Pet Rescue Panther

by Zoe Chant

  She trailed off because the implications had never really struck her before. It was Melody who gave voice to the thought.

  "They knew," Melody said softly. "Or, I suppose they couldn't have known for certain, but they must have suspected they might die."

  "But you didn't know," Tessa said to Heikon. "They were coming to warn you."

  "I had no idea. I believed that they fled with the Heartstone, and found some way to sever it from me, weakening me. Instead, all they did was put it away. I wouldn't have been able to sense it if it wasn't with its keepers. And I did, most assuredly, feel its loss. It was how my brother was able to defeat me, driving me wounded into exile and taking my place." Heikon's hands curled into fists on his desk.

  "I don't understand," Tessa said. "If I'm the Heart—if my parents were—why does the stone matter at all?"

  "Because it's their connection to me, child. Your connection to me. Had my brother been able to possess the stone, and your mother along with it, he could have destroyed both of them. He might as well have murdered me. Instead—"

  He stopped.

  "Instead he killed my mother," Tessa whispered. New tears welled in her eyes. "And my father along with her. He thought she had the stone with her. He killed her, killed them, because he was trying to kill you."

  Heikon smiled grimly. "And very shocked he must have been, when he and his fellow conspirators burst into my lair and found me not crawling on the floor in agony, but ready for a fight, weakened slightly but still fierce. No wonder they were unable to kill me. As long as the Heartstone existed somewhere, I would still be as difficult to kill as dragon lords always are."

  "But you ordered Reive to kill me; wouldn't that be the same as—"

  "Not as long as the Heartstone is undamaged," Heikon said sharply. "I ordered Reive to execute your mother and bring me the stone, so I could find another, less faithless keeper to pass it along to."

  "My mother was faithful!" Tessa flared. "And Reive is out there, right now, trying to kill my boyfriend, because you thought she wasn't!"

  "Yes," Heikon murmured. "We really should do something about that."

  "Yes, thank you! Can you talk to Reive, tell him—"

  "You will," Heikon said. "Touch the Heartstone, child."

  Tessa closed her hand over the stone resting above her heart. It seemed to her that it was so warm she could feel its heat through the decorative lace of her glove.

  "Now that we are able to finally speak in person," Heikon said, "the connection may be forged in full, so that I can use you as my mouth and eyes."

  Tessa's eyes went very wide. "I don't think I want—"

  "Be silent. After this, you need not continue to be the Heart of the Hoard if you do not so choose. We can find someone else to take the stone. But for now, your mate needs you to be not a human girl-child, but the living Heart of the Hoard. Are you willing?"

  Put like that, it was no choice at all. "Yes," Tessa said firmly. "If it'll help Ben—and please, he can't hold out forever. Please hurry."

  "Close your eyes and focus on the stone," Heikon said, "and I will tell you what to do."

  ***

  Reive's dragon erupted from his human body, flinging Ben to the ground. The knife flew from his blood-slick hand and tumbled into the grass. It didn't matter; if bullets had little effect on a full-grown dragon, it wasn't as if a knife was going to do anything.

  Reive lunged as he shifted, enormous jaws agape, jagged teeth flashing. Ben managed to turn his fall into a roll, tumbling out of the way a split second before he was crushed in those massive jaws. Reive snapped at dirt and grass instead.

  Now? Ben's cat snarled, clawing to escape.

  Now, he sighed, and let it come. Neither the human nor the panther had much of a chance, but he could last longer and run faster as a panther.

  The borrowed tuxedo ripped off him, and Ben's panther landed four-footed on the grass, only to be met with a swipe from Reive's forepaw. Ben was knocked across the lawn, tumbling bruisingly into some ornamental bushes.

  The dragon pursued him, pouncing like a cat. Reive's fighting style was very different now than it had been at the cabin, when he had been clearly in control, thinking and planning each move. This was pure hunting instinct. There was no human mind in charge here, just the hunting urges of a predatory animal.

