Blue Dragon Part 19

Wong appeared in the door from the galley.

Leo let his breath out in a quiet hiss.

'h.e.l.lo, everybody,' Wong said. He leaned on the doorway with one shoulder and crossed his arms over his chest.

Leo attacked him, sword raised. Wong didn't seem concerned at all, he smiled slightly. As Leo brought the sword down, he grabbed Leo's arm and held it. With his other hand he hit Leo across the face with a sickening wet crunch.

He grabbed both of Leo's arms and held him. Leo panted and hung limply from Wong's hands.

Wong smiled and looked right into my eyes, then leaned over and bit Leo on the side of the neck. Leo screwed up his face as Wong bit down hard. Simone squeaked behind me.

Wong raised his face, blood smeared over his mouth, and grinned at me. He threw Leo to the floor and kicked him in the head. Leo grunted and lay still.

Simone screamed.

'Stay still, Simone,' I said, moving back to guard her.

'He hurt my Leo!' Simone shrieked. She generated a huge ball of chi and hurled it at Wong.

The demon raised his hand and absorbed the energy.

'I don't want to hurt you, ladies,' Wong said. 'I want you both intact. Are you okay, Simone?'

Simone's face was ashen. I looked inside her. She had very nearly drained herself.

I grabbed her hand and fed her some of my chi. She absorbed it. I felt her terror.

'We'll get out of this, one way or another, sweetheart,' I whispered.

'Oh, well done, Emma,' Wong said. 'I didn't know you could do that.'

'Wake up, Daddy,' Simone said loudly.

John didn't move.

'I don't think he has much longer, dear one,' Wong said. 'I do hope he remembers to leave the human form behind. I need the head. The rest of it isn't too bad, either.'

'You'll have to go through me to get to him,' I said. 'Try me.'

'Oh, with a great deal of pleasure,' Wong said. 'Try you? Something I've wanted to do for a very long time. Kitty?'

Kitty Kwok appeared behind him, moving cautiously.

'What the h.e.l.l are you doing here?' I said.

'Emma,' Kitty said loudly.

I remained still and silent, waiting, wondering.

'Emma!' Kitty ordered sharply. 'Obey me!'

I lowered my sword.

'Well, what do you know,' Wong said. 'It worked.'

'Drop the weapon,' Kitty said.

I dropped the sword and it hit the carpet with a thump.

'What are you doing, Emma?' Simone said. 'Why are you doing what she says?'

'Tell her to come and give me a big wet kiss,' Wong said with delight. 'No, wait.' He pulled Leo up, buried his face into the side of his neck, then dropped him again. 'Now,' he said with a mouth full of blood.

'G.o.d, Simon, you are so disgusting sometimes,' Kitty said.

'If she can do this without hesitation then we have her,' Wong said. 'Whoops. Lost it.' He swallowed. 'Wait.' He bent over Leo and sucked some more blood out of his neck. 'He tastes funny. Different. Wonder if it's because he's black, or because he's a girl?' He looked up at Kitty and grinned. 'You should try it.'

'Come here and kiss Prince One Two Two,' Kitty said wearily. 'I don't know why I put up with you, sometimes, Simon.'

Wong pulled himself to his feet and waved me closer.

I didn't hesitate. I went to him, put my arms over his shoulders and raised my face.

'No, Emma,' Simone whispered. 'Daddy, Daddy.'

Wong grinned down at me, his mouth covered in blood. He put his hand behind my neck and held me as he lowered his face to mine.

I kissed him with everything I had. I pressed myself into him and felt his body respond. I put my hands behind his head and pulled him hard into me. He squirted the blood into my mouth and I swallowed it, trying to control the gag reflex. But then I realised: there wasn't one.

The blood tasted good good.

I pulled away and smiled into his eyes. 'More.'

'Well done, Kitty,' Wong said. 'Lots of new toys. Now let's take the Dark Lord's head.'

'I want more blood,' I said huskily. 'I want you.' I rubbed myself against him. 'You. Now. Blood.'

Wong grinned down at me. 'What a good job, Kitty. You want to share?'

'That b.i.t.c.h?' Kitty said with disdain. 'Kill her.'

'Blood,' I whispered. I reached down, pushed my hand into him and felt him respond. He arched his body into my hand. 'You. Now.' I gestured with my head towards the main cabin. I put my other hand behind his neck and pulled him down and spoke into the side of his throat. 'Blood. You.' I nipped at the flesh of his throat just enough to make him moan without breaking the skin. I shoved my body into him. 'Now.'

'No, Emma,' Simone whispered. 'What's wrong with you?' Her feet thumped on the carpet. 'Wake up up, Daddy!'

Wong covered my mouth with his again. He tried to swallow me whole. I tasted the blood. It tasted good. He pulled away slightly to speak. He dug his fingernails into the back of my neck, into the pressure points, making me gasp with pain and arch my back.

