Page 28 of Eight of Swords, Part Two

‘I know,’ Kade says, and despite the urgency, he takes a moment to touch Lachlan’s face and reassure him. ‘I know. It’s OK. We’ll stay together.’

Covering them both, Lachlan leads the way out of the ruined mess hall by sticking to the edges, checking his corners. He kills four more along the way, but when two more come at him from behind, his gun is knocked from his hands. Kade grips Riley’s arm tightly, watching as Lachlan brutally murders two men with his bare hands in five seconds flat.

He’s never seen anyone fight like this.

Nothing is sacrificed for the speed at which Lachlan moves. His gravity and weight are, if anything, enormously amplified. The execution of his skill is seemingly thoughtless. The brachial crush is especially impressive.

He’s death incarnate, solidly unstoppable.

Lachlan takes both weapons from the bodies, aiming one up as people come into view, but it’s Iron Star, not more of the Resets.

Kade sees Juno, Luca and Hiru leading the way.

They huddle protectively around Riley while Lachlan continues to lead the way. He’s headed for the stairs, but when they make it there, the journey comes to a halt. At least ten units are waiting for them, and this time, they use gas. They throw the canisters directly at them. Lachlan kicks a few away, but the others go skittering behind, bouncing off walls and spreading a thin veil of near-transparent gas. Kade pulls his T-shirt off while holding his breath. He quickly rips it into strips, tying one around his mouth and giving one to Riley, who does the same.

Kade drags Riley backwards, the huddle around them slowly disappearing as Luca falls unconscious, then Hiru. The gas is getting to Kade way too fast. Lachlan is killing all the intruders.

He seems immune to the gas. Kade, however, is not.

He shakes himself hard, has to remind himself that his instinct to protect Riley is bad. It’s a bad thing to stand in front of him because if Kade gets shot, it’s Riley who’ll die.

With tears in his eyes, instincts screaming in protest, Kade pulls Riley in front of him, feeling like the biggest fucking coward on earth.

He wonders if this is how Riley has felt for the last seven years.

Hiding away behind Kade to keep him safe and heal what hurts.

It is. It must be.

Riley isn’t a coward.

He’s Kade’s best friend.

And all this time…

Fuck, the gas is stealing his consciousness.

Stealing him.

Kade feels Riley Harker’s arms around him, and he tastes Lachlan Tanner’s blood on his lips, and everything goes black.

CHAPTER FOUR

Seven Years Ago

It’s raining.

Jules is twenty and Lachlan is twenty-six, and they’re soaked to the bone, but that doesn’t matter because they’re kissing, and loving, and fucking.

‘Never stop. Never stop loving me. Harder, more, fuck!’ Jules pants against Lachlan’s mouth, all wet with spit, his lips swollen and hot. He’s so fucking beautiful, and Lachlan is eating the words, swallowing them like rare delicacies only he was brave enough to try, and Lachlan is inside him, holding him up while he roughly fucks in and out of the body he would die to protect.

‘Fuck,’ Lachlan grunts, shifting his stance to fuck faster and harder, just ruined by how good it feels, addicted and devoted and dangerously swayed by the beauty of this love as it manifests between them, its hue rosy as poison flowers. Jules clings harder, tightens and clenches just to punch pleasure where Lachlan is unguarded and soft, and they fucking shouldn’t do this, not now that the old man has forbidden it, but he couldn’t stop himself if he tried. It’s too fucking good. ‘So good, baby, so beautiful, fuck.’

Jules smiles.

The world tilts.

‘There you are.’