Page 95 of Shadow Caster
Shit, how many were there?
Harmon and Mal fought back to back. Hyde? Where was he?
There, in the center of things, surrounded as usual. It was like he attracted trouble. I rushed toward him, dagger at the ready. It sliced, snagged and drew yellow goop. Howls of pain, growls, and snarls cut the air, and then I was in the center and Hyde was cursing but there was a crazy grin on his face which swelled my heart. This felt right. It felt natural. We fell into sync, fighting as if it was a coordinated dance and it was as if we’d been doing this forever. As if it was meant to be. My limbs burned with euphoria as we brought down hound after hound until I was standing amidst a sea of bodies.
My body was vibrating with energy. I turned to Hyde to find his gaze on me, dark and hungry and dangerous. Heat bloomed at my core. Want and desire and the desperate need for him to break and take me now. Fuck what was this? What was this violent, ravenous need aching and throbbing between us? He took a shuddering breath and shook his head as if to clear it.
“We need to go. Now,” he said. “The scent of death will no doubt draw more hounds.”
With a final lingering look my way, he climbed over the dead hounds and strode toward the exit.
We were covered in goop, tired, and wary as we navigated the tunnels. Hyde moved faster than before, forcing us to keep up or lose our way.
He finally came to a halt by a section of smooth rock. “Here,” he said.
“What?” Harmon asked. “What are we looking at.”
Hyde pressed his palm to the wall, and it shimmered to reveal a round hole. “Master Henrique put it in a few years ago,” Hyde said. “Only the shadow knights and the trial master know of its existence. It leads out of the catacombs.” Hyde ushered the first cadet into the hole. “Just keep climbing,” he instructed. Thomas went next.
Harmon turned to me. “Now you.”
Oh, crap, this was the moment. “I can’t.” I backed away.
“Justice!” both Harmon and Hyde snapped at the same time. Agitation was rife in their tones.
They exchanged surprised glances at the jinx moment.
There was no time to argue. No time to debate. “Get out.” I turned away and focused on a spot of shadow. “I’ll find you, but you need to be outside.”
I closed my eyes and visualized the route we’d come, praying I could find it again.
“I’ll be back.” I turned away.
“Justice!” Hyde growled. “I know you want to save Payne, but there’s no time. He wouldn’t want you to risk your life for him.” He grabbed my hand and pulled me toward the exit.
I tugged free of him. “I can phase there.”
“Dammit, Justice, you have no idea where the lab is or how far it is from this exit.”
I backed away from him. “I know the route. I’ll find it. I can’t leave him to die.”
Something dark and desperate flashed across Hyde’s face. “Promise me, if you get stuck for time, if you get lost, promise me you’ll phase to me.”
“I promise.”
“What the fuck is going on?” Harmon asked.
Hyde drew me close, his expression intense, his eyes burning across my face as if committing it to memory. “Do not die.”
There were words between us, so many words, but neither of us spoke them. Instead, I pulled out of his arms and dove into shadows.
* * *
Payne lookedup as I stepped into the lab, but my vision went dark for a moment, and my knees grew weak.
“Indigo.” Payne grabbed me in time to stop me from falling. “What did you do?”
I brushed him off. “I carried Hyde into the catacombs. I’ll be fine in a minute.”
