Phoenix (13 page)

A deep breath in steadied him. He held the exhale and tightened his index finger. The gun
snap-hissed
and then rang back on empty again. Frantically he tried to reload while watching the targets. One of them stumbled, but regained his balance. His free hand reached back and pulled free the dart that had embedded itself in his shoulder.

“Fuck!” Uriel shouted as they disappeared into the trees. One dart just wasn’t enough. Yet again he had accompanied the Stone Bears out, and he still couldn’t make himself useful.

“Are you okay?”

He turned at the source of the voice. It was Garrett, Alpha of the Jade Crew.

“Yeah, I’m fine,” he said angrily. “I let them fucking get away,” he snarled, pointing in the direction the others had gone. They would be long gone by now he knew.

“Perhaps,” Gabriel said, coming up alongside them. “But you saved us,” he said. “If we had come up on our own, unawares and without Garrett and his crew by our side, we would have been overwhelmed before they could have reached us.”

Uriel frowned, but didn’t say anything at first, glancing around the clearing. The fight was all but over now. As he watched, the Jade Crew ended the last few shifters who had escaped their initial attack. He wasn’t fazed by the violence. Part of him sneered, feeling like the attackers had it coming after their attempted ambush. The feeling didn’t last long though, and he felt vaguely sick with himself that he had even harbored such thoughts. By his count, none of the allied shifters had been lost in the fight.

“I’m glad of that,” Uriel snapped. “But now they have the Stone!”

Gabriel nodded. “True, and I don’t like what that implies either, but it could have been much worse without your actions, Uriel. Even if you weren’t supposed to be here,” he added.

Uriel had the good graces to blush and look chagrined. “I’m glad I was though.”

“So was I,” Darren said, joining them now, as did Russell. “Why would they go after the Stone?” he asked now.

“Because they can put it to use,” Uriel said dully.

“You don’t think it’s for the money?” Gabriel asked. He clearly didn’t believe it either, but someone had to play devil’s advocate.

“I don’t think so,” Uriel replied. “I was thinking of that earlier, and I couldn’t put my finger on what was bothering me about it. But now I know. There isn’t any money for it.”

“What?” Garrett said, looking back and forth. “The Dragon Council pays well for them, don’t they?”

“True,” Gabriel admitted. “But that’s not what Uriel’s saying.”

“We haven’t heard from the Dragon Council in months,” Uriel said frankly. “That isn’t just regular communications either. They haven’t picked up any stones in that time. I think the Dragon Council have been taken out of the equation somehow.”

Garrett and the other Jade Crew bears just stared. This was the first the Stone Bears had mentioned that little tidbit, and it clearly took them off guard. Nobody wanted to think what it would mean to neutralize the Dragon Council. It must be something horrific indeed. Unfortunately the location of the Council was something no one but a dragon was ever allowed to know. That meant they couldn’t go find out either.

“So why did they go through such an effort to get it then?” Darren looked around at the others as he spoke.

“It means they have a dragon on their side,” Uriel said when no one else made a move to speak. Fine, they didn’t want to acknowledge what it meant? Then he would. “A mature one. One who can use his fire to turn that Stone into an egg, and from it hatch a new dragon shifter.”

There was silence as he revealed what he suspected was the true plan all along.

“But why?” Garrett asked, not arguing with the point at all. “Just because they create a dragon doesn’t automatically make the newborn evil and willing to work for them.”

“That,” Uriel replied, “is the question we need to find out as soon as we can. It is imperative we know what their purpose behind it is. Unfortunately, I don’t think anyone here is going to help us.”

The others nodded in agreement. There had been no survivors from the day.

“Next time, we take prisoners,” Gabriel said forcefully. “I don’t care how badly they surprise us, we need to find out more of what is going on.” He shook his head, clearly disgusted with himself and the others for not thinking of that earlier.

“In the meantime,” Garrett said, looking around the clearing. “Let’s get this cleaned up at least.”

