by Amelia Jade
A feral grin crossed his face, made even worse by the blood he knew was splattered on it, some of it his own, but most of it the panther’s.
“My turn,” he said and wrenched the pipe from the other man’s grip.
Four’s eyes went wide, and then rolled back into his head as Zander slammed it against his temple. The leader dropped to the ground limply.
Only the last shifter, One, remained on his feet. His eyes were wide, showing Zander the whites as he began to panic, his friends either dead, dying, or unconscious around him.
“You can’t escape me,” Zander said, walking purposefully toward the last of his ambushers. “So you might as well try to beat me.”
One looked left and right for any sort of escape, but there was none.
That seemed to click in at last, and he ran straight at Zander with a scream.
“That won’t work,” he laughed, and at the last second stepped forward abruptly, throwing One’s timing off.
His fist connected right between the panther shifter’s eyes, and he went down. Hard.
“Ow,” Zander swore, shaking his hand. There had been a lot of force on that blow, and something had popped. “Too many punches I guess,” he muttered, the hand still tingling.
Okay. Well, that’s over. May as well head on over to HQ now and file a report for this, among other things.
Other Guardians would arrive in a few minutes, he was sure. There was no way a fight like this would go unreported. They could handle the cleanup, thankfully.
“Zander?” a shocked voice asked.
He spun. Riss had emerged from the shop, her eyes wide at the carnage strewn around.
“Go back inside,” he said, reaching out to stop her, realizing only too late that his hand was covered in blood.
Her eyes flew open in terror and she backed away from him rapidly.
“Riss?” he asked, dropping his hand, both in surprise and because of the blood.
“What have you done?” she asked. “Why did you attack them like that? What was that all about?”
“I didn’t attack them, they attacked me,” he said.
Riss’s eyes narrowed. “No,” she said. “I saw the whole thing.” She pointed up, and Zander saw a window there. “You attacked them, unprovoked.” She shuddered. “And you laughed about it as you killed all these men.”
Zander threw his hands in the air in helplessness. How did he explain to her that he had known they were going to attack? That they were panthers, and that’s what they did.
“Riss, listen,” he started, but she shook her head.
“I’m not sure I can look at you right now,” she said softly. “I thought I was getting to know you. But this,” she paused, lost for words. “This shows me how wrong I was.”
“Riss Levion,” he ground out. “These men were not here for me. They were here for you.”
Her eyes focused on him at that. “How do you know that?”
“Who walks along this alley?” he said. “They only picked us up halfway through the walk. They were waiting for you. There was no way for them to know I was with you. That was why they didn’t attack right away. They were going to do something to you, as a message for what I did to their friend the night before, is my guess.”
“Your guess?” she asked. “You didn’t even let them speak before you attacked, did you?”
Shit.
“You need to get over that, Riss. You’re in danger now.”
“Because of you!”
“Yes, I’m sorry I stopped you from being mugged, and that your boss clearly can’t accept that. But it’s only going to get worse. You should come with me. I can protect you.”
“If this is your idea of protection,” she said at the bodies lying in the alley, “I want nothing to do with it. My life has had far too much violence in it since you came around.”
“Let me stay,” he urged. “At least until I can talk to your boss.”
“Oh, you’re going to talk to him now, are you? Listen, Mr. Barnesworth may be an asshole, but he would never attack me! Now please, Zander, leave me alone.”
His short temper betrayed him once more.
“Fine!” he snapped. “Good luck dealing with him on your own.”
He turned and strode out of the alley, leaving her standing there.
Two Guardians stopped him five paces down the sidewalk.
He spoke before they could even open their mouths. “Seven bodies, panthers, in the alley. They ambushed me, and paid the price. I’m going to HQ.” He nodded at them curtly and strode off as they moved past him.
“Holy shit,” he heard one of them say, but Zander didn’t turn back.
His angry strides took him through the streets, shifters moving away from the blood-soaked apparition in their midst, providing him with a clear path.
But Zander’s mind wasn’t on the fight anymore. He’d already pushed that past him. No, he was focused on the way Riss had looked at him. Not with the passion, desire, and happiness of the weekend. That had been absent when he’d turned around, and replaced with something else.
Terror.
It was a look he’d seen on many people’s faces when he confronted them. Not many shifters wished to face a dragon, especially a Guardian. But it wasn’t something he’d ever expected to see on her face. Not directed at him, at least. That was what hurt the most. Knowing she was terrified of him. Of what he had done.
Seeing her flinch away from his touch had been the final blow, and something inside Zander had broken at it. That also surprised him, because he hadn’t thought his feelings for her to be that strong. Clearly, however, he needed to do some reevaluation of things to figure out where he fit.
He wasn’t too sure he was going to like the answer he came up with.
Chapter Eight
Riss
“What the hell happened out there?” Miranda asked as Riss walked into her work room and closed the door behind her. “You look like you’ve seen a ghost.”
She felt like it too. Growing up in Cadia, Riss wasn’t completely unused to death. She’d seen dead bodies once or twice, and more fights and blood than she could care to count. That wasn’t what appalled her so much, though such a brutal scene was more than she’d been used to.
