by Mikayla Lane
“You better stick to your damn toys and gadgets old man and leave the security to us,” Dale snapped as he advanced on Dog.
Dog raised the weapon until he pointed it at Dale’s head.
“You want to see how well I learned security in ‘Nam, you bastard?” Dog said calmly as his fingers tightened on Dale’s rifle.
Deanna looked up as weapons were drawn among the crowd of people standing around the unconscious man and she covered his head with her arms to try and protect him. She looked down into his handsome face and wondered where he’d come from.
“I tried to warn Dale! He insisted on bringing the guy in here,” Jimbo chimed in. “The guy said he was just a lost hiker.”
“What the hell is going on?” Mike demanded as he pushed his way through the crowd and stood above Deanna and Haruki.
“Look behind his left ear,” Dale ordered.
Deanna leaned back and gently moved Haruki’s head to the side. She gasped in surprise at the triangular shaped mark burned into the skin behind his ear.
“Oh my God,” she whispered.
“Where did you find him?” Mike asked.
“He was lurking around outside,” Dale replied. “He pretended to be a lost hiker, but the second I saw that mark on his neck, I knew he was lying. Besides, how the hell can you get lost looking for Denali? It’s visible for a hundred miles.”
Mike narrowed his eyes as he watched Deanna tenderly cradle the man.
“Get away from him. We don’t know who he is,” Mike snapped, jealous she’d take care of a stranger while rebuffing his advances for weeks.
“I know the poor guy was just standing there when your troll hit him in the back of the head like a coward,” Deanna shot back.
“Bitch, I’ll show you a fucking troll,” Dale snarled and stomped towards her.
Dog whistled and waved the rifle at him.
“I wouldn’t touch her if I were you,” Dog warned.
“I saw the capstone light up and shoot a beam down at the guy like he was the chosen one. I’m glad he’s knocked out, we have no idea who or what he is,” Dick chimed in.
He was another one of Mike’s security staff and had been coming to help Dale secure the guy when the capstone reacted.
Harry broke through the crowd with one of the medical staff in tow.
“Let me look at him,” Dr. Jack Jones said as he knelt beside Deanna.
Deanna didn’t know why, but she was reluctant to relinquish the weight of the stranger’s head from her lap. She caressed the mark on his neck intending to gently lay his head back down when dark brown eyes swirled with amber stared up at her.
“Who are you?” Haruki whispered to the vision.
He’d never seen a more beautiful woman than the one sweetly holding his head in her lap. His entire body vibrated with the recognition of his mate, and his eyes took in her clear blue eyes that looked like a summer sky, her full lips and the dimple in her right cheek. Her dark hair was pulled back into a ponytail with errant wisps that had broken free and framed her oval face.
“I’m Deanna Bostik. Who are you?” she whispered with a smile.
She’d never been more enchanted by someone, and he’d barely spoken. He was surrounded by strange people and yet he only had eyes for her and looked at her with an intensity she’d never experienced before.
It felt like her body had never been truly alive until she looked into his eyes. Her blood raced through her veins, and her heart thumped so wildly in her chest she could swear everyone could hear it. The stranger made her feel warm and safe. Like she’d just found home.
Haruki finally looked around at the multitude of faces staring down at him and slowly sat up. He turned around and shielded Deanna’s back with the front of his body.
“I am yours, as you are mine,” he whispered against her neck.
Deanna shivered from his warm breath and his words and looked back at him in surprise.
“Get him the fuck up!” Mike ground out through gritted teeth as he clenched his fists in jealousy.
He’d wasted weeks trying to get in Deanna’s bed, and she wouldn’t give him the time of day. Yet here she was panting and fawning over the stranger like a bitch in heat. He was furious.
“Where do you want us to put him?” Dick asked.
Mike suddenly had an idea, and he turned to Dog, who was still holding a rifle on Dale.
