Page 110 of Knight’s Absolution

Luna and Spencer clambered in as James did something with the wires under the steering wheel. A moment later, the engine fired to life and they tore out onto the street.

“Brother…”

“Not now,” Gunner barked at Chaos.

Gunner was being an asshole, he was aware of this, but right then, he didn’t give that first fuck. He didn’t have time to chitchat. He didn’t give a fuck about anything except finding Luna and bringing her home. He’d only come back to the compound long enough to get more weapons. If he was here, he wasn’t out there torturing demon scum and trying to get them to talk.

“I think you’ll be interested in this,” Chaos said.

“You’d be wrong.” Gunner crossed the control room, heading for the doors.

“A car just pulled up to the compound gates,” Chaos said. “Brother, it’s Luna.”

Gunner spun around. “What?”

Chaos said nothing more because of course he’d heard.

Gunner sprinted back the way he’d come, smashing the door to the hall open and rushing into the stairwell. He propelled himself over the railing, ignoring the stairs completely, letting his wings explode from his back to catch the air as he dropped the five flights.

His boots hit the floor with a thud and he was running again, yanking open the door at the bottom and bursting into the parking garage just as the car rolled in. He was on it before it had fully stopped. Gripping the door handle, he yanked the door clean off the car. He hadn’t meant to, but he’d lost all control.

Luna sat in the back. “I’m okay,” she said, trying to undo her seat belt.

He growled, it was all he was capable of, and reached into the back of the car, tore the seat belt in half, and lifted her out, holding her to him. He tried not to crush her, but having her back when he thought he might never see her again was making it hard to be gentle.

He glanced at James as he approached and gave him a chin lift and somehow managed actual words. “Glad to see you as well, brother.”

James did the same, lips curling up on one side.

Gunner motioned to Spencer. “Take him. Put him in a cell. I’ll deal with him later.” Because that fucker was the reason Luna had been captured, and he would pay for it.

Luna shook her head, taking his face in her hands. “He didn’t do anything wrong, Gunner, I promise. Don’t lock him in a cell. I’ll explain everything, but please, you need to help Ronan, you need to help my brother.”

Gunner's head snapped back. “Your brother?”

“He held Azel off so we could escape,” James said.

Luna stared up at him wide-eyed. “He’s alive. He’s been alive this whole time.” She clutched him tighter. “He’s fighting Azel on his own. I don’t know how much longer he can hold him off.”

Boots thudding on the concrete floor echoed around the cavernous space. His brothers.

He pressed his mouth to the shell of her ear. “I want you in my apartment and I don’t want you to leave it. Wait for me there, love,” Gunner said in as gentle a voice as he could manage while relief and fury battled it out inside him.

“Azel’s still strong, you need to be careful.”

He buried his nose against her hair and breathed deep. When he lifted his head, there was no missing the fear in her eyes.

“You will come back to me, won’t you?” Luna whispered.

His body went from trembling with rage to full-out shaking. “Nothing could stop me.”

Her hand lifted, and she cupped his bearded cheek. “Being parted from you felt like dying.”

There she went, rocking him to his fucking core.

“Luna,” he rasped.

“I know I’m new to this and I’m still learning about my emotions and how they feel, but before my brother took me, I was pretty sure I’d fallen in love with you, Gunner. I did quite a bit of reading about it and a lot of the…symptoms, I have, pointed to love. And when I thought I’d never see you again, I knew I was right. Because for the first time since you found me, I didn’t have to analyze my physical reactions or my thoughts, I just…knew.”