***

Uriel’s ears still stung from the tongue lashing Gabriel had given him. Thankfully the boss had done it in private, and while he was happy that Uriel had been there, he was still angry that the younger shifter had disobeyed a direct order and misused his authority to come along. There would be no punishment, due to his having saved the day, but that hadn’t saved him from being yelled at. It kind of cancelled out, he figured.

“Thanks for the lift, Jared,” he said, swinging down from the cab as the other shifter threw the vehicle into park and killed the engine.

“Not a problem. Next time though, try not to get me in trouble with you, okay?”

Jared had also received a bit of a talking to from Gabriel.

“I heard most of what he said to you,” Uriel told him with a laugh. “He barely even raised his voice. Besides, you had no idea, so nobody can blame you. We’ve trained you to listen to me. You were just obeying orders.”

“I suppose,” Jared said as they joined the others. The group as a whole walked toward the equipment room where they stored their outdoor gear.

“You know what I don’t understand,” Raphael said as the three Stone Bears split off from the trainees. “Is where the hell are they getting all these shifters from?”

Gabriel frowned in agreement.

“That is a really good question,” Uriel said. “I have no idea where, but you know, it does tell us a few things.”

“It means they must have a training facility somewhere, for starters,” Gabriel said, following the same lines of thought as Uriel.

“Exactly. They also must have some method of recruiting as well.”

Raphael snorted. “That’s easy enough. There’s no shortage of shifters out there with anger problems who want to hit back against those ‘who have it better than them,’” he said sarcastically, rolling his eyes.

Uriel nodded. It was true; there were far more disaffected shifters than simply those who ended up in Genesis Valley. Many shifters born in the cities seemed unaware that they were shifters. The change didn’t start until puberty, and it could not only scare, but permanently affect someone who wasn’t aware of what was going on within themselves.

“The ones that were snuck into the Sentinel program must have been the cream of their crop,” Raphael reasoned. “The ones we fought today couldn’t do anything more than brawl. Their only advantage was numbers.”

“But if they can begin creating dragons, things could go sideways really quickly,” Gabriel stated.

“They only have one stone,” Uriel said with a shrug of his shoulders. “One young dragon is bad enough, but we can handle a youngling.”

“Don’t forget about the adult they used to create the newborn,” Gabriel cautioned.

The others smiled grimly. That was something they definitely did not want to forget.

“Speaking of the lack of training of these thugs,” Uriel said thoughtfully, going back to a previous point. “I think we’re falling behind in that department too.

“What do you mean?” Gabriel asked, his eyes narrowing.

“We have two allies in the Jade and Emerald Crews. I think we can all agree we’re going to need them, right?”

The others voiced their agreement. They all knew that it would take as many of the shifters in Genesis Valley standing together as they could get to resist the coming storm.

“We need to train them as well. We’ve been so focused on the Sentinel trainees that we forgot all about the ones we already have.”

Gabriel and Raphael stared at him in shock, then glanced at each other.

“How could we have been so blind?” Gabriel said, stunned.

“We’ve had a lot on our plates lately,” Uriel said wryly. “I’ll handle this. It’s something I can be good at with my condition. I’ll speak to Darren too. He can begin working with the Jade Crew, sharing what he remembers of his own training with us.” He hated admitting to the fact that he wasn’t as useful as the others, but this truly would be a chance for him to do something that mattered, to contribute to the effort.

“I think it’s a great idea,” Raphael said.

“No, it’s a terrible idea,” said another, female voice.

“All yours Uriel,” Raphael whispered in his ear, and he and Gabriel scurried away.

Uriel wasn’t sure how to react. On one hand, he cared deeply for Sydney, but on the other, she had betrayed his confidence to Gabriel. They hadn’t had a chance to talk about that yet, and this was not the way he had imagined it going.

Either way, he had to do something, so with a deep, calming breath he turned to face her.

Chapter Twelve

Sydney

His shoulders squared as he turned, and she could see from the clouded expression on his face that Uriel was not in a good mood. She figured a lot of that had to do with her. That had been her initial purpose in coming down to the cavern, to find him and apologize. But when she had heard about him going out among the crews and teaching them how to fight, she realized how much of a target that would make him to whoever it was he was fighting against. She didn’t want him to put himself into such danger.