“You said that door opened right before this guy walked in here. I think we should take him in there and see what else he can open,” Mike said with a sneer at Haruki.
Haruki stood as several men came towards him and he gently pulled Deanna to her feet and moved her behind his back.
“I can walk on my own,” he said, his voice low and dangerous. “Last time I checked, we might be in the middle of nowhere, but this is still America. So tell me who the hell you are or I’m not going anywhere.”
Mike walked within several feet of Haruki and stared up into his face, feeling cocky with his armed men around him.
“You left America when you stepped inside here. I’m the ruler of this kingdom, and if you don’t get in that fucking pyramid, I’m going to have Dale here, shoot you in the head,” Mike threatened.
“You can’t kill him! What the hell is wrong with all of you! This a research project, not a war zone!” Deanna spat.
Her anger and fear for the stranger caused her to move from behind Haruki’s large frame to stare daggers at Mike.
“You may be a scientist, but the rest of us are businessmen, and this is business,” Mike snarled at her before he glared at Haruki. “I can shoot you or the science whore. Your choice.”
“How dare you, you pig!” Deanna hissed and stormed towards him.
She intended to slap his face and was yanked up in the air and held tightly against a hard chest.
“Do not antagonize him and endanger yourself. I will get us out of here,” Haruki whispered against her ear.
He waited until Deanna nodded her head before he set her down in front of him and gently moved her behind his back.
Mike laughed at him, his eyes noting every tender movement between the two.
“You can’t protect yourself, much less the whore, so you can quit trying to pretend to be a hero. It looks like she’s already panting to fuck you,” Mike ground out.
“If her choice was between you and me, it’s apparent why she’d wait for me,” Haruki replied with a smirk. “You should watch your mouth because I will exact blood for every nasty word and deed you commit against the lady.”
Dale raised his fist and was getting ready to punch Haruki on the side of the head when Haruki turned around and caught his fist.
“If you hit me like a coward again, you will pay a price greater than you can afford,” Haruki warned.
He harnessed his power and squeezed Dale’s hand until the man screamed in agony as a loud popping and crunching sound was heard. Haruki let go when he noticed one of the men with a rifle becoming nervous.
Dale screamed and clutched his hand to his chest while the doctor ran over to him to see what he could do.
“Jesus, he broke his hand,” Jack whispered as he studied Dale’s rapidly swelling appendage.
Haruki kept his steely gaze trained on Mike, the warning clear in his eyes. Mike wasn’t smart enough to take the hint.
“If he touches anyone else, shoot him in the leg,” Mike ordered his men. “Now get in the fucking pyramid, or your whore will take the first bullet in her leg.”
Haruki smirked and held up three fingers to denote how many offenses towards Deanna that he would pay Mike back for, then turned to Deanna.
“I’m assuming you’re an archeologist?” he asked with a gentle smile.
Deanna looked up into his beautiful eyes and could only nod at him. He had a dozen guns trained on him, yet he’d repeatedly tried to protect her and remained eerily calm. She had no idea what to make of him, but she knew she’d follow him anywhere and believed he’d get them out of here.
<
br /> After the threats and the brutality displayed by Mike and his men, Deanna decided that whatever secrets the pyramid held, they could remain hidden. She wanted out of here. Preferably with the enigmatic and gorgeous stranger.
Haruki grinned down at her, noting her athletic form and how it fit perfectly against him before concentrating on what was happening around them.
“Would you do me the honor of showing me your pyramid?” he asked her, ignoring the men surrounding them.
Deanna couldn’t help but chuckle. Here they were being forced to go inside at gunpoint, and he was trying to make it seem like a planned excursion. She was utterly charmed and nodded her head.
“I would love to show it to you,” she said.
Haruki gallantly held his arm out to her and enveloped her hand when she looped it through his arm.
“Have you discovered how old it is or who made it yet?” he asked casually as he started walking them towards the entrance.
