The Unplanned Detour - Chapter 20
The next week was a very busy one for the two mates. Zoe continued with her residency while Dylan practiced with his band, attended business meetings, and worked hard on some coding, all the while still keeping a 4.0 gpa.
Dylan and Rick, with their lawyers, finally came to an agreement with Horizon to buy their assets, at a fraction of what it would have cost them normally. When Dylan explained that, if Horizon hadn't tried to be so greedy and tried to force him to work for them in perpetuity, they wouldn't be in this position right now. McGrr, the owner, was livid that someone in his company had caused him to lose it all. When Dylan told him the names of those who had attempted it, McGrr nodded curtly and left, wondering how many pieces he could rip the offenders in to.
oooOOOooo
Dylan met up with Stacy and took her out to lunch, where he apologized profusely for not having kept in touch. She forgave him and they caught up on their lives.
"So I saw you dancing with and singing to your she-wolf there Dylan. ZNN aired an entire segment from the start to where you proposed. Fabienne looked positively dyspeptic. If you ask me, I think that she's regretting letting you get away." "
"I don't know Hun, if she had been truly interested in me then there may have been a chance. But then again, I wouldn't have met my Zoe."
"Yeah, I noticed. I didn't know you had a thing for wolves there. If you were female I might have gone for you myself." She joked.
Dylan gave as good as he got "If you were straight you might have succeeded." He kidded as he winked at her.
oooOOOooo
Zoe was dragging herself through the door when an absolutely wonderful smell hit her nostrils. She could see Dylan in the kitchen cooking. It was actually her week to cook, and she wasn't looking forward to it after the day that she had. It was the first day of her Emergency Room rotation and it had been non stop. That Dylan was doing her chore lightened her spirits considerably and allowed her to relax a little.
"Dinner will be ready in half an hour Love." Dylan announced without turning around. Zoe walked up to him, wrapped her arms around his waist, and kissed him on the back of the neck, then rested her muzzle on his shoulder.
"Smells amazing my wolf! Thank you for doing this for me, I'm really tired after the kind of shift I've just had."
"No problem Baby." He said as he turned his head slightly to kiss the side of her cheek. "I finished my coding project earlier this morning, and Desiree said that the ER was pretty slammed, so I figured that you'd be tired and running late."
"So," Zoe said, giving a half smile "What am I making?"
Dylan chuckled saying "You're cooking my take on empanadas, your choice of veggie, chicken, or beetle."
"I'm going to go take a shower. Kind of funny how I can be in two places at the same time, taking a shower and cooking!"
Dylan spun in place, wrapping his arms around his mate, and giving her a chaste, yet passionate kiss. "Have I told you how incredible it is that you can make even scrubs look good?"
Zoe grinned as she kissed him back "No, but don't let that stop you from mentioning it." After one last kiss, Zoe went to the bathroom for her shower and Dylan finished cooking dinner for everyone.
That night Zoe was laying in bed on her stomach, her paws stretched above her, and her legs slightly spread when Dylan had finally finished putting the leftovers away and entered their bedroom. Everyone had enjoyed the meal and had requested that it become a staple of their menu.
"Baby, you okay?" Dylan asked.
"So tired." Zoe groaned.
"Let's see if I can help you with that." Dylan said as he sat down on the side of the bed close to her feet. He took her on foot in his hands and started massaging it. The moans from Zoe told him how much she was enjoying what he was doing. He slowly worked his way up her calves to her thighs. He stopped when he got close to her intimate areas as what he was doing was supposed to be therapeutic and not foreplay. He began on her other leg the same way, all the while being accompanied by Zoe's near constant moans and grunts.
When he finished with that leg, he began working on her back and shoulders. Zoe's moans had stopped somewhere between his doing her lower back and her shoulders. Instead, he was getting sighs. Dylan was massaging her arms and paws when he realized that his mate was deeply asleep. He leaned forward and kissed her neck before he stood and undressed, sliding in next to her. She grumbled slightly before rolling over and throwing her arm over his neck and pulled him close to her. Dylan looked at his fiance's sleeping face and felt love fill his heart again. He felt so lucky to have found her. He felt his eyelids slowly close, and the last thing he saw was the slight smile on Zoe's face and knew that she felt the same way about him.
oooOOOooo
Prism Computer Technologies was experiencing explosive growth. Along with the building that they had acquired from Horizon, they had also acquired many experienced personnel, including middle and upper management types. In a twist of irony, one of the managers that had tried to get Dylan to sign the unfair, and illegal, contract had actually tried to get a job with them. It should come as no surprise that he wasn't hired.
