Page 71 of Draco's Defiance
“Fuck!” Draco wasn’t sure if it was his leg or frustration that inspired the outburst.
“Come on, Draco.” Cole shifted back to his human form and stood there naked in the courtyard, his hand stretched out for his brother. “Let us help you. We can call the family doctor and get him out here.”
“Cole’s right. Let’s get you cleaned up.” Sebastian transformed next, shaking out his dark hair as he assessed the carnage around him. “Thank the gods that this is a private estate and no one will see all this.”
“Draco?” Balthazar morphed back into a man, his expression concerned as he awaited his brother’s verdict. “You’re bleeding. We should get you inside. Some of us can come and deal with this mess later.”
‘Bleeding?’ Glancing from his naked siblings and down at the wound, he noticed the blood seeping from the site. He would need the doctor to remove the bullet and ensure there was no infection. There was no avoiding it. All in all, things had not worked out as he’d wanted.
“What about Monroe?” Sebastian asked. “The chimera is out for the count, but we need to tie him and decide what to do with him.”
“He’s not really my type for tying up,” Cole snorted.
“He’s no one’s type,” Balthazar agreed. “But we’ll need to hold him until we figure out what comes next.” Moving closer, he looked down at the chimera’s heads. “We should get Draco inside first and get dressed, but then we need to deal with him.”
“It will be a lot easier if he’s human again.” Cole blew out a breath.
“We’ll bind the chimera’s legs for now,” Balthazar suggested, walking to the security office and finding a length of rope kept there. “He’s temporarily comatose. The ropes should hold him for the time being.
‘Okay.’ Draco didn’t like the plan, but the shock and blood loss had convinced him that this wasn’t the moment to argue. There would be other battles and victories to come. ‘But there’s one more thing I have to do first.’
“What’s that?” Balthazar’s tone was wary.
“This.” Lurching for Monroe, he lifted his large paw and swiped at the source of all the trouble. Though it was true he owed the monster sprawled at his feet for having introduced him to Moira, Monroe would receive no credit from Draco.
“Draco, no!” Sebastian’s gasp filled the air as he ran toward the chimera. “What have you done?”
A quick glance at Monroe’s face revealed a deep scratch across his right cheek. The wound was raised and partly bloodied, but the brute would survive. Much to Draco’s chagrin.
“He’s fine,” Draco roared as he allowed the heat of change to swallow him and leave him in his human form. Shivering on the courtyard tiles, he huddled over his body, regretting the shift at once. ‘He’s a lot better off than me.’
“Here.” Stepping forward, Cole helped Draco back to his feet as Sebastian and Balthazar secured the chimera’s limbs. Once the beast was suitably captured, Sebastian propped up Draco on the other side, and the four brothers made their way slowly back to the ramp of the parking lot.
“I can’t believe you killed those people.” Balthazar glanced back at the charred mess Draco and Cole had caused.
“I can’t believe you didn’t.” Draco winced at the pain as he tried not to put pressure on his injured leg. “They attacked us, remember?”
“Yeah, I remember.” Unlocking the elevator, Balthazar instructed the doors to open and gestured for his three brothers to enter. “I don’t think any of us will ever forget.”
The haunted look on their faces in the mirrored elevator as the doors slid closed implied that Balthazar might be right.
Chapter Twenty-Nine
Moira
“HOW’S THE GUEST?” MOIRA leaned against the counter as she watched Draco wander into the room.
It had been almost two weeks since the showdown with Monroe in the early hours of that fateful day, and in that time, his body had achieved a remarkable recovery. There was no injury to his organs or bones, and once the bullet had been removed by the Vaughn family doctor, Draco’s tissues had seemed to heal as though nothing had happened.
Her lover put it down to his incredible DNA, and she supposed he had to be right. No human being should recover so fast from a gunshot wound, but whatever the cause, she was thankful. Seeing him stretched out on the bed once Cole had released her and the others from the safe room had been one of the most horrifying moments of her life. The panic she’d felt still resonated somewhere deep inside. She feared it always would.
But Draco had survived. More than that; he’d flourished. She could hardly believe his rapid improvement. He’d been healthy enough to return to his own apartment with her a few days before, and that’s where she’d been happily ensconced ever since.
“Suitably unhappy.” Draco smirked as he walked to where she stood and pressed himself against her. He’d been to visit Monroe, as he did every day, who was currently being held captive in the same place she, Cherie, Rebecca, and Eden had hidden during the conflict. Moira didn’t know what went on there, or how long they planned on keeping him hostage, and she hadn’t asked. She could guess some of the details though. Her upbringing hadn’t been so cosseted that she didn’t know some of the awful techniques people used to extract information from prisoners.
She’d wrestled with that knowledge every night since. Anxiety knotted with repulsion that was ultimately repressed by the overwhelming lust Draco inspired and her growing affection for him. She didn’t approve of hostage-taking. Far from it. Moira was a lawyer, for God’s sake. She’d sworn to uphold the law. She thought she always would, but she disliked Monroe enough to let the matter slide. Even though it gnawed at her, even though it went against everything she stood for, she couldn’t help but think Monroe had gotten off lightly, and she was proud that Draco had seen fit not to kill him. Although according to Draco, that wasn’t his choice.
“Apparently, he had complaints about his living conditions.” Draco’s lips twisted.