Amber Fire by Lisa Renée Jones Read Free Book Online

Mike?!” she demanded.
    â€œWhat’s going on,” Mike said, “is that your buddy here is the only one those cats will let near Chris. Something isn’t right about that. Something is damn wrong, in fact.”
    Jareth looked at Amber. “I told him I’d nursed a cub back to health,” he said. “The cats know me. And they know I don’t mean them any harm.” He leaned in to pick up Chris.
    â€œDon’t move or I’ll be shooting at you!” Mike shouted. “Because that’s a bunch of crap for an answer. Those cats are wild. They don’t give a shit if you nursed a cub. They’d still kill a normal person if they got the chance. But there isn’t a damn thing normal about you, is there?”
    Jareth gave him an icy look. “Those cats can smell danger. They know who means them harm. And it’s not me.”
    â€œDamn you, Mike!” Amber launched herself forward, acting before she let fear get the best of her. Chris needed help, and Amber wasn’t allowing Jareth’s secret to be discovered while he tried to save a man’s life. Something Mike was too busy making accusations to do.
    â€œAmber!” Mike screamed. Several other shouts mingled with his.
    In an instant, alive and untouched by the cats, Amber squatted down beside Chris. “Oh God,” she whispered, at the terrifying contrast of blood and pale skin on Chris. They were losing valuable time while Mike held them hostage with accusations.
    Amber rotated on her heels and glared over at Mike. “The issue is not Jareth, Mike, or the cats would be attacking me.” Emotion radiated in her voice. She was responsible for protecting her crew, and Chris was bleeding to death. She’d trusted Mike like a father. “It’s you and your damn guns. The guns weren’t supposed to be on my dig site in the first place!” Amber turned back to Jareth and cast him a pleading look. “Please. Help him.”
    Jareth’s eyes met hers, respect and appreciation in their depths. Then he picked up Chris as one might a child. He knew she’d covered for him, that she understood the risk he’d taken by showing his ability to approach the cats in order to help Chris.
    Jareth started walking and Amber followed. “I called for an ambulance.”
    Mike took a step toward them. The cats snarled a warning that stopped him in his tracks. “The cats will let them pass once they know we’re a safe distance away,” Jareth assured her but didn’t wait for a reply. He began a slow jog down the hill, carrying Chris’s two hundred pounds with inhuman ease.
    They made the rest of the run in silence, stepping into camp to a rumble of worried voices and thankfully, an ambulance in waiting. The emergency team rushed toward them with a rolling bed, and Jareth set Chris on top. It was clear that Chris had taken one massive blow across the chest. In what felt like minutes, but was more like seconds, the crew had Chris inside the ambulance.
    Amber ran to the door. “What hospital?” The driver shouted a name and pulled the doors shut, the grim expression on his face not at all comforting.
    Amber whirled around to face Jareth, his dark shirt matted with the stickiness of blood. Her stomach rolled with the realization of how much blood Chris really had lost. “I have to go to the hospital, but the others . . . I need to know they’re safe.”
    He grabbed her and pulled her close. “They’re fine,” he said. “I promise. Go to the hospital, and I can meet you there soon.” Then he kissed her forehead.
    It was a tender act, and she wanted nothing more than to take comfort from it, from him. But guilt overtook her with a chaser of fear and doubt. One of her men had been hurt by a jaguar. For all she knew, by a Yaguara. And Mike was acting crazy. If her father were here, he’d have never allowed this nightmare to happen. Her