"God," Alexa whispered, a mixture of awe, reverence and fear in the single syllable. At Lily's startled glance, she exhaled. "They look like they're going to erase something."
Lily pressed her lower back against the seat, acutely aware of the bites and what they meant for her. Poison coursing through her veins, a necessary place on the list of things Jude would have to take care of in his role as a protector in a place of power. He had a responsibility to his people, one she didn't doubt he would fulfill without a moment's hesitation.
An inner voice whispered that she was more than a threat to be eradicated but staring at his resolute face, she didn't believe it. A good fuck could be had anywhere, but shifters were an endangered breed.
He would protect them, even from her. It was a choice she couldn't let him make.
Realizing she was strangling Alexa's phone, Lily handed it back before Jude swung up into the driver's seat. Without a word, he twisted to look out the rear window and backed the SUV in an arc. His fingers brushed her bare shoulder on the way to gripping the back of her seat. Lily shivered and closed her eyes, committing the last touch to memory.
It was fleeting and went without comment from him. As quickly as he'd reversed, he shifted and accelerated, tearing out of the lot at a speed that would have sickened her with anyone else behind the wheel. Not with Jude. Even knowing she was now on his enemy list, she didn't doubt she was safe with him.
For these last few minutes, at least.
Still silent, Jude rocketed through several side streets before turning around to drive back toward the shop. She was confused until she saw an unearthly, neon blue glow light up the sky, followed an instant later by a lick of fire that reminded her of the special effects in a movie explosion. Except this was no movie, and as the column of flame unfurled into twin blooms, bile rose in her throat.
"What is that?" Alexa asked.
"Dragon's fire." Jude glanced at Lily for the first time since sending her away with Ares. "Your shop's gone. Everything in the strip had to be burned in order to contain the spread."
She nodded without saying anything and Jude started driving again. Occasionally he broke the silence by responding to calls that came through his earpiece but didn't address anything else to her or Alexa until he crossed into the run-down blocks of buildings that surrounded the Jungle.
They drove into an underground parking facility, where a handful of men were waiting to receive them. Lily didn't recognize anybody from her times at the club but one man did stand out. Taller than Jude, leaner than Ares, and with an interesting urban cowboy look rooted in worn jeans, a button-down chambray shirt rolled back to show roped forearms, the third of the Kings stood out like a skyscraper among mobile homes. Not that the other shifters in attendance weren't glorious in their own rights, but the power the Kings held was manifest.
Jude parked and flagged someone with a wave. A female shifter pulled away from the disorganized crowd and approached as he got out.
"What do you want me to do with these two?" She asked, glancing past him at Lily and Alexa.
"Take them upstairs to Cavin's office." He put his hand on the roof and leaned down to meet Lily's gaze. "The office is locked from outside access, but you won't be locked in. I'd prefer if you stayed inside."
The eye contact and deferential address after so much silence surprised her enough that she could only come up with a nod in response. Alexa got out, but Lily didn't move. She was still caught in the trap of Jude's eyes.
As though he saw something in her own expression, his focus sharpened. "I'll be a while. Someone will bring you clothes and food. Wait for me."
The last words were layered, a command over a question. She had no idea how he'd figured out that there was even something he should question, but before he spirited anything else out of her, she inhaled and looked away, fixing on his mouth, firm lips that had brought pleasure to her body and, yeah, even her heart. "Don't be sorry about the shop. It needed to be done."
Surprise registered in the set of his mouth. Even though activity and urgency bustled behind him, he put his other hand on the door and shifted to block the view. That small change created an illusion of privacy that took her back to more intimate moments and, despite everything, her nipples pebbled against the nylon Alexa had wrapped around her.
"There are a lot of things that need to be done now," he said. "Things I need to do. Protecting you is the most important to me. It drives every action I take. Do you understand?"