bodies that kept climbing up from the hole.
Something was wrong. More wrong than just this.
And then it hit me.
Where was Dastien?
My skin chilled.
I turned in a full circleâscanning the people pressing against the horde of demons. Searching for Dastien in wolf or human form. But I couldnât find him.
Meredith and Donovan fought as wolves. A demon tore through Donovanâs leg, and they both howled. Three more demons lunged at them, and I saw them both fall before I lost them in the pile.
No. This couldnât be happening. This wasnât happening.
Dastien! I screamed through our bond, but I wasnât really here.
Where was Dastien? Why wasnât he by my side?
Finally, I spotted him. Not far away. Just out of sight. I sprang over the few remaining pews and found him in the chaos. He stood alone, fighting three demons at once and holding his own.
But he couldnât see what I saw.
There was another. A fourth demon. It was crawling from the hole, nails scratching along the stone floor. Heading for him.
A jolt of adrenaline hit me, and I started running.
âDastien!â I screamed so violently my throated ached. I was going to be too late. There wasnât enough time. Nothing was going to stop the demon. Not my Were powers. Not my magic.
My heart tore as panic gripped me. I pushed myself to move faster, but the demon scuttled closer to my mate.
Dastien killed one, and turnedâfinally hearing the larger demon behind himâbut it was too late.
I was too late. I was going to fail him. Fail myself. This was it. The end.
The demon ripped its long nails across Dastienâs neck, and his body jolted.
I screamed as Dastienâs head rolled into the hole, falling into hell. His body stayed in place, slowly crumpling to the ground.
No. No. This canât happen. I canâtâI wonât survive it.
Lucianaâs laugh cut across the numbness in my head. She stood glowing with power at the edge of the ragged hole and hate filled every inch of me.
All of this came back to her. I was moving before I could think.
I threw myself at Luciana. We hit the ground hard. She sat on me, her hands around my throat. I was strong enough to get her off, but there were too many demons surrounding her. I couldnât fight them all.
I had to stop this.
The portal sheâd opened was just to the right. My life was over.
Dastien was dead.
The only thing left for me to do was end this fight.
I grabbed hold of her, and rolled us into the hell mouth. It closed above me and fire licked along my skin as I fell.
And fell.
The heat burned as I plummeted to my death.
Chapter Seven
I sat up, roaring with terror. My throat burned, but I couldnât stop. Someone shook my shoulders, but I couldnât register anything but fear. Heartbreak. The burning fire. Dastien being dead.
Everything being over before it had a chance to begin.
Then ice-cold water crashed over my head. I coughed as it lodged in my airways.
âTessa. Answer me. Are you okay?â
Dastien. My sight cleared and I saw him crouching in front of me. I leaped at him, tackling him to the ground, and started sobbing. I couldnât help it. My vision hadnât happened yet, but it would. I was going to watch him die, and then I was going to die.
I justâ¦
No. My heart ached. I knew he wasnât dead. He was here. But I couldnât help feeling the loss.
He wrapped his arms around me as he cradled me in his lap, running one hand up and down my back. âShhhh. Youâre here. Youâre safe. Everything is okay.â
I shook my head, but didnât pull back from him. âItâs not okay. Everything is not okay. I canâtââ I started crying again. Harder this time. The fear was too much. I couldnât lose him. It was too soon. We were too young. I was supposed to have a lifetime with him. A Were lifetime. And now I was going to get what? Weeks at best?
I didnât know how
Something was wrong. More wrong than just this.
And then it hit me.
Where was Dastien?
My skin chilled.
I turned in a full circleâscanning the people pressing against the horde of demons. Searching for Dastien in wolf or human form. But I couldnât find him.
Meredith and Donovan fought as wolves. A demon tore through Donovanâs leg, and they both howled. Three more demons lunged at them, and I saw them both fall before I lost them in the pile.
No. This couldnât be happening. This wasnât happening.
Dastien! I screamed through our bond, but I wasnât really here.
Where was Dastien? Why wasnât he by my side?
Finally, I spotted him. Not far away. Just out of sight. I sprang over the few remaining pews and found him in the chaos. He stood alone, fighting three demons at once and holding his own.
But he couldnât see what I saw.
There was another. A fourth demon. It was crawling from the hole, nails scratching along the stone floor. Heading for him.
A jolt of adrenaline hit me, and I started running.
âDastien!â I screamed so violently my throated ached. I was going to be too late. There wasnât enough time. Nothing was going to stop the demon. Not my Were powers. Not my magic.
My heart tore as panic gripped me. I pushed myself to move faster, but the demon scuttled closer to my mate.
Dastien killed one, and turnedâfinally hearing the larger demon behind himâbut it was too late.
I was too late. I was going to fail him. Fail myself. This was it. The end.
The demon ripped its long nails across Dastienâs neck, and his body jolted.
I screamed as Dastienâs head rolled into the hole, falling into hell. His body stayed in place, slowly crumpling to the ground.
No. No. This canât happen. I canâtâI wonât survive it.
Lucianaâs laugh cut across the numbness in my head. She stood glowing with power at the edge of the ragged hole and hate filled every inch of me.
All of this came back to her. I was moving before I could think.
I threw myself at Luciana. We hit the ground hard. She sat on me, her hands around my throat. I was strong enough to get her off, but there were too many demons surrounding her. I couldnât fight them all.
I had to stop this.
The portal sheâd opened was just to the right. My life was over.
Dastien was dead.
The only thing left for me to do was end this fight.
I grabbed hold of her, and rolled us into the hell mouth. It closed above me and fire licked along my skin as I fell.
And fell.
The heat burned as I plummeted to my death.
Chapter Seven
I sat up, roaring with terror. My throat burned, but I couldnât stop. Someone shook my shoulders, but I couldnât register anything but fear. Heartbreak. The burning fire. Dastien being dead.
Everything being over before it had a chance to begin.
Then ice-cold water crashed over my head. I coughed as it lodged in my airways.
âTessa. Answer me. Are you okay?â
Dastien. My sight cleared and I saw him crouching in front of me. I leaped at him, tackling him to the ground, and started sobbing. I couldnât help it. My vision hadnât happened yet, but it would. I was going to watch him die, and then I was going to die.
I justâ¦
No. My heart ached. I knew he wasnât dead. He was here. But I couldnât help feeling the loss.
He wrapped his arms around me as he cradled me in his lap, running one hand up and down my back. âShhhh. Youâre here. Youâre safe. Everything is okay.â
I shook my head, but didnât pull back from him. âItâs not okay. Everything is not okay. I canâtââ I started crying again. Harder this time. The fear was too much. I couldnât lose him. It was too soon. We were too young. I was supposed to have a lifetime with him. A Were lifetime. And now I was going to get what? Weeks at best?
I didnât know how
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