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It won’t be long until it disturbs the other sectors.
I’d hate to have to start a war for her, but I will.
I freeze when I hear a small inhale. It’s almost imperceptible, but not to me. The sound has my heart fluttering like a trapped hummingbird. My bloodied hands fist at my sides as I turn, my tail whipping around me as I search for the source.
As I search for Aria.
The growl escapes my throat until my voice is more of a hiss mixed with a roar than words. “Aria,” I call out.
There’s a small shuffle, then silence. She’s here somewhere, hidden in this broken shopfront. She knew she couldn’t escape me, because I am too fast, so instead she chose to hide—from me.
My human!
It makes me roar. My tail slams into racks, sending them flying as I crouch. “Do not make me tear this shop apart,” I warn. I know I need to calm down to appeal to her. Currently, I look and sound like a wild monster, so why would she come out?
I can’t calm down, however, knowing she is in danger every moment she is away from me.
“Little human, come out now. I won’t hurt you.”
I hear a snort and narrow my eyes, turning to the part of the room it came from. My enhanced sight allows me to scan every detail. There! There’s a small handprint in the dust on shelves she must have climbed.
Springing into action, I race for the shelves.
I am so focused on my Aria, on my human and saving her, that I do not hear the claws nor the heavy breathing until it is too late. Claws drag along my side in a swat, the force sending me tumbling to the wall with a crash. Spinning into a crouch, my fangs extended in warning, I meet the dark eyes of the tiger.
A mated pair.
It leaps through the broken window of the shop, the glass crunching under its massive paws. Its tail waves behind it in irritation, its bright coat moving with its slinking prowl. It leaps from the window to the floor, then turns its head and bares its fangs.
It’s big, but I’m bigger.
Not to mention faster, stronger, and more deadly.
It will not get past me, even as I feel blood slide down my side from its vicious pawing.
“Red?” Aria whispers.
“Stay there,” I snarl, not taking my eyes off the creature. It prowls back and forth, swiping at me but unable to reach. I want to lure it closer so I can pin it, but the sound of feet hitting the ground behind me has me whirling.
Aria!
She climbs down off a high shelf I didn’t even see, and it’s the distraction the creature needs. Her eyes widen and her mouth opens, and I turn, but it’s too late. It slams into me with the force of a human truck. I hear something crack but ignore the sharp pain. A roar splits my lips as I reach down and grip its head, but its teeth pierce my thigh.
My hands are slippery with my own blood as I manage to move forward and steer us away from Aria so she doesn’t accidentally get hurt. I feel more blood pouring from the wound and know it’s deep.
He’s going for the major arteries.
I stumble as dizziness hits me for a moment, but then I grit my teeth and tighten my hold. My grip is slippery, though, and the tiger is determined to have its revenge.
“Shit! Okay, hold on!” Aria yells.
“Do not come closer!” I snarl as the tiger bites down harder, making me roar again.
“Yeah, fuck that, Red,” she mutters, and then she is suddenly at my side. My panic at seeing her so close to the creature has strength flooding my system, but she doesn’t give me time to recover and end the tiger.
No.
She has a baseball bat in her hand, and she slams it into the creature’s head. It releases my leg with a whine and spins on her with its own roar, blood dripping down its skull.
