Undiscovered

by Sara Humphreys

  One minute they were nestled up to each other, bodies and spirit streams merging as intimately as they could without being naked, and the next he was hightailing it out of there like she had rabies. Contrary to his big, bad plan, Rena had no intention of hooking up with Zed, and she was running out of patience with Zander’s martyr routine. Once they got to the ranch, she would check out the Amoveo and help him wake up Zed.

  But if the dragon twins kept up with the whole you-have-to-mate-with-Zed crap, she was going to get the hell out of there.

  Old Viola had the right idea about being alone, and until recently, Rena had been of the same mind-set. Being on her own was how it had always been, for the most part, and how it probably should be. And how it could be again.

  After all, her life in Las Vegas would be waiting for her when she got back.

  Her chest clenched, and a pang of sadness flared at the idea of leaving Zander. It was silly. She had known the man for only a few days, and now she couldn’t imagine her life without him. Which was kind of insane for a woman who prided herself on being on her own.

  A flicker of movement reflected in the glass door, and Rena looked behind her, expecting to see Zander, but it wasn’t him. A shady-looking guy wearing a ratty, brown hoodie and dirty, baggy blue jeans was at the counter of the dingy little store. He had his back to her and was shifting his weight back and forth nervously. Every alarm bell in Rena’s head went off, and a tickle of fear shimmied beneath her skin.

  The dude was up to no good.

  Rena moved slowly toward the front of the store, between two rows of shelves stocked with various snacks. She glanced out the front window for some sign of Zander, who had gone to the restroom, or another customer, but the place was deserted. This little gas station was in the middle of Bumblefuck, Nowhere.

  She wished like hell that she’d kept the handgun on her instead of in her bag, where it wasn’t doing her or the older woman at the register a damn bit of good. Moving cautiously, Rena caught Viola’s frightened gaze. Her hazel eyes, filled with fear, jumped from the man to Rena, widening in a plea for help or maybe a warning. Rena didn’t have time to figure that part out, because a split second later, she realized she’d made a grave error.

  The guy spun around and pointed his gun at her, confirming her suspicions about how unhinged he was.

  “Don’t move, lady!”

  Rena held her hands up and stopped short. He looked like a meth head or druggie of one kind or another. The guy was totally strung out and shaky, which meant his gun could go off with one wrong move. She had seen plenty of drug addicts during her days on the street, and this poor bastard was an all-too-familiar sight. Her heart thundered in her chest, but she fought to keep her breathing normal. Staying calm was her best bet.

  Keep the guy talking.

  “I’m not going to try and stop you,” Rena said evenly. “You’re the one with the gun.”

  “That’s right.” He grinned, showing her a mouthful of blackened, rotted teeth. He had a wicked case of meth mouth. “Get over here, where I can see both of ya.”

  The guy jerked the gun toward the counter, and Rena complied. She glanced outside again. What the hell was taking Zander so long?

  “Empty the register.” His voice was edged with anger and desperation. “Do it now.”

  “Please…” Viola’s shaking, frightened voice filled the little store. “Don’t shoot me. Take the money. Take whatever you want. I ain’t got much.”

  “Shut up.” He pointed the gun and grew more agitated by the second. “Move faster, you old bitch.”

  “I’m sorry,” she whimpered.

  “It’s okay, Viola,” Rena murmured. “He’s going to get his money, and then he’ll leave.”

  “Shut the fuck up!” He swung the gun toward Rena again. “Or I’ll shoot you in the face.”

  Viola whimpered and stuffed the money from the register into a plastic bag with trembling hands. When she leaned forward to give it to the guy, she knocked over a small gum display, sending the packages clattering onto the floor.

  “H-here.” She shoved the bag across the dirty laminate counter and stepped back with her hands in the air. Mascara smudges mixed with tears streamed down her cheeks. “That’s all of it. Everythin’ in the register.”

  “Bullshit!” He pounded a fist on the counter. “Where’s the safe?”

  “Th-there’s no safe,” she whimpered. “I swear I’m tellin’ you the truth. You gotta believe me.”