“I need to do something,” he gritted out through clenched teeth, and she recoiled slightly at the anger in his voice. It was stronger than she had anticipated. “This makes perfect use of my limited abilities at the moment,” he finished, clearly digging at the assessment she had given to Gabriel.

“You’re going to make yourself a target!” she protested. “Whoever is orchestrating the things you’ve told me about clearly has someone here in the Valley we don’t know about. They will see what you’re doing and find a way to put an end to it. Why can’t you see that?” she asked with a frustrated shake of her hands.

“It doesn’t matter,” he said gravely. “It has to be done. We need them.”

“It has to be done,” she said, mimicking his voice. “You know as well as I do that there are other ways. You just want to be out there because you feel like you have something to prove!”

“I do have something to prove!” he shouted at her. “I’ve got to prove to them that I can still fulfill my duty.” He pointed his hand in the direction of the doors where the last of the trainees were disappearing as fast as they could, leaving the pair alone.

She shook her head. “Bullshit,” she said, calling him out. She’d kept this in for a while now, but it needed to be said. “You don’t need to prove anything to them. You’re trying to prove to yourself that you’re still macho, still a badass, and you think throwing yourself into danger is the only way to do it.”

His eyes flared with rage, and she couldn’t believe she’d just said that, but it was the truth. She continued pressing home her points now.

“You lost an arm, Uriel. That sucks. It’s life-altering, and we all feel terrible that it happened. But it
did
happen. You can’t change it now, and you need to accept it. You’re no longer hurting, and you’ve learned very effectively to operate without it. But you still haven’t accepted that this is permanent. That you aren’t the same person you were before. You need to stop hiding from the truth!”

“How dare you,” he snarled, though she could see his body deflating as she tore into him.

“How dare I?” she asked, taking a step forward, her eyes blazing with fire. “How dare
I
?” She put her hands on his chest and pushed. He took a step backward, despite the fact he could have stood there without swaying if he wished. “I dare because I’ve been there for you, every step of the way. I’ve pushed you to recover, I’ve taught you how to become the best you can be. But I
dare
because you are the one that cannot accept what happened to you. So don’t give me that attitude, mister.”

“You told Gabriel that I couldn’t shift,” he accused.

“I did. I didn’t mean to, but you know what? I should have. It’s my responsibility. You are not fit for duty. You won’t accept what happened to you, and you won’t shift because you don’t want to display any vulnerability. That’s admirable,” she said, her tone softening, “but you’re allowing it to hold you back. You need to let go and understand that it
is
going to be different, and learn to work with what you have instead of wishing you could go back in time.”

“You want me to shift?” he asked. “Fine, come with me.”

He grabbed her hand and began to walk outside. He waited until she was moving, however, instead of forcefully dragging her after him. He went out to a nearby cluster of trees.

“I can shift,” he said angrily and closed his eyes.

She waited, watching his body tremble as he clearly tried to do shift.

Nothing happened.

“I’m not going to judge you!” she shouted. “You just need to do it. I don’t care that you won’t be the same powerful bear you were before.”

To her surprise, instead of launching another blistering verbal attack at her, Uriel sagged, his back thudding against a tree as he slid to the snow-covered ground.

“You don’t get it,” he said quietly.

“Don’t get what?” she asked, crouching down in front of him.

“I can’t feel it.” He looked up at her finally, and she saw the anguish in his eyes.

“Feel what?”

“My bear. It’s not there. I don’t know where it is,” he said, his eyes sparkling with wetness as he collapsed into a heap. “I’ve been able to feel its presence, like a constant companion, since I was fifteen. But now, it’s like it’s gone. Like it’s dead.”

He cast his eyes downward again, but not before she caught the shame in them. She didn’t know what to say or do.

“I don’t want to pity myself. I don’t
think
that I am,” he said, his voice growing slightly stronger. “I’ve been working my ass off to become better. To adapt to my new situation. I’ve proven to myself that eventually I will be useful again, even if it’s going to have to be in a different capacity. So why can’t I shift?” His shoulders shook slightly. “I’m scared.”

