LIAM (The Rylee Adamson Epilogues, Book 2) by Shannon Mayer Read Free Book Online Page B

scented the air, drawing it over the back of my tongue. A low growl rumbled out of my chest without warning.
    The heavy sun-filled, hot incense that was uniquely lion filled the air, growing stronger with each passing second.
    The heavy thud of padded feet approaching kept me where I was in a crouch. From the back of the lion enclosure emerged a male easily twice the size of any normal African lion. His mane was black, his body a brilliant gold that glimmered even in the dark of night, and his eyes . . . his eyes were silver.
    He was a Guardian.
     
     

CHAPTER 3
     
    “ WHAT THE HELL is a Guardian doing in a zoo?” I stood as I spoke. The Guardian continued to approach me, a low rumble in his chest that sounded a bit like a laugh. He sat on his haunches at the edge of the false river, his paws sinking into the soft, wet ground. There was only the one fence between us. And suddenly I was thinking that it had been a bad idea to come over even one fence.
    “Well, I could ask you what exactly you are doing here, Wolf.” The lion’s silver eyes narrowed. “And what happened to you? Your eyes are blue instead of silver.”
    I shook my head. “Long story. And you are avoiding my question. What are you doing stuck in a zoo? Unless you are here of your own free will? And if you are, why did you call for me?”
    He snorted and shook his head, mane flipping about. “No, hardly. I was knocked out, captured, and then sold into this place. As to why I would call on you, take a guess, mutt.”
    I wasn’t buying his story. Something about it wasn’t quite right. “Why?”
    “Why would I want out?” His voice had a perpetual edge of laughter, like every word was hanging onto humor like a monkey from a branch.
    I put my hands on my hips. “That much is obvious, idiot, but why were you taken? What would be the point of capturing a Guardian?”
    He lifted one big paw to me in supplication, pad upward. “Because with the Guardians out of the world, our places, our sanctuaries can be taken. Unlike you, the rest of us are set to guard certain . . . things. You are the wanderer. You are the one who is set to guard the world.” He swiped the paw across the dirt in front of him. His eyes were intense, but I didn’t look away.
    Bits and pieces of what he said were truth. I just didn’t know how much. I took a step toward the fence between us. “Then I need to get you out of here if that’s the case. You need to get back to taking care of whatever it is you left behind.”
    “No.” He put a paw over his face, as though he couldn’t stand the sight of me. “If you try, they will capture you too. No, you must leave this place. Guard your home territory. That is your job, Wolf. Leave me here . . . to rot.”
    I rolled my eyes. “You don’t need to convince me to help you with some attempt at reverse psychology.”
    He peeked through the toes of his paw. “Really? The last Guardian I drew in just laughed at me.”
    I lifted an eyebrow. There weren’t many Guardians left that I knew of, and the ones I did recall were less than kind. “Wasn’t Spider, was it?”
    He winked. “That would be the one. She’s a real bitch.”
    “Recently?” I had to still the urge to look over my shoulder. Spider was not to be trifled with.
    He shook his head. “No, about six months ago. She was looking for someone who’d taken her by surprise.”
    Shit, that would be Rylee again. I kept my face still. “Well, let’s get you out of here.”
    I took a look at the final fence. It was steel vertical bars with spaces that would maybe allow me to stuff an arm through. I stared up at the top. As I tried to figure out how to get him out, I continued to interrogate him. “Was it the ogres who captured you?”
    “They . . . helped. They had a mage, she is powerful and dangerous. She bound me into this form within the confines of the cage once she realized what I was.” His eyes narrowed. “If you’re going to do something, get on it, Wolf.”
    I