  The guy cocked the gun, and the murky, deranged energy tumbling from him was beginning to make Rena sick to her stomach.

  “Yeah,” he spat, “well, I ain’t no mind reader, so I don’t gotta believe shit.”

  Mind reader? Duh! Rena almost rolled her eyes at her stupidity. She may not have had her gun, but she wasn’t powerless.

  Zander! Rena instinctively touched her mind to his. There’s a guy in here holding up the store. He’s got a gun and—

  Before she could finish the thought, Zander appeared in the doorway. With the sun’s glare behind him, his tall, broad-shouldered figure filled the space like an avenging angel—although the glowing, bloodred gaze of his dragon didn’t look all that angelic.

  It all happened in a split second.

  Poor Viola got one look at Zander, and her face twisted in a mask of shock right before she fainted, falling to the floor in a heap.

  “What the hell?” The guy spun toward Zander.

  “Look out,” Rena shouted. “He’s got a gun!”

  Moving like some kind of ninja warrior in a blur of inhuman speed, Zander dove forward, grabbed the gun, and twisted the guy’s wrist behind his back. As he pulled him into a choke hold, the druggie’s face bloomed from red to almost purple. He gasped for air and struggled against Zander’s far larger frame. The last image Rena saw before gunfire rang out was Zander’s furious expression over the guy’s shoulder as both men dropped to the floor.

  Rena’s hands covered her mouth during the agonizing seconds of silence that followed. Their feet stuck out past the row of shelving, and at first, neither man moved. Her heart thundered in her chest as she inched closer and sought out Zander’s energy signature with her own. She let out a strangled cry of relief when she felt the slow, steady pulse of his energy merge with hers.

  White-hot fear burned in Rena’s chest when the druggie suddenly scrambled off Zander and ran out the door without looking back. Rena raced over and dropped down to her knees. Zander was on his back and blood seeped from a wound in his stomach, creating a gruesome stain on his shirt.

  “Oh my God,” Rena said in a strangled voice.

  She pushed aside the bloody garment and stifled a gurgle of horror when she caught sight of the wound. Instinctively, she pressed both hands on it in a futile attempt to slow the bleeding. Zander’s eyes fluttered open and he groaned as he tried to sit up. Rena pressed a hand on his shoulder and pushed him back down.

  “Don’t move!” Her voice shook even though she was doing her best to remain calm. “We have to stop the bleeding. Shit. You need an ambulance, Zander.”

  “No, I don’t,” he said through gritted teeth. Each word was made with concerted effort and clearly caused him pain. “Go outside. Get two handfuls of dirt—not the dusty shit in the lot. Earthy and damp. As much as you can.”

  “What are you talking about?” Her fear was replaced by frustration. “How is a bunch of dirt going to help you? You need a damn doctor.”

  “Just do it,” he barked. A coughing fit wracked his body, and the veins in his neck bulged as he fought another wave of pain. “Fuck me, that hurts. Go, Rena. Now!”

  “Okay, okay,” she whispered. Rena rose to her feet on shaky legs, her hands covered in Zander’s blood. “I’ll be back. Just hang on.”

  She ran outside and scanned the pavement as she turned the corner of the cinder-block building. Tears bl
urred her vision, and panic swelled as she stumbled on a crack in the tiny parking lot before making a beeline for the trees. Rena dropped to her knees on the ground covered with pine needles and started to dig. Dirt clung to her sticky, bloodstained hands. She barely felt the brisk fall wind as she clawed away the dried surface before reaching the rich, moist soil beneath. The scent, fresh and earthy, filled her nostrils, instantly putting her at ease. Her panic ebbed as she scooped up two heaping handfuls of the fragrant dirt and ran back into the store.

  Rena dropped to her knees beside Zander and fleetingly noted the woman was still passed out behind the counter.

  “Now what?” She held her handfuls of dirt over him and laughed nervously when some sprinkled out of her shaking hands. “Shit, sorry.”