She barely heard the whispered words, but the implications behind them were astronomical.

“Oh Uriel,” she said softly, taking a crouch-step forward and throwing her hands around him. “It’s going to be okay.”

“Is it?” he asked in a sharp, biting tone. She sensed it was no longer directed at her, but at the futility of the situation. “Will my bear ever be useful with three legs?”

Sydney took a deep breath before answering. “In a combat situation? Probably not,” she admitted.

He tensed beneath her, but she kissed him softly on the cheek before continuing. “But there’s more to it than that, isn’t there? Your bear is a living, breathing creature contained within you. It needs more than just combat. If that’s all you’re thinking about using it for, it’s no wonder it won’t talk to you. It wants to do
more
than that. It wants to sniff the flowers, roll around in the snow, and relax under the trees. It needs to just be an
animal
sometimes,” she told him.

Uriel’s eyes snapped up, focusing on her. “You’re right,” he breathed. “Holy shit, how could I have been so stupid? I’ve been thinking of nothing but the conflict. I’ve ignored the best part of being a shifter!” His look softened. “I freaking love you Sydney Hightower.”

Her jaw dropped and she fumbled to recover. “You do?” Her cheeks burned brightly and she felt her look of astonishment turn to one of horror. “Wait wait wait! That’s not what I meant to say,” she protested as she saw his face begin to crumble.

“What did you mean to say?” he asked nervously.

“This,” she said, kissing him hard. “I love you too, Uriel,” she said, pulling back just long enough to get the words out before meeting his lips once more. She leaned in to the kiss, letting it deepen, letting him know that despite their little dustup, she still cared deeply for him.

“What the—” she sputtered as he suddenly pushed her back and scrambled to his feet.

She moved to follow him as he rushed to the center of the little area amongst the trees, but he held up a hand.

“Wait,” he said excitedly, and she froze.

Thoughts began to form in her head about what was going on, but before she could realize them, there was a huge bear where Uriel had been standing.

She screamed in happiness and launched herself at the bear, who was already making sounds of laughter and happiness.

“You did it!” she rejoiced, throwing her hands around the bear’s neck as far as she could reach. The giant head nuzzled up against her, and she could hear the huge exhale of relief from within it.

She backed away, tears of happiness streaming down her face. As she did, the bear happily tumbled to the ground and began to roll in the snow. She shrieked as it flung a clump at her, but she was too happy for Uriel to be upset.

Eventually the frolicking behemoth settled down on its back, three paws stretching to the sky. Approaching, she laid her head on his upper chest. The bear chuffed happily and a giant paw tenderly wrapped around her, holding her close.

Then, without warning, the head reached up and a long, wet tongue dragged along her face. She yelped and backed away, but her cry was quickly overpowered by the howls of laughter coming from Uriel as he shifted back into his human form.

“Real funny mister,” she said, arms crossed. There was a smile on her face, however, and no matter how hard she tried she couldn’t conceal it.

“I thought so,” he said, still curled up in a ball as he held his insides.

“What changed?” she asked curiously as he finally calmed a little. She knew much of his laughter was of relief at being able to shift.

“I don’t know,” he said. “It was like the moment you told me you loved me, I could feel him again.” He looked up at her with wonder. “Thank you.”

She blushed, not knowing what to say to that. She hadn’t fallen in love with him just so he could shift, but hey, if it helped she was okay with that.

“So that means you’re on dinner duty tonight?” she teased.

“Tonight, and for as many nights as you’ll let me,” he proclaimed, getting to his feet and sweeping her up in his arm.

She giggled, letting her leg kick backward as he twirled her around, their lips brushing against each other repeatedly.

If only someone could have gotten a picture of it, she knew the photo would have been precious. The whole moment was perfect.

From within the cavern they had left, engines rumbled to life. Big, heavy engines. Her shoulders wilted as Uriel set her down. She knew what they were. Those were the engines to the big armored trucks Uriel and his comrades drove for their jobs. She could see him looking back that way already, straining to go, to run over and see why they were being fired up already.

“Go,” she told him softly, releasing his arm.