'Plenty of blood, plenty of pain, plenty of me me for you, my sweet. Just let me take the Dark Lord's head and then we'll have some for you, my sweet. Just let me take the Dark Lord's head and then we'll have some real real fun. You want to feed? You can feed off him, and Leo. Lots of fun. Lots of fun. You want to feed? You can feed off him, and Leo. Lots of fun. Lots of sweet sweet blood.' blood.'

'No. You. Now,' I whispered.

'We have to take care of your boyfriend first, honey,' he said with a malicious grin. 'Then we'll have some fun with both both the little girls. Simone the little girls. Simone and and Leo.' Leo.'

Okay, this wasn't going to work. I released him and stepped back. I gathered myself, then made a huge leaping attempt to pa.s.s him so that I could reach the phone in the main cabin.

He grabbed me in mid-air with one hand and threw me to the floor of the plane onto my back, knocking the wind out of me.

'What an actress,' he said with amus.e.m.e.nt. 'Had me fooled for a moment.' He dropped to straddle me, sitting on my stomach. 'Well, well. Look what we have here.'

'Please don't hurt my Emma,' Simone whispered. 'Please, Daddy, Daddy, wake up, wake up up.'

'Oh, don't worry, sweetheart,' Wong said loudly without looking away from me. 'She's much more valuable in one piece.' He lowered his face to mine and dropped his voice, speaking right into my face. 'And much tastier too.' He slowly licked my cheek, taking his time about it. I tried not to let my expression betray my disgust.

He pulled back and put his hands on either side of my throat, with the thumbs on my windpipe. He squeezed. I couldn't breathe. He was strangling me. I struggled but he had me down tight. I grabbed his arms but his grip was like steel. I faded; then he released me and I gasped for breath.

'You didn't go blue,' he said with disappointment. 'Let's try again.'

He wrapped his hands around my throat again and squeezed. I tried to relax into a trance so that I wouldn't need to breathe as much. He saw me do it. He released me to slap me across the face but I ignored it.

He put his hands on my arms and shifted so that he was stretched out on top of me. 'You really don't give a d.a.m.n about yourself, do you,' he growled into my ear. 'All you care about is the little girl.' He shoved himself into me. 'She has to be intact, you know. But I can still have some fun with her, and I'd love to watch your face while I make her play. Right now is as good a time as any-it'll be a long flight before we get there. I can have some fun with her before I give her to my dad. But I'm keeping you. He won't even know I have you.'

I looked him in the eyes and felt nothing but hate. He had nearly killed Leo. He wanted to hurt my little Simone.

I tasted the blood.

I tasted the rage.

I tasted the pain.

Ice.

Cold.

Fury.

Something between my eyes went snap snap. And suddenly I was huge, and dark, and powerful, and mad as h.e.l.l.

Wong's face changed from menace to fear.

Both Kitty and Simone screamed.

I easily threw him off, raised myself on my black coils and opened my mouth to strike. My fangs flew out, spraying venom.

Wong and Kitty disappeared. Gone. I tried to follow their movement but they had taken off and gone fast and far.

I looked around. Simone had collapsed into the corner, sobbing. I glanced down at Leo. His neck was broken and he was bleeding profusely from the wound on the side of his throat, but he was alive.

I closed my mouth, refolding my fangs. What was happening?

They'd hurt Leo. They'd frightened Simone. Not good enough. There was a demon nearby. I stalked it.

I slithered silently through the galley into the main cabin. Demon. Kill.

The other side of the door. Demon. Kill it.

I went through the door without stopping. The demon wasn't paying attention. I reared up and bit its head off. It exploded into a cloud of the black stuff. I vacuumed it all into me. Not as good as blood, but it would do.

There was a corpse in the other seat. I nudged it with my nose. Dead. Too bad. I couldn't heal him. Oh, well.

I turned. The door was still closed, but again it didn't stop me. I just went straight through it, as if it wasn't there. I returned to Simone and Leo. I hesitated.

Simone: drained, but okay. Leo: near death. John: also near death.

I touched my nose to Leo and healed him. He didn't wake.

'Call the Dragon. Call the Lady,' I said.

Simone remained frozen, sobbing.

'Call them, child,' I said.

'I won't hurt you.'

I felt them coming. I changed. I fell.

CHAPTER ELEVEN.

Igasped and shot upright. 'Who's flying the plane?'

'The Dragon is,' Leo said.

'John!' I said, casting around.

'I'm fine,' John said from my left. He was sitting on the bunk and smiling. Simone was sitting on his lap, also smiling.

I sagged back and ran my hand over my forehead. 'Whoa. That feels weird.' I tasted my mouth and gagged.

Leo handed me a cup of something strong, sweet and fizzy, and I downed it.

'Thanks, but I need to brush my teeth,' I said. 'My mouth tastes of blood.' I looked around. 'What happened?'

'How much do you remember?' Leo said softly. He crouched next to me, studying me intensely.