  “You’re doing fine. I’m going to live. Immortal, remember?” He tried to smile, but it looked more like a grimace. The guy was bleeding to death, and he was worried about keeping her at ease. “Press as much of it as you can into the wound.”

  “You want me to put dirt in there? Don’t doctors try to sterilize wounds on most people?”

  “Yeah, but I’m not most people, am I?”

  “You definitely aren’t,” she murmured.

  “Hurry, please. Getting shot is bad enough, but passing out would be really humiliating.”

  He winced and reached into the pocket of his leather jacket. The effort was obviously painful, and Rena felt stupid for asking questions when she should have been helping him. She was usually good at keeping a level head, but blood and guts weren’t in her wheelhouse. Her stomach lurched, and she focused on not puking all over him.

  Rena puffed her hair off her forehead and threw a prayer to the universe as she did what Zander requested. She gingerly patted it down and smoothed the heap of bloody dirt like she was creating some kind of macabre sand castle. Laughing nervously, she sat back on her heels and wiped her sweaty brow with the back of her hands.

  Hands that looked like she had just buried a body.

  “Okay, now what?”

  “Check on the woman,” he said between clenched teeth.

  His face was twisted in a mask of pain as he placed the spirit stone on top of the dirt-covered wound. His fingers shook, and the stone tumbled down, but Rena caught it.

  “Her name is Viola, and she’s still passed out.” Rena carefully put the piece of quartz back onto the dirt. “You, however, are a mess. Literally and figuratively. Okay, it’s where you put it. What now?”

  “Stand back,” he bit out between clenched teeth.

  Rena pushed herself to her feet and put some space between her and Zander. Just enough to make him happy but still close enough to help him if he needed her. He told her that his people were connected to the earth, but this wasn’t at all what she had expected.

  Zander let his head fall back to the floor as he settled both hands over the stone. Before she could ask anything else, a bright light emanated from beneath Zander’s hands. Rena was mesmerized by it. A low, pulsing sound began to strum though Zander’s energy signature and surrounded her in thick, strobing waves. As the light grew brighter in strength, so did the throbbing sound, but the mound of dirt started to shrink. Rena watched in pure fascination as, a moment later, the light flashed so brightly, she had to shut her eyes against it.

  When she opened them again, Zander was already rising to his feet.

  “What the hell?” Rena gaped at him as he brushed dirt from the bloody hole in his shirt.

  “Good as new,” he said wearily.

  Zander went to zip up his leather jacket, probably to hide the bloody shirt, but Rena ran over and grabbed his hands. She pushed them aside before tugging up the offending garment. Rena swore under her breath. The wound was gone, but Zander had a fresh scar in its place. It was dirty and bloodstained but seemingly healed.

  “Holy crap,” she whispered. “That is absolutely incredible! Is that how you’ve been able to survive all these years?”

  “Not exactly,” Zander said, his voice tight and curt. “I can’t die because of the curse, but being able to do that made it tolerable. The earth, combined with the power of the spirit stone, heals me a hell of a lot faster than it would without it. But I still feel pain.”

  “How horrible,” she said through quivering lips. “It’s like you’ve been killed over and over. Your body heals just so you can get hurt again. That’s totally messed up.”

  Tears stung her eyes, and her throat tightened with a tide of sadness and sympathy. This man had endured centuries of loneliness and the kind of pain that only existed in Rena’s nightmares. She wished that the witch who did this to him was still alive so she could kick the bitch’s ass.

  “It’s called a curse for a reason,” he said humorlessly. His pale-green eyes clapped onto hers, and his voice dipped to barely a whisper. “Vito wanted me to suffer. He got his wish in spades.”

  “Vito,” she murmured. Rena stilled as the truth of his words sank in. “He’s the one who hired the witch… Jesus, Zander. I—I’m sorry. I…”

  Rena ran her fingertips lightly over the puckered scar, which was already fading to a pale pink from an angry red. Zander’s stomach muscles flexed as Rena carefully inspected the healing flesh. The smell of dirt, blood, and his naturally male scent filled her head, making her dizzy. All she wanted to do was gather him in her arms and kiss every single scar on his skin. She lifted the shirt higher, exposing more of Zander’s torso, and she sucked in a sharp breath when she saw several other scars.