It was the fact that she’d watched it happen, and also that she knew who had caused it.
Not Zander, fighting to protect her or to defend himself. But a monster, a laughing, leering monster who reveled in the bloodshed, who enjoyed it. Who took pleasure in wringing the life from his enemies with as much force as he could.
“A fight,” she said absentmindedly, sitting down on a pile of boxes, eyes staring off into nowhere.
“Umm, what?” Miranda asked, reaching out to lay a hand on Riss’s arm. “Just a fight?”
“Zander and some shifters. It was bad.”
“Oh my goodness,” Miranda exclaimed. “Is he okay?”
“Is who okay?” Riss still wasn’t entirely focused on the present.
“Zander!”
“Oh, yeah. He’s fine. I think. The others aren’t.”
“Did he kill them?” Miranda asked.
“Not all of them. Only some.”
And then the tears came.
“Oh, honey, it’s okay.” Miranda comforted her, moving around her table to come take Riss into her arms, the ultra-petite woman doing her best to soothe the larger human.
They didn’t last long, and in a few minutes’ time Riss was beginning to compose herself.
“Death happens,” Miranda said at last.
Riss shook her head. “No, it’s not that. I mean, it was unsettling, sure. But I’ve lived here all my life. It’s not as bad as I hear some of the other shifter territories are, but I’ve seen death before, and blood. None of that is going to overwhelm me anymore. Bother me, sure. But I’m used to how cavalier shifters are with killing. No,” she said softly. “It was something else.”
“What?” Miranda rubbed her shoulders.
&nb
sp; “I think it was the way Zander did it. He attacked them, unprovoked. He didn’t just kill them, Mir, he executed them. It was so fast it was practically in cold blood. They didn’t stand a chance. They just stood in front of him, and then he went after them. He laughed during it, Mir. Laughed in their faces, because they didn’t stand a chance against him.”
The tailor looked at her. “Riss, you have to remember, he’s a dragon. Part of that comes with the job, especially as a Guardian.”
“I know, but it was just, just, so unlike him. That wasn’t the Zander I know. It was like an entirely different part of him took over. A meaner part. Brutish, almost. He fought like he was an—” Riss’s voice died as she realized what she was about to say.
“Like he was an animal,” Miranda finished, not shying away from it.
“Mir, I’m sorry, that’s not how I meant it.
The shifter woman smiled. “Yes, Riss, it is. It’s okay though, because that was how he would fight. Especially so outnumbered. There could be no backing down, or they would do to him what he did to them.”
“But he started it,” she protested. “They hadn’t done anything. I saw it all happen.”
“There was probably a good reason,” Miranda said. “Killers don’t become Guardians. They get weeded out along the way, and they definitely do not manage to stay Guardians for as long as Zander’s been one. Did you ask him why?”
“No,” she said, embarrassed. “I just sort of told him to go away.”
“You should let him talk, explain his side,” Miranda urged. “I know Zander. Not personally mind you, but by reputation. By all accounts, he’s a good guy with a short fuse, is all. But the key words are he is a good person. That’s what matters.”
“You’re probably right,” she admitted, feeling ashamed that she hadn’t given him a chance to speak. “I should talk to him. After work I guess I’ll call him or something.”
There was a knock on the door that interrupted anything further Miranda was going to say.
“Riss, what the hell is going on? Why isn’t the store opened up yet?!”
“Oh shit,” she swore. “Coming, Mr. Barnesworth!”
She stood, pulling the black dress with white floral print on it back into place, smoothing out her hair, and hurriedly trying to wipe away the tears and puffiness she knew was around her eyes.
Pulling open the door, she almost slammed into her boss.
“What is the meaning of this?” he snarled.
“Sorry sir, I had a terrible morning. Miranda was helping me cope. No excuse though, sir. I should have had the store open on time.”
“You’re damn right.” He turned to head upstairs to his office. “Typical human. Always thinking of themselves. You’re lucky you even have this job, lady. I wouldn’t push it!”
“Well that was rude,” Miranda said when he was gone.
“I have a feeling today isn’t going to be a pleasant day for me. I’d try and stay, otherwise he may take it out on you as well,” Riss said, giving her friend’s arm a quick squeeze before she darted into the store to open it up.
Not that we’re going to lose out on a ton of business on a Monday morning. Slowest time of the week!
***
As things would have it, the day ended up being quite busy. While Riss was happy for the extra money it brought in, it also had a rather unfortunate side effect. The increased customer traffic meant Mr. Barnesworth actually had to do work, to come down and be on the sales floor when there was more than a customer or two in the store at any one point in time.
This had the effect of putting him into close contact with Riss on a regular basis, which only seemed to heighten his disdain for her. As the day wore on his comments became more and more blatant, the veil of politeness that he’d mostly kept in place slipping with every occasion she was in his visual range.
The more it went on, the more she realized that Zander was right. Her boss, somehow, was involved in what was going on. He had to be; there was no way around it. It irked her to admit that the dragon was once again correct, but Mr. Barnesworth had changed too much since the day Zander set foot in the store. Something was going on. She just didn’t know what.
