Total pages in book: 152
Estimated words: 154368 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 772(@200wpm)___ 617(@250wpm)___ 515(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 154368 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 772(@200wpm)___ 617(@250wpm)___ 515(@300wpm)
Nyomi looked at him. "You're a powerhouse, and the smartest person in this room."
Hiro huffed.
Nyomi kept going. "I love you too, Reo."
Reo's mouth opened slightly. Surprise flickered across his face.
"I care for you just as much as I care for them."
Reo nodded slowly.
"Be the competent Roar that you are. Think steps ahead. If you get feelings, if you feel edgy about anything—get all of y'all out of there."
Reo stood. He tucked his guns back into his holster and gave Nyomi a small bow—formal and respectful. "I will bring them home. I promise."
Then he turned and left.
Hiro followed him out.
The servants filed out too.
The room went quiet.
I looked at Nyomi. Her finger was still bleeding. Drops fell onto the white carpet.
I could see the fear in her eyes. The worry. The terror that she was trying so hard to hide. But I also knew we had to go.
I crossed the room and pulled her into my arms one last time. She fit against me perfectly.
"I'm coming back, Tora. I swear it."
She nodded against my chest.
Hiro called from the hallway. “We can’t delay this anymore, Kenji.”
Frowning, I kissed the top of her head and then I let her go. “I love you, Tora.”
“I love you too, Kenji.”
I didn’t want to leave, yet I dragged myself to the door, stopped, and looked back at her one more time.
Goddamn it.
She was standing in the middle of the room.
Alone.
Beautiful.
Terrified.
And still dripping blood onto the white carpet.
I wanted to fix the wound, clean her finger, bandage it, and then kiss her one more time.
But now was not the time to heal.
It was only the time for war.
I turned and left.
We had the power of her blood and the power of our revenge.
I just hoped that was enough.
Chapter thirty-one
The Fangs
Nyomi
I stood there in the middle of the bedroom and closed my eyes.
My hands started to shake, and I couldn't stop the image playing in my head. It showed a dark room with concrete walls.
The three of them—Kenji, Hiro, Reo—walked into the room shoulder to shoulder.
Gunfire blasted them immediately.
Hiro's body jerked backward. His knees hit the floor before the rest of him followed. Reo spun, caught two bullets in the chest, and went down with his eyes still open.
And Kenji. . .the love of my life. . .he stood the longest, yet still. . .bullets tore through him. His mouth moved. No sound came out, but I knew what he was saying. He was saying my name.
Please God no. . .
And as Kenji died, the dragon-shadow erupted from his back. Black smoke and fury, clawing at the air, trying to shield what was already gone. It opened its mouth and didn’t let out a roar.
Instead, it whimpered.
Then it evaporated, dissolved like ink in water, and Kenji's body hit the ground.
No. No. No.
I shook my head and forced my eyes open.
That didn’t happen. Focus on the present.
I looked around the bedroom, took it in, and pressed my hand against my chest, right above my heart. It hammered beneath my palm.
God, please.
I didn't have fancy words or any scripture memorized. Just the raw, ugly prayer of a woman who had just put blood on guns and sent three men to war.
Protect them, please. You are all powerful. Bring them back to me. All of them.
Something warm seeped between my fingers.
I looked down.
Blood soaked through the fabric of my shirt in a slow, dark bloom right over my heart. I didn't wipe it off. I pressed my hand harder into it and held it there, sealing the prayer beneath my palm.
Kenji was walking into a potential trap. Hiro was going with him. Reo was still recovering from injuries. And I'd just sent them off with my blood smeared on their guns in a ritual of protection that might not mean anything at all.
I wanted to scream.
Wanted to run after them.
Wanted to beg them not to go.
But I didn't.
Because that wasn't what they needed from me right now.
I took a breath, let it fill my lungs slowly, and then I released it.
My mind kept spinning. I needed to talk to someone. Hiroko. Deja. Nika. Zo. Anyone who could help me understand if there was something else I could do. Something more than just standing here shaking.
I’ll ask Hiroko. She’ll help.
Still, I wished I'd said more to Kenji before he left.
Wished I'd told him how terrified I was.
Wished I'd made him promise to come back.
But I couldn't think about that nor let myself imagine that the shower might have been the last time I ever touched him. Or even more that this room would be the last time I heard Hiro laugh or saw Reo's intelligent smile.
No. They’re going to be fine.
Sighing, I went into the bathroom and cleaned up my finger, grabbing the Band-aids from the side drawer. Once the wound had been tended to, I went back into the closet and pulled out comfortable, stretchy black pants. Next, I found a long-sleeve black shirt.