“What’s wrong with you?” Logan asked.
“Planekite,” Daire said simply. “In about five, I’m passing out.” So he had to get his mate to safety. Stretching into a jog, he knew the two would follow him. His boots rang on the cold stone as he passed the useless rooms and finally reached the lift. He jumped over first and reached for Felicity. She gave him her hands without hesitation, and her trust warmed him head to toe.
Logan gave him a hard glare once again, and it didn’t cool his heat at all. Finally, they were once again moving on the lift, heading up this time. They reached the main level and stepped off.
Footsteps echoed. He jerked back, moving to shield Felicity.
Three soldiers ran around the corner. Vadim and two others. With a fierce roar, Logan leaped for all three of them, taking down one. Vadim smiled and lifted a gun to fire. Three darts instantly impacted Daire.
He growled and shot forward. His vision fuzzed. Shit. Apollo darts and not simple tranquilizer darts. He didn’t have long to fight.
Green laser bullets whizzed by his head from Felicity’s gun, and the third soldier dropped to the ground.
Daire impacted Vadim with the sound of muscle slamming muscle. If the darts held planekite, the poison would flow into his bloodstream any moment. Vadim jabbed him in the throat, and Daire countered with a knee to the groin.
Vadim’s eyes widened, and he stepped back.
Sometimes a guy just couldn’t play fair. Daire grabbed Vadim’s head and slammed it down on his knee. Vadim countered with a double-edged blade, slicing up Daire’s torso.
Daire hissed in pain, and his central nervous system misfired. His vision dimmed.
“Daire?” Felicity called from far away.
Her voice. The tone of fear in it, shot his eyelids open. He didn’t have much time, but no way was he leaving her in fear. Rocking back, he shot a hard punch to Vadim’s nose. The cartilage shattered, and the demon yelled in pain, striking up with the knife again.
Daire grabbed Vadim’s wrist, twisted, and used the demon’s momentum to plunge the knife into the demon’s throat.
Vadim gurgled and reached for the knife handle. Blood flowed around the blade.
Daire shoved and let gravity take them both down, making sure he landed on the knife, which shoved all the way to the ground. A couple of really strong twists, and Vadim’s head rolled away.
The air whooshed out of Daire’s lungs, and he fell to the side, trying to sit.
Logan grabbed his armpits and shoved him up.
The cold stone scratched his back, while fire lit him up from inside. Daire glanced down at the two darts protruding from his chest. Electrical shocks rippled through him, and his stomach cramped. He closed his eyes and his back began to burn. “Get me off the rock,” he mumbled.
Logan swore and tugged him away from the rock. “Sorry.”
Felicity knelt next to him and cupped his face, her touch so cool he leaned into her palms. “Stay with me, Daire. Just dig deep and imagine your body fighting the planekite.”
He nodded.
“I love you. Please don’t leave me.” Her voice sounded thick with tears.
He wanted to reassure her, but it took every ounce of power he had left in him to concentrate on not allowing his heart to melt in his chest. The pain was unbearable. But her voice, those sweet words, provided something for him to hold on to.
The veins and arteries in his body swelled to the point of bursting. His heart beat too quickly, and his lungs began to shut down in protest. Fighting the pull of unconsciousness, he opened his mouth and yelled.
Fire roared out of him to crackle against the wall.
Felicity leaned in closer, and he tried to push her way. “Get back,” he ordered through gritted teeth. “Back. I’m going to explode.” A raw burst of energy uncoiled deep inside him.
“Get back!” he yelled.
Chapter 32