He sidestepped the bookshelves, then disappeared behind one of them, and she quickly scrambled to follow him…only to have hands grab her from behind and hold her back.
“Not you.” Xander pulled her farther away from the passageway. “The last thing we want to do is risk you being recaptured.”
“You need me,” she protested, but he was already shaking his head.
“We need you to be safe more.” He cleared his throat, his hands stroking gently up and down her arms. “We can’t lose you again. We won’t survive it.”
She opened her mouth, then closed it, knowing nothing she could say would change his mind. “Fine, but don’t kid yourself that I’m happy about it.” She crossed her arms to keep from snuggling up against him to ease the slight panic still lingering in his eyes.
“I’ll stay with you.” Logan nudged her away from Xander when it looked like he was unable to let her go. “Go, I’ve got her.”
Xander sighed and rubbed the back of his neck before he nodded and followed the others down the secret passageway.
Eddie came back into the room, clearly torn, and she waved him off. “Go. If you find my uncle, you’re the only one capable of killing him.”
He gave her a brisk nod, his eyes lingering for a second longer, clearly torn, then he vanished with the rest. They were gone no more than a heartbeat when a buzzer sounded, and the secret door swung shut. She whirled, expecting a trap…only to find them alone.
“Let’s get out of here.” Logan grabbed her arm and began to haul her out of the room, only for another buzzer to sound and the main door slammed shut with a resounding clank. “Shit!”
Logan shoved her behind him and spun to search the room.
Yet they were still alone.
It didn’t take Annora more than two seconds to understand what was happening. “What do you want?”
“You know what I want, Annora.” Her uncle’s voice came from the speakerphone on the desk. “Give yourself over to me, and I’ll leave your furry pets alone.”
Logan tightened his grip on her, preventing her from speaking, as if terrified of what she might say.
He knew her well—she would agree to anything to keep them safe.
A heavy sigh came over the speaker. “Very well, but remember what happens next is your fault.”
There was a hiss of pressure being released, then a white cloud began to billow out from underneath the desk. The familiar scent of chemicals stung her nose, burning the back of her throat. Panic clawed through her guts, and she shoved Logan away from the smoke, pushing him lower to the ground.
She was still too weak to ghost them both, and she refused to go without him.
“The drug is going to knock you on your ass. It’s a paralytic. You’ll be able to see and hear and feel everything, but you won’t be able to move.” She knelt next to him, cupping his face until they were only inches apart. “Don’t panic, don’t fight it. It will only make the effects worse.”
Logan reached up and grabbed her wrists, pulling her hands away. “You have to ghost. You have to get away.”
Annora shook her head, her throat tightening at the thought of leaving him. If her uncle got ahold of him, she’d never see him again. The guy she was starting to have feelings for would no longer exist…no one came out of hell the same. Her uncle had a way of taking a person apart, not just in body, but soul as well.
A tickle caught the back of her throat, sending her into a coughing fit.
“Baby, you have to do this for me.” Logan shoved his face close, brushing his cheek against hers and whispered in her ear. “I can survive anything if I know you’re safe.”
He lifted his head and gripped the back of her neck, refusing to let her duck away. She had trouble catching her breath, and it had nothing to do with the drug.
She couldn’t leave him.
He was her family now.
“Don’t ask that of me.”
But he shook his head, a racking cough catching him off guard. His face was chalky, sweat leaving his skin clammy. He crawled toward the wall with the secret panel, pulling her along with him. When she tried to jerk away, he grabbed her jaw hard enough to leave bruises. Pure desperation darkened his eyes. “If you stay, they will take you and kill me.”
She frantically tried to reach the guys, but the drugs made the connection echo loudly in her head. Though she could feel them, no matter how she strained, she couldn’t breach the barrier to communicate with them. Panic grabbed her by the throat, threatening to squeeze the breath from her.
