Dani reassured the pastor and stepped out into the night.
The sharpened senses that had come along with her new inner beast could feel them prowling in the darkness. Her heart took on a new rhythm as adrenaline flooded her.
She found herself a doorway, somewhere she could protect her back while she assessed the situation. The sharks circled, smelling blood in the water. Someone who was weak. Easy prey.
Dani was being hunted, and they were close. Four of them. A ramshackle group of males, searching for anything that might make both their night, and their lives, easier.
Dani pulled her feet beneath her, rolling forward until she was balanced over them.
The men spread out to each side of her doorway. One held an iron bar—another grasped an ancient baseball bat in his left hand while tapping it into his right.
They closed in on her. She huddled with her jacket hood pulled up, and concentrated on her hands and face.
“Well, little girl,” one purred. “It’s your lucky night. We are going to have such a good time.”
She knew what they wanted. No way she’d give it to them.
Another bent to grab at her arm. She launched herself at him. Wrapped a black-haired, clawed hand around his forearm and crushed the bone.
He shrieked, but she was already slamming into the next one in line, the claws of her other hand slashing across his chest, leaving blood and shredded flesh in its wake.
The force of her leap knocked him flat, and she launched at the one with the baseball bat. Ripped it from his hands as her hood flew back.
The man’s eyes widened as the long jaws and razor-sharp teeth came at him. He screamed.
The fourth man swung the iron bar. It bounced off her shoulder, and she twisted to snap at him. Her teeth left deep gouges in the man’s arm; he dropped the bar, turned, and ran.
The other three picked themselves up and took off after him, trailing drops of blood.
Dani shook all over. Instead of pursuing them, she straightened. Returning her face to human, she pulled her hood high, and walked away as fast as her feet could carry her.
The buildings in this area, just off the heart of downtown, were a hundred years old. Many had been restored. Most had fully functioning businesses within them, but at this time of night, they were closed.
The alleyways behind them and the recessed doorways provided hiding places, decent areas to spend the night, so long as it was warm enough. But Dani headed for one of the shelters. Tonight, she needed people around her.
Their presence might keep the predators at bay until she could regain the inner balance that Rindek and Remy had taken from her.
5
Dragon shifters tended to stand out in a crowd.
Few sentient races across the realms grew as large or as formidable, although not all Dragons were as big as Tyrez and Razir. The Legion recruited only the best warriors to its ranks, and the brothers were large specimens, even for Dragons.
The size was usually a benefit for the Legion’s warriors. Their imposing presence was often enough to deter criminals, and it helped when it came to capturing or fighting. But it posed a problem for blending. One giant might pass with an occasional glance. Two strolling together captured the locals’ attention. So much so that the Dragon shifters most often worked alone, or with a partner nearby but out of sight.
It was the reason informants like Jacques were so vital. They could infiltrate and gather intel without arousing suspicion. Of course, they also tended not to be long lived. Jacques was an exception—due to his ability to duck and run.
There were realms where Dragons didn’t stand out, and Riyanic was one. For one thing, rogue Dragons lived here. And this place had no fewer than three races that rivaled them for size. Wearing long trench coats with hoods pulled up high to hide their distinctive eyes, Tyrez and Razir blended in as they paced through a market filled with other hulking figures sampling the wares.
Much of the small city of Nazanta’s trade slipped into the less-than-legal category, which was one of the reasons that it continued to bustle despite the setting sun.
Tyrez scanned the crowd. Despite the warmth of the night—Nazanta benefited from a tropical climate—many figures wore disguising clothing. His keen eyes watched the way they moved, or those they hung out with. There were times he wished for the keen nose of a Dire. Scents hung in the warm air—wind was a rarity in this place, and the smells could be hours old. It was difficult to tell if any hooded figures were Dragons.
Some likely were.
A tall figure approached them. It wasn’t until Taran stood directly in front of them that Tyrez discerned his brother’s deep-blue eyes and rugged features within the hood.
“I’ve found the building,” Taran said. “It’s at the far east end of the market. Two entrances on the ground.”
