Carpathian 21 - Dark Peril

to cough. Solange heard a series of grunts and the whisper of fur along the trunk. A high-pitched call came from the far bank—a tapir calling to a family member sounded much like a bird.

    She heard the crash of the heavy male as he dropped to earth, not more than thirty feet from her. She stayed very still, letting him pass by her in the thick mist. Layers of the fog surrounded her, and deep inside the jaguar’s body, Solange smiled. Dominic had managed to wrap her in a bubble. The male jaguar was not going to scent, see or hear her.

    He wouldn’t have found me.

    I am not taking chances until the sight of your pale face, your body without breath, leaves me. And that may take some time.

    You do have a tendency to harp, don’t you? The woman inside the jaguar stretched, smiled, a hint at her hidden sensual nature. She couldn’t help teasing him, especially when she was safe, deep in the jaguar where he couldn’t find a way to retaliate.

    I have a tendency to keep my word, and you might remember that, kessake , when you are feeling all snug and warm there in your safe little den.

    Her soft laughter washed over him. She felt his reaction, and for a moment her heart beat faster and her mind warmed. The first tentative merging of Solange the woman and Solange the warrior had been exhilarating and made her feel very brave—which, considering she had been ready to fight a jaguar, was vaguely amusing to her.

    She waited while Dominic pushed the jaguar out of their path using a mixture of heavy fog and a slight compulsive push. Which is cheating. I’m not certain that qualifies as a fair battle. There might be a moral issue here.

    His mind flooded hers with warmth, a teasing, sexy amusement that sent heat surging through her veins.
    Hunting was a lot more fun with a partner. She felt a little bit safer, and it helped that he was intelligent and experienced. She didn’t feel as if she had to protect him. She could even acknowledge he might feel the need to protect her. He had quite the arsenal to draw on, and truthfully, in battle, as far as she was concerned, whatever it took to win was fair.

    He is clear now, Dominic informed her. I will get rid of the fog.

    Solange worked her way to the bank of the stream as the mist slowly evaporated and Dominic stood beside her, one hand in her fur, his fingers massaging her neck. Her jaguar loved it, rubbing her head against his thigh in response.

    He went this way . Solange took a couple of steps, certain now of the cat’s tracks. Even with the male jaguar in the area, his prints overlaying the shadow cat’s in places, she easily could distinguish between the two.
    The shadow cat had gone into the water right at the very entrance to the limestone labyrinth. Why did he risk being tracked when he could take the shape of a shadow?

    “That is an excellent question,” Dominic murmured aloud. “Did his master have to be close to keep him a shadow? If so, we should be able to find where his master waited for him.”

    He came from that direction. Solange took him back through the forest to where she’d first come across the tracks. We know he went into the water and never came back out, but his handler must have gotten him close enough to pick up my blood scent.

    She could feel Dominic frown, and his fingers bunched in her fur, but he didn’t react, simply stepped back to allow her to lead him through the forest, backtracking now. Once she was on the shadow cat’s trail, she grew more certain of herself, moving faster, winding in and out of the trees away from the stream and yet away from the interior.

    No cat would go in this direction unless he was feeding on cattle. This area is patrolled heavily by men with guns. They protect the cattle fiercely, and unless a jaguar is old or injured, it will stick to the game here in the forest. Maybe he was looking for an easy meal.

    She didn’t like getting too close to the enormous cattle ranch that lay just on the outer edges of the forest.
    The men fired a warning shot as a rule, trying to drive a wandering cat back into the forest, but just as often, one might be trigger-happy. She’d noted Cesaro’s reaction to her cat. It was almost instinctual. The cattlemen considered it their duty to keep the cattle safe, and cats were predators they didn’t want near the ranches.

    “We are on De La Cruz property.” Dominic sounded grim.

    Yes. It is quite large. All of their places are enormous. They are very wealthy.