Page 388 of Shadowblood Souls
But George lies in the dust just around the corner of the shed, back of his skull blasted right open, the rest of his white-blond hair drenched red.
Zian somehow looks twice as upset when he takes in my expression. “I’m going to be all right,” he insists with a hint of a growl. “But he—I couldn’t get to him in time…”
Lindsay lifts her head, her wide eyes flicking from him to me and back again. “I think the bleeding is slowing.”
Jacob hefts himself farther upright. “That’s what matters. Just tore up a little muscle on this hulk.”
He taps Zian lightly with his elbow, but his face is tight with concentration. His jaw works when he glances at George’s body.
His expression hardens even more at another crackling gunshot. He catches my eyes. “They’re killing the hostages?”
I nod, my mouth dry. “Must be. I don’t know…”
I don’t know what we do now. I don’t have the slightest clue how to salvage this mission.
For all we know, if we go back in failure and Clancy loses control over the guardianship… the remaining guardians will decide that Engel was right and murder us after all. Or send us off to be lab rats the way Clancy’s always threatened.
But how the hell are we going to take down all those gunmen when only one of us who’s much good at killing anyone has all her flesh intact?
Jacob is still watching me. “You tell us what you need, Wildcat. We’ll do whatever we can.”
None of us can touch the insurgents without getting inside the building. And I can’t see Jacob or Zian launching themselves into a full-out brawl with their injuries.
Which leaves just me.
But how the hell could I manage to take down all of our enemies in an enclosed space without them shooting me first? Without slaughtering all the innocents with them at the same time?
Even if I got in there and brought every supernatural talent I have to bear as quickly as possible…
The quivers of the exhilaration of my last scream still thrum through my veins, but that’s not enough to take on an entire squad of terrorists unscathed.
Not on its own. I need more.
A restless bleat reaches my ears. My head jerks toward the sheep pen.
The bottom of my stomach drops out with the idea that’s just occurred to me.
I can’t deny the solution that’s right in front of me, no matter how horrific I find it. If I have to become more of a monster to save us all, so be it.
I won’t be able to saveanyoneif the mission completely falls apart.
“I need to see what I’m working with out there,” I say.
Jacob pushes to his feet without another word, gripping the side of the shed for balance so he isn’t putting too much weight on his wounded leg. Zian sways after him.
A protest tumbles from my lips. “You should?—”
Zee shakes his head. “We’re in this together. Like always.”
Tegan looks terrified and fierce at the same time. “I’m coming too.”
The truth is, no matter how powerful I get, I’m not sure I can pull this off alone. So I grasp Jake’s arm to help him, and we shuffle as quickly as the guys can manage through a narrow gap between two of the buildings to where we can peek into the courtyard.
The sheep are pacing in their pen back the way I came from. The building with the hostages stands almost directly opposite it.
There’s a pane-less window on the second floor, large enough that I’m sure my small frame could fit through it without a squeeze.
Two more shots ring out just in the brief moment I’m taking it in. My jaw clenches so abruptly I bite my lip.
