Page 124 of To Ashes and Dust
My breath rushed from my lungs, the world shifting under me. “M-mated?”
Though I could feel the hope, the love rising off him, I didn’t miss the pain in his eyes. He’d be here at my side, for however short my life would be, regardless of the pain he’d endure again. He’d be at my side when I passed on.
We could die at any time, but he wanted to be mated, wanted to live what life we had left together as a pair.
“Damien, I—” His gaze lifted to me, hope lighting those beautiful amber and ashen eyes. I needed to tell him the truth. “There’s something I’ve been wanting to tell you...”
His brows furrowed, and I swallowed. I wanted to cry, to scream. This was so unfair. Neither of us deserved this, not after everything we’ve sacrificed over the centuries.
“I’ve wanted to tell you for a long time, but I—” Was this really where I was going to tell him? I glanced around the empty room nervously before turning my gaze back to him. No, I couldn’t back down this time. He needed to know.
“I didn’t mean to keep this from you. When we first met, I had no idea it would lead to any of this. I’ve tried too many times to tell you, but—” I froze as the temperature plummeted, my breath leaving my lips in a pale mist. Damien’s eyes shifted to the rest of the room, the lights flickering around us. I turned to see the fire sputter, shrinking before dousing entirely.
My heart sank as I turned to look toward the window, ice crawling along the glass in fractural patterns. “Damien?”
He rose from his chair, horror fanning across his face. The doors to the lounge burst open and Damien and I whipped around to find Vincent, Barrett, and Zephyr, their eyes wide as the lights went out.
“Darklings!”
45
CASSIE
Adarkling burst through the window, and Damien grabbed me as countless shards of glass rained over us. Damien released me to slam his fist into the creature’s face, and it flew into the nearby sofa.
“Get out of here!” Damien yelled, and I lurched to my feet, running to where Barrett and the others flagged us down in the shadows, faintly illuminated by the stray light of the streetlamps. As we rushed through the doorway, Damien and Vincent slammed the doors closed behind us, but not before I caught a glimpse of darklings pouring in through the broken window.
The hall was cast in inky darkness. I could barely see as I grappled for the wall to brace myself while I allowed my eyes to adjust.
“Where the hell did they come from?” Zephyr barked, and something thumped against the double doors. The faint sound of clicks came from the other side, and dread spread through my chest.
Damien’s eyes flitted back and forth. “I don’t kno—” A scream echoed down the hall. Zephyr shifted into his panther form, taking lead as we hurtled down the hall.
Barrett drew his dagger behind me. “Fuck! We need to get everyone out of here!”
“Johnson’s down in the med bay. He’ll be trapped!” Vincent said, glancing over his shoulder, and terror stretched over me as I drew my daggers. The dark hall stretched before us with no way of getting out, save the two stairwells at either end. The immortals living here would be trapped. They’d be easy prey. Had the darklings surrounded The Complex? Where had they come from so suddenly?
“I can get people out, but…” I glanced at Damien as his gaze snapped to me, his own words falling short. He could use his shadow magic to get everyone out, but where would he even begin?
A recruit crashed through a nearby door, bracing the jaws of a darkling. He slammed into the opposite wall and onto the floor, the darkling snapping the air inches from his face. Zephyr slammed into it, biting down on its throat as he tore its head off.
Vincent hurried to the recruit’s side as Damien peered into the room. Barrett and I scanned the hall behind us.
“Fuck,” Damien breathed, and he looked at Vincent. “Get him up,now.”
Terror sank into my bones as the echoes of clicks slipped from the shattered window in the room—the darklings communicating with each other. More were coming. God, how many were there? Vincent helped the recruit to his feet, the male’s face drained of color.
“Move,now!” Barrett ordered, nudging the stunned recruit. He blinked and turned to follow Zephyr.
“Damien, how are we gonna get everyone out?” I asked as we ran.
“We’ll move through the shadows, get them to Haver’s office in town. I’m limited, though. I can only move so many people at a time. Three is pushing it. I might be able to move four, but everyone’s spread ou—”
As we passed an open door, three darklings spilled out of it, crashing into Damien and me. I hit the floor, the darkling pinning me with its icy claws. I grimaced as its terrible smile widened from ear to ear as it tried to bite me.
“Shit!” Barrett barked from behind me, and Vincent and Zephyr joined him as they leapt in, knocking back the few darklings that followed through the open doorway.
I kicked one of the creatures off me, pushing to my feet. It rose, its attention drawn from me to Damien. I plunged my dagger into its back and through to its chest, and the creature shrieked before collapsing into dust.
