Semi-Human (Harper Hall Investigations Book 2) by Isabel Jordan Read Free Book Online Page B

empty garage. In front of him on a rickety folding chair, hands tied behind her back, was a very pissed-off Harper.
    He took his first deep, steady breath in over an hour. She looked ready to rip Romeo apart with her bare hands, and if she was visibly pissed, she wasn’t badly hurt.
    So maybe he’d only shoot Romeo once after hanging him from the ceiling by his own intestines. That would make him the bigger person, right?
    Then he noticed the syringe Romeo had pointed at Harper’s jugular, and he gave up any hope of ever being the bigger person.
    The wild thing within him paced the length of its chain, snarling, hair raised, anticipating the rush of blood on its tongue.
    “You found us pretty quick, son,” Romeo said, his booming voice echoing in the empty garage. “You must be smarter than you look.”
    “I’m not your son,” he said distractedly, eyes moving over Harper, silently cataloging possible injuries. When his gaze locked with hers, she gave him a nod to indicate she was OK.
    He didn’t bother to address Romeo’s slam on his intelligence. Now that he knew Harper was OK, he could get down to the business at hand. He spun his knife around so that he had a better reverse grip (all the better for slitting the bastard’s throat) and aimed the SIG at Romeo’s head.
    Romeo edged the syringe closer to Harper’s neck. “Talk to him, Harper,” he said to her in a low, urgent voice. “He’s losing it.”
    She sighed. “Riddick, we need to talk about why Romeo brought me here.”
    He nodded. “Sure. We can talk all you want after he’s dead.”
    Harper glanced up at Romeo and frowned at him. “That’s the thing. You can’t kill him.”
    Riddick pulled back the hammer on the SIG. “Sure I can. Watch.”
    Romeo sucked in a sharp breath. “This isn’t going to work. He’s too far gone, and I don’t have the time for screwing around,” he muttered.
    Then he shifted his hand away from her neck and jammed the syringe into her upper arm.
    Harper screamed, then passed out as Romeo dove behind her chair, narrowly missing the shot Riddick took at his head.
    That’s when everything went…red. Hazy. Riddick surrendered his self-control and let the beast slip its leash.
     
    When Harper came to, she was lying on the floor of the garage with her head in Riddick’s lap. Well, she supposed, at least she wasn’t tied to a chair anymore.
    “Christ,” she groaned, trying to sit up. “What the hell happened?”
    He shoved her back down and leaned over her, examining her eyes. “How do you feel?”
    She took one look at the sheer panic in his eyes and remembered exactly what had happened.
    Her hand flew to the sore spot where Romeo had jammed the needle and she winced. “Goddamn you, Romeo.”
    When he didn’t answer, she whipped her head around to see if he was still breathing, but Riddick grabbed her chin and forced her eyes back to his. “Answer me, damn it,” he growled. “How do you feel?”
    She thought about it for a second. Other than the needle puncture on her arm, she felt really…good. Rested and full of energy, even. Her tequila hangover was gone, and hell, even the kink in her back was better. “I feel great,” she said honestly.
    Riddick let out a breath. “Are you sure?”
    Harper nodded and Riddick helped ease her off the floor. The second she was on her feet, he tugged her into his arms and buried his face in the crook of her neck. “Jesus, Harper. I’m so damn sorry this happened.”
    She wrapped her arms around his waist and squeezed hard. “You don’t have anything to be sorry for. None of this is your fault. It’s all because of that asshat…wait a minute.” She pulled back and met Riddick’s gaze. “Where is that asshat?”
    He pointed up. Harper would’ve thought he meant the jerk was dead and in heaven if she hadn’t been sure Saint Peter would laugh his ass off at the thought of granting entrance to Romeo Jones.
    Romeo was suspended from the ceiling by a thick length