“It put some distance between us,” Gabriel grumbles softly.
“Then the accident happened,” Tobias finishes for him, but Xavier has a strange look on his face. I can see the gears in his mind turning quickly, as if coming to a realization, but a sound pulls my gaze away—the revving of an engine that’s become suddenly too loud.
Suddenly too close.
One second feels like an eternity when I look up, right into oversized headlights.
Into the face of a truck charging towards us at full speed.
I prioritize Xavier, throwing myself over him to protect him. I put all my focus into strengthening my body, at least ten times the hardness to take the brunt of the damage, pinning his body down with mine and shielding his head.
But the collision is worse.
Time snaps back to its usual pace and my bones shatter on impact. It doesn’t crush me completely, so Xavier is safe. Still, his scream is cut short as the vehicle rolls ruthlessly. The pain throughout my body is sharp and excruciating as smashed glass tears through my skin and nerves. My muscles aren’t able to hold Xavier down anymore, so I’m a flailing mess of crushed bones and torn ligaments as the car rolls off the highway.
Even knowing I won’t die—that I’ve protected my cores properly—it’s nothing short of agony as I lose consciousness, maybe for a moment.
When I snap awake, the vehicle has rolled to a stop.
I’m conscious because my skull, though cracked, has protected my brain successfully. My lungs are intact. My heart is still beating.
But Christian’s body is a mess of flesh. The pain and loss of blood will soon drag me into unconsciousness again, so there’s no time. I have to shift immediately.
It’s a pain to put my body back together again.
I have to keep some things. Maybe three broken ribs (again, fuck), a few lacerations on my arms and legs, an injury to the back of my skull (it’s not too severe so it should be fine), maybe a few cuts on my face—
And bruises.
I should have lots of bruises.
But stars, even with those, someone is bound to ask questions.
I’ll have to think about it later, because I can sense others approaching the vehicle.
Something tells me they’re not friendly.
I twist my injured body to reach the duffel that’s fallen between the seats.
Xavier’s unconscious but he’s still strapped in—some bits of glass have torn into the skin of his arms and the impact might’ve knocked him out… But I think he’s fine otherwise, thank the stars.
The driver’s dead.
For a split second, I’m glad Wesley was in Tobias’ car.
Fuck, now I’m pissed.
I load a magazine into one of the pistols with a hiss of pain from the open wounds, but I can’t let it distract me—I dull my sense of pain for now, to keep me focused.
The car finished its rolling right-side up, to my advantage, but the windows are shattered. Not so completely to leave me visible to the approaching strangers, but just enough that I might be spotted too soon.
I can hear seven of them—seven breaths approaching the car—and it’s enough for me to pinpoint their positions around the vehicle. They’ve let their guard down, so I’ll have a few seconds more if I can take them by surprise, but I'll need to be careful.
A shot to the head is not what I need right now.
I don't have time to unbuckle Xavier from his seat or move him away from the broken window. I’m crawling through the window on my side instead, wincing as the glass along the edges bites into my skin.
I brace myself behind the broken vehicle. I can't afford to catch my breath or wait until they've gotten too close. So I take a single, controlled, fistful of air into my lungs... then I step into the open, taking aim over the smashed hood of the car.
