Page 50 of Heat Me

Suddenly, I heard it—the pounding of footsteps. Four pairs, closing in from two directions.

"Get down!" I yelled to Lowen.

Then came the gunfire. The first burst struck me in the solar plexus, the second just below my collarbone.

The impact knocked the wind out of me for a moment, and blood sprayed across my face. My adrenaline surged even higher, and in an instant, all the spines erupted all over my body…

Time slowed. My reflexes heightened. With a single leap, I covered nearly six yards, crashing into one of the attackers like a battering ram. Through the haze of smoke, I saw he was dressed entirely in black, his face obscured by a mask. My forearm spines tore through the fabric around his neck and shoulder. He screamed as blood sprayed from the gash.

The second man behind him hesitated, dropping his gun in favor of a taser. He pressed it against my naked torso, sending an electric charge straight through me.

But… nothing happened! No pain, no paralysis—nothing. I was… immune? The realization was as shocking to him as it was to me.

To be fair, I’d never tested my resistance to electricity before. I wasn’t one of those kids who stuck fingers in sockets or licked battery terminals for fun. And yet, here I was, resisting electricity. It was almost funny—Damien, with his ability to generate electrical discharges, paired with me, who could withstand them. Talk about complementary powers!

That thought lasted all of a second. My claws—yeah, I had those too!—slashed across the second man’s face, leaving him screaming and clutching at his wounds as he fell to the floor. The first man was already on his knees, blood gushing from his shredded throat.

But it wasn’t over. I felt another round of bullets slam hard into my back. The bone plates there absorbed most of the impact, but the force was like being hit with a sledgehammer. I gasped, the air driven from my lungs.

A guttural, inhuman roar tore from my throat. Spinning around, I saw two more attackers charging down the hall. I leapt, covering eight yards in a single bound, and collided with them. The spines on my thigh and shin pierced one man’s chest, while the elbow spines ripped into the other’s leg, slicing an artery.

Blood sprayed everywhere, and I knew these men wouldn’t survive long. A part of me recoiled at the thought of killing them, but I had no choice. They wanted me dead—and Lowen too. And maybe Damien. That, I couldn’t allow.

One thing kept bugging me—where were the other guards? Had Lowen’s security team been wiped out? What about Mr. Ragu’s bodyguards? Where were the bodies?

But for now, the most important thing was getting to Damien.

I grabbed the weapons dropped by the attackers and hurled them far into the conference room, well out of reach. Blue Lowen was still curled up near the wall by the exit, staring at me through the dusty air, his eyes wide. Surely, he had never seen a real monster standing right in front of him.

I walked closer to him and said, "Don’t get too close to me, or you’ll get hurt. I have to get to the next room. Four attackers are down, and they’re unarmed, but it’s still not safe here. I’m sorry I can’t stay to protect you, but he’s the priority for me, please understand it."

Lowen stared at me with an expression I couldn’t quite read.

"I’m going with you," he said. "I’m not staying here. No way."

"Your call, but if you’re in the hallway, you’ll be a sitting duck for anyone who shows up with a gun."

"I’ll take that risk."

I shrugged. "Then let’s go."

Without waiting for a response, I turned and headed for Damien’s room. A heavy metal beam had fallen across the entrance, blocking the door. Grabbing hold of it, I yanked, causing more debris, metal pieces, and plastic panels to rain down from the ceiling. Cables dangled ominously as Lowen flinched and pressed himself against the wall.

Gritting my teeth, I heaved at the beam again. The effort was immense, and several ceiling panels dropped onto my head, but finally, I managed to shove it aside with a roar. I didn’t have time to fumble for a key, so I kicked the door open with all my strength.

The room beyond was thick with dust. The walls looked warped and deformed, likely made of flimsy plastic panels that had bent from the force of the blast.

"Damien!" I shouted.

My heart clenched with fear, but my hearing saved me from panic—I caught the sound of a rapid heartbeat. Damien was alive! He was curled up under a desk, but sprang to his feet as soon as he saw me, running in my direction. Relief hit me like a tidal wave.

"Stop!" I yelled. "Don’t get too close—my spines might hurt you."

He halted just a step away, staring at me with wide eyes. I could only imagine how I looked to him: a beast covered in sharp spikes along my neck and limbs; hands, arms, and legs. Even my face wasn’t remotely human anymore. The protective bone plates above my eyes had slid down, leaving only narrow slits for vision. I must’ve been unrecognizable.

The CEO of Malden Pharmaceuticals had also followed me into the room—staying in the hallway apparently wasn’t an attractive option.

"Damien?!" he blurted out.

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