“The hell I will—”
He glided another step closer to Madeline. “Yes, yes, by hell, you will.” He let his power flare, knowing it would show in the glow of his eyes. “Because you don’t have a choice. You take me to Garrick or I will make every fear you have become a reality.” He leaned toward her. “And believe me, I know all about the fears you hold inside. Fears are my specialty.” They always had been. He leaned in even closer to her and searched her gaze. “Let’s just see…what do you fear?” He reached out his hand and cupped his fingers around her chin. She tried to jerk away from him, but he held her tight and he saw.
“Uh, Luke?” Mina tapped his shoulder.
“Being different. Being like the paranormals your team uses. You fear becoming a monster?” He could see it all so clearly. Humans were often easy to read, especially the ones with weak minds. “Too late, you already are a monster.”
When she tried to tear out of Rayce’s arms, the shifter just held her tighter.
“I can change you,” Luke said, not looking away from her. “You think I can’t let my darkness take you over? Oh, I can. It can spread like a plague, from human to human, wiping you all out until nothing is left.” Nothing but the dark. His dark.
Hadn’t that always been his brother Leo’s fear? That Luke wouldn’t stop? That he’d let all of that evil out to taint the precious human world?
Her fear deepened.
“You will take me to Garrick. To him and to whoever is pulling the strings at your agency. You’ve been playing with my paranormals and that shit is stopping. I will destroy your whole organization—”
Wind whipped against him. A deep, inhuman howl seemed to shake the night.
Luke’s head jerked back. He stared above him, seeing the giant wings in the moonlight. “Oh, hell, no,” he snarled. But it was too late. He was grabbed, yanked up, held fast and tight in an unbreakable hold. Below him, he could hear Mina screaming for him. He could hear Rayce’s roar of rage.
But then in a flash, they were gone. No, he was gone, flying through the air, hurtling far and fast and leaving Mina behind. Mina, the woman he’d sworn to protect.
The woman he’d just left vulnerable.
Rage burst through him and Luke’s careful control began to crack.
***
“Luke!” Mina screamed. She whirled around, searching the sky—the empty sky. “Luke, where are you?” Wind had whipped around them, like a mini-tornado. There had been a howl—no, more like the roar of a freight-train. Luke had been there one moment, and the next, she’d seen him surging up into the sky. Now he was just…gone.
“I’ll track him,” Rayce said, pushing Madeline toward Mina. “You and Julian take care of her. I’ll get Luke.”
He’d better get Luke back. “Who took him?”
But Rayce wasn’t answering her. His bones were snapping—a terrible, stomach turning sound. He hit the ground on all fours and fur sprang over his body. She stared at him, stunned, because she’d never seen a shift up-close. His face changed, elongated. Wicked sharp teeth burst from his mouth. Claws sprouted from his fingers. That terrible bone-snapping continued and his muscles bulged. In minutes—seconds?—a beast was before her, and then the wolf bounded away, rushing toward the shadows.
And Mina was left there, surrounded by unconscious agents, a big, black panther at her side, and a stunned-looking Madeline in front of her. But then Madeline blinked, seeming to realize that she had a shot at freedom. She lunged away from Mina, rushing toward the building on the right.
The panther tackled her. He didn’t slice her skin, but his big paw pushed between her shoulder blades, pinning her, face first, to that ground.
Mina raced toward them. “You aren’t getting away, Madeline. You’re taking us to Eli.” Because Eli was the mission. Getting him to safety. She looked back up at the sky. Where are you, Luke? Maybe they should try to hunt Luke first. Get Luke, then get Eli. Because she was afraid, terrified all the way to the pit of her soul.
Just what sort of creature was strong enough to carry off the Lord of the Dark?
Mina scooped up one of the guns that had been dropped on the ground. It felt oddly heavy in her hands. She pointed it at Madeline. “I don’t know if this thing is loaded with real bullets or with tranqs, but if you try to run again, we’ll be finding out.”
The panther’s shining eyes flashed toward Mina.
“What? I won’t shoot her in the heart or anything. I know we need her alive to get Eli back.” She braced her shoulders and tightened her grip on the gun. “You’re going to get up, Madeline. Nice and slowly.” She injected all of her power into the commands. “You will cooperate with us. You will take us to whatever base you’re using.”
Madeline wasn’t struggling any longer.
The panther eased away from her. Madeline rose, nice and slow, and she turned toward Mina, her stare a bit cloudy.
Mina smiled at her. “Ready to cooperate?”