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With that, Rosalind turned and walked away, disappearing in the crowd. I watched her go, an unfamiliar pang of sympathy in my gut—something I never expected to feel for her. But Tomas was the one who’d really done this. He’d used everyone to get what he wanted, including his own children.
I froze. Something was off, like I could feel the danger in the air, prickling at my senses like electricity. My instincts flared to life, screaming at me to protect Mariah, to shield my mate, though I had no idea what from.
I ran toward her, and the security team went on high alert, their eyes darting around, looking for danger.
Out of nowhere, a black van careened around a corner, tires screeching against the asphalt as it skidded to a stop only yards away. The doors flew open, and I acted on raw instinct.
“Get down!” I barked, grabbing Mariah’s arm and shoving her behind me.
Fuck. What was happening?
The guards closed ranks around us, and I shouted at them, “Get Mariah back inside! Now!”
My heart pounded wildly with fear as well as adrenaline. The guards broke into two units, one ushering her back into the building.
“Evan!” She was nearly drowned out in the chaos. I turned to see her reaching for me, fighting as the guards forced her away from me.
“Inside, now!” I yelled, a command which made the guards move even faster to get her back into the safety of the courthouse. The sound of bullets filled the air, and I thought I might come unglued. Even with our security team, we weren’t prepared for this kind of attack. As soon as Mariah disappeared back inside, I spun around and took in the scene.
“Fuck,” I muttered under my breath. Men dressed in black were jumping out of the van, raining gunfire on the crowd. There was only one way to deal with this, to eliminate the threat before innocent bystanders were hurt.
Shifting was a last resort in the city, but it was either that or risk getting shot. My heart raced at the thought of what might happen if someone saw me shift, the penalty I’d have to pay, but there was no time for hesitation. The only thing that mattered was securing the situation.
“Mariah's inside!” I shouted at one of the guards. “Keep a team on her.” The rest would follow protocol, shifting before joining me, but I couldn’t wait for them. I took a breath, then let my dragon take over.
My body expanded rapidly, bones cracking and muscles rippling, as I transformed into my massive dragon form. It was nearly instantaneous, fueled by the urgency both my dragon and I felt. People who’d initially been running from the gunfire now screamed and scattered even faster seeing a giant beast appear in front of the courthouse.
I let out a monstrous, reverberating roar that made the windows of the courthouse tremble, then I flapped my wings, rising higher as dragon fire formed within. I was ready to rain down on the men below if it came to it. They didn’t falter, still shooting at me as they advanced, seemingly unfazed by the fact that their bullets ricocheted off my scales.
Seconds later, my security team had shifted as well. Three dragons and two cheetahs stood before the courthouse, a formidable threat to even the strongest foe. Anyone would think twice about continuing their attack, but these men didn’t seem to care, as if they were willing to sacrifice themselves.
I narrowed my eyes at the gunmen, my vision sharper in dragon form. It was only then that I realized they were human, or more likely, some of Tomas’s experimental shifter hybrids. Hawthorne was forcing my hand, getting me to kill humans, to dig my own grave. But if I did that, I'd be no better than him, and I refused to let him win. I wouldn't sink to his level. I wouldn’t let their blood stain my hands.
I roared again, mightier than before, displaying the full force of my strength. The ground shook beneath us, the stench of fear rolling off the shooters in waves, and even from above, I could sense their hesitation.
The gunmen trained their weapons on me, firing shot after shot, but each time the bullets pinged harmlessly off my scales. I had to put an end to this, to strike enough fear in them that they abandoned their attack. Once I’d opened my jaws wide enough, I let the burgeoning dragon fire loose, spraying a blast of flames in their direction. It was carefully controlled, just enough for them to feel the heat, but not enough that they’d burn. They stumbled backward, tripping over themselves in their hasty retreat.
Go on, I silently urged them, growling, my tail flicking impatiently behind me as I gathered more fire from within. With wide-eyed terror, they finally seemed to get the message, scrambling back into their van and peeling away from the courthouse as quickly as they’d arrived.
Seconds later, sirens pierced the air as police cars pulled up to the courthouse, their lights flashing blue and red as bystanders screamed and cried. I cursed and shifted back into human form as quickly as possible. I’d broken the law, and now I’d pay for it.
The officers stepped out of their vehicles, guns drawn, unsure of what they were about to encounter. I raised my hands above my head, showing them I wasn't a threat… or wasn’t one anymore.
“Everything's under control,” I said steadily, even if I could still feel the adrenaline rush. “We were attacked by a van of gunmen, but they're gone now.”
The officers exchanged glances, clearly skeptical, but as witnesses came forth and confirmed my story, their expressions shifted from suspicion to concern.
“Are you sure everyone's okay?” an officer asked, his eyes scanning my security team that’d shifted back to human form as well.
“Mariah…” I hadn't seen her since the chaos began and I’d sent her back inside. I tried not to panic as I turned to one of my guards. “Go find Mariah. Make sure she's safe.”
He nodded and quickly disappeared into the courthouse. The officers wanted a full breakdown of what happened, but I barely heard anything they said. All that mattered was that Mariah was safe. They should be bringing her out by now. I growled in frustration. What the hell was taking so long?
One of my men finally emerged. The look on his face told me everything I needed to know.
“Where is she?” I demanded. “Why didn’t you bring her out?” I gripped his arm, sure there was fire in my eyes as I roared, “Where the fuck is my mate?”
“I… I can't find her,” he stammered. “Mariah's not in the building.”
