Fallen (28 page)

Every inch of me felt like it was covered in third degree burns, and every muscle in my body felt like it had been ripped to shreds. My stomach started heaving, and I rolled over, coughing and throwing up blood. It appeared black on top of the pavement. I tried to lift my head up, but couldn’t. It was too heavy, and my muscles were weak.

I’d never been in this much pain before. It was excruciating, and—for a moment—I wanted to give up and let myself die. It would only be a temporary death, but…at least I’d be unable to feel anything. 

The only thing that kept me going was Emily. I had to find her. I had to make sure she was okay. Then I could die.

I inhaled deeply, ignoring the burn in my lungs, and grimaced as I pushed myself off the ground. Groaning from the immense pain, I rested a hand on the brick wall to steady my legs. My other hand wiped at the steady stream of blood pouring out my nose.

My ears pricked at the sound of approaching footsteps.

I staggered closer to the opening of the alley, forcing my body along when it just wanted to give up. There was only one set of footsteps. And they sounded too heavy to be female. I inhaled again, getting used to the burn and ache in my chest. The scent was human, and definitely male. I listened to his footsteps, waiting until he got close enough.

My arm throbbed as I reached out and grabbed him when he walked past the alley’s opening, pulling him into the darkness with me. With my hand around his throat, I pushed him against the brick wall. I winced from the exertion, saying between clenched teeth, “Give me your pants.”

His heart raced, the veins in his neck pulsing under my hand in unison. He looked scared shitless, but managed to say, “My pants?”

I brought him forward only to slam him into the wall again, grimacing at the pain it caused my bicep and shoulder. The brick cracked behind him. “Give them to me!”

He fumbled with the button of his jeans and quickly shimmied out of them. He handed them to me and I dumped everything in his pockets out on the ground. I told him to take his stuff and go. He picked it up quickly and scurried off in his jacket and boxers. 

I pulled the pants on, grateful that they kind of fit in the waist. Of course they were several inches too short, but that didn’t matter. 

Forcing my legs to start running, I gritted through the pain and ran the three blocks to his house, weaving in and out of humans on the street.

Chapter Forty-Nine

GABRIEL

Speeding down the dark highway, I typed Isaac’s address into my GPS. Goddamn it, I was still a good seven minutes away. I hoped to hell Thomas had already made it there. 

So help me God, if they hurt her…

I gripped the steering wheel and pressed the pedal to the floor, accelerating down the stretch of two-lane road. Picking up my phone from the passenger seat, I scrolled down and hit Michael’s name. It rang once before he answered. 

“Well, look who—”

“I know about Isaac.”

There was silence on his end, then, “Damn. I really wanted to see the look on your face when you found out. I was going to do this big reveal and everything. It would’ve been epic.”

“When I come to kill you, the
last
thing you’re going to see is the look on my face, and I promise you, motherfucker, you won’t be disappointed.”

He laughed, and when it fizzled out, he sighed. “Oh, Gabriel. I’m going to miss our repartee.”

My jaw clenched as I glanced at the navigation system. Only three minutes away. “Why’d you do it? How could you
possibly
work for him? All the money in the world couldn’t—”

“It’s not about money, Gabriel. It’s about power. See, in exchange for keeping my mouth shut about his dirty little secret, he’s agreed to assassinate Philip—
publicly
. And in a time of such political upheaval, well, that’s when heroes are made and kings are crowned.”

That clever son of a bitch. Michael knew how beloved and well-respected my uncle was, and if people even
suspected
he was involved in Philip’s murder, they would never accept him as leader. But this way, there’d be no question. This way, Philip’s out of the picture, Isaac is vilified anew, and Michael would fill the vacuum of power left behind. It was the perfect plan, all wrapped up in a neat little bow.

“What about Emily? How does she fit into all this?”

“I don’t know, and I don’t really care. He probably just wants to tie up this one little loose end, if you know what I mean.”

“I swear to God, if you hurt her—”

“You mean like this?” 

Emily’s scream tore through my phone. I winced and pulled it away from my ear, bringing the back of my hand to cover my mouth as my throat tightened. I couldn’t breathe. I wiped my eyes and brought the phone back, hearing Michael laugh. “
I will end you
.”

