“Yeah. They’re warriors from a long time ago who don’t know things have changed. They’re trying to hurt my family.” His face turned red. “They have to be stopped.”
“Or just told that things have changed,” Hope said, taking her hand out of his.
His big chest moved when he breathed. “That’s a good idea.” He turned to her, his eyes more purple than green, making him look super-tough. “Do you know where they are?”
“No,” she said, honestly. She really didn’t know.
“Oh.” His shoulders slumped. “How about the bubbles? Have they all popped?”
She bit her lip. Nobody knew about the bubbles or the worlds that were kinda like this one. But Drake was her friend, and he just wanted to make things better. “Just the first one has popped. The second will be next, and then the middle one.”
He turned and grasped her arms, his fingers not hurting her at all. “Are you sure?”
She nodded, her eyes widening on him.
“Do you know when?”
She shook her head.
He slowly relaxed. “Remember when you told me that we were gonna change the world?”
“Yeah.” It was the first time they’d met.
“Do you know how?”
She shook her head.
He smiled, and his eyes turned back to the green. “Me, neither. But I think the bubbles are where we have to start.”
“Okay.” She looked back at the pink ocean. Now she and Drake had a job together.
Cool.
CHAPTER THIRTY-TWO
Faith took a quick shower to cool her still-raging body and then braided her hair before jumping into a pair of new jeans and a white sweater. The tennis shoes were new and also white. They were a mite too big, but with socks on, she could make them work. Damn, she missed her boots and lip gloss. When could she return to a normal life? Ever?
She took a deep breath and strode into the hallway, adrenaline filling her bloodstream.
Raised voices made her stop cold. Ivar and Benny were arguing in the computer room. Loudly.
“We can’t just kill an innocent human,” Ivar snarled.
“Agreed. But we’re talking the lives of thousands. Enhanced women. We need a live Key,” Benny countered. “Sacrifice has always been the way. Our way.”
“I know.” Ivar’s voice was low with pain.
Oh, God. Even if she trusted Ronan, he was outnumbered by the other three. If they wanted Grace dead, could he defend her? Against his vow and his brothers?
She had to protect Grace. As quiet as she could, she turned and ran back down the corridor. There was one chance to get out of there, and she had to take it.
When Ronan returned around midnight, she’d be gone. She couldn’t take a chance with Grace’s life. Even if Ronan didn’t want to kill her, there were three other vampire-demon hybrids to worry about. They had all taken vows as the Seven, and sacrificing one human probably wouldn’t even make them blink.
They might argue and hate the fact, but they obviously hadn’t found another solution.
How was she going to get Grace out of there? She crossed into Grace’s room and stopped cold at seeing Adare on the fragile pink chair, stripping a weapon. “What are you doing?” Panic heated up Faith’s throat, and she rushed toward her sister, feeling for a pulse. Steady and strong.
Adare didn’t twitch. “Ivar pretty much ordered me to keep watch.”
“So you’re cleaning your weapon?” Faith snapped.
Adare shrugged, slipping the clip into place. “I have important things to do.”
“She is important.” Faith took several deep breaths to calm herself. Grace was okay. Well, in a coma with saline and food drips, but at least breathing on her own.
Adare sprawled in the chair, his legs out, his ankles crossed. In the dim light, his eyes were dark and unreadable. “That Key is important to you,” he said, his voice oddly hoarse, even for these growly men.
“She’s not a Key,” Faith said, fighting the urge to cross around the bed and step between them. “She can’t be.”
He lifted a shoulder that looked solid enough to move a mountain. “She is a Key. The marking is true.”
“What is wrong with your voice?” Faith asked, unable to help herself.
His dark eyebrows rose. “Nothing.” He studied her. “Oh. Yeah. You’re new to this. Demons have raw vocal cords. Some people call them mangled, which they are not. But I seem to have inherited that characteristic, even though I’m only half demon.” He shrugged. “Same with the black eyes. But I do have a secondary color like other vampires.”
“What color?” Faith asked. How did the color change work? Did vampires have genes like the chameleon? How fascinating.
“That’s a private matter, darlin.’ And I’m more Highlander than either demon or vampire. That’s important.” He softened the rebuke with a smile, transforming his face from deadly to just mildly terrifying. “How’d your sister get into a coma?” His hoarse voice sounded almost bored now.
Faith kept her hand on her sister’s shoulder. “A burglar.”
Silence ticked for a moment. Adare cocked his head to the side. “You don’t sound certain of that.”
She swallowed. “They’ve never caught the guy.” She didn’t need to go into details with Adare, since he obviously wanted nothing to do with humans.
Adare studied the woman on the bed. “We will find who harmed her.”
The vow sent chills down Faith’s back. With her wet braid, she wished for a heavier sweater. “Adare? Why do you care?”
He didn’t look away from her sister. “I don’t, but you’re the mate of my brother. Nobody hurts you or yours without inviting death.”
Those should be comforting words. They weren’t.
He studied Grace. “To still be alive, she must have impressive strength. For a human.”
