“I hate to say it, but of all the reckless things D has done, letting himself get caught seems?—”
“D had a reason,” I sighed, interrupting Bjørn, because I’d been the only one close enough to realize what triggered him.
“Tell me what Ryker said to her,” Hannes demanded, marching toward me, and getting riled up all over again.
“Unfortunately, I didn’t hear it,” I confessed. “But he put his hands onher, roughly pulling her to him… Frankly, I was about to jump him too, D just beat me to it.”
“That’s why my brother snapped,” Vanessa whispered, sadness encumbering her gaze. “Poor Natasha.”
My muscles jolted with the memory of that fucking asshole grabbing her like that, anger coursing through my chest.
“And why we had to attack the other hunters to help him,” Bjørn voiced what we all knew, even when we hated that Vanessa was forced to cross the Vampire ward too, suffering the consequences.
Andwhy I had disguised them all with my magic shadows.
The realization sobered all of us, and we turned to glance toward the summit of the mountain, where D was most likely a prisoner now… dying within the Vampire wards.
My eyes remained closed as I concentrated on feeding off the power the cover of night had provided my darkness. Unfortunately, the sun had already begun to rise on the horizon. Focusing only on the remnants ofTwilight within, I strived tokeep myself charged because something told me D would truly need my help.
Not that I doubted the power aNewborn Vampire Ancienthad, not for a second, but if he let himself be overpowered by those assholesandbe imprisoned under the black magic designed to kill someone like him, chances were he needed help. That suspicion I was keeping to myself, of course. The last thing I wanted was to aggravate Vane’s nerves more than they already were.
The constant sound of her boots crunching against the grass as she paced would have irritated any sound mind, thankfully, this bunch was anything but sound. Instead, I used the rhythm as a soothing time-keeping tool while we waited for Bjørn to locate D’s energy.
He sat against a tree a few feet from us, focused on sensing the energies beyond this physical world until he could recognize the one we needed. He was a master at that, so we let him be. Meanwhile, Hannes’ innate grunts mixed with his every breath. The inability to help D or know what was happening to Natasha was eating him alive.
Being so close, yet so far from her after we had waited this long was no easy feat for any of us to overcome. Power impatiently expanded and retracted from me, echoing his grunts, while we stayed within the cover of my shield and the impossibly tall pine trees of theCrystal Glow Mountains.
I hated this damn place.
I hated it with every fucking ounce of my being.
“I got them!”
We all jumped to our feet with Bjørn’s announcement.
“Them?” Vanessa gasped, and he nodded.
“He’s bringingher.” His gaze clouded with concern when he looked at me. “D needs you.”
Urgency slammed into me with his words, and I whirled toward the opening of the tree line, thrusting my arms forward. Bands of shadows surged from my hands, hurtling toward the sky, and I frantically searched the air for the flying Vampire. TheTwilightfilled my being, connecting our minds the next instant, and giving me D’s exact location.
“I got you…”My statement resounded in his mind, and his relief reached me just as the darkness wrapped around them mid-air. I took over for D, feeling his wings slack against my hold when I pulled them toward the forest, guiding them down carefully.
The first sensation of Natasha’s body enveloped by my magic violently tightened my gut, it almost felt like touching her skin. Nevertheless, I didn’t let the feeling making my entire body prickle with the need for her distract me. There was nothing more important than keeping her safe.
D landed firmly on the grass once I let go, and his wings retracted into his back, carrying an unconscious Natasha in his arms.
Tensing at the sight, we all rushed toward them, waiting for an explanation while Hannes’ pissed off glower resurfaced.
Vane also glared at D, yet none of us dared say a word or move a muscle until he carefully placed the resting beauty on the soft grass. My attention instantly went to her, noticing the signs of pain that marred her otherwise beautiful features.
Was she hurt?
Leaving the others to argue, I knelt next to her, lifting a hand to her cheek. The true feeling of her skin robbed me of breath, and my eyes fell closed as longing overwhelmed my entire body.
Natasha was finally with us, and soon, she’d know she was mine.
“Damn it, D. You had me worried sick! Why the hell would you do that?” Vanessa whisper-hissed behind me.