Things came to a boil near the end of the day. Riss had been helping a customer, who decided he didn’t want to pay the price for the quality of goods that he wanted. As the bear shifter left the store, Riss could feel Barnesworth’s eyes boring little circles into the back of her skull.
Turning, she walked toward the counter after putting the articles of clothing away. The entire journey of perhaps seven steps, she could feel him staring at her.
“I knew I should have hired a nice little shifter girl instead of you,” Barnesworth hissed. “She wouldn’t have lost that sale.”
Riss stopped in her tracks, eyes closed. Taking a deep, shuddering breath, she tried to ignore the comments, letting them slide by without saying anything further.
Don’t do it. He’s not worth it. He’s just a bigoted old man. You can’t change that. Just let it go.
“A shifter would have made that sale, but I guess like the rest of your kind, you just aren’t good enough.”
Okay, that does it.
“Are you fucking stupid?” she snapped. “I’ve made this store more money today than it’s made in a single day in months, and you’re complaining because one person couldn’t be convinced to buy your horrifically overpriced shit? Seriously? I get that I’m human, and you can’t wrap your tiny little brain around the fact that we aren’t completely useless. But looking at the numbers alone should be enough to prove that I’m a damn good employee you flea-bitten mongrel!”
Uh-oh.
Riss had gone too far with that last comment, and she knew it immediately. There was no sense in apologizing though as Barnesworth cleared the counter in a single bound, advancing toward her even as Riss backed away, trying to circle around to the door.
“What did you call me?” he asked in a low voice, easily keeping himself between her and the front.
“I should probably apologize,” she said, no trace of apology in her voice. “But something tells me not only is it too late, but that you’d probably just find some way to discredit me as a human thing. So you know what? Fuck you, Jerry,” she spat, using his first name.
“It’s Mr. Barnesworth,” he shrieked, charging at her.
Riss had known that, but she had intentionally used his first name to try and provoke him. Why he hated it with such a passion, she wouldn’t know. But he did. It had taken her three years of working at the store to learn it, and she’d hoarded that knowledge until the proper time to use it came about. Now she had.
Now, as the wolf-shifter charged at her, practically foaming at the mouth, she ducked out of the way, pulling the clothing rack down on top of him. Suits and pants cascaded over, covering Jerry completely. He stood up with a growl, tearing them off his head, just as the thick metal bar came after them, conking him perfectly on the side of his face.
Barnesworth let loose a wolf’s howl and ripped himself free of the mess.
Riss was almost to the door by that point, but he easily got there first, barricading himself in the door frame. A hand reached out and seemed to just tap Riss in the chest, but she went flying back ten feet, crashing through a table and coming to a halt among the display shoes and their boxes.
Despite all that, she smiled.
Mr. Barnesworth paused as he took a step forward.
“Why are you smiling, you pathetic human? I’m about to end your life.”
Riss laughed, which only seemed to enrage him even more. “Stop smiling!” he howled. “Why are you so happy?”
“She’s happy,” a deep voice growled from the doorway, the angry basso filling the shop with ease. “Because she knows that you’re done picking on her.”
A giant hand grabbed Barnesworth by the neck and pulled him back through the door and deposited him into the middle of the street.
Riss scrambled to her feet and
followed Zander outside as the Guardian advanced on her boss with slow, measured steps.
“Please don’t kill him!” she shouted.
Zander paused. Barnesworth took that time to try and push himself farther away, but Zander’s booted foot descended on his ankle, pinning it in place.
“Why not?” he asked, twisting his head back to look at her.
Riss saw the rage burning in his eyes, the fuse of his temper ignited and burning brightly. She needed to defuse it, and quickly, before he did something he regretted.
“Because he doesn’t deserve it. He’s not worth such a quick end.”
Zander’s muscles twitched as she watched, but he stayed where he was, looking at her angrily. Riss stared him down, knowing the anger wasn’t directed at her, but was simply a reflection of his feelings toward Barnesworth.
“So I should just let him go?” he growled, “after all that he did to you?”
Riss shrugged. “I mean, you can break some of his bones I guess. I’m not opposed to you hurting him. Just no killing,” she said, stepping forward and laying a staying hand on his shoulder.
“Very well,” Zander said, releasing the ankle he had trapped.
Mr. Barnesworth got to his feet and looked back and forth at the two of them. “People will hear about—”
Zander’s fist crashed into his mouth, smashing his jaw and sending the man tumbling across the cobblestone roadway until he landed against the stone wall of the storefront there, leaving a baseball-sized dent in the wall from where his head impacted.
“Of course, now I have no job,” she said, staring in disgust at her boss.
Former boss, I guess. Time to start looking for a new job if I want those niceties like a roof over my head or food on the table.
“What happened?” Zander asked.
Riss looked up at him, not sure she felt like talking.
“Thank you for rescuing me,” she said. “I do sincerely appreciate it, though I’m not sure I want to know how you were able to get here so swiftly. But regardless, I am appreciative of that. But I don’t know if I’m ready to move past that, and accept that the Zander I saw this morning is the Zander that lives within you.”