Even though Rick was taking on as much as he could shoulder, he still wasn't able to handle all aspects and, what he couldn't handle, he'd pass it on to Dylan. The two friends hired Emily, a zebra and former middle manager of Horizon. It turned out to be the best decision they'd made to date.
Emily had hit the proverbial glass ceiling at Horizon. She was extremely gifted at organization and was of immediate benefit to Prism. The friends promoted her to VP of Operations, a huge promotion with a corresponding increase in pay, including a 5% share of the profits. She also let the pair know who from Horizons was the best for each slot that needed to be filled in their company. It was due to her advice and hard work that Prism was expanding as fast as they were. So great was her input that they gave her a $5000 bonus.
oooOOOooo
Tumbleweeds was huge. Where Clodhoppers had a capacity of 250 mammals, Tumbleweeds could seat 750. On their first night there, the club had sold out. The worry Dylan had that the bands popularity was due to his, rather unique, circumstances, faded away like smoke. The crowds they were drawing had to be from more than just a gimmick, they had to be truly enjoying the music.
Tara had auditioned and the entire band had been impressed with her voice. They decided to have her as a backup singer until she could get some experience. Tara, of course, was thrilled to no end, begging her parents to allow her to perform every weekend with the band. After some negotiation involving her grades and her behavior, they agreed. Dylan would be her guardian then, including picking her up and dropping her off.
oooOOOooo
Zoe was glad that she had finished yet another shift in the ER. It was busy, but she was learning so much during this rotation. She hadn't decided yet which department she'd like to work in when she finished, but right now it was down to the ER, or Pediatrics.
"Nurse, can you help me with this patient? Somethings wrong with her!" she heard. Looking over to one of the rooms in the hallway, she saw a hyena in lavender scrubs indicating he worked as housekeeping, standing there.
She'd been leery of hyenas ever since her near rape, but between not wanting to judge the entire species on the actions of a few, and her dedication to healing, she headed into the room as he held the door open for her.
"I'm actually a resident. What seems to be wrong?" Zoe asked as she walked over to the patient's bedside. In the bed was an elderly Opossum that appeared to be asleep. Zoe glanced at the monitors and noticed that they weren't even on. Zoe started to reach for the opossum's wrist to check her pulse when she felt a strong arm wrap around her and a sharp jab in her neck. Zoe struggled, but her efforts quickly weakened as she heard the hyena say "What's wrong is she's dead, and maybe you too."
The last thought Zoe had was of Dylan before the darkness closed in.
oooOOOooo
Dylan had just finished dropping Tara off after practice with the band. She had been steadily improving and Dylan was happy about that. What he wasn't happy about was how Tara kept low key hitting on him, scooting close to him while he was driving, and just brushing it off saying she needed to get to know him. He wasn't sure if he should bring it up to Cynthia and Robert, he didn't want to get Tara in trouble, just get her to stop. He'd have to talk to Zoe about it when he got home.
His phone rang as he climbed into his jeep. Checking caller ID, he saw that it was Amanda. He clicked the 'accept' button and put the phone to his ear. "Hey Amanda, what's up?"
"Is Zoe with you? She was supposed to have been home hours ago!" Amanda's worried voice sounded in his ear.
"No, I just got through dropping off her sister. She's doing the ER rotation, so maybe she got caught up with an emergency?"
"No! I called the hospital, they confirmed she'd clocked out after her shift and left!"
Dylan started to get worried. It wasn't like Zoe to not let anyone, especially him, know if she was going somewhere else. He hadn't liked Zoe still taking the bus, but she told him that he had more things to do than to just chauffer her around. Dylan had protested, but it did little good, Zoe could be extremely stubborn when she wanted to be.
"Okay, I'll head over to the hospital and find out if anyone's seen her. Maybe her and Stacy got into a conversation and Zoe just lost track of time."
"I hope so, after what happened last time..." Amanda said.
"Yeah, I know." Dylan interrupted. Dylan drove more than a little bit over the speed limit, one part of his mind on possible reasons Zoe hadn't called anyone, and one part on the road.
After arriving at the hospital, Dylan could find no one who had seen Zoe after her shift. He located Stacy, but she said that she hadn't seen or heard from Zoe all day, and asked him if everything was okay. Right then Amanda called him again. Hoping that she was going to tell him that Zoe had made it home safely, he answered. "She home?" He asked anxiously.
