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She smiled. “I love you, too.”
They called for their snow leopards and the dual vortexes seemed to dance and feed off each other without ever touching. Amelia was still enthralled by the feeling of champagne bubbles running over her skin as her snow leopard leapt forward and she felt her body shifting from human to feline. As the swirling maelstrom fell away, they changed directions to get back on course.
* * *
CARSON
This time they ran in tandem, covering the last set of miles in what felt like excellent time. His shoulder blade hurt, but Amelia had done a damn fine job, especially considering the circumstances. Would that she could have done something for Mason. No. It was no good going there. She couldn’t have saved Mason. Neither could he. The only ones responsible were the Shadow League and their minions and he would see they paid for what they had done.
As they exited from the trees, Carson ran to the top of the tallest rock and spotted the small boat bobbing on the stormy waters. It didn’t look like much—an old fishing boat in sad repair, but maybe it was best not to call too much attention to them. He only hoped it could convey them to safety. An old fisherman raised and lowered a signal vertically. It was an old-time railroad signal indicating it was safe to proceed. Nudging Amelia’s shoulder, he nodded toward the boat. He could feel her confusion and uncertainty and purred soothingly to her. She rubbed her head against his and then they bounded down the rocks until they were as close to the boat as they could get.
Carson gathered himself and leapt as far out into the cold water as he could. The frigid water stole his breath for a moment, and he waited until Amelia had joined him. Together they swam out to the boat. As they closed on the vessel, Carson realized that the ‘old fisherman’ was neither old nor a fisherman. It was Deke Campbell.
Two slings were lowered over the side and Carson and Amelia swam into them, allowing those on deck to haul them on board, Deke scowled. “Mason?” Carson shook his head. “I’m sorry. We’ll get them. Let’s get the two of you inside.”
Once inside the wheelhouse, Carson shifted, accepting the clothing Deke handed him before stepping out to give Amelia some privacy. Carson held up a soft blanket and wrapped it around her as soon as she emerged from the swirling mist. He rubbed her briskly with his hands until the shivering stopped.
Each of them grabbed a towel, dried their hair, and Amelia pulled on warm clothing before Carson opened the door for the others to join them.
“What happened?” asked Deke.
“What happened is you and your boss or whatever the fuck this Colby Reynolds is are so busy playing your games that somebody sabotaged an innocent woman’s plane and she almost died,” he snarled. “It’s bad enough that my brother was killed by somebody looking to kill him, me, or finish the job with Amelia. I want a word with Reynolds and this Tevryn guy. I thought dragon-shifters were supposed to be old-world chivalrous.”
“For the most part, they are,” said Derek.
“You call sending someone who (a) has no part, not to mention knowledge, of whatever secret war you and the Shadow League are conducting; (b) has no point of reference and doesn’t even know it’s dangerous; and (c) is provided with no backup chivalrous?”
Deke nodded. “Well, when you put it that way…”
“What other way is there to put it,” snarled Carson.
“Sweetheart,” Amelia laid her hand on his shoulder. “I’m all right, and do you honestly believe I wouldn’t have taken the job if I had known all the risks?”
Carson shook his head, his demeanor softening. “You have a point, but still.”
“She does have a point. All I can say is knowing Tevryn, he never dreamed you’d be in danger, and the package he sent was important. Is it still in the plane? Do we need to retrieve it?”
He had to give it to Campbell, he hadn’t even tried to reach for the leather pouch. “No. It’s right here. You might want to take out whatever is in there. We ditched the waterproof container in favor of ease of carrying.”
Deke picked it up, his eyebrows raising at the intact seal. “You didn’t look?”
“That wasn’t part of my job. Mason…” her voice caught on his name, “… indicated this Phoenix Corp, Phantom Fire, or whatever they want to call themselves… is rich. I want to be paid the balance owed on the delivery and they can bloody well buy me a new plane. I almost had that damn thing paid off.”
Deke grinned. “I’m sure the Phantom Fire will step up, but if they don’t, I can guarantee you Colby will. He’s been anxious about getting you to Windsong and only slightly less worried about the contents of this pouch. Let’s see if we can’t get that first part done. Stay out of sight. We’re going to try and just nonchalantly make our way back to Kodiak Island, but if we have to, we’re prepared and capable of running or fighting.”
Carson moved to the front of the wheelhouse, sinking down in the comfortable seating area and drawing Amelia into his lap.
“I’m so sorry about Mason. I wish I could…”
“Baby, you did everything you could have. He was right; even if we’d been next to a hospital, they couldn’t have saved him. He went out the way he wanted—giving us a chance to get away and knowing I’d found my fated mate.”
One of the deckhands brought them hot coffee and food, which they consumed greedily before settling down to sleep. He woke first with Amelia cuddled up in his arms. He could hear and feel her peaceful slumber and he had no wish to disturb her. He’d meant what he said about Mason, but already he could feel his brother’s loss, but at the same time could feel Amelia’s spirit filling and binding that wound, much the way she’d taken care of his shoulder.
He raised himself up enough to look out the window. They werenotheaded to Kodiak Island. Carson jerked his head toward Deke. Had they been set up? Was Deke actually working for the Shadow League?
“Take it easy,” rumbled Deke. “Otter Cove is closer. Colby thinks it’s time we let some of the others know what’s going on. Besides, he’s hopeful you’re going to join us. We had a look at these papers. To be honest we can’t make heads or tails out of them, but after speaking to Tevryn, he thinks it’s right up your alley.”
Carson nodded. “And I was able to smuggle out some of my research and that of a few others. I left in a secure storage box in Toronto.
