"Don't keep us waiting, Silas." Lilith's impatient command cuts through my panic. "We don't have all night."
Silas strikes like a cobra, his fangs ripping into my neck without hesitation. The pain is excruciating. It's violation, pure and simple, and though Morgan's magic mutes my physical screams, my mind howls in agony.
"RHYLAND!!"I scream through our bond with everything I have, hurling my terror and pain and desperate need across whatever distance separates us.
Please hear me. Please find me.
But only silence answers my mental plea, and Silas continues to drink deeply, each pull of his mouth draining away not just my blood, but my hope of rescue. The crowd watches with ravenous eyes, waiting for their turn, and the reality of my situation crashes over me like a tsunami—this is just the beginning of my nightmare.
Rhyland
9
I've had it with this shit. "Send me back. I'm done listening to this," I snarl, my patience completely shot. "I have a job to do—keepingyourdaughter safe." I fix Elysium with a glare. "You're keeping me from my goddamn job."
My thoughts drift to Dani, and my chest tightens. She better be safe at the mansion, though knowing my stubborn angel, she's probably trying to tear open reality itself to find me. Which brings up a good point—why hasn't she managed it yet?
Suddenly, a wave of fear hits me like a fucking semi-truck, nearly bringing me to my knees. I clutch at my chest, my heart feeling like it's being ripped out of my ribcage.
"Dani." Her name is a strangled sob on my lips.
"Are you alright?" Heimdall's voice comes from somewhere above me, his hand steadying my shoulder.
I must have collapsed under the weight of the terror coursing through my veins. I struggle to stand on shaky legs, the need to get to Dani is like a physical force crushing my chest—she needs me, NOW.
I've never felt anything like this from her before—this raw, primal fear that's clawing its way through our connection. Whatever or whoever is causing my mate this kind of pain is going to die by my hand. Tonight.
I'm going to find them, and I'm going to rip them apart piece by bloody piece. Death will be too kind for anyone who dares to hurt her.
"Get me the fuck out of here!" I roar. "It's Dani—" I can't even finish the sentence. My lungs feel like they're being squeezed in a vice.
Elysium's eyes widen, his heavenly composure cracking. "What? What is it? What's happened to my daughter?" he demands, his voice booming through the hall.
The mighty god of light doesn't sound so high and mighty now—he sounds like what he is: a father terrified for his child—for Dani. Welcome to the fucking club, pal.
"I don't know—she needs me. Send me back, NOW!" The words tear from me, raw and desperate. These pricks and their questions can go straight to hell.
"Heimdall, move!" Odin's command cracks like thunder through the hall.
We bolt from the chamber, the bitter wind and stinging snow whipping at our faces as we race toward the bridge. My boots pound against the crystal surface of the Bifrost—my only fucking ticket out of this place. Heimdall reaches the control chamber first, ramming his sword into the mechanism.
"Til Valhalla," he growls, and before I can process what the fuck he's talking about or what's happening, the bastard shoves me forward.
The floor disappears beneath my feet, and I'm falling, my body feeling like it's being ripped apart at an atomic level. The sensation lasts for an eternity and no time at all before I slam into solid ground, the impact driving every ounce of air from my lungs.
As I lay here gasping like a landed fish, trying to get my lungs to function—the scents quickly hit me—rich earth, scorched flesh, and rotting forest debris. My eyes snap open, taking in the dense canopy above. Back in the forest. Finally.
Now to find out what the fuck is happening to my girl.
I slam my eyes shut, reaching for that familiar golden thread that ties us together. Her signature pulses like a beacon, but it's distant—too fucking distant.
What the actual fuck? She's nowhere near Lucian's place.
"Baby? I'm here. What's going on?"I push through our mental bond, desperate to reach her. But all I get back is that same black void, that emptiness that pisses me off to no end. A growl rips from my throat, primal and raw.
I blur through the trees to where we left the cars, only to find empty spaces and tire tracks in the dirt. Goddamnit! How long was I stuck in that divine circus?
My fangs descend, razor-sharp points pricking my lower lip as I catch her scent heading north. I launch myself forward, pushing my vampiric speed to its limits. The forest becomes a green blur around me, branches whipping past my face and leaving stinging cuts in their wake as I tear through the wilderness like a man possessed. But even at full throttle, I'm burning through energy like a motherfucker. I need wheels, and I need them now, or I'll flame out long before I reach her.
