The pain intensifies, searing and white-hot. I can’t breathe. Can’t think. Can’t do anything but feel the agony ripping through my mind.
My knees buckle.
I land hard on the ground, and I think I might pass out because the pain blessedly subsides.
“Wren,” someone calls my name.
I try to open my eyes, but my eyelids feel like they weigh a thousand pounds.
“Wren. Wake up. Are you okay?” I think it might be…Grim.
I feel weightless and warm…so warm.
“Wren…please.” It’s definitely Grim. I try to open my eyes, but the light is harsh and blinding. My head still throbs a little.
Maybe I was hit over the head…or…? I have no idea what happened.
There is a steady rhythm of a heartbeat beneath my cheek.
The scent of sulfur and smoke fills my lungs. But underneath that, there’s something else. Something familiar. A scent I recognize. Sandalwood and rugged man.
My eyes flutter open.
His face swims into view above me. Those dark eyes, no longer glowing with dragon fire, but filled with something else. Something that looks like concern…fear, even.
“Grim,” I manage to whisper. My mouth feels dry. “You’re you.”
He nods once and gives me a ghost of a smile. It’s gone almost before it begins.
“I’ve got you,” he says, his voice rough. “Just hold on.”
He’s shirtless and clutching me to his chest like I’m the most precious thing in the whole world.
“You shifted back,” I murmur.
“Don’t talk,” he tells me. “Save your strength.”
“My head… What?” I frown. “What happened?”
Before he can answer, the anti-vaxxers surround us. All of them. The ones who survived Grim’s rampage, at least. One of them has a bloody face. He’s limping badly.
Kaine steps forward, that mean smile back on his face. “Well, well. Looks like the mighty dragon has a weakness after all.”
Grim pulls me closer to his chest, his arms tightening around me. “Leave now. This doesn’t have to get any worse.”
“Doesn’t have to get worse?” Kaine laughs. “You killed one of my brothers. We wanted an audience. Wanted to get the word out, and I think you helped us with that. But finished? No, not by a long shot.”
The bald shifter appears at Kaine’s side. He has Sally in his grip, a knife held tightly to her throat.
“I’ll open her up if you try anything,” he tells Grim.
My heart drops.
“No,” I whisper.
The bald shifter grins. “Oh, yes.”
“Let’s go,” Kaine says. “The party is only just starting.”
