The same way he was never going to be able to let Zane go.
“You’re mine, Doctor,” he whispered.
He hated this. Hated how close they were and how he was forced to stand here and pretend like he wasn’t seething inside. Hated—
Hold up.
Why was Zane getting out of his seat?
Pavel tracked him across the expanse of his office, watching out the mirrored window as Zane said something into his multi-slate, his panic apparent. He didn’t even bother saying anything to Great, merely left the guy sitting at their table gaping after him.
He lost sight of him the moment Zane raced from the restaurant, but that didn’t matter. Pulling up the tracking information on his multi-slate, Pavel took off after him.
He’d follow his bashert into the pits of hell if he had to.
Chapter 21:
Zane didn’t pay attention to the speed limit as he raced across the city, headed toward the outskirts, the area most people would avoid at this time of night. He’d gotten the phone call so suddenly, he hadn’t had time to think, leaving Great alone at the restaurant without a word of explanation.
He’d feel bad about it, but by the time he settled this mess, the clock would have run out on his and Pavel’s bet, which meant Great was now obsolete. It was for the best, honestly. He’d probably just spared the pretty racer some painful memories.
His hover car zipped into the abandoned lot, gusts of dirt wafting into the air, though he hardly noticed his pressed clothes getting dirty as he exited and slammed the door for good measure.
Wouldn’t hurt to make his opinion about being here known.
The old warehouse used to make buttons or something else common like that but hadn’t been in operation for a little over five years, since the company declared bankruptcy and the owner fled the planet for greener button-making pastures. Zane had never visited it before, but he’d overheard Lyra talking to his brother about the use she’d found a time or two.
A use that was now seeping its way into his life.
He’d been instructed to use the side entrance, and the door hinges creaked when he shoved it open. The smell was dank, with a hint of copper he knew all too well. Following the scent, he headed down a narrow hall, toward the only light in the entire building.
There was a plastic tarp hanging over the entranceway, and he shoved it aside, scowling at the feel of it against his palm and the annoying crinkling sound it made.
He could be eating a five-star roast right now, instead he was here doing…
“What the fuck is this?” he demanded, coming to a stop as soon as he’d made it a few feet in and caught sight of the monstrosity set up in the center of an otherwise empty room. Metal beams set in a square with more tarp hanging from them kept him from seeing what lay within, but the moment his voice cracked against the silence, there was a rustle.
“Brother.” Aodhan Solace peeked his head out between two thin layers of plastic and grinned at him. The expression alone would have been terrifying to anyone else, even without the blood splatters currently painting his otherwise angelic features. “You came.”
“You told me you made a mistake,” Zane reminded.
“My exact wording was error,” he corrected, popping back behind the tarp. “Well? Aren’t you coming?”
Zane really didn’t want to, but his feet carried him forward anyway until he was standing before the slit with nothing else to do but follow. He took a single step and passed beneath the beams.
And grimaced.
“What did you do?” He covered his nose, mostly because of the smell, and glared as his older brother rounded the medical table, that manic glint still in his pink gaze.
Pink, like bubblegum. Sweet as candy.
That’s what Lyra had said the first time she’d met him.
Then she’d turned to Zane and told him it was a pity he hadn’t gotten the same features. As though the bitch hadn’t known he was adopted.
Why the hell was he thinking about Lyra right now when there was another female he should be worried about?
“Who is she?” He motioned to the body, moving closer in an attempt to catch sight of her face. It was turned the other way and bloody, and a quick scan of her outfit didn’t give any clues. She wasn’t dressed in any of the local school uniforms, in any case.
