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She smiled to herself as she used every bit of strength she possessed to break his grip. The bastard was strong, but his strength paled next to that of an enraged jaguar.
She whirled around, her arms flying wide, but he threw an energy pulse at her. The force of it knocked her in the chest hard, another burst of searing heat to join the flames that still licked at her hands.
She doubled over, breathing heavily as her eyes frantically searched for a weapon, anything that she could use. Her palms were on fire, but she ignored it, her muscles bunching together tightly as her jaguar continued to make noise.
Kragen rushed her, and she sidestepped at the last minute, twisting her body, throwing her hips into the air as she did so.
Her legs arced upward, and she knocked the sorcerer in the back as he went by and sent him flying. Damn ninjas had nothing on her.
A smile cracked her mouth open wide as her body began to shift, her energy exploding. The mist was already clawing its way up her legs, and she reveled in the ancient magick that took hold.
She rolled to the side, bones popping as fur rippled over her flesh. Seconds later, her dress was in tatters, and she barked a warning as she emerged from the mist to face her enemy.
Her long tail swung back lazily, flicking the air and catching the eye of the sorcerer. Kragen was breathing heavily, his face a dark mask of hatred, and Jaden wondered how she’d ever thought him handsome.
“I’d love to see your sorry ass locked up in a zoo somewhere.”
She ignored the taunt and moved forward, her movements slow, precise. Kragen was frantically weaving a spell in the air, and she knew she didn’t have much time.
She was about to pounce, her paws digging into the earth beneath her, when a blur whipped by, a golden mix of fur and snarls.
A large spotted jaguar took Kragen down, hard, the great cat swiping his paw savagely across the man’s face. Kragen emitted a god-awful sound and began to struggle. The jaguar swiped once more, and he was still.
The spotted cat made a keening noise, deep from its gut as it turned from the sorcerer and stared at her, its golden eyes burning with a madness that gave her pause.
She called the mist to her once more, her eyes never leaving his, letting her anger push her through as the change took hold. Kragen belonged to her, no one else.
Seconds later, she stood in human form, her body tight and humming with an energy that had every single nerve ending on fire.
“Goddamn it, Castille, I don’t need your help,” she spit at him. “I had him on my own.”
She walked toward the downed sorcerer, well aware of the jaguar as it stared at her, studied the naked lines of her body. The cat slowly moved away giving her room, and she bent over Kragen. His flesh had been cut, a gash across the cheek that put her bruises to shame. Blood was flowing freely, but his chest rose and fell. He wasn’t dead, thank goodness, only out cold.
She’d have Nico take him to the hub, and they could interrogate him. Kragen Black would answer their questions one way or another.
The jaguar made a weird sound from behind her, one that pulled deep in her belly, and she shivered as it slid up over her skin, teasing the tattoos along her flesh.
She heard the jaguar panting softly, felt the shift in energy, and tried her best to ignore him as she scooped up the remnants of her dress. The black silk was pretty much in tatters, and she sighed heavily as she fingered the soft fabric. Damn, but she’d done a bang-up job in totally ruining the Cavelli original.
She looked to the side. Where in hell are my Jimmy Choos?
“Are you out of your goddamn mind?” Julian’s voice was low, but there was no mistaking his anger. “He could have raped you. Or worse.”
“I was in no danger. Trust me, I’ve handled lots worse than that asshole.”
“I’ll bet you have.”
“What the hell does that mean?” She turned to him, the tatters of her dress forgotten as they fell from her fingers. Why did she let him get under her skin like that?
He didn’t answer.
Julian stood several feet away, his tall form half-hidden by the shifting shadows the wind produced. She’d seen all of him the night before, but still, the sight of his hard, muscled frame made her mouth go dry.
The man was walking perfection. An amazing blend of GQ looks with the predatory danger of an animal.
It was wrong. For her to want him as she did . . . all of it.
He hissed, and his chest rose and fell as he continued to stare at her from the darkness.
