“Protection ran out,” he muttered, squeezing my fingers. Not as tightly as I wanted him to, though. “And am healing. Should be…dead.”
My gaze found Axel’s, and he nodded.
“I know it looks bad, but he is healing.” Axel’s eyes lingered on the bullet holes in Dathal’s uniform. “He needs help, though.”
There were three bullet wounds that I could see. And yes, if he’d been human, at least one of them would’ve killed him. Rage filled me all over again, threatening to overwhelm me, until Dathal squeezed my hand hard enough to hurt.
“You have your magic back.”
“What?” I frowned at his words.
“Your magic.” He smiled as his eyes dropped closed, and his words finally sunk in.
Fucking hell.
In the heat of the moment, I hadn’t stopped to think about what was actually happening. I glanced down at my wrist, the previously marked skin now bare.
Magic flowed through my body, the feeling so natural andright.I let out a shuddering breath and closed my eyes, reaching once again for Dathal’s magic. It flowed over mine, meshing together like the most perfect fit. But even as it sang through my veins, I felt it weakening.
So I fed him mine.
“Nick,” Axel warned. “What are you doing?”
“You said he needed help. So I’m helping.”
“I know, but—”
I glared at him. “Nothing you can say will stop me.”
Axel held up his hands. “Okay, but what you’re doing could have consequences.”
“I don’t care.”
Still keeping my shield intact, I fed Dathal a steady stream of my magic.
He smiled softly. “I can feel it.Reallyfeel it.” His eyes dropped closed again. “It’s amazing… knew it would be.”
Itwasamazing.
Like nothing I’d ever felt in my life, but I couldn’t let myself appreciate it because I felt the sticky wetness of Dathal’s blood seeping into my shirt, and trying not to panic was all I could concentrate on.
He’ll be okay.
Faes heal.
He has to be okay, because I can’t fucking lose him.
You’ll lose him soon enough anyway.
But at least he’d still be alive.
It took me a moment to notice the gunfire had stopped. An eerie silence settled around us. Then a human Max emerged through the demolished doorway, dragging an unconscious and bloodybody with him.
Wyn sat up beside me, hands still a little shaky as he pointed at Max. “Is thatYates?”
Talis snarled. “It certainly fucking looks like him.”
Wyn’s eyebrows scrunched together. “Where’s the witch?”