“Camden! Mason! Xander!” She screamed, her voice hoarse and frantic, but the sound rose barely above a whisper. She called them again and again until her throat was raw, knowing she was inhaling more and more of the drug with each breath. When she could barely see a foot in front of her, she even called for Eddie.
But received no response.
“Stop. The room must be soundproof.” He began wheezing, his body swaying as he struggled not to collapse. “Annora…”
Tears burned her eyes, knowing what he was going to say…and he was right.
Alive was better than dead.
She reached for the darkness, determined to take him with her, but it only scattered at her touch. No matter how hard she tried to force the dark particles around him, it dissipated in the white smog. She knew from experience that the chemicals weakened her ghosting abilities. That, on top of her injuries…she was screwed.
She was not strong enough to take them both.
And he knew it.
“It’s okay, baby.” He dropped down to the floor, a gentle smile on his face. It took two tries for him to reach out, his fingers lightly brushing her face. “Go. I’ll be fine. Stay strong for me.” His voice began to slur. “I’ll stay alive long enough for you to rescue me.”
He smiled even as his eyes slid shut, and her heart shattered.
She could barely make out his features as the drugged smoke filled the space between them. She pulled herself upright and crawled toward the wall, knowing from experience that she would only be able to ghost for a few seconds.
She would only have one chance.
Chemicals burned her lungs. Despite having a high tolerance for the drug, she could feel it pulling at her…weakening her. She felt woozy, the room tilting and spinning with her every move. She didn’t have long before she succumbed.
With only a second’s hesitation, she pushed her hand against the wall and called for the darkness. The particles were slow to envelop her. She could feel her body dissolve, felt herself fall through the wall, the tug of metal pulling against her bones.
Then she hit the floor face-first with a heavy thump and surrendered to unconsciousness.
Chapter Twenty-six
Annora woke with a gasp, her heart thumping so hard her ribs ached. She bolted upright, cupping her sore throat, trying to recall the dream that left her screaming.
But this felt different.
She struggled to control her breathing as she studied the familiar surroundings of her attic room, trying to pinpoint what set off her panic. She lifted her hand to her face, surprised when her fingers came away wet with tears.
It had to be a nightmare, but the gaping hole in her chest said it was more and dread churned in her gut. She blinked back a sudden rush of tears, the crushing pressure making her want to curl up in a ball of despair. Strong arms slid around her waist from behind, pulling her back into bed, and she leaned against Mason, recognizing his hold.
“What happened?”
He tightened his grip, cradling her close, and he brushed his cheek over the top of her head. “What do you remember?”
She licked her dry lips, her mind shying away when she tried to focus on her missing memories. She clung to his chest and shook her head. “I can’t.”
He slipped his fingers in her hair until she couldn’t move. “We’ll find him. I promise you we’ll find him.”
Logan!
Memories exploded across her brain
, the pain so consuming she couldn’t catch her breath. “Oh, fuck me. I left him.” She recoiled from Mason’s shattered expression, but he refused to release her, and a sob caught in her chest. Her whole body began to tremble. “How could I have left him?”
Then Xander knelt on the bed next to them, yanking her upright and shook her so hard her teeth clicked together. “You did what he asked. You did the exact right thing.”
The pain where his fingers bit into her arms grounded her.
“We’ll get him back,” Xander vowed, fierce determination hardening his face.
“Promise?” She hated the way her voice broke.
He nodded, leaning forward to kiss her forehead. “You have my word.”
Without giving her a chance to recover, he dragged her off the bed. Only then did she notice Camden and Eddie were waiting for her by the stairs.
Camden spoke first. “Are you ready to hunt down your uncle and finally put him into the ground where he belongs?”
She swiped the tears off her cheeks, and stood straighter, feeling the darkness within her burst forth, pressing against her skin so hard she could barely contain the fury. “Fuck, yeah.”
Eddie strode forward, bowing his head deferentially, but there was nothing subservient in his eyes. “The first thing we need to do is train you. Once you tap into the full