; it’d protect her body from a lot of physical stuff if things got rough. It didn’t hurt that it looked damn sexy on her.

  He’d have to take her one of these days while she just wore his leather jacket. Then her scent would be ingrained in the leather along with his puma’s. That made him and the puma inside happy.

  Derrick worked out a very simple plan with Sonja. She’d come in behind him, gun hidden, and distract the bear shifter with her charms and voice.

  Knowing what he did about Slovich’s usual practices, the bear shifter would have armed guards with him. Max would probably be a little beat up, as would Rob, but both of them were big enough to withstand a little pain. Knowing Max’s plan didn’t make things easier, he still hated how his brother operated impulsively but at least he got the job done.

  Still, he didn’t like the odds. The sun had almost set, providing them with the cover of darkness. Even though Derrick’s enhanced vision gave him an added advantage over Sonja, it only put him on even keel with the bear shifter.

  He’d told Sonja that Slovich was a former gunrunner for several organizations before the Spetznaz recruited him. When he retired, he used his connections to make a comfortable lifestyle here in Miami for himself, and it was then that the two met.

  There had been no bad blood.

  Other than the fact that, at one time, Slovich’s operatives tried to take Derrick down and he ended up ripping out their throats and sending pictures to Slovich. Oh, and then he’d made sure to go after known associates and send a message to Slovich: crazy Soviets not welcome. Derrick tried to recall whether he’d used old world suitcases to send the bodies back, or if he’d had the courtesy to actually just send a note with the funeral details.

  The news of Derrick’s retirement traveled fast through the espionage world and would have made a lot of criminals feel at ease, but Derrick’s brother, Max, had just as much experience in dealing with trouble. And he was just as ruthless.

  Derrick kept Sonja’s hand in his, feeling tension pour off her. He absorbed it, let it fuel his protective desires for her.

  When they arrived at the large, empty parking lot, Derrick scouted the area, saw no opportunities for snipers to attack.

  Except for the large, white, abandoned structure dead ahead.

  “Be prepared for anything. Slovich doesn’t play fair.” Derrick’s thumb massaged the palm of Sonja’s hand.

  She glanced at him and offered a weak smile. “This is going to be hell, isn’t it?”

  Derrick sighed. “I’d say yes. They’ll have us in the building, with no way out. I don’t suppose your voice can shatter concrete and steel?”

  She shook her head. “I’ve never trie
d.”

  “Given the nature of Slovich’s dealings, I’d say it’s probably better if you don’t. Just follow my lead like we talked about and this should all be over soon.”

  She swallowed hard enough for him to hear her. “I hope so.”

  “Trust me. I won’t let them have you. And I won’t let your brother or mine come to harm.”

  The look on her face said it all. She trusted him. His sincerity reinforced her feelings about his plan. He’d only given Sonja certain details. After her behavior during her previous kidnapping, Derrick was determined to make sure that Sonja could live her life on her terms without the fear of being kidnapped and used against her will.

  But her fighting nature wouldn’t let him go this alone. The necessity of the stunt she pulled earlier hit home when he realized how useless he’d be if he held on to the excess baggage.

  In truth, he’d been upset about it, but once they started talking and the realization hit him that she’d done him a favor, he couldn’t imagine remaining angry with her.

  He concerned himself with protecting her and making sure they had a balanced relationship. If they survived this ordeal, how would their relationship continue? He’d have to get her through this situation first.

  Derrick loved her with every fiber in his body. Despite the mating, which only bound them together on a metaphysical level, he felt sure their hearts were intertwined. She hadn’t said much since they talked about it either, but it didn’t matter.

  Derrick refused to let her down the way he had his brother in the past. And with the magic she’d used to pull his dead weight, as she’d called it, he felt a renewed sense of purpose, of being. That was due in part to the magic, yes, but the reality of things left him with the truth.

  Nothing else rivaled his emotions for her. Not even saving her brother and his, though the importance of that act weighed on him. If he failed…

  They pulled into an empty spot several yards away from the entrance. Sonja’s grip on his hand tightened. “You’re sure I can do this?”

  He turned to her, pulled off his seatbelt, and reached for her, catching her head in his hand.

  She stiffened beneath his touch.

  He smiled, leaned forward, and pressed his mouth to hers. Their tongues mingled for a moment, making him hard instantly. The smell of her, perfect, feminine, and afraid triggered a response from his animal.

  After a moment of tasting her, teasing her mouth with his, he pulled back and stared at her now-swollen lips. “I’m counting on you, my love.” The softness in his voice hung between them.

  Her eyes opened wide and for a moment, she looked overly innocent and scared.

  Then the look faded into the strong personality she played while onstage. “I can do this.”

  He loved the steady look of determination on her face. He’d never ask her to do this but they needed a card and she could be trusted to play a basic game. Hell, she’d already put herself out there before as a decoy and this was where it led them. Too bad Slovich had no idea that Max was calling the shots. Yet Derrick looked Sonja in the eyes and set a hand on her shoulder. “Of course you can.”

  She nodded.

  “Let’s go.” Derrick handed her the 9mm Uzi and a clip. “You know the concept behind a gun?”

  “Yeah…” She nodded again. “Point and squeeze, next thing you have bodies dropping around you. If we were a different death metal band this would make a cool song.”

  Derrick chuckled. “Indeed it would. Bodies everywhere. Maybe you should write that song.

  She snorted. “I said if we were that type of death metal band.”

  “Right. Now let’s go.” He opened the door and every sense went on alert. The normal ear would hear nothing but silence and the stillness of nature in the earlier hours of the morning, but the puma in him heard different sounds.

