Page 89 of Shadow Blind

With obvious effort, Benioko struggled to his feet and settled a claw-like hand over Wolf’s forearm.

With a deep breath and a shake of his head, Wolf turned to address the roomful of warriors. “The weapon used against the people of Karaveht, as well as Aiden’s SEAL team, has gone up for sale. Those selling it have posted videos to prove its effectiveness. The footage is of the villagers in Karaveht, and Aiden’s SEAL team slaughtering each other. The bidding is strong.” His jaw bunched. “The Thunderbird will fly within the hour.”

Chapter thirty-five

Day 16

Denali, Alaska

Trident’s thick, ominous growls frayed Demi’s nerves, even though the cat hadn’t drawn blood since their flight to Alaska nine days ago. Whatever mad cat magic O’Neill had cast over the feline was long-lasting—at least when it came to scratches and bites. The cat’s unfriendliness, growling, and bad temper? Sadly, there was no improvement there.

Kait gently lifted Trident’s stump of a back leg and leaned in closer. The growling intensified until deep-chested rumbles vibrated across Demi’s thighs. She tensed, bracing herself for a display of claws or fangs, both of which were free. They hadn’t wrapped him in the towel like usual since they needed to see his wounds.

“Just a few seconds more,” Demi soothed in that soft, sweet voice she didn’t hate nearly as much as she had prior to climbing aboard the jet.

Kait straightened from where she was kneeling in front of Demi’s lapful of pissed off cat. “Everything looks great. The surgical areas are all healed. Or at least the flesh looks like it knit well. I still see stitches though. Didn’t your vet say those would dissolve, or fall out by two weeks? Are we supposed to do something about them if they don’t disappear?”

“She said it could take several weeks for them to dissolve.” Leaning forward, Demi carefully set Trident on his three legs, next to the paper plate with a generous load of tuna. She waited to make sure he was stable, then slowly released her hold. “At least he doesn’t show signs of infection or inflammation.”

She’d used the last of the antibiotics days ago, and the anti-inflammatory meds before that.

For a second, it looked like Trident was going to race off and hide, as usual. Instead, he hesitated, glancing back at Demi. After another hesitation, he turned and crept toward the dish of tuna. She’d discovered tuna was his favorite food, so she’d been using it as a reward for his good behavior—as in no drawing of blood.

“If he would have allowed me to get my hands around his wounds, maybe I could have healed him completely, or at least sped up his natural healing.” There was frustration in Kait’s voice.

Demi nodded agreement, even though Kait had managed to get her hands on Trident several times. She suspected her friend’s lack of success in healing Trident’s wounds was because the cat fell into the seventy percent of patients Kait’s ability didn’t work on. When it came to her healing ability, Kait should just count herself lucky that the people she cared about—Aiden, Cosky, and Demi—all fell into the thirty percent she could heal.

Kait’s phone rang. Cautiously, Demi leaned over and ran her fingers down the cat’s spine. It arched beneath her fingertips. She wasn’t sure whether the movement was from pleasure, or annoyance. But he didn’t flee or growl. The fact he was allowing her to pet him while he ate was a major step forward. He’d never let her get so close before.

“What happened?”

Kait’s shrill voice was Demi’s first clue something was wrong. Trident flinched and fled, diving beneath the recliner across the room. Her heart suddenly pounding way too hard and fast, Demi straightened. Kait had gone rigid. Her face blanched. Her fingers were pale talons clamped around her phone.

Had something happened to Cosky?

“But that makes no sense. He was just here. He was fine.” Kait’s voice shook. Her throat trembled. “Do his doctors think this sudden sickness is related to those nanobots? Was he infected, after all?”

Sudden sickness? Nanobots? Infected?

Kait had asked Aiden about nanobots the evening he’d come to see her. He’d changed the subject. When Demi had asked him about them, he’d claimed the topic was classified and wouldn’t tell her a damn thing. She’d thought his refusal to explain was another one of his secrets.

She should have pressed him on the matter.

Demi’s chest tightened. So did her scalp. Instinctively, she knew this call wasn’t about Cosky. It was about Aiden. Fear tightened her belly into an icy knot.

“No. Send the chopper. I’m coming.” Kait glanced at Demi. “Demi and I are both coming.” She fell silent, listening. “I know that.” Another distracted glance at Demi. “She deserves to be there beside him.” She paused and added, “I need her with me. She’s coming.” Although she didn’t say it, the words, end of discussion, rang in her voice. She paused, listening. “I don’t care. I know he’s in the percentage I can heal. I’ve healed him before, I’ll do it again.” She paused once more, then responded with a snap in her voice. “You have no right to make that decision for me. I’m coming. Send the damn chopper!” Another pause, a longer one. This time when she responded, her voice had gone icy. Deadly. “I’m not messing with you, Marcus. If that chopper isn’t here in twenty minutes, I will never forgive you. I’m not fucking stupid. I know it’s dangerous but he’s my brother. I’m not going to sit around and let him die.”

Demi jolted, Kait’s words hitting her like an electric shock.

Die!

Aiden was dying?

Her head went light. How could Aiden be dying? She’d just seen him. He’d been perfectly healthy. None of this made sense. What had caused him to get so sick, so fast? The question froze in her mind and started echoing. The answer hit her like a gunshot.

The bots. His sudden illness must have something to do with the nanobots Kait had asked him about. She took a deep breath, released it slowly, and watched as Kait threw the phone on the couch. It bounced off the backrest and fell into the indent between the seat cushions.

“How bad is it?” Demi fought to keep her voice even.

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