the serum, she’d be dying from trying to shift.”
I stared at Jarred, completely flummoxed. He believed he was telling the truth, and no one else seemed to think he was crazy. Except me. And even I couldn’t deny that on some deep inner level, I believed him. I swallowed the knot in my throat, and clung tightly to Damian’s arm. The world as I had known it was falling away. Dear God. I really had jumped into the rabbit hole.
“You’re lying,” said Damian. “There is no such power in a lycan bite. Not even in mine. You know that I cannot turn humans.”
“She’s not just any human. Tell Dr. Michaels to test her blood,” said Jarred dully. His shoulders sagged. “If she’s lucky, she has thirty days.”
“And then what?” I asked, my voice trembling.
Jarred’s gaze flicked to mine. “Your body will try to complete the transition by forcing you into a shift. If you live, then you’ll be fully lycan.”
“And if she took the serum again?” asked Damian. His impatience crackled right through my shields. I wasn’t exactly doing a bang-up job of keeping myself protected. After all, it wasn’t every day a girl was told she was turning into a werewolf.
“You know why we made it,” said Jarred. “What it was meant for.”
“Damian!” yelled Mari. “Get your ass in gear!”
Adulfo brought the weapon up and rammed the butt into the back of Jarred’s skull. His eyes went wide and then rolled back into his head. He was felled like a tree; I swear the roof shook when he landed.
Damian guided me toward the edge of the roof. Even through the haze of my disbelief, I realized he was being gentle. His strength flowed to me and I grabbed on to it, feeling almost like I would drown if I let go.
Three men stood near the edge of the roof line. They looked like a boy band—all in their twenties with the same good looks, shaggy dark hair, and gazes as silver as my earrings. They wore T-shirts and jeans and the one on left wore Converse sneakers.
“Ruadan,” said Damian. “I didn’t expect you.”
“Me boys asked me t’ come along,” he said with a roguish Irish accent. He was the one wearing the Converse. He executed a courtly bow. I could tell now that though the other two had the same hair and eyes and even chin, he was different from them. Older, maybe, but that was more a feeling of inner age than outer evidence. “I’ll take the lovely girl.”
“The hell,” said Damian. “She can go with one of the married twins.” He turned toward Mari. “We’ll meet you in Broken Heart. Make sure there’s an access key ready for Kelsey. She’ll have only a minute before the Invisi-shield activates.” He sighed. “You might as well tell the queen we’re in deep shit, too.”
“Delighted,” said Mari with a grin.
Then to my utter shock, she disappeared in a shower of pink sparkles. It was like Mari had burst into glitter. I looked at Damian, but he didn’t seem all that surprised. I wasn’t sure I was all that surprised, either. I fully expected a unicorn to show up next. Yeah. A unicorn ridden by a leprechaun holding a kettle of gold. Or a box of Lucky Charms.
“Go with Patrick,” Damian said to me. “When we get to Broken Heart, we’ll debrief you.”
“What?” I asked dazedly. Who the hell was Patrick? I started to sway, but Damian’s grip tightened on me. It was freezing out here, but I felt cold on the inside, too. “You take me,” I said, clutching his arm. It felt like my whole world had shifted, and I couldn’t get my balance. I did not want to let go of Damian. “I can’t … you have to … please .” I sucked in a breath and realized I was staring at my former patient through a sheen of tears. “I’m not exactly being brave, am I?”
“You are very brave,” he whispered. I saw tenderness in his gaze; then he stiffened. He let go of me abruptly, and I staggered. I stared at him, wounded, but he pushed me toward the trio of silver-eyed dudes. “Go,
I stared at Jarred, completely flummoxed. He believed he was telling the truth, and no one else seemed to think he was crazy. Except me. And even I couldn’t deny that on some deep inner level, I believed him. I swallowed the knot in my throat, and clung tightly to Damian’s arm. The world as I had known it was falling away. Dear God. I really had jumped into the rabbit hole.
“You’re lying,” said Damian. “There is no such power in a lycan bite. Not even in mine. You know that I cannot turn humans.”
“She’s not just any human. Tell Dr. Michaels to test her blood,” said Jarred dully. His shoulders sagged. “If she’s lucky, she has thirty days.”
“And then what?” I asked, my voice trembling.
Jarred’s gaze flicked to mine. “Your body will try to complete the transition by forcing you into a shift. If you live, then you’ll be fully lycan.”
“And if she took the serum again?” asked Damian. His impatience crackled right through my shields. I wasn’t exactly doing a bang-up job of keeping myself protected. After all, it wasn’t every day a girl was told she was turning into a werewolf.
“You know why we made it,” said Jarred. “What it was meant for.”
“Damian!” yelled Mari. “Get your ass in gear!”
Adulfo brought the weapon up and rammed the butt into the back of Jarred’s skull. His eyes went wide and then rolled back into his head. He was felled like a tree; I swear the roof shook when he landed.
Damian guided me toward the edge of the roof. Even through the haze of my disbelief, I realized he was being gentle. His strength flowed to me and I grabbed on to it, feeling almost like I would drown if I let go.
Three men stood near the edge of the roof line. They looked like a boy band—all in their twenties with the same good looks, shaggy dark hair, and gazes as silver as my earrings. They wore T-shirts and jeans and the one on left wore Converse sneakers.
“Ruadan,” said Damian. “I didn’t expect you.”
“Me boys asked me t’ come along,” he said with a roguish Irish accent. He was the one wearing the Converse. He executed a courtly bow. I could tell now that though the other two had the same hair and eyes and even chin, he was different from them. Older, maybe, but that was more a feeling of inner age than outer evidence. “I’ll take the lovely girl.”
“The hell,” said Damian. “She can go with one of the married twins.” He turned toward Mari. “We’ll meet you in Broken Heart. Make sure there’s an access key ready for Kelsey. She’ll have only a minute before the Invisi-shield activates.” He sighed. “You might as well tell the queen we’re in deep shit, too.”
“Delighted,” said Mari with a grin.
Then to my utter shock, she disappeared in a shower of pink sparkles. It was like Mari had burst into glitter. I looked at Damian, but he didn’t seem all that surprised. I wasn’t sure I was all that surprised, either. I fully expected a unicorn to show up next. Yeah. A unicorn ridden by a leprechaun holding a kettle of gold. Or a box of Lucky Charms.
“Go with Patrick,” Damian said to me. “When we get to Broken Heart, we’ll debrief you.”
“What?” I asked dazedly. Who the hell was Patrick? I started to sway, but Damian’s grip tightened on me. It was freezing out here, but I felt cold on the inside, too. “You take me,” I said, clutching his arm. It felt like my whole world had shifted, and I couldn’t get my balance. I did not want to let go of Damian. “I can’t … you have to … please .” I sucked in a breath and realized I was staring at my former patient through a sheen of tears. “I’m not exactly being brave, am I?”
“You are very brave,” he whispered. I saw tenderness in his gaze; then he stiffened. He let go of me abruptly, and I staggered. I stared at him, wounded, but he pushed me toward the trio of silver-eyed dudes. “Go,
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