Still, being manacled in a creepy shack gave her plenty opportunity for some soul searching. Emmaline was right—normal was way overrated. Did she really want to spend the rest of her days with some dull guy who didn’t make her heart sing every time he walked into a room? Aiden made her feel alive. Special. Cherished. Her stomach cramped whenever she thought of never seeing him again. She had been protecting her heart all this time from what it needed to feel complete.
Aiden.
Soon as she escaped crazy-ass Tony, she was going to tell Aiden she loved him. No more running and no more fighting.
The scrape of metal jerked her from her musings and she shifted her focus to the door just as Tony stepped inside.
“Did you miss me while I was gone?”
She didn’t waste her energy reacting to his taunt. Instead she remained silent while he pulled up a lawn chair and sprawled in the seat. Too bad he didn’t place the chair a little farther back. It would have been nice if the spider fell on his head.
Tony dug into one of the pockets on the leg of his cargo pants. He pulled out an object that reminded her of the handheld game player that Wheezer occasionally snuck into work. The opening jingle of bombs exploding verified her suspicions. “You’re not an art student at all, are you?”
He continued playing with the toy, his thumbs a blur of motion. “Nope.”
“Aiden guessed that the vandal was a hunter. Is that what you are? A hunter?”
“Yep.”
His monosyllabic answers were starting to bug the hell out of her. “Damn it, would you put that down?”
“Hold on. I’m about to kill this ugly mofo.” The sounds of heralding trumpets trilled from the device and Tony pumped his fist in the air and roared. “I. Am. Victorious.”
She gaped at him. No. You’re the jelly in a nutcase sandwich. She decided to keep that assessment to herself for the time being.
Tony returned the game to his pocket and leaned forward. “What else has Aiden said about me?”
“Uh…nothing.”
Disappointment streaked across his face. “Really?”
“Believe it or not, you barely came up in conversation.” It took every ounce of willpower she possessed not to roll her eyes. “Why do I get this feeling that you’re more interested in Aiden than you are with me?” She cocked her head to the side. “Are you sure you’re not gay?”
“Shit, I don’t want to have sex with him. I want to kill him.”
She’d deduced as much but hearing it straight from his mouth still made her sick to her stomach. “He has just as much a right to life as you do.” More, you twisted cretin. “Being a dragon doesn’t make him evil or allow you to hunt him like an animal.”
Judging from Tony’s smirking expression, she didn’t manage to put the tiniest chink in his conscience. “In the game of life, there’s the hunter and the prey. There are few creatures on Earth with the capability of annihilating the hunter. That’s pretty damn exciting, don’t you think?”
The zealous glee shimmering in his eyes made her shiver. “Fine, you want to kill him. Why all this then?” She jerked her chin to indicate their surroundings. “You’ve had over a week to make your move. Maybe the fact that you haven’t is your common sense telling you that you’re way over your head.” Though she doubted he possessed any actual sense, she prayed her words might at least make him pause and rethink his insane plan.
He steepled his fingers and planted his chin on their tips. “True, I could have killed him a long time ago. Way longer than you realize. But his quick death would have been trivial compared to the big picture, so I’ve bided my time all these years.”
She frowned. “Big picture?”
“Yep. You see, my pops and yours used to hunt together back in the day.”
Surprise shot through her at his declaration and he laughed.
“The hunting community is more tightly knit than you know. Anyways, it didn’t take much for my old man to get loose-lipped after a beer or two, and one day he told me all about that contract hanging over your head. It was a damn shame both our pops died before getting the chance to do anything about your situation. I, on the other hand, don’t intend to let the opportunity pass.”
A sense of uneasiness settled in the pit of her stomach. “What do you mean?”
“War. Between the hunters and the dragons. The way it’s supposed to be. Meant to be.” Tony’s dark pupils gleamed with an unholy fire. “And Aiden coming here to collect a sacrifice—you—is the perfect catalyst.”
She frowned. “Why would the hunters go to war over me? It’s not like Aiden is planning to serve me flame-broiled over rice with a side of string beans.”
“They don’t know that. And I plan to make your death look real convincing, right after I kill Aiden and Jace.”
Tony lifted from his chair and strode toward her. She recoiled from him as far as the shackle would allow. His grin demented, he hunkered to his knees and wound a strand of her hair around his index finger. “You’ll be my first human kill. Wonder if I’ll like it as much as the others?”
A polite rap on the door preceded Maggie Fortune’s graceful entrance into the hotel room. His mother’s dynamic presence garnered the typical awe and respect from everyone gathered around the bed. Even Claudia lost a fraction of her bad-ass swagger as Maggie made her rounds. After giving Emmaline’s hand a comforting squeeze, Maggie approached Aiden. He dutifully bussed her cheek. She pulled back and peered into his eyes, her own widening. “You’ve found your mate.”
Aiden grunted. “Now how the devil could you tell that from me kissing you?”
“I’m your mother. We know these things. So is it the human?”
He didn’t even entertain the option of lying. “Yes.”
“The council won’t be pleased.”
“I know.”
Maggie’s expression softened. “Speaking as your mother, I’m delighted.”
Her answer stunned him. “You are? But you’ve always hinted at me marrying and carrying on the bloodline.”
She sighed. “I admit the idea appealed to me. But it’s your happiness that’s at stake. Nothing can replace the love of two people who are meant for each other. Speaking of which, here comes your father now.”
Aiden turned as Liam strode into the room. After delivering his own somber greetings to everyone, Liam joined Aiden and Maggie. His face heavily lined with fatigue and worry, he clapped Aiden on the shoulder. “Have you any word on Dana?”
“No. And Tony hasn’t made any further contact since this afternoon.” The familiar helpless rage welled inside Aiden. Stalking to the nearby window, he stared out the grimy pane at the approaching dusk. He could just make out the ghostly imprint of the Talon moon as it played peek-a-boo behind the wispy tail of a cloud. The beast within stirred at the moon’s seductive call, feeding Aiden’s hunger to hunt down his enemy and rip him to shreds.
Tony wanted a fight. By God, he was going to get one.
“What do we know about this Tony fellow?” Maggie questioned.
Claudia snorted. “Besides the fact he’s several fries short of a Happy Meal? Not much.”
“We know that he’s got a major obsession with gaming,” Jace offered. “And he sees Aiden as the ultimate opponent.”
“Yeah, like in Quest of the Dragon Knight. The goofball’s probably got a huge boner imagining a death match in the ring of doom or whatever the shit they call it.” Tucker’s snicker turned into a yelp when Claudia boxed his ears. “What the hell was that for?”