Christine Feehan - Wild Rain

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To escape an assassin, Rachel finds sanctuary in the rainforest, where the most exotic of all creatures walks: Rio. But when he unleashes his secret animal instincts, Rachel fears that her isolated haven could become an inescapable hell…

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The spotted leopard rolled to break Rio's hold, racing away, taking to the branches and moving quickly along the overhead highway to escape. Deliberately the angry cat went toward the last location of the smaller, clouded leopard. Rio gave chase, sending out a warning cough, but the spotted leopard was on Fritz, grabbing for the neck with wicked teeth, shaking the smaller cat viciously. He dropped it onto the ground below and took off just as Rio launched another attack. Claws raked the spotted leopard's hindquarters. His yowl of pain sent the birds skittering again, but he kept going, digging into the branches with his claws to pull away.

Rio dropped quickly to the ground to assess the damage to Fritz. The larger spotted leopard had delivered a grave injury, but left the smaller cat alive. Rio hissed an angry warning. He had to fight his own nature, the need to go after fleeing prey. Fight back the temper smoldering in his gut, red-hot and demanding revenge.

There was no doubt in his mind he had faced one of his own kind, a cunning, intelligent mixture of leopard and man. This one had come to kill him. Rio knew most of his people; there were few left in the forest. Many were scattered in other countries and some chose to live as humans in the cities, but most were known to one another. Rio did not recognize the scent of his stalker, but he recognized the intelligence of the decision not to kill the clouded leopard in a fit of temper. The attack had been cold-blooded and well thought out in the short time available. The spotted leopard knew Rio would never leave the dangerously injured cat to track him. And that told Rio something else. His stalker knew he traveled with the two clouded leopards.

He looked cautiously around, making certain to scent the wind. His cough was a demand to the tree dwellers for information. The cry came from the troupe of monkeys overhead. Rio reached for his human form, allowed the pain to engulf him as ropes of muscle and sinew contorted, contracted and stretched. He crouched beside the clouded leopard, assessing the damage to the animal. The puncture wounds were deep. He clamped his hand over the holes and applied pressure, murmuring reassurances as he did so, ignoring the deep claw marks on his own skin.

"Franz, stay alert," he ordered as he gathered Fritz into his arms. Rio had to keep pressure on the two puncture wounds as he raced through the forest, weaving his way between the trees, leaping over fallen logs, splashing through two small swollen streams, covering the uneven terrain as fast as he could. He was built much like a leopard with muscles meant for carrying large prey. He didn't feel the burden of the clouded leopard, but in his human form, his skin was not nearly as tough as in his animal form and the forest tore up his flesh as he rushed through it.

Rio leapt upon the wide low-hanging branch leading to his home with the ease of long practice and, balancing carefully, made his way along the maze of branches until he gained the verandah. He called out to warn Rachael, hoping she wouldn't shoot him as he shoved open the door with his hip. Fritz, nestled so close to him, turned his head to look up at him in silent fear. The small leopard's sides were heaving, straining for air, too much blood matting his fur.

Rachael gasped, thrusting the gun beneath the pillow. "What happened? What can I do?" Rio's face was a dangerous mask, fierce, warriorlike, his eyes alive with anger. He turned the full power of his unblinking stare on her, assessing her condition. Rachael met his piercing gaze steadily. "Really, Rio, let me help you."

He immediately switched directions, bringing the injured animal to the bed. "Can you sit up all the way by yourself?"

Rachael didn't bother with speech. She simply showed him, making certain to keep her expression serene when her heart was pounding and pain made her sick. She'd had enough practice hiding fear. The cat was badly injured and therefore far more dangerous than in its normal state. Her mouth went dry as he placed the animal in her lap and guided, first one hand, then the other to the puncture wounds. Rachael found herself with a fifty-pound leopard in her lap and her hands pressing into its neck covered in blood.

Rio lit the lamp and brought his surgical supplies to the bed, kneeling down close to the animal's head. "Be still, Fritz," he murmured, "I know it hurts, but we'll get you fixed up." He didn't look at Rachael, but worked on the animal, his hands gentle, steady and very sure.

His head was bent, dark hair spilling around his face. There was sweat and blood on his skin, and he smelled wild and of wet fur. His face could have been carved from stone as he worked to save the cat. "These are deep puncture wounds, much like your leg. I sutured the lacerations on your leg but left the punctures to drain. I'll have to do the same with Fritz. The best I can do is clean the wounds thoroughly, give him antibiotics and hope they don't abscess. If they do, I'll have to put in drains."

As Rio worked on cleansing the puncture site, Fritz opened his mouth, exposing his long, wicked canines, and yowled horribly. Rachael took a deep breath and kept her gaze locked on Rio, on his face rather than on his hands, afraid if she looked at the cat's teeth she would do a little screaming herself.

Franz answered Fritz, pacing anxiously back and forth in agitation. Without warning, he suddenly leapt onto the bed, nearly crushing Rachael's legs. Pain rushed through her body, took her breath and forced a small, strangled cry from her throat. For a moment the room spun, tilted, went black. "Rachael!" Rio's voice was sharp, compelling, calling her back. Rio's arm swept Franz from the bed. "Stay the hell down," he snarled, his voice rumbling with menace.

To Rachael's surprise, her hands were still in Fritz's fur. She applied more pressure as she shook her head. "I'm sorry, I wasn't expecting him to do that."

"You're doing fine," he said. "Can you go on?"

"If you can, I can," she answered. He looked at her then with his vivid green eyes, something she couldn't quite name swirling in the darker depths. His gaze drifted over her face, almost as if he were drawing strength from just looking at her. He turned his attention back to the cat.

Rachael let out her breath slowly, fighting down the bile rising in her throat from the throbbing pain in her leg. She would do anything to see that look on his face. A sharing. A connection. She listened to the sound of his voice as he talked softly to the cat, reassuring it as he stitched the deep wound. She found herself stroking the fur with her free hand as the animal trembled, but stayed still for Rio's ministrations.

Rachael waited until Rio was working on the second puncture wound. "How did this happen?"

"There was a big, spotted leopard, a male, in the forest. He attacked Fritz. Fortunately he dropped him without crushing the windpipe."

She looked at the deep angry scratches on Rio's body. "You went up against a leopard trying to kill your pet?"

Swift impatience crossed his face. "I told you, Fritz and Franz are not pets. They're my friends, I didn't save Fritz, he was trying to protect me and he put himself in harm's way."

Rachael bent over the animal in her lap, examining the chunk missing from the ear. "So this one is Fritz?"

He nodded as he peered closely at his work. "This puncture wound is not as deep as the other one. I'm going to give him something for the infection. The leopard did this deliberately."

"Why?" She didn't look at him when she asked. Rio had bitten the words out between his strong teeth, almost as if he said them without thought, angry at the leopard for hurting the smaller cat. She sensed that Rio was on the verge of telling her something very important.

Rio glanced at her. "I think he was hunting for one of us. I just am not certain which. At first I thought it was me, but now I'm not so sure."

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