Hanging up, I tossed the phone on the passenger seat and rounded the corner, barreling down the road as his house came into view. I skidded to a stop and put the car in park, leaving the engine running and the door open as I ran up the steps to Isaac’s house.

Chapter Fifty

EMILY

“That is so cool. Do it again!”

Searing pain lanced through my forearm and I screamed, struggling against the set of hands holding me in place, but it was no use. A full-blooded male Feeder was apparently no match for a female crossbreed like me.  

My fingers gripped the armrests of the chair as warm, thick liquid dripped down my skin, hitting the concrete floor in muted thuds. The pain ebbed as quickly as it came on, and I hung my head, squeezing my eyes shut at the small respite. “Please stop,” I breathed, feeling hot tears roll down my cheeks.

The one in front of me grabbed my hair close to the scalp and yanked my head back, my eyes opening to stare into his cold, unfeeling gaze. He brought the knife up and held it against my throat, the metal digging into my skin. 

“Maybe I’ll slit your throat next. See if that one heals.”

“Leave her alone, John.” Michael’s bored voice drifted from the side of the basement, and I saw him in my peripherals. He didn’t even take his eyes off his phone. “She’s useless to me if she’s dead.”

“Now that’s not true.” John—the sadistic asshole with the knife—lowered the blade to my thighs, where the hem of my oversized t-shirt fell. It was the only article of clothing they’d let me grab before they took me. He pushed the material back with the metal, exposing my inner thighs, as he fisted my hair even harder. His fingers replaced the knife as he rubbed my thighs and leaned down, his nose grazing my jaw before whispering in my ear, “I can think of one very good use for her after she’s dead.”

Pulling back, he smiled, and I spit in his face. 

His grin dissipated as he released me. I flinched, thinking he was going to hit me. Instead, he wiped my spit off with his finger and put it in his mouth, sucking it clean. 

My face twisted into disgust before he grabbed me by the chin and dropped his face to mine. “You do that again, sweetheart, and I promise you won’t like the outcome.” 

Michael’s phone rang and John stepped away. Michael grinned as he glanced at me. “It’s your boyfriend.”

John’s hand slipped over my mouth as Michael answered. “Well, look who—”

“I know about Isaac.” Gabriel’s voice sounded small and tinny as I strained to listen.

Isaac? What’s he got to do with this?

Michael paused, looking pissed. “Damn. I really wanted to see the look on your face when you found out. I was going to do this big reveal and everything. It would’ve been epic.”

“When I come to kill you, the
last
thing you’re going to see is the look on my face, and I promise you, motherfucker, you won’t be disappointed.”

Michael laughed, then sighed. “Oh, Gabriel. I’m going to miss our repartee.”

“Why’d you do it? How could you possibly work for him? All the money in the world couldn’t—”

“It’s not about money, Gabriel. It’s about power. See, in exchange for keeping my mouth shut about his dirty little secret, he’s agreed to assassinate Philip—
publicly
. And in a time of such political upheaval, well, that’s when heroes are made and kings are crowned.”

Wait, Gabriel was working for
Isaac
? And
what
dirty little secret?

“What about Emily?” Gabriel asked. “How does she fit into all this?”

“I don’t know, and I don’t really care. He probably just wants to tie up this one little loose end, if you know what I mean.”

“I swear to God, if you hurt her—”

“You mean like this?” 

Michael signaled to John. In one swift move, he brought the knife down, stabbing me through the hand and pinning me to the armrest.

A scream was ripped from me as white-hot pain radiated from my hand. Michael laughed as John pulled the blade out. I cradled my hand to my chest as blood dripped down my arm, soaking my shirt. 

I waited for the relief of healing to come, but it didn’t. Apparently getting impaled took longer to heal than a slice down the arm. My vision turned fuzzy and I struggled not to faint from the pain and blood loss. I didn’t know what these sick bastards would do to me if I was unconscious, and I did
not
want to find out.