There was no way he’d let Faith leave with Grace. The hybrid was totally ruining her plan. But maybe she could go scout an escape route. What she needed was a wheelchair for Grace, but maybe she could find something else that would serve the purpose. A dolly, perhaps? “If you’re going to sit with her, I’ll run and grab something to eat.”
Adare nodded, his gaze returning to his weapon. “Can she hear us?”
Faith paused. “There’s research that says coma victims can hear those around them. Especially family members. I don’t know if she can hear us,” Faith said softly, “but I talk to her every chance I get and recite poems, just in case. She loved poetry.”
“Humph.” He looked up. “Benny is supposed to relieve me. He’d better be on time.”
Yeah. The Highlander really was kind of a dick. She turned and moved as quietly as she could back down the dimly-lit hallway, hoping he thought she was going to her bedroom before getting something to eat.
She kept going past her bedroom, hurrying through the tunnels. Hopefully Ivar hadn’t had time to put locks on the door or sensors or whatever else he had in mind.
She’d look around, find a good way to escape, and return for her sister. Adare would be back to work soon. Or she’d tell him to go back to work and let her sister rest. Would he fall for that? Finally, she reached the opening in the rocks.
Wind and rain pelted in along with darkness. There was no smooth rock wall to move. Excellent.
She rushed into the rain and ran over to the nearest jeep. It was a battered two-door convertible with a plastic top in place. She yanked open the door and scrambled around, finding the keys on the seat. Relief blasted her. Okay. All she had to do was figure out a way to bring Grace safely out here, and then they could escape.
Lightning zapped into the forest, and she jumped. The smell of ozone filled her nose.
Wow. That was close. Thunder ripped across the night as if in agreement. She swallowed and wiped rain off
her face before shutting the door, the keys in her free hand. Lightning illuminated the clouds above her, turning them a grayish purple. The forest spread out, dark and deep.
She hustled around the jeep, her tennis shoes sinking in the wet grass. Lightning flashed again, lighting up the small clearing. She headed for the entrance and stopped cold.
Ronan emerged from the rock, his gaze meeting hers instantly.
Her heart stuttered. She paused out of pure instinct. Every nerve in her body flickered in panic, and her knees tensed with the urge to flee.
Lightning flashed again, fully illuminating him.
Fury. Raw and angry, it crossed his fierce cheekbones. He crooked a finger at her in a come-here gesture. She glanced down at the keys in her hand.
His growl vibrated through the storm, stronger than the rain. He sounded like a wild animal. A predator on the hunt. The sound sent chills down her back. If she went back in, she’d never get the chance to save Grace.
In a heartbeat, she made up her mind.
She had to run.
* * * *
Rage burned hot and deep in Ronan’s chest, and he tried to calm it. Faith was standing in the middle of a powerful storm, putting herself in danger. There had to be a good reason.
She glanced down at her hand.
Something glinted dully.
The second he realized she held the keys to the vehicle, his body settled. His mind cleared. And his fury intensified, his heartbeat tuning in to the wild weather.
“Come here, Faith,” he said over the storm. He owed her the chance. “If I have to chase you, you won’t like it.” He was a predator by nature, and when prey fled, predators had no choice but to pursue. The fact that she had put herself in danger from the storm pissed him off as much as the realization that she had planned to run.
From him.
That was an error she would not repeat.
The scent of the storm, pine and ozone, filled him along with the savagery of Mother Nature. He breathed in the elements, his senses sharpening. “Now,” he said.
She looked behind him at the opening in the rock, and then hesitated. Rain poured over her delicate features, and she blinked. The water and wind molded her white sweater to her full breasts, and her nipples hardened before his eyes.
His breath heated. Energy cascaded down his back, over his skin. His cock started to throb and the muscles in his thighs shifted, tensing to run. Her scent wafted through the rain, digging deep inside him, settling against his beast. The animal at his core that was ready for her. To claim her. “Faith.” His voice came out almost garbled this time.
Emotion after emotion chased themselves across her face, and then she settled. Stilled. Her brown eyes appeared like wild honey, full of intelligence and spirit. Just like the storm around them. “I thought you’d be busy for a while,” she yelled.
Interesting line of defense. Deflection. “I’m never too busy for you.” He’d never spoken truer words. Apparently, he was having difficulty explaining her position in his life. In his heart. Why was it so hard for this modern woman to see what was right in front of her?
It wasn’t as if he was hard to miss.
The wind pummeled them and she staggered, but remained on her feet. He could shelter her, if she’d just let him. “Faith. Stop fighting this.” Stop fighting him, damn it.
“I have things to do that don’t involve you,” she said, her voice rising to beat the wind.
Again, the reality in which that might be true no longer existed. “Everything about you involves me,” he said—reasonably, he thought.
She shook her head, that tight braid spraying water. “That’s not how life works.”
“Considering I’ve lived many more years than you, perhaps you should trust me on how life works.” What was it with current society and its complete disregard for the lessons of the past? For history? For a reality not caught up in smartphones and just this minute. There was so much more around them. “Even you can feel this. Feel us,” he said.