"N... no. You just got a delivery, it's an envelope and a small box." Amanda responded nervously.
Starting to get really worried now, Dylan excused himself and headed home. When he got there, both Amanda and Desiree were sitting on the couch, staring at the items. Dylan sat down slowly on the couch between them and, his hand shaking, picked up the envelope. On the front was his name scrawled across the front in an elegant script.
Dylan felt like he was going to throw up. In the movies, when something like this happened, the victim had been kidnapped, and a note telling the protagonist that they shouldn't involved the police. In the box would be an ear, finger, or some other item showing proof that they had truly had the person in question. He opened the envelope and read the print inside. 'Mr. Ambrose, we have your mate. Do not call the police, we'll know if you do. If you call them, we will kill her. This is no threat, this is a promise. You will come alone to 1886 Oak Ridge Way. If you do not, we will kill her. Fail to show within the next two hours, we will kill her.'
Dylan swallowed loudly as he picked up the box, terrified of what he was going to find inside. His fear mounted as he raised the lid and looked inside. His breath left him in a rush of relief as he looked inside and saw Zoe's engagement ring.
"We need to call the police!" Desiree exclaimed. "
No! If we do, they'll kill her!" Dylan cried.
Amanda, who had been reading the note as Dylan explored the contents of the box, agreed with Desiree. Dylan said "Look, give me an hour. If you don't hear from me or Zoe in an hour, call Nick and Judy. Just one hour, please!" Reluctantly, they agreed.
oooOOOooo
Dylan had no idea what he'd be walking in to. He readied himself the best he could by putting on his faux leather jacket with it's hidden pockets. He armed himself including his extendable batons, katana, and even his bow. Just before he left, Dylan went to his computer and, at the command prompt, typed in 'Initiate Hermes Protocol'. At the prompt 'Confirm Hermes Protocol?' Dylan typed in 'Yes' .
That done, Dylan headed for his Jeep. Throwing his bow and katana into the passenger seat, he headed for the address he'd been given, driving the speed limit in order to keep from being stopped by the police. The drive was nerve wracking, it took a while for him to regain control. It was only when he realized that he needed to be calm in order to have the best chance of saving Zoe that his nerves went away and was replaced by a steely resolve reinforced by hate of the ones who'd taken his mate.
The address led him to a warehouse Savanna Central. It was neither old nor new, but it did seem abandoned given the amount of vandalism that had occured to it. Dylan cautiously opened the employee entrance door near the parking lot and stealthily made his way inside. He half expected to hear the distant echo of water dripping into a puddle, or the faint clinking of chains moving in a non existent breeze. None of that occured however, just an eerie silence.
Okay mutation, if you're ever going to work, now's the time! Dylan thought. He also started praying to all the gods to allow him to bring his Zoe home safely. The interior appeared to be some kind of package storing warehouse. Probably like one of those private package shipping companies back on Earth. Looking around, he decided that his bow really wouldn't be of help in the, often tight, quarters, so he laid it down along with his quiver.
Drawing his katana, which would be of more use, he slowly made his way deeper into the facility. He kept his stance loose, ready to respond to the slightest sight or sound of anyone nearby. The quiet was ominous, Dylan was hoping that he'd at least hear Zoe moving or calling out to him. The utter silence caused his fear to spike, but he ruthlessly tamped it back down.
He tried to keep his senses on high alert, but the only sound he heard was his own soft breathing, and the only thing he could see in the darkened interior was shadows on shadows and the vague outlines of equipment. But all the mutations and all his prayers to the gods availed him naught when a sudden pain at the back of his skull along with a flash of white light that filled his vision and he fell unconscious.
oooOOOooo
Dylan awoke to a blinding headache. One of the first things he noticed was that he was suspended from his arms which were shackled over his head, his feet barely being able to touch the ground. Opening his eyes were painful, even the faint light from the lamp on the table to one side sent spears of pain into his head. He groaned in pain, trying to regain his focus. It was most likely his groan that elicited a response.
"Mr. Ambrose," A voice growled out, "you seem to have been a bit of a thorn in my paw."
Dylan squinted and the wavering blob in front of him solidified into form of a lion in a stylish suit and with a magnificent mane that looked like it was styled daily. Dylan's vision quickly pulled everything into focus. Now if he could just get rid of this migraine.
"Do you know who I am?" The lion asked as if Dylan should know the answer.
"Not really." Dylan groaned.