  Ben couldn't think how to snap him out of it. The only advantage he had now was his smaller size, enabling him to go places the dragon couldn't, and he took full advantage of it. Like a black streak he shot from the shrubbery toward the dark woods. Among the trees he might be able to get the drop on the dragon, or at least force Reive to hunt him until the human, rational mind regained control over the animal hindbrain.

  There was a tremendous downdraft as Reive beat his wings and took to the air. Ben realized an instant later that the dragon wasn't flying, merely using his wings for a tremendous, assisted leap. Reive crashed to the ground between Ben and the woods, tearing great chunks out of the lawn. He lowered his head and hissed as Ben skidding to a stop.

  Tail lashing, Ben crouched and then feinted right before jinking left. It was the exact same thing he'd done earlier (and that Reive had then tried on him) but he guessed correctly that Reive was too animalistic at the moment to recognize it. Reive snapped at empty air, and Ben shot past him, headed for the woods.

  He almost made it. Almost. But the dragon was too huge and too fast. An enormous wing blocked Ben's path, and as he tried to veer around it, Reive caught Ben's panther in his great jaws.

  It was almost over then and there, but Ben twisted wildly; he felt his fur and skin rake on the dragon's teeth and then he fell to the ground, bleeding—just in time for a slap of the dragon's forepaw to flatten him. He was pinned, as surely as ever a cat had pinned a mouse, and as Reive's jaws opened, the only thing Ben could think of was Tessa, her hands and her eyes and her brave, fighting spirit—

  "Stop!"

  The clear voice rang out through the night, and Ben, through blurred vision, saw a figure throw itself between him and the dragon's bloody jaws. For a dazed instant he thought he'd conjured up a hallucination of Tessa, but no, she was really there, standing defiantly over him. So small, so human—so fragile—

  No! The cry rang out through his soul from the human inside him. He struggled to get up, fighting against the prison of Reive's claws. She was going to be killed.

  Tiny and fragile and brave, she stood right between the dragon's front legs as Reive reared over her, jaws opening—

  "Stop," Tessa said again, and this time it was not just her voice that spoke. There was something else under it, something deep and fierce and old.

  Reive stopped.

  For a long moment they remained like that, the dragon looking down at the woman, Ben sprawled on the ground with a great forepaw pinning him down. Then Reive rumbled, as sense began to come back into his eyes: "Heikon?"

  "Stand down, boy," Tessa declared in that voice which had elements of her voice, but wasn't.

  "This woman comes between me and my prey," Reive growled. "This woman is my prey."

  "Not anymore," Tessa-Heikon commanded. "Stand down, Reive. Shift back and put your dragon away. Darius, are you there?"

  "I am here," said the voice of Ben's father, not his human voice but the deep rumble of his dragon.

  Ben turned his head, startled. He hadn't realized his father had shifted.

  Darius's dragon was gunmetal gray, a darker version of Melody's silver, and so huge that even Reive's dragon looked comparatively small next to him. He was a clan leader at the height of his power, and the ground trembled slightly underfoot with each step he took as he came to stand beside Tessa. The tiny human woman barely came up to his shoulder.

  Ben wondered dazedly how long his father had been watching the fight in dragon form, prepared to intervene if necessary. And how long would he have watched before stepping in?

  Darius reached out one of his massive clawed forepaws to close over Reive's scaled wr
ist, above the claws holding Ben to the ground. The other dragon bowed his head and submitted, and Ben could suddenly breathe more easily as Reive's foot was lifted away in his father's firm grip.

  "The hunt is over, child," Heikon said in Tessa's voice. "Honor is satisfied. You have done well. The conspirators are all gone now, and this woman is the loyal Heart of the—Oh come on, Heikon, you can talk to Reive on the computer right in the house there; do you really have to blather on about honor when no one is even helping my boyfriend who's bleeding to death?"

  It was fascinating, Ben thought dizzily. He could hear the instant when her voice switched, the deep timbre of Heikon's rumble vanishing to leave only Tessa's familiar tones behind. And then she was kneeling beside him, gathering him into her lap, blood and dirt and all.