  “Oh my God,” she whispered. Rena ran her thumb over a jagged mark that looked like it had been there for years. He tensed but didn’t pull away. “What in the hell have you been through? Every time I look at you, I discover more scars.”

  Zander’s strong fingers curled around her wrists as he gently pushed her hands away before zipping up his jacket, covering the bloodstained shirt. Rena’s eyes met his, and empathy swelled. Pain lingered there, and it wasn’t purely physical. The man may have more bodily scars than she could count, but the emotional trauma was surely no less damaging.

  Perhaps worse.

  “Nothing I haven’t deserved,” he murmured. He grabbed a pack of wet wipes from the shelf and handed them to her. “Here.”

  Rena took what he offered and began to clean her hands off while she fought the urge to argue with him. Before she could say anything, the sound of movement behind her caught their attention. She had practically forgotten the other woman was there. Viola had finally woken up, and the expression of confusion on her face was almost comical.

  “Little girl, can someone please tell me what the devil is going on?”

  Viola’s fingers clutched the counter as she peered warily above the edge, glancing from Zander to Rena. As she rose to her feet, the older lady grabbed her cigarettes and quickly lit one with shaking fingers. She brought it to her lips and took a long drag before settling her ample backside onto the metal stool.

  Rena’s brain scrambled as she glanced down at the bloody, dirty smears on the floor. How the hell were they going to explain this mess? Zander beat her to it.

  “You fainted,” Zander said calmly. “And I guess I scared the guy off when I came in. He ran out of here and didn’t look back. I’m sure he’s crossed the state line by now. I doubt you’ll have any more trouble with him. It was nothing. Really.”

  The woman looked from Zander to the mess on the floor and raised her eyebrows.

  “I bet he did.” She sucked another long drag from her cigarette. The end burned bright orange. “Looks like you scared more than the snot out of him. That’s a lot of blood for a lot of nothin’.”

  “Maybe we should call the police,” Rena said, uncertainty soaking her voice. “I mean…”

  “No,” she said slowly. “I don’t think they’d buy one iota of my story. Do you?”

  Rena opened her mouth to protest, but Zande
r clasped her hand in his and squeezed it gently.

  “No, ma’am.” He threw a hundred-dollar bill on the counter before pulling Rena toward the door. “Thank you, and sorry for the mess.”

  “You sure you’re okay, mister?” She pointed to the floor. “Looks like you got hurt somethin’ awful.”

  “I’m fine. Just a nosebleed.”

  Her penciled-on eyebrows lifted. “That so?”

  “Yes, ma’am. We’ll be getting out of your way now.”

  That’s it? Rena touched his mind with hers and fleetingly noted how easy and right it felt. We’re just going to leave?

  It’s for the best. He smiled at Viola as he responded to Rena with a clipped, curt tone. There’s no video surveillance in this place. We should get out of here while we can.

  No video? Rena flicked a quick look around. Zander was right. No cameras. She hadn’t even thought of that. Good. Then I need to do something before we go.

  “Hang on.” Rena yanked her hand free from Zander’s and went to the counter with Viola’s gaze pinned to her. She ignored Zander’s frustrated sigh. “You aren’t crazy, Viola, and I am sorry for the mess. But before we go, I’d like to do something for you, if you don’t mind.”

  “Depends.” She blew out a stream of smoke and pointed her cigarette at Zander. “It involve your friend over there?”

  “No, ma’am.”

  “Your eyes gonna start glowin’ funny too?”

  “No.” Rena extended her arm onto the counter and turned her palm up. “It’s about you and your baby girl. Can you give me her shoe?”

  “Rena,” Zander said in a warning tone. “This isn’t a good—”

  “It’s fine, Zander. Why don’t you wait for me outside?”

  Zander grumbled something with discontent as the door of the store swung shut behind him. Rena didn’t take her eyes off Viola.

  “I can help you find her.”