She shook her head. “If you’re staying to fight, so am I. It’s not like I’ve spent the last two decades on my butt, Talen.”
No. He’d made sure she trained to fight regularly, whenever she had the strength. But she was still an immortal human without any extra strength or speed. Against a cadre of demons, she’d have to be skilled as well as incredibly lucky. “I understand. Do as I tell you to do.” As the strategic leader for the entire Realm, his orders were obeyed, damn it.
She sniffed and held the gun on the seat, her entire body bunched to strike. “Can we outrun them?”
Only if the demons stopped shooting. Even as the thought crossed his mind, more bullets sprayed, and the back of the SUV lifted in the air. “Shit.” Talen jerked the wheel to the left, trying to keep from tumbling over the bank. “They hit a tire.”
The SUV rocked. Talen swerved, and his side of the vehicle crashed into a series of rocks fronting a forest. “Out. Move now.” In one smooth motion, he grabbed the cooler, grasped Cara, kicked open her door, and leaped from the vehicle.
Her feet had barely touched the ground when he had her around the hood and running into the smoke-filled forest, shielding her with his body in case the demons kept shooting. “Go, and I’ll catch up.” He pivoted and dropped to one knee, simultaneously whipping the gun out from his waist. The red truck screeched to a stop on the dirt road, and he plugged the windshield full of holes.
A scream echoed.
His fangs dropped, and he turned to run after his woman. He’d hit at least two targets, because he could smell their blood. But bullets would only slow them down and definitely not stop them.
The ground smoldered, and flames still licked along dead grass. He opened his senses and immediately found his mate moving quickly to the west, her sweet scent overlaid with fear. Every instinct he owned told him to turn around and take the demons out, but her safety came first.
He’d find seclusion and then go hunting.
The smoke impacted his vision, and up ahead, Cara coughed quietly.
He reached her in long strides and quickly ripped a piece off his shirt.
She frowned and leaned against the trunk of a pine tree, her eyes watering, her nose quivering.
There was no immediate heat around them, so hopefully the fires were just smoldering. Leaning forward, he gently tied the material around her head, masking her nose and mouth. “This should help filter a little bit.” Making sure it was tight, he leaned back. “You all right?”
She nodded, her eyes red. “Fine. Just don’t like smoke.”
There was his blue-eyed fighter. Fierce and stubborn, she’d battle furiously to live. He nodded toward a barely discernible trail through several cottonwoods. “Let’s head that way.” Hopefully the smoke would mask their scents until they reached backup, which should be coming from that direction.
“Okay.” She visibly shook out her shoulders and then launched herself into motion.
He strode into a jog, keeping track of her steps, his senses on full alert for any danger around them. The smoke screwed with his perceptions, too.
They ran for nearly an hour, winding along next to the river in case the fire descended upon them. Cara’s breath became labored, and her steps slowed until Talen could walk briskly and keep up. He directed her through another series of trails until they came to a cabin set against the hill.
She paused next to a blue spruce and leaned over, hands on her knees, her breath panting out.
He stilled and listened, using all his senses to track the area. Nothing.
Finally, she lifted up and jerked off the material around her face. Her eyes softened, and she eyed the cabin. “Our first time was in a cabin like that,” she whispered softly, her voice hoarse.
“I remember.” He studied her breathing and frowned at the slight wheeze from her chest. “’Twas the best day of my entire life.” And it was. He’d mated her in a cozy cabin after rescuing her from the enemy. The moment she’d become his, he’d become whole.
She nodded and coughed out smoke. “Mine too.”
He set the cooler on the ground and pressed a hand against her upper chest. “Are you all right?”
“Yes.” She nodded and patted his knuckles. “Just inhaled some smoke.”
His own chest burned from her obvious pain. Every hurt she experienced settled deep inside him. “I’m sorry.” It was his responsibility to protect her, and he was doing a piss-poor job of it.
She rolled her eyes. “Unless you started the fires, you don’t need to apologize for anything.”
“Yet I am.” He released her.
“You don’t control the world, Talen.” She straightened and brushed dirt off her jeans.
