Nate pressed the terry cloth back to the seeping lesion. “You need to leave.”
Her mouth tightened in frustration, then she squared her shoulders. “Very well. Just one more thing,” she said. “A demon gang leader is looking for you. He’s determined to kill my maker. I assume that’s you since you gave me this otherworldly blood that healed me and caused these nodes—that supposedly belong to him—to form. His name’s Tolvi.”
“You know this demon?” Nik demanded.
“No.” Nate’s brow creased, his narrowed stare fixing on Shadow. “What did the fucker do?”
“It doesn’t matter—”
“If you count him trying to gouge out one of her nodes,” Nik growled, “it sure fucking does matter.”
Nate’s jaw hardened, the only sign of his ire. “You have a life now, a mate. Go, and don’t come back here.”
“You’re still such an ass. I don’t know why I came—wait, I did becauseAbaasked me!” She stalked out.
Her footsteps receded down the stairs, and the old demon’s low voice drifted to Nik as he spoke to Shadow.
Nate exhaled roughly, swayed, and dropped back down on the bed. Towel forgotten, he glanced up, expression amused, but pain lines bracketed his mouth and darkened his direct stare. “Yeah, yeah, I get you want to rearrange my face. Can’t stop you, but I cannot do what you can. Keep her safe.”
Nik stilled. Most of what he’d told Shadow were all truths, and while Nik might hate that this male liked her, too—
Of course. In his own way, he was trying to keep Shadow protected. This garage, situated in this roughest part of town, was a hotbed for demon activity at nights. And Shadow wouldn’t care about all that, she’d want to stay and help, see him healed. Like she tried to help women and the kids get to The Shelter. She even took on that mobster, Enzo, regardless of her own safety.Because it’s who she is.
“That was no simple blood exchange causing thosesymbiontsto form…” Nik stressed the word, voicing his sudden suspicion. “You put them in her. What were they?”
“Faery dust.” He smirked.
Couldn’t he fucking answer straight?
Nate hunched over as if he couldn’t hold himself up any longer. “She wasn’t healing no matter what I tried, what blood I used…and she would have died, until the…symbionts.”
“You still haven’t answered me,” Nik snapped. “Wheredid you get those symbionts?”
His flat stare lifted. “The Dark Realm, if that’s what you’re asking. Angels, demons, who the fuck knows? They don’t exactly label stolen things down there.” His expression grew shuttered. “Just be thankful she lives—I didn’t tell Shadow about them—she was having a hard enough time dealing with her change. But those symbionts were the only thing that brought her back to life, repairing the damages from inside out.” He exhaled slowly as if it hurt to breathe. “Yeah, they have a darkness to them—a side effect I suppose from her having gotten demon blood, too—and will now require energy to sustain themselves and her.”
“You mean demonsouls?”
“Same thing.”
“If I take them out of her?”
“Then she dies. Those symbionts not only fixed her, they also bonded to her.”
Nik pivoted for the door, then stopped. Hell, this tight-lipped bastard had saved Shadow—saved his destined mate. If he hadn’t, Nik would have gone on for eternity alone, never knowing she existed. No matter how he felt, Shadow cared about the stubborn ass.
Nik glanced back. “You know what I am. You need help, let me know.”
Hollow laughter. “I don’t need anyone’s help.”
Yeah, he could relate. They’d all been stubborn asses. But no one could force a mule to accept assistance. His mind reeling at what he’d learned, Nik walked out.
No matter where the symbionts came from or what they were, he was just grateful his mate lived.
* * *
Nik found Shadow outside the workshop in the rain. Night had already descended. He slipped his arms around her and pressed his lips to her wet nape.
“He’s so darn stubborn,” she whispered. “I—we could have helped him.”
