That, and the fact the Dires had shifted the lower half of their faces to beast, in order to tap into the power of their noses.
The park was at the old steel-truss bridge’s base, which was the last place they’d reliably detected their target’s scent. The Mover had narrowly escaped their grip after the fight.
Tyrez needed to find her. Not only was she a potential risk among the human population, but considering her power, Rindek might attempt to reacquire her.
Alex, the redheaded alpha Dire that had arrived to track her, was obviously thinking along the same lines. “Do you think the Warlock will try to nab her again?”
“No guarantees,” Tyrez mused. “But considering the damage the Mover inflicted during the battle, I’m willing to bet he’ll try.”
“With her pack alpha dead, he’ll have to find a new way to control her.” The Sabre, Neil, pulled his lips back from his teeth.
Tyrez grimaced. Such control was key to Rindek’s success. He twisted the alphas to his will, which enabled him to control the women and their abilities. But the Mover’s alpha as well as her pack were all dead now.
“The death of her pack alpha might have messed her up good.” Alex’s blue eyes sparked sapphire. “It might even drive her mad.”
The redhead spoke the truth. The thought of this woman in a mentally damaged state drifting through Winnipeg’s unsuspecting human population, turned Tyrez’s blood to ice.
She was a wild card that couldn’t be ignored.
Beside him, the Sabre stiffened, his thoughts no doubt mirroring the Dragon’s. “Okay.” Neil’s voice was smooth and deep. “You guys have the noses. I’ll follow you. Report to Alex, and he can relay it to me.” Neil gestured to Tyrez. “I’ll keep the big guy in the loop.”
Communication was vital to a good operation, and this group had it in spades. Through a mate-bonded connection to a set of female identical twins, Neil and Alex were linked telepathically to each other and to them. Although the mating was not yet official, the mindlink indicated it to be a mere formality. The women weren’t participating in the search, but they didn’t have to be physically present to do so.
As pack alpha, Alex was also linked to the other pack members. Tyrez was impressed with the potential of a group of Dires telepathically networked to a Sabre. It did lead to some frustration as he often found himself left out of the conversational loop. He’d grown accustomed to interpreting facial expressions as both Alex and Neil mindspoke with the women, and each other.
“We’ll search until dawn,” Tyrez promised, waving his phone. “If you haven’t found anything by then, break it off.”
Neil nodded. “It won’t be easy tracking over concrete in populated areas. But there’s no sense risking being seen with beast noses in daylight.” He rubbed his hands together. “Let’s get this show on the road, boys.”
Alex led the way, and his pack fanned out behind him. Even as humans, they moved with the grace of predators, their shoulders hunched forward as they brought their noses to bear.
Tyrez eyed the big Sabre. He’d be tracking too, but he couldn’t match the power of the Dire noses. “Stay in touch,” the Dragon said.
Neil flashed him a toothy grin and jogged off after the others. Sabres were stalkers to the core, using their brain to plan. They loved nothing more than bringing puzzle pieces together and achieving a big-picture goal. In contrast, Dires were hunters, fast moving and ruthless, driven by instinct and acting more in the moment.
The two together were powerful. Tyrez approved as he hugged the shadows. His size was conspicuous enough that he would stay out of the search itself. He would be nearby in case they found something. But after tracking and capturing the Dragon slavers, he was feeling unsettled. And every Dragon that needed to ease their mind took to the sky.
He was clothed in scales beneath the trench coat. The downside to scale clothing was that they were attached to his skin—they couldn’t mimic the normal loose drape of cloth. They revealed every contour, and he compensated in certain areas by growing the scales large enough to provide a degree of discretion, but they still outlined more than modesty might dictate.
As a result, Tyrez often donned traditional clothing when in the human realm. Certainly when he reported for his office duties. The few times he’d showed up in his scales had created a bit of a stir among the human female staff. As well as some of the males.
The scales made it easier, however, to shift back and forth in this realm. Now, he removed the trench coat and rolled it, using the belt to make a loop his Dragon claws could hold on to. Then he held his phone close to his ribs and grew large scales to form a pocket within.
For a moment, his hands drifted over the scales along his wrists, relishing in the strange tickle of energy from the golden scales he’d glued over top of his own. He had no idea why he’d done so. Razir would hound him mercilessly if he knew. But something inside Tyrez wanted part of the captive Dragon with him.
He told himself it was a reminder that he would do whatever it took to free Firashe from that damned Warlock.
With the phone safely stashed, Tyrez embraced the change. It took seconds to achieve phase one, his natural rhino-sized form. But then the crystal power sang through his blood, amplifying his body with pure energy. And he grew. Until his wings spanned forty feet, and he lengthened to fifty from nose tip to tail spike.
Not something easily missed by passersby, so he wasted no time in taking off. The first downsweep of his powerful wings took him thirty feet into the air. His sharp eyesight raked the area for possible witnesses as he rose, but soon the darkness embraced him.
The night air was soft and warm beneath his wings. His heart lightened, and his troubles fell away as he soared.
The city lights became mere pinpricks far below. Flying was as natural to Dragons as breathing. He would rather die than not be able to dance through the clouds.
* * *
After a long and fruitless night of searching Winnipeg’s streets, Tyrez passed through an aerial gate to enter his home realm of Arandag. The empire maintained the aerial gates specifically for Dragon use, facilitating easy movement between their home realm and the others they frequented.