“I feel what I choose to feel.” She slid in the mud and righted herself, looking around.
How ridiculous was that statement? He grinned, his fangs no doubt glinting.
She met his gaze again, indecision crossing her wet cheekbones.
He saw the moment she decided on a path.
Her legs tightened. She drew in a breath and pivoted in the wet grass, turning to flee.
The beast inside him howled in anticipation. Only slightly increasing his normal speed, he reached her before she could open the door of the vehicle.
Careful not to touch her, he plucked the keys right out of her hand. She gasped and whirled around, her wet braid hitting him in the chest.
Fast as a whip, he reached out and released the tie on her braid. The wind took care of the rest, loosening the entire mass to blow around her face. She looked like a descending angel. He then took two steps back, twirling the keys in his hand. The rain pummeled them, but he paid no heed. “Where are you going?” he asked.
Her chest panted and she gulped. Her eyes had widened, probably unconsciously, but her head was up and her gaze direct. God, she was magnificent. Even her stubborn chin was held at a strong angle. “It’s none of your business.” She had to raise her voice over the rampaging wind.
“That’s where you’re wrong.” He had no need to change his voice, as he was one with the storm. For the first time in too long, he felt his power. His true strength. So he took another step back, giving her the freedom to make the smart decision. The safe one for her. “Go back inside, Faith. We’ll forget about this.”
She wiped rain out of her eyes, still facing him so bravely. For a moment, she apparently thought the situation through. “No.”
No. She’d said no. He studied her, trying to delve into that brilliant mind of hers. Sparks shot from her eyes. Anger and challenge. Without a question, she was challenging him.
As if reading his thoughts, as if wanting without a doubt to make sure he understood, she pressed her hands to her hips. With her small shoes in the mud and her hair wet and plastered to her face, she was the most gorgeous thing he’d seen in his very long life. And she was challenging him.
So things hadn’t changed as much as he’d feared. There was still…this. If he wanted her, wanted the honor of protecting her, of building a life with her, he had to earn it. Did she even understand what she was doing? Oh, she was one of the Enhanced, and this defiance probably came instinctively. But she couldn’t know, she couldn’t comprehend, the primitive beast at his core.
She took a step toward him, her hands closing into fists.
There would never be a more fitting mate for him. He lowered his chin. “You have two choices, Doc. Behave yourself and go back inside. I’ll deal with you then.”
“Or?” It was as close to a growl as she’d ever be able to make.
He let his fangs flash. “Or you could run. But Faith, you won’t get far.” Anticipation lit him on fire. The choice was hers.
Red filled her cheeks and her eyes glowed. Then she smiled, the sight bold. “Think you can catch me?”
His shoulders went back. “Yes.”
“Then let’s make it interesting,” she said through the pounding rain.
His muscles bunched and the leash he kept on himself stretched tight and thin. What type of game was she playing? “Interesting?”
“Yes.” If the woman had had a gauntlet, she would’ve thrown it right at his head. “First, you give me your word no harm will come to my sister. That we will take her and hide her if your brothers decide to end her life. Period.”
Power vibrated down his back. That was an easy vow. “I promise. Second?”
She smiled, her chin lowering. “You give me the count of twenty. If you don’t catch me in one minute, you let Grace and me go. Where we want and when. I’ll call you wh
en I choose to involve you.”
He liked this wild side of her. A lot. “If I catch you, I mate you,” he rumbled, his fangs retracting through sheer force of will. “What say you?”
She sucked in a deep breath of air, filling her chest. In the middle of the storm, beneath the raging clouds, she truly was magnificent. “You have a deal.”
CHAPTER THIRTY-THREE
Faith turned in the mud and ran down the road. What the hell was she doing? Every part of her had wanted to challenge him. She started counting in her head. One. Two. Three.
The rain hammered down, while the wind beat against her. But she was a runner, always had been, and she could outlast him for a minute.
Then she could get her sister free. And she’d call Ronan on her terms. Make him bring her flowers or something. Seven. Eight. Nine.
She turned and dodged between two pine trees, heading off the main road. Her breath panted in her ears and her blood rushed through her veins. Desire beat at her and a part of her, one she didn’t much like, wanted him to catch her.
But he’d have to fucking earn it.
Fifteen. Sixteen.
She took another turn, this time between a couple of blue spruce with wide reaches. She had to duck and turn sideways. Ronan wouldn’t make it. Then she chose another narrow set of trees and barreled between them.
Power sang in her veins as she ran. Stronger and better than ever before. It must’ve been the blood he’d given her.
Had that infusion caused her to act recklessly in making this deal?
She’d never felt so alive.
Twenty.
She increased her speed. He’d be coming after her now. She started counting down from sixty in the back of her mind.
Her shoes slipped in the mud and she windmilled, catching her balance and not missing a breath. Her feet landed with the pulse of the storm and she ducked her head, going faster. Thirty seconds down. Thirty to go.
She dodged a quick left between more trees, bounding over a series of bushes. Then she turned again.