Eva sucked in deeply, the air rattling as it passed through her teeth. Her hand rose and pressed against her chest, and I could guess that the pain she felt was so great that it was as if her heart was being squeezed in a vise.
“I’m still not sure how I feel about this. I’m going to need a few minutes to pull myself together; don’t you all have a barrier to destroy?” Golden eyes shifted across us. “Maybe seeing you in action … well, I might be able to understand better. Accept that which you’re telling me.”
She was making excuses. I could tell that she didn’t want to help. She wanted no part in this chaos we were bringing to her world, but I was pretty sure she also knew that she didn’t really have a choice here. If I had to kidnap her like we had been forced to with Sapha, then I would. Still if she wanted to see us in action, well action was what she was going to get.
I focused my energy, opening my senses to try to see the barrier which surrounded us. There was just the faintest shimmer in the air, and the more I focused, the more I could see the crisscrossing of electrical pulses.
We were still drifting in the currents, the sun was rising, and in the light it was more obvious the way we continued to cross the same path over and over. The ocean told many tales, it revealed much if you just took the time to truly watch the beauty beneath. We were stuck and the only way to find out what was on the other side was to destroy this barrier.
Okay, Brace, time to break this bitch down.
He attempted a grin. It wasn’t very successful. The girls around us recoiled, and Colton gave a bark of laughter.
“Brace, man, might be time to tone down the scary. I think half the chicks on here are about to jump overboard.”
Colton and Brace had an epic bromance. They were dudes, but they totally loved each other and had each other’s back. No matter what. They had lost touch for a few years, but like true friends, the time and distance made no difference to the feelings behind their bond. I loved Colton like a brother also. He was a good one, and I had to thank the fates that they had chosen him for Lucy. Now it was time for the four of us to work together. We had a city to free and worlds to save.
And our time was running out.
Chapter 8
Brace was back touching the sparks that ran through the barrier. This time, though, I could see the pulses bouncing off his energy, each streak trying to find a way around his hand. Even his small interference was enough to disrupt some of the electricity that intertwined. I understood what he meant about the shield being easy to disrupt. We just needed enough energy. And I had an idea.
“I can do it,” I said out loud, startling some, but not my mate.
He just turned those velvety, chocolate-colored eyes on me.
“If you, Colt and Luce let me tether to you, and borrow some of your energy – to make up for what Earth has stolen from me – then I’ll blast out at the shield. I can disrupt the pulses and hopefully it will be enough to fracture the barrier.”
I was the only one who could store energy, and I still had a small amount in my filing cabinet. I’d only have to borrow a little from my friends.
“I’m not happy about this, Red.” Brace rubbed a hand across his face; he looked tired. Which was not normal for my powerful Walker. “I have a bad feeling about you interfering in this barrier when I can sense your energy in it.”
“I get your protectiveness. I feel the same way about you, but there’s no other option. On Earth all of us are limited. I’m the only one that can still store and harness energy in the usual Walker manner. It has to be me.”
He knew it was the truth, but that didn’t make it any easier for him to let me do this.
Colton and Lucy ushered all of the females toward the back of the boat, as far from us as they could get, before coming back to stand at my side.
“You two okay with sharing some energy?” I checked in before just taking. I had to at least pretend I wasn’t a rude douche.
Colton leaned down and kissed me on top of my head. “You don’t even have to ask, little sister.”
His words sent beams of warmth through me. I could feel his sincerity. He truly thought of me as family. Lucy followed suit by hugging me tightly around the middle.
“Take as much as you need,” she whispered against my shirt.
Brace closed in to seal off our little square of love. His features were calm, but I knew that a storm brewed beneath the surface. He was pretty worried, and for a split second I wondered if I should be also. I just had to hope that he was simply being over-protective, although his instincts were usually pretty good on these things. Oh, well, too late to worry about what the consequences of my actions might be.