  Things were more intense. The slight creak of the door before them would have had humans flinching, but Derrick remained still with Sonja now at his back. The click of the clip sliding into place reassured him, though the two of them against whatever Slovich had planned for an exchange made him nervous.

  The humid breeze brought the smell of gunpowder and blood with it, carrying it past Derrick’s sensitive nose. He waited a beat, closed his eyes, and focused.

  His training kicked in and his senses went on automatic alert. Based on previous ops against teams, going in through the front door usually held the worst consequences since there would be plenty of guards there.

  Going in the back way would potentially expose them to the same threat and Slovich had enough of a team to cover both entrances.

  But they didn’t have time to see about going through an alternative route. Slovich gave them the standard boring be-here-at-this-time-or-they-die routine. With all the blood on his hands from the past, Derrick didn’t feel like testing the waters or Slovich’s patience.

  “I promise a nice, intimate setting,” he had said in his heavy Russian accent.

  With Sonja behind him and her hand in his, Derrick led them to the door. Rather than push it open gently, he kicked it and knocked it off the hinges.

  It hit the concrete with a loud crash that sent dust and cracked paint everywhere.

  “Slovich!” Derrick clutched the gun at his side. “Come out. We’re here as promised.”

  Lights flickered on and illuminated the empty warehouse.

  In the center of the space, two figures sat slumped over tied to wooden chairs.

  Max and Rob.

  Sonja started for them but Derrick yanked her back. “We’ve got a meeting, Slovich. Show yourself.”

  Slow clapping sounded to Derrick’s right before well-polished heels clicked against the floor. “Bravo.” Slovich walked slowly toward them. A white pinstriped suit and black heels brought out his more obvious features better than the lighting in the club two days ago. Dark circles framed his eyes and made him look even older than Derrick knew him to be. The cut on his lip from where Derrick grazed him in their last fight had scarred over horribly. Without the hat he normally wore, Derrick saw salt-and-pepper hair pulled back into a tiny ponytail.

  His hands were empty. Of course he didn’t need a weapon any more than Derrick did, standing almost seven feet tall in his natural form. “You brought her. And I trust you two are alone. Now…” He snapped his fingers. “We trade.”

  Something was wrong. Slovich usually had men with him. He would never put himself in danger.

  Derrick looked back at Sonja, saw the steady resolve on her face. Gun tucked in behind her, she showed both hands empty and started toward Slovich.

  Slovich reached for her, grabbed her by the upper arm, and yanked her toward him. “Now…” He looked down at Sonja. “There are your brothers. I should have killed Max; the pest has caused me nothing but trouble since he moved back to Florida.”

  Derrick snickered. He continued listening to his senses, waiting for the moment when Sonja would strike. “Yeah, well there must be a heart somewhere in that communist mess of a body.”

  Slovich’s eyes narrowed. “Don’t make me regret my decision, cat. I don’t have time for it.”

  Derrick waited another beat, saw that the two hostages were semi-conscious and that a single leap from where he stood to them would free them. Slovich would end up with a bullet in his chest, and they could run like hell out of there.

  Except alarm bells rang out loudly in Derrick’s head. “Sonja, it’s a trap!”

  “No shit.” She whirled around and pulled the gun from behind her, aimed it at Slovich.

  His eyes went wide before the shot went off.

  Blood splattered from his head as his body dropped to the ground.

  She spun around, pointing her gun in the direction the shot came from.

  Derrick let loose the magic of his shifter and became a puma. Bones lengthened, reformed, broke, muscles rearranged and fur covered his body. He leapt into the air and landed near Sonja.

  She spotted him, ran with him at he
r side to her brother and his.

  Derrick clawed through the ropes while Sonja jarred Rob and Max to wake them up.

  Max woke first, shaking his head. His eyes looked dizzy, and for a moment when he blinked, he looked out of it. Then he shook it off and consciousness, cognizance returned.

  Rob’s eyes opened. His head lifted, he looked around, just as dazed as Max appeared seconds ago. “Whe—”

  The sound of a shell loading into the chamber before the firing pin triggered the explosion launching the bullet into the air alerted Derrick.

  He sprang out of the way and the bullet nicked the chair.

  Max stood, grabbed Rob, and motioned with a free hand. “Come on. This isn’t what we thought it was. Let’s get the fuck out!”

  “What do you mean?” Derrick sniffed the air, smelled the spicy gunpowder lead, and made his way toward the exit where he spotted a few goons standing, holding heavy firepower.

  “I mean this was a bigger set up than we thought. Our intel was wrong and there’s a mole in my organization.”

  “Fuck.” Derrick and Max made their way with Sonja on Derrick’s arm and Max straining to help Rob move on his own.

  “Exactly.” Max nodded, looking at both of the idiots with guns.

  Derrick and Max flanked Sonja and her brother.

  “What the hell is this? You bitch.” Sonja pointed between the guards.

  Derrick swallowed hard. She knew something.

  “Stay where you are, you filthy creatures. You are coming with us to bring the downfall of shifters everywhere.” The female voice grated on Derrick’s nerves.

  Derrick returned to human form and stood in front of Sonja. The woman pointing a very large gun at them wasn’t very tall, maybe five foot three. Beady hazel eyes narrowed while thin lips pursed in a straight line. The wrinkles in her face showed when she stepped into the light, and it looked like in her earlier days, she probably had a pretty face. But bitterness and the intense hatred Derrick smelled more than likely ruined her, aged her. Strands of graying hair hung down one side of her face, the rest pulled back, revealing a slender neckline that only added to the hollow look in her eyes.