Shocked, the lion just stared at Dylan for a few seconds before growling out, "No? Let me enlighten you, my name is Leodore Lionheart, former mayor of Zootopia. Before those ungrateful mammals ousted me!"
"Ah," Dylan uttered, "yeah, now I remember you, I read about you in current events, you were mayor during the Night Howler incident. Always felt you got a bad rap."
Lionheart seemed greatly appeased and said so "You think so? Truly?"
Dylan was trying everything he could to delay, trying to recover and hoping the ZPD would arrive. "Well, yeah, I mean, you tried the best you could with a bad situation. I think you could have done better but, armchair quarterback y'know?"
"Absolutely!" Lionheart agreed, strolling closer. Dylan could see the madness swirling behind his eyes and shuddered. "They had no idea the pressure I was under. We had no way of knowing what was happening, even Doctor Honey Badger wasn't able to figure out what was happening. Predators were turning savage! They needed to be stopped, so I authorized extreme measures! But did the general populace support me? NO! Then, that rabbit and fox showed up. That rabbit had even been able to use my Mammal Inclusion Initiative to join the ZPD! and the worst part of it was, IT WASN'T MY FAULT! I just got blamed for it! If we'd only had a little more time we could have figured it out and no one would have been the wiser!"
Other than a bad headache and hanging from some chains, Dylan was feeling better, having used Lionheart's speech to heal some more. He could see his batons and his katana as well as his phone on a table just off to the side and behind Lionheart. He'd have tried to heal some more, but he was getting really tired of Lionheart's voice.
"Monologuing."
The comment confused Lionheart who was winding up for a serious rant. "What?"
"Monologuing. It's what the villain does when they feel they have the protagonist at their mercy. They go on a long rant about how they are right and that their idea of utopia is the right one. Doesn't usually go well for them."
"I thought you agreed I was right?"
"No, I said I thought you got a bad rap, there's a difference. Public opinion you know."
Lionheart's face became stern as he stepped closer to Dylan. Dylan looked at him and then grinned. Lionheart shook his head slightly, wondering why this mammal wasn't terrified, he was even grinning!
"Why aren't you scared?" Lionheart asked.
"Because, Go Wilde!" Dylan said loudly.
"What?" Lionheart asked before his phone rang. Lionheart flipped his phone open, "Hello? Stan? Hello?" No one seemed to be on the other end, so Lionheart shut his phone and put it back into his pocket. "You know, I was going to try and get you to join our movement. Right now, gangs from across Zootopia are causing mayhem, allowing our troops to take over City Hall from that upstart Fairbreeze. She'll learn her place soon enough! But you're attitude, I just don't understand it. So, let me introduce an old friend. CUTTER!"
Dylan spied movement off to the left and a shadow emerged into the light. It was the hyena that had attacked him in his apartment; and he was carrying Zoe! A deep growl rumbled in his chest at the sight of his mate almost completely wrapped in ropes, her muzzle bound shut. Her eyes were closed and panic filled Dylan until he saw her chest rise and fall, then the panic was placed with a rage so intense that Dylan felt his body grow cold. Cutter laid Zoe down on the concrete floor, and non too gently.
"Seems Cutter here has a bone to pick with you. I thought it would be entertaining to see him pick that bone, from your body of course." Dylan could see the madness swirling even faster in Lionheart's eyes.
"I'm going to enjoy this so much!" Cutter snarled, "Told you I was gonna eat you! And, when I'm done with you, maybe I'll try that little treat behind me."
Trapped as he was there was no way he'd survive and he had to find a way to do so, Zoe's life was on the line as well and he couldn't let anything happen to her.
"Seems to me the last time we fought, you had a rather large knife."
"Yeah, and you had a pair of sticks! Still wouldn't have saved you if that cop hadn't shot me!"
"So, you decided to go the easy route, how brave you must feel. Afraid you couldn't beat me in a fair fight? Paw to paw?"
"I'm not going to take any chances meat!" Cutter barked as he started forward, ready to gut Dylan with one swipe of his claws.
"STOP!" Lionheart screamed. "Let him down and unshackle him. Let's see how he handles Cutter bare pawed without teeth or claws."
There had to be a third person here since someone was lowering him. His feet touched the floor and he sagged a bit, the pins and needles feeling in his arms increased as his weight was released off of them. He closed his eyes and began to meditate as fast as he was able. He needed to be as ready for this fight as he could.
"May I have a minute to loosen up?" He asked, his eyes still closed.
