Inferno (Talon #5)(30)
I followed her up the steps to the old church, across the room and out one of the back doors into the hazy moonlight. Now Mist started to act nervous, glancing over her shoulder, even pausing to scan the trees behind her. But the woods surrounding the church had plenty of places to hide, and human eyesight could not pierce the shadows well enough to spot a person crouched at the foot of a tree. The challenge was moving when she moved so that my footsteps, rustling through leaves and bushes, didn’t give me away. Still, I’d been trained for this, and was able to follow the pale form through the woods fairly easily, a shadow trailing a ghost.
About a half mile from the church, Mist finally came to a stop in the center of a small clearing. As I knelt behind a gnarled tree, watching her, she pulled her phone from a pocket and held it to her ear. With the distance and shadows, it was nearly impossible to see her lips move, but I thought she muttered the words, “I’m here,” before lowering her arm. I took a deep breath, then let it out slowly.
All right, then. Mysterious meeting outside in the middle of the night. This isn’t suspicious at all. My jaw clenched in anger. What have you been doing, Mist? Who are you selling us out to?
A few minutes passed, and then someone melted out of the trees across the clearing and began walking toward Mist. A human, dressed in a nondescript black suit and tie, the kind many Talon agents wore. He carried a black briefcase in one hand and didn’t hesitate as he walked toward the dragon waiting in the clearing.
Dammit, Mist. Briefly, I closed my eyes. I don’t want to have to kill you. But if this is anyone from Talon, I can’t let this go on. Whatever you’re up to, it has to end tonight.
Opening my eyes, I squinted to see their lips as the human drew close. But Mist stepped forward and turned just enough that their faces were blocked from view. They spoke quietly, too far away to be heard, and then the mysterious agent handed Mist the briefcase, turned and disappeared into the trees again. Mist watched until he was gone, then began walking back the way she’d come.
She had just reached the edge of the trees when I stepped out, grabbed her by the shoulders and slammed her back into a trunk. She grunted at the impact, and then icy blue eyes flashed up to meet mine.
“Hello, Mist.” I smiled coldly. “Fancy meeting you here.”
“Cobalt.” The other Basilisk matched the chilliness of my smile. She didn’t seem surprised to see me, though I knew she wouldn’t reveal such emotion. Or the fact that I had finally taken her off guard. “So that was you I felt following me. Congratulations for being able to stay out of sight. I guess your skills aren’t completely overexaggerated, after all.”
“Thanks. I try.” I stared into her eyes, seeing my own reflection gazing back, grim and dangerous. “Surprisingly, thinking one of my teammates is going to betray us to Talon is a pretty good motivator,” I went on, and tightened my grip, pinning her harder into the tree. “So, now comes the part where you’re going to tell me everything. Who you met with, what’s in the briefcase and, most importantly, who the hell you’re working for.”
“Interesting.” Mist met my gaze, unrepentant. “And if I don’t give you what you want?”
“Then I’m going to have to force it out of you, one way or another.”
I felt bad for threatening her, but enough was enough. This was some seriously shady crap she was pulling, and there was too much at stake to leave anything to chance. “You can either tell me now,” I warned, “or in an interrogation chair. I’m done playing games, Mist.”
“Oh, Cobalt.” Her smile turned brittle. “You make it sound so easy.”
Her knee came up, hitting me between the legs, sending a blinding stab of pain through my groin. I convulsed with a grunt, staggering away, and she followed it with a savage kick to my temple. I threw up my arm, taking it on the shoulder instead of the noggin, but the impact still rocked me sideways and made my head ring. During the second roundhouse that followed, I managed to grab her leg, turn and throw her to the ground. She rolled with the impact, coming up on her feet, but it was enough time for me to take a breath and get my balance again, and for the shrieking pain of my sensitive bits to fade somewhat.
I shook my head and grinned at the other dragon, who was balanced on the balls of her feet in a fighting stance, still holding the briefcase in one hand. “Playing dirty, Mist? Why does that not surprise me?”
She smirked. “It sure as hell surprised you a moment ago.”
“Fair enough.” I stepped forward, letting my muscles relax and my senses sharpen, taking in my surroundings and the girl in front of me. “Let’s see if you can do it again. No Shifting, though.” Fighting as humans was a lot safer than fighting as dragons. You could pummel your opponent senseless, but fists and feet were still less dangerous than claws and fangs. Once we Shifted, the tone of the fight changed into something far more lethal. And, shady or not, I didn’t want to kill her.
Mist shrugged. “Fine,” she agreed, and tossed the suitcase to the forest floor. “I can take you down just as easily as a human.”
“You talk a big game, hatchling.” I edged closer, smiling. “Let’s see you put your money where your mouth is.”
“Actually, I’d rather put my foot where your mouth is,” Mist replied, and lunged, kicking straight up toward my chin. I jerked my head back, feeling her leather boot miss my nose by about a centimeter, and dropped low, sweeping her other leg out. She tumbled backward, somehow turned the fall into a backflip and landed on her feet again like a damn cat. I had about a second to be impressed with her flexibility when that leg shot out again, side-kicking me in the gut and driving most of the air from my lungs. As I staggered, bent nearly in two, I saw her bring her foot up, almost touching the side of her face, right before her heel slammed into the back of my head.