Chapter 19 #3
My movements were faster than a blink, my war cries barely making it to their ears before I cut and sliced through the throng of officers.
They were drugged and too stupid to run.
They marched to their death, painting my face with their blood.
One after another, their bodies dropped, some completely in half.
The faux-fae were fast, but with Kovacs, I was faster.
“Pull back!” Tracker’s order hit my ears, the guards retreating. A growl curled out of my chest, and I toward Tracker. He needed to die.
He fired back at me, and I blocked every one of them, seeing the shot before it even hit. His eyes widened with terror. Taking off at a sprint, he ran for the parking lot. His men followed suit.
Lunging to run after him, my legs faltered. Brexley’s power left me with a snap, my knees slamming down on the ground. My hollowed-out chest heaved with the sudden loss. The connection we had for a moment was burnt out, leaving me gutted. Like part of me was missing.
“Ash! Help!” Killian’s cry pulled my head over my shoulder. A few crowded around Killian. He sat on the ground, Rosie’s head on his lap, his hand continuously brushing at her face as blood gushed from her side. It took me a second to see her chest still rising and falling, but in jerky movements.
“Fuck.” I got to my feet, stumbling back for them. My body swayed, needing to sleep. Between my multiple gunshot wounds and the power share with Kovacs, it took everything I had to keep upright.
Though all of us were wounded, we would heal. Rosie was human. She would not.
“I can patch her up the best I can, but we need to find a clinic or supplies.” Ash leaned over her. “I need cloth.”
Wesley kneeled over Rosie, opening his mouth to speak, but it was Killian who acted first.
“Here.” Killian ripped his jacket and shirt off without hesitation, tossing the shirt to Ash. “Do whatever. Just help her.”
Ash worked quietly for a few moments, tying off her wound and covering it to slow down the bleeding while Caden and I stood guard, watching for the troop to return.
“I can’t do anything more here. We need to get her help soon.” Or she will die. I could hear the sentiment he left off. The truth.
Rosie was going to bleed to death.
Killian lifted her in his arms as he rose, his own bullet wound in his arm dripping down his leg. “Then we find her help.” It was not a suggestion; it was a command.
We started to move, heading for our bikes when Scorpion stopped.
“Where’s Hanna?” His head snapped around, his question making us all peer around.
“Wasn’t she right next to you?” Birdie asked.
“Yeah.” He nodded, a panic jerking him around, searching for her. “She was right next to me until . . .”
“Until what? Where is she?” Caden demanded.
“Until the soldiers ran.” Scorpion went still, his eyes jerking to the parking lot. “Oh gods, no.” He took off, sprinting toward the entrance. “Hanna?” His bellows rocketed into the sky. “Hanna!” Pure dread soaked her name as I jogged after him into the parking lot, halting in my tracks.
Scorpion stood in the middle of the empty lot. Hanna’s pack lay on the ground at his feet. Discarded.
His head bowed like he had just lost everything.
“What the hell? Where is she?” Caden bounded up, his aggressive energy smashing into Scorpion.
“She’s gone.” Scorpion’s voice was low.
“What do you mean she’s gone? Where did she go?”
The fae lashed out like a scorpion tail, his hands clutching Caden’s throat. “She left with them!” He raged, shaking Caden. “Because of what your fucking father did to her. He turned her into one of them,” Scorpion belted, his muscles clenching and ready to punch someone.
“Want to hit someone? Hit me.” Stepping between them, I knew it would not end well for either if Scorpion and Caden got into it.
For a moment, I could see Scorpion wanted to, but he turned away with an aggravated, gutting bellow. And even though Scorpion and I weren’t linked without Brexley, I felt his pain, his helplessness.
I knew it well.
A wet cough came from behind us. Killian tried to sit Rosie up on a bike, putting her in front of him, his arms caging her in as he took over the bike. She was awake, but barely.
We had to go.
“Come on.” I motioned for Caden and Scorpion to move. Caden reacted instantly, going back to the motorcycles, but Scorpion didn’t move.
I could see the debate in him, whether he should go after Hanna instead.
“You can’t do anything for her right now,” I muttered just to him. “You will only get yourself killed.” I licked my busted lip. “We will get her back. I guarantee I will be by your side to do it, but there’s nothing you can do right now.”
It took a few more beats before Scorpion picked up her pack, looking at me. “She’s mine.”
“I know.” I nodded, understanding his meaning. “We’ll get her back.”
He exhaled, then turned with me, both of us jogging back for our rides.
Tearing out of the parking lot, my desperation to find Kovacs escalated even higher. There were so many hunting her.
I had to reach her before them all.
Because Kovacs was mine.