Movement in the dark corner behind Michael caught my eye, and I looked up in time to see a man lower himself into the basement through a small window high up near the ceiling. He wore ill-fitting jeans and nothing else. No shoes, socks, or shirt. His biceps strained as they held his descending weight from the window frame. He landed on the concrete floor silently.

Maybe I was hallucinating. No one else seemed to notice him…

He took a small step forward, out of the shadows, and my breath caught. 

Thomas?

Chapter Fifty-One

THOMAS

My heart broke all over again at the sight of Emily. For the past seven months, I wanted nothing more than to see her beautiful face, but this… This was not what I’d prayed for.

She looked like hell sitting in an old Adirondack chair, hunched over. Her dark hair shielded her face, but I saw the blood stains all over her shirt clear as day.

I’ll kill ’em. Each. And. Every. One.

Rage threatened to overtake me, but I had to be precise in this. There were three Feeders in this room, and they were easily capable of overpowering me if I wasn’t careful. I couldn’t run out there half-cocked like some overzealous boyfriend. I had to go in there a soldier.

She lifted her head, her eyes meeting mine as I stepped out into the light. I held my finger up to my lips, gesturing for her to be silent.

She blinked, like she couldn’t believe what she was seeing.

Rolling my neck from side to side, I stood behind the dark-haired male in front of her. He was too busy with his phone to notice anything around him, and I was about to use that to my advantage. I counted to three in my head and reached out, wrapping my arm around his neck as I locked him in a chokehold. He yelped and dropped his phone, clawing at my arm. 

Surprise flitted across the other two’s faces. 

The blond one holding Em down made the mistake of releasing her in his shock, and she lunged for the other’s dumbstruck ass, tackling him to the ground. His knife flew out of his hand and skittered across the floor. 

Blondie decided to get in on the action and charged me. I picked up Texty Texterson and swung him around, his flying feet knocking Blondie right in the kisser. He dropped to the floor, and I used the few seconds before he got back up to angle my body and drop to the ground, body slamming Texty face-first into the concrete.

Emily screamed and I was up in a flash, whipping around to see the guy who’d had the knife pinning her to the floor. One arm held down her hands above her head, and the other arm was between them, trying to work open his pants. 

Oh,
hell
fucking no.

She thrashed under him as I lifted my foot and kicked the side of his head, knocking him off her and onto his back. My foot pressed on his throat as I bent down and grabbed his head, pulling with all my strength. He wheezed as his nails clawed at my foot. 

Son of a bitch
, his scratches stung. 

The veins in my neck popped out as I strained, and finally a loud crack thundered through the room as I stumbled back with his head in my hands. A pool of dark red oozed from his neck, and I tossed his head down. It thudded on the concrete and made a wet slapping sound as it rolled a few times and came to a stop near his lifeless body. 

My chest heaved as I turned to face Blondie and Texty. “Who’s next?”

They blinked and glanced at each other, wearing the same awed and terrified expression. My head whipped up as I heard the front door open, and I shoved Em behind me. Footsteps thundered down the stairs as Gabriel came into view. His frantic eyes landed on Em and you could
see
relief sweep through him.

I wanted to punch him right in his fucking face.

His eyes swung over and landed on Texty, his gaze darkening. “You son of a bitch!”

He lunged for him, and as they tussled, Blondie tried to make a run for it.

“No, you don’t,” I said, grabbing the back of his shirt and dragging him back to me. He screamed and I ignored the pain roaring up my arm and through my shoulder as I locked my arm around his neck. He flailed in my arms, his back to my chest as I yanked on his head. It came off in one swift motion and his body dropped to the floor as I threw his head down. 

My eyelids grew heavy as I swayed on my feet. Warm liquid trickled down the side of my face, and I reached up, wiping away blood as it dripped out of my ear.

That can’t be good.

My eyes rolled back as I hit the ground. Em’s horrified face was the last thing I saw.

Chapter Fifty-Two

GABRIEL

Michael was a pansy in life and had proved to be that way right up until the very end. He stared up at me, crying like a little girl as tears streaked his face. “Please don’t kill me, Gabriel, I’ll do anything you want! I’ll—”