  "Darius!" Tessa shouted. Ben's head was tipped back so all he could see was the night sky, no longer blocked by Reive's massive head. Had the dragon shifted back or simply moved? Ben couldn't tell, and it no longer seemed important anyway, because the threat was gone and his mate was holding him, and that was all that really mattered.

  "Oh, Ben!" Melody's voice cried from not too far away, and Ben's last dazed thought was, I guess the gang's all here ...

  And then, darkness.

  Chapter Fifteen

  He was comfortable. Comfortable and warm. And ... human-shaped, not that it seemed to matter all that much. Nothing hurt. He was aware of his mate somewhere nearby.

  Something was purring on his chest.

  Ben cracked his eyes open. The small orange cat that Tessa called Toblerone was curled up on top of him, vibrating with a rumbling purr that seemed too large for its tiny size.

  "I kept trying to move them off because I was afraid they'd hurt you," Tessa's voice said softly from somewhere nearby. "And they kept coming back. You didn't seem to mind having them there."

  "They?" Ben murmured. He raised his head with some effort, but still no pain, though he could feel half-healed injuries tugging at his skin under the covers.

  He was surrounded by cats. He didn't feel like counting, but most if not all of the kitten-herd was curled up around him, snuggled against his sides. Tessa had one of them in her lap. She was sitting beside his bed, and when he raised his gaze to her face, she smiled blindingly.

  "Hi," she said, and leaned forward to cup his chin in hers, kissing him deeply.

  The kitten in her lap made a protesting noise and jumped onto the bed.

  "Mmmm," Tessa hummed into his mouth. She pulled back and kept caressing the side of his face as she asked, "How do you feel? Do you need anything?"

  His sleep-logged brain mulled that over for a moment. "Water? You don't have to; I can get it—" He started trying to sit up, but as Toblerone sank his claws into the blanket, Tessa pushed them both back down.

  "Just stay there. I'll get it."

  She was back in a moment with a glass of water. The fog was clearing from Ben's head, enough to notice that he was in the big four-poster bed in the Lilac Room, which at least answered his question about whether they were still at Darius's. He relocated Toblerone to the side of the bed and managed to push himself up on the pillows enough that Tessa didn't have to hold the glass for him like a total invalid.

  Further inspection determined that he was naked. Now that he was sitting up, Ben pushed down the blanket to his waist so he could examine the purple, healing claw marks and a neat row of half-healed puncture wounds down his side, left by Reive's teeth.

  "Your father said it would heal better if it wasn't bandaged. I remember you saying something like that too, back at the motel." Tessa twisted her hands together. "Does it hurt?"

  "Not really. It's just itchy. I'm going to be starving when I wake up a little more, but right now I just want to sit here for a while." He rested his head against the pillows and rolled it to the side to take a better look at her. She was wearing a loose dark-green sweater that looked like one of Melody's. With its high turtleneck, he couldn't tell if she had the necklace on. All that really mattered was ... "You look beautiful."

  Tessa blew out a breath. "Flattery will get you everywhere." She leaned in to kiss him again.

  "You were amazing out there," Ben told her when she drew away.

  "Do you remember it? You were pretty out of it for awhile there." A tense undercurrent to her voice lingered, a remnant of past worry.

  "I remember you standing up to Reive. Incredible." He frowned. "I'm the one who's supposed to protect you."

  "You did. I'd never have had the time to call Heikon if you hadn't held him off. Not to mention saving me about a million other times in the past few days. Anyway, we're a partnership." She closed her lips on his, and murmured against his mouth, "We protect each other."

  Ben smiled against her lips.

  "Well, this is cozy," a deep voice said, and they jerked apart as Darius strode into the room. Close on his heels came someone else, a tall, lean man with iron-gray hair and a dignified bearing that reminded Ben uncomfortably of his father.

  Tessa scrambled to her feet, and Ben pulled up the blanket to cover his bare chest. "Have any of you people ever heard of knocking?" he asked irritably.

  "I heard talking in here, so I knew you were awake," Darius said, dismissing the issue with a peremptory motion of his hand. "Anyway, Heikon has to fly this evening, and he wanted to talk to both of you for a minute."