"Why, of course Mr. Ambrose. Let no one say that we didn't give you every chance." Lionheart said magnanimously.
Dylan nodded his thanks as he started moving through a kata while his eyes were still closed. He started feeling much better as his body flowed through the familiar movements. His headache dampened so that it wasn't as debilitating as when he just work up, but it would still affect his speed and balance.
All too soon, he heard Lionheart snap "Time!"
Dylan opened his eyes and took a defensive stance. Cutter laughed in that iconic way that hyenas were famous for as he began stalking Dylan. The two moved in a circular pattern before Cutter suddenly leaped. Dylan saw the change of balance and knew that he was about to charge. Dylan stepped to the side and, as Cutter flew by, grabbed his wrist and added more momentum, but changed Cutter's direction so that he flew face first into a nearby wall. Stunned, Cutter stood, shaking his head, but Dylan wasn't waiting for him to recover. Instead, he hit Cutter with a side kick directly to the ribs, causing Cutter to emit a loud yelp. Dylan wasn't sure, but he'd swear he at least cracked a few as Cutter stumble into the clutter where the light from the lamp didn't penetrate. Growling, Cutter walked back into the light carrying a metal pipe about two feet long.
"So much for paw to paw Cutter. Afraid you can't win otherwise?" Dylan taunted.
With a yell, Cutter charged at Dylan swinging the pipe as he went. Dylan ducked under the pipe and tried to kick at Cutter again but missed. Before he could recover, Cutter swung the pipe again and caught Dylan on the left forearm. There was a sickening 'crack' and a wave of pain and nausea swept through Dylan causing him to cry out. Cutter was giving him no time to recover as he swung the pipe again, but Dylan leaped back.
The chain Dylan had been suspended from was now hanging between them. Grabbing it with his good hand, Dylan used the chain to block several more swings before he was able to capture the pipe and wrest it from Cutters grip. Undaunted, Cutter leapt forward and slashed Dylan across the chest with his claws, leaving four bloody furrows. The next time that Cutter tried to claw him, Dylan used the chain again to block his strike and deliver another kick to the same ribs damaged earlier. This time Dylan could feel Cutter's ribs give way.
Dancing back and to the side, Dylan snapped a low kick to Cutter's knee, but wasn't able to put enough force behind it to break it since Cutter leaned out of the way, pulling his weight off of the kicked leg. Both combatants were tired and hurt. They began circling once more, each trying to recover some of their strength. Dylan tried to keep the chain between them, using it as an obstacle. His arm was throbbing with pain and the claw marks on his chest were bleeding, fortunately not enough to hamper him.
Cutter was having difficulty breathing. Every breath he took was like a knife in his side. Who knew that a mammal without teeth or claws could be so formidable? He needed an advantage. After circling a little more, Cutter saw it. After moving along the arc just a little more, Cutter spun rapidly around, jumped forward, and snatched one of Dylan's batons off of the table. Laughing his hyena laugh again, Cutter began swinging the baton to get the feel of it. He decided he liked it and was going to keep both of them as a trophy. Catching his breath, he tried to intimidate Dylan by saying "After I eat you, I'm going to eat your wolf, and use your bones as a toothpick!"
Dylan was still keeping calm just as he'd been taught. The baton gave Cutter a good advantage, but Dylan had been trained to defend himself against people carrying weapons. The problem was, when he was training, he'd had two good arms.
Dylan waited until Cutter began his swing, then stepped inside Cutters reach to deliver a hammer blow to his muzzle. Cutter yelped and shut his eyes reflexively. Dylan took advantage of that to sweep Cutters feet out from under him. Cutter landed hard on his back, jostling his ribs. Dylan tried a front snap kick to Cutters already broken ribs, but Cutter rolled away and gained his feet. Dylan could see blood on Cutter's muzzle, whether from the kicks to the ribs, or from the hammer fist he didn't know.
He could see Cutter gasping for breath, but the hyena refused to go down. Dylan was beginning to slow down from both fatigue and his injuries. He needed to finish this fight as fast as possible. That desire, combined his status, proved to be a mistake. The next swing of the baton Cutter made turned out to be a feint. Dylan went to block the baton as Cutter stopped the swing, spun, and brought his claws raking across Dylan's side. Dylan cried out and Cutter used that moment of distraction to swing the baton around and catch Dylan in the jaw. Dylan gurgled in pain as he lost focus and his sight blurred. He stumbled back and, instinctively, let himself fall and roll to the side before standing back up.
