Page 215 of Blood and Ruin: The Complete Series

Glancing back at them, I spot one that stands out from the rest. A look of curiosity and interest lighting his eyes. The kind of look that only breeds cruelty and pain.

He saw what I could do when I healed and, just like all the rest, he will try to bend me until he sees me broken. But no more.

I willneverbe trapped again.

Let it out,the shadow beast whispers once more.

As if the words free the barrier I have on my mind and body, I let loose.

All the pain and anger and frustration and hurt, I let it explode out of me, no longer holding back.

It rushes out of me like a tidal wave, causing complete destruction of everything it touches and covers everything around me in its black smoke.

My body becomes a weight, one too heavy to keep up. Just as the last piece of light flitters out, my body drops to the ground, and my eyes slowly close, following the darkness around me.

CHAPTER 18

LUKA

Nearly there.

Axel and Rhory are absorbing the energy around Kiarra’s location, or at least they’re trying to. If everything goes according to plan, we can be there within minutes, having the necessary supes needed to create the portal ready to go.

Jax keeps checking the phone in his hand, waiting for the green light from the others. Kai and Rion are still in Boulder, so they’ll take a separate portal straight there. That’s if everything works out and they’re able to drain it first.

As time slowly drags on, I start to doubt myself and everything we’ve done to get this far. The phone rings, making my heart stop. Jax picks it up on the first ring.

“It’s done.”

The relief I feel from those two little words lifts the dark cloud threatening to smother me whole.

Jax’s tense body relaxes, a look of determination shifting across his face.

I give the supes a nod, telling them to get the portal ready.

“Here we go.”

I grab Jax’s shoulder as we wait for it to open. “Time to get our girl back, brother.”

“And never let her out of our fucking sight again.” He gives me a smirk, telling me exactly what we’re going to do with our little mate. She has no clue what she’s in for.

The portal opens and we rush forward… and straight into complete chaos.

Darkness explodes all around us, reaching nearly every corner of the small Island. It brushes past us but doesn’t harm us in the slightest.

“What the hell was that?” Jax’s wide eyes mirror my own.

“I don’t know, but let’s hurry.”

Jax nods, rushing through the thick forest. Racing forward, I notice less thick trees the farther in we get, giving me a slight piece of hope. But the farther we get in, the more that hope shrivels up.

The island is quiet, eerily so. My heartbeat kicks up a notch, thinking we’re too late.

Damn it.Please be okay.

After a couple of minutes, we find a large building that looks like an old military base. Green vines cover the outside, doing a shit job of trying to hide it from anyone. There’s a fence around the entire length of it.

Without thinking, we head straight for it, breaking into a sprint before jumping over the fence and landing on the balls of our feet.

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