Deanna shook her head and looked behind her at the armed men following a few feet in their wake. She turned back to the handsome stranger when he patted her hand.
“Ignore them. They do not matter and are insignificant compared to everything else around us,” Haruki whispered.
“They have all the weapons. That’s hard to ignore,” she murmured.
“The greatest weapon is in here,” Haruki replied, tapping the side of his head with his other hand. “Don’t let them get in there and we’ll be fine.”
“You never told me your name,” Deanna said as they got closer to the entrance.
Haruki debated on lying to her, but the ruse of being a lost hiker was rendered useless the moment they dragged him into the mountain. He knew they had no intentions of letting him out of here alive.
“My name is Haruki. For safety reasons, that is all I will tell you right now,” he whispered.
“That’s a beautiful name,” Deanna said, loving the way it sounded when she repeated it in her head.
“Tell me of your discovery,” Haruki suggested.
The way she was looking at him made him want to kill everyone around them so he could be alone with her. He wanted nothing more than to get to know his beautiful mate. For now, he would tolerate the others until he found out what was going on and what was generating the power flowing through him.
Haruki refused to consider calling his brothers when he didn’t feel as if he was in danger. If anything, he feared what he would do to the humans as the strange power flowed through him, strengthening his body and clearing his mind.
“It was discovered 24 years ago when scientists decided to map the area with seismic equipment while China was doing a bomb test. It was under the control of the US government until they sold it out to that idiot Mike, and his company Social Solutions. I just got here three weeks ago,” Deanna explained.
She turned to watch him carefully as they entered the pyramid. Deanna wasn’t sure what she’d expected to see, but almost felt disappointed when he showed no outward expression.
Haruki couldn’t be more grateful for the years of rigorous training he put himself through. His iron control over himself was the only thing that kept him from gasping at the intense blast of power that rushed through him when he entered the pyramid.
His entire body tingled with tiny electrical shocks, and Haruki concentrated on Deanna’s smooth voice as he struggled to remain outwardly calm. Even his beast, Bacandi, was seemingly paralyzed by the energy assaulting them as his head vibrated with power.
“I don’t know what may have been found in the three chambers they entered before I got here, but the one we recently discovered wouldn’t open until they brought you inside the mountain,” she whispered.
Deanna wasn’t too surprised when Haruki didn’t even blink at her revelation and just smiled down at her before turning back to the tunnel.
“You’re walking past all of those chambers and leading us directly to the one that just opened. Who are you?” Deanna whispered, trying to contain her sudden fear.
Haruki hadn’t realized that he was following the path of the energy until Deanna mentioned it. It was too late to pretend otherwise now, but he wouldn’t say more with the others so close behind them. When he felt her fear, he gently squeezed her hand.
“You’ve no need to be afraid of me. I would never harm you,” Haruki promised before turning to look at the trail of men behind them. He turned back to her. “Some, if not all of them, will not be so lucky.”
Deanna didn’t know what to think or say. She didn’t understand why he felt so confident when he was unarmed and alone, but she believed him.
I have no freaking idea why I believe him and trust him, but God help me I do, she thought, before sending up a silent prayer that she wasn’t making a huge mistake.
Haruki guided them into the chamber and without pause, he entered the newly opened door.
“Welcome, Dranovian,” a robotic voice said the moment he crossed the threshold.
“What did it say?” Deanna asked in shock as she looked up at Haruki.
He turned to her with a blank look on his face, but Deanna could tell he was surprised.
“It welcomed me,” he replied, his tone reflecting none of his shock.
Haruki heard the words clearly and had understood them. He assumed they were spoken in English and was more than a little unnerved that they weren’t.
If it isn’t English, then what is it and how do I know it? Haruki wondered.
The only languages he knew were his native Japanese and English. There was also the ritual words that he and all the Dranovians spoke during an expulsion. He and his brothers had always referred it as the Dranovian language, but they had no idea what it really was.
“Dranovian? Is that what it called you?” Deanna asked, her fear replaced by overwhelming curiosity.
“Yes,” he whispered.
Deanna looked behind them at Mike and his men and turned back around. She had no desire for them to learn anything of Haruki and his people.
“Is that your name or your people?” she whispered as softly as she could.
“My people,” Haruki replied, leading them down a steep tunnel, deeper into the pyramid than anyone had ever been before.
“I have so many questions!” Deanna whispered in frustration. “Are you even human?”
Haruki smiled down at her and patted her hand still looped through his arm.
“I will tell you everything I know the moment we are alone,” he promised.
“Shut the fuck up and move!” Mike yelled from behind them.
Haruki didn’t acknowledge Mike as he reached the end of the tunnel where a wall blocked them from going any further.
“The Dranovian and his mate may proceed, all others must remain outside of the energy center,” the automated voice said as the wall opened in front of them.
Haruki debated on whether to tell the humans of the warning. A part of him was hoping the intelligence behind the voice would kill the threat for him so he could concentrate on getting to know his mate. Eventually, he decided to say something so Deanna wouldn’t be frightened and distrust him.
Haruki turned to Mike.
“It’s warning that only Deanna and I can enter,” he said, gently squeezing Deanna’s hand when she gasped.
Mike burst out laughing, and some of his men joined him while others shifted their feet nervously in the tunnel.
“How convenient is that!” Mike snapped. “Do you think I’m stupid? I don’t believe for a second that you understand what it’s saying or that we're in any danger.”
“Then, by all means, you first,” Haruki challenged and moved to the side so Mike could pass them.
Mike glared at Haruki for a moment then looked around at his men.
“Dale! Go in there,” Mike ordered.
Dale clutched his broken hand to his chest and looked at Mike incredulously.
“Are you serious?” Dale asked, holding up his broken appendage.
“Yes
! You’re security! Make sure it’s secure,” Mike ordered as he gestured towards the door.
Dale looked at his men to see if anyone would volunteer, but no one would meet his gaze.
Haruki smirked at Dale when the nervous man turned towards him. He couldn’t think of a better test subject for this experiment and watched with amusement as Dale cradled his hand and began walking towards him and Deanna.
Dale hesitated for half a second before he stepped over the threshold and turned to Haruki with a sneer.
“The guy’s a liar, and you’re idiots for believing him,” Dale said to Mike and his men with a snicker.
Haruki felt the shift in the energy and gently pulled Deanna away from the doorway.
“What’s happening?” Dale asked nervously as he looked down at his hands.
Haruki noted the way Dale’s hands had begun to shake violently and the lights in the chamber dimmed.
“Intruder has been detected, and the threat will be eliminated,” the automated voice called out.
“What did it say? What’s happening to him?” Mike demanded in fear as he moved behind one of his men.
“You were warned. I don’t know what’s happening to the guy, but it looks like his cells are being separated,” Haruki explained, his eyes glued to the fascinating scene.
Dale’s body was engulfed in a bronze haze as tiny circular bubbles popped out all over his body, each containing a clump of cells. The bubbles grew smaller and smaller before their eyes.
“What the fuck? Get him out of there!” Dog shouted and ran towards the doorway. He didn’t like the guy but didn’t want him dead either.
Haruki held out his arm to stop the older man as Dale’s body began to glow before a bright flash caused everyone to shield their eyes.
Haruki continued to hold Dog back with one arm while shielding Deanna with the other. The moment the glow disappeared, he opened his eyes to see that Dale and all the little bubbles were gone.
“Where is he?” Dog whispered in shock.
Deanna pulled away from Haruki’s protective embrace and looked in amazement at the empty chamber where Dale had been only moments before.
“Oh, my God,” she whispered.
Haruki heard the tell-tale sounds of weapons being raised in nervous hands and turned to the men behind him, keeping Deanna carefully hidden behind his broad back.