Page 120 of Cohesion

Will bent his knees slightly as he aimed, and it felt too long before he called out “clear,” and they moved to the second floor. There were only two floors. If they weren’t there… Quinn couldn’t think about that.

Will lifted a fist halfway up the stairs, halting them. “Hear that?” he whispered. He turned, leaning toward them. “Voices. They’re on this floor. Everyone ready?”

Peyton swayed a little, and Quinn pressed a hand to the small of his back, steadying him. None of them were ready, and at the same time, they were all more than ready.

“He’s in there,” Peyton said. “Everyone in the way gets fucking shot.”

Cain grinned. “Man after my own heart.”

“Keep your heart to yourself,” Jericho said in warning. He unclipped his magazine, checked it, and then clickedit back intoplace. He’d already done it before they’d gone in and hadn’t yet fired a single shot. A nervous gesture?

Quinn squeezed his palm around the grip of his gun. His entire body vibrated.

The only thing that would calm him now was seeing Sebastian. Alive.

Will kicked the stairwell door, so hard that it came off its hinges. The butt of a gun came out of nowhere and almost slammed into his head. He moved out of the way just in time and grabbed it with one hand, bending it. A cry of pain accompanied thecrackof a breaking bone. Will pulled him into view and Peyton moved up behind him, shooting him point-blank in the back of the head.

Will dropped the body, and he and Peyton immediately separated, moving further into the room. Cain ducked and stayed in the doorway, covering them as they poured in.

Not that he needed to; no more shots were fired.

“Step away from him,” Will barked out. “Right now.”

“Drop the knife and do what he says,” Peyton yelled.

Quinn froze, paralysed, taking in the scene.

Sebastian.

Even tied to a chair in the middle of the room, he looked like a fucking dream. Upright and breathing.Alive.

Arthur Mulhall stood over him with a knife, with two men guarding a nearby door. Quinn’s heart slowed as he adjusted the grip on his service weapon. The men weren’t making a move to fire at them, or protect Mulhall.

Quinn stepped closer, ignoring the chaos around him. The danger was too close to Sebastian. He was already bleeding, and if Mulhall so much as moved a fucking inch, Quinn would shoot him.

He didn’t need to.

Will tackled Mulhall to the ground and fisted his collar, yanking their heads together. “Keep your hands off him,” he snarled. “Don’t give me an excuse to shoot you right in the fucking head.” His voice held none of the softness, tenderness, or laughter that Quinn was used to. No hint of a smile, no warmth, only a solid authoritativeness that took Quinn’s breath away.

Will hauled Mulhall to his knees, and Cain moved in to cuff him, yanking his arms behind his back with zero consideration for his comfort.

With the threat neutralised, Quinn surged toward Sebastian, heart in his throat as he all but stumbled and fell to his knees. He dropped his gun, fingers trembling. What if this was an illusion? What if he wasn’t really here?

Sebastian smiled, eyes bright even through the bruising on his face and the blood dripping from his eyebrow and the corner of his mouth. Even like that he was the most beautiful thing Quinn had ever seen.

“Hey, there you are,” Sebastian croaked. “Been waiting for you.”

“I’m sorry,” Quinn said brokenly. He didn’t know where to touch. Blood had soaked through Sebastian’s shoulder, the red obscene against the white of his shirt. Had it spread like that because blood did that, or because he’d been bleeding badly? What was underneath?

“For what? Rescuing me? Yeah, how dare you.”

Jericho crouched behind Sebastian, a switchblade in his hand. Moments later, Sebastian’s hands were freed and reaching out for Quinn.

Quinn lifted himself up enough to get his own arms around Sebastian, holding him loosely and wishing he could crush him against his chest. He didn’t know the extent of the damage that had been done, and he couldn’t risk making it worse. He pulledback, fingers hovering over the bruising on Sebastian’s face. “I love you so much. If I’d lost you—”

“You didn’t. You crashed the party just in time.”

Heat prickled behind Quinn’s eyes. He leaned in, kissing Sebastian so softly it was a bare whisper of touch. Everything on his face looked sore, twisting anger in with Quinn’s relief. How dare anyone hurt him like that?

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