Unknown to Dylan, he had moved out of the way of another baton swing that would have hit him in the head. Both fighters were stumbling as they circled one another, blood continuing to leak from Cutter's jaw, leading Dylan to believe that one of his kicks, or maybe the fall to the floor, had caused one of Cutter's broken ribs to puncture a lung. Dylan was pleased, if he could last a bit longer, Cutter could pass out from his injuries.
Dylan hopped forward and grabbed the chain once more. Choking up on the length, he began spinning it in a fast, small, circle. When Cutter moved toward him, Dylan snapped the chain at Cutter's face, forcing him to flinch back. Cutter tried again, but this time the chain caught the baton. Quicker than either thought possible, Dylan snatched Cutter's wrist and twisted it, forcing the hyena to bend over. Unable to do a palm strike to his foe's elbow, Dylan raised his left knee, placing it against Cutter's elbow and, pressing down with his knee while pulling Cutter's wrist upwards sharply, broke Cutter's elbow with a loud crack, making Cutter drop the baton. Cutter screamed in pain.
Past any reasonable restraint, Cutter straightened up and, in a move that Dylan didn't expect, and had never been trained for, lunged forward and sank his teeth into Dylan's left shoulder, the strength of Cutter's jaws breaking Dylan's collarbone. Dylan's screams of agony echoed throughout the factory. Acting on pure instinct, Dylan reached up, grabbed Cutter's ear, and twisted, doing his best to tear it off of Cutters head. Cutter's cry of pain caused him to release Dylan's shoulder and the pair stumbled back from each other.
Dylan could have cried for joy when he felt the table hit him in the back of his thighs. Blindly, he reached behind him and his had closed on the handle of his other baton. Thanking Tyche for this turn of good fortune, Dylan stumbled forward. Cutter was wary now. This mammal fought in a way that he wasn't familiar with. The best he'd been able to do was break Dylan's arm and when he bit Dylan on the shoulder. So if the ancient ways were working, then the ancient ways he'd use.
His right arm useless, Cutter splayed the claws on his left arm and bared his bloody teeth at Dylan. Cutter moved as fast as he was able, but the damage to his leg, while minor, still caused him to misstep, right into Dylan's baton. Dylan baton smacked into the side of Cutter's muzzle, stunning him. This was followed up by several rapid impacts to both sides of his ribs, his paw, and more against his muzzle. Cutter now knew how effective the baton was in the hands of someone who was an expert with them. More blows rained down as Cutter fell to his knees and then onto his face. Dylan didn't stop until he was sure that the hyena wouldn't be able to continue hostilities. He was pretty sure that he hadn't killed the hyena, but he couldn't bring himself to care if he had.
"Bravo Mr. Ambrose. It seems you are a formidable mammal. Too bad I can't keep you around."
Dylan slowly shuffled to his left, and saw Lionheart pointing a gun at him. Dylan had seen the dart guns that Judy and Nick used in the line of duty, but this one looked to be similar to the guns he knew from Earth. A projectile weapon, one that used bullets, and it was pointed at him. Dylan resigned himself, even on his best day he'd never be able to defend himself against a pistol.
Lionheart raised the pistol to sight in on Dylan "Nothing personal Mr. Ambrose, I'm sure you understand."
When the shot rang out, Dylan jerked. Dylan saw Lionheart's right orbital socket blow out and spray Dylan with blood and gore. Lionheart fell face down onto the concrete floor, dead before he even hit. Startled Dylan saw a red fox standing behind where Lionheart was with a pistol in his paw. Strangely, Dylan marveled that such a small gun could have caused so much damage to the lion.
Dylan caught the fox's eye and wondered what was going to happen next. The fox looked at him and said "I surrender" as he placed the gun on the table next to Dylan's katana and walked back into the shadows.
Dylan turned and, without even thinking about it, moved painfully toward his mate. He could see her beautiful blue eyes watching him with worry and concern. Dylan wanted to smile, his mate was okay, they would be okay. Dylan lost his footing and fell to the floor, happily on his right side, but he felt no pain. Even in his addled state, he realized that the numbness wasn't a good sign. He lay there, trying to get up and reach his mate, but couldn't find the strength to do so. He was able to move his head just enough so that he could see Zoe before everything started to fade. He heard shouting echoing through the building but had no idea what it meant as his vision faded to black.
A/N: Seemed like a good place to stop, at least for me. Cliffhanger, ya know? I hope you liked the action sequence; I think I did better than the ones in earlier chapters.
Speaks With Spirits