  "Oh ... you're Heikon." Ben took another look at the gray-haired stranger. There was a resemblance to Reive, come to think of it: the same bronze skin and deep-set dark eyes.

  Heikon dipped his head in acknowledgement. "And you're Benedict Keegan. I owe you and your mate a great honor-debt."

  "A what now?" Tessa said.

  "Because of my misjudgment, you both nearly died. In addition to that, you've done me a great service by restoring my most valuable property." He smiled at Tessa. "Which I've come to reclaim."

  "Oh." She reached down the collar of her sweater and pulled up the silver chain. For just an instant, she hesitated, and then pulled it over her head in a single quick motion, for the last time. With the necklace in hand, she hesitated again.

  "It's not too late to change your mind," Heikon said. "It's yours by right and tradition. And your actions as my voice indicated to me that you are well worthy of being the brightest jewel in my collection."

  It was the last sentence that seemed to change her mind. Tessa shook her head. "I'm a jewel in no one's collection. Except maybe Ben's." She gave Ben a brilliant smile that took his breath away, and held out the necklace. Heikon gravely accepted it in his palm. He tucked it into a pocket of his gray overcoat.

  "So now what?" Tessa asked, following the necklace with her eyes until it could no longer be seen. "I don't feel any different."

  "You won't, though you may yearn for the necklace from time to time. But I will find a new Heart for my hoard, and soon you won't think of it."

  "I'll always think of it, I expect," she murmured, touching her chest where the crystal used to rest.

  Darius had been standing patiently to one side, watching the proceedings with interest; now he said, "And you have a promise for my son, do you not?"

  "For both your son and his mate," Heikon said. "As I said earlier, I owe you an honor-debt. I will have a gift for your firstborn, when he or she is old enough."

  "Not the Heart of the Hoard, I hope," Tessa said quickly.

  Heikon smiled. "No, no. Not that." He lifted a hand in a wordless farewell and turned to go.

  "Wait," Ben called after him. "She's not pregnant yet, is she? Tessa, you're not—"

  "Not that I know of." She kissed him on the forehead. "Calm down."

  "First panthers, now half-human grandchildren," Darius sighed. One of the kittens rubbed on his leg and he looked down with an exasperated expression. "And all these damned cats." But he leaned down to pick it up, supporting its hindquarters as Tessa had shown him. The kitten began to purr.

  "Oh, you can't fool me," Tessa said, looking over at him w
ith her hand on Ben's shoulder. "You're going to be one of those grandfathers who spoils his grandchildren shamelessly."

  "I sincerely hope that grandcats are the only thing I'll have to deal with for the near future," Darius said. "The two of you are trouble enough. And you're going to need calories for all that healing. I'll have a meal sent up, with plenty of red meat."

  "Speaking of which," Tessa said, "I believe you promised me the recipe for your very excellent soup, didn't you? We all got kind of busy with the whole assassin thing."

  Darius raised an eyebrow. "You were serious about that."

  "Dead serious."

  The corner of his mouth quirked. "I'll speak to the kitchen about it. You'll have it before the day is out."

  He left ... taking the kitten with him.

  After a pause, Ben said, "You and my father are certainly getting along well. I'm not sure whether to be pleased or disturbed."

  "I think it's easier for me, without the weight of all the history between you," Tessa said. "Also, in spite of all his arrogance, I think he really doesn't mind having someone stand up to him. Some people just want someone to argue with."

  "I've tried arguing with him. It doesn't help."

  "Not like that. Like ... Oh, I don't know how to explain it. He doesn't intimidate me; I've dealt with worse. And I think he likes that."

  Ben looked up at her. "You've dealt with worse than my father? He's a dragon. Also a mobster, I don't know if I mentioned that part."

  "Your sister did already. But listen, you should try dealing with a mom who's just been told that little Bobby can't have one of our cats because dear little Bobby just spent the last ten minutes terrorizing the feral cat room and had to be escorted out with a hand on his collar."

  "Okay, you've got a point." He reached up to touch the smooth, soft curve of her neck behind her ear. "So what was all that with the necklace and Heikon? The Heart of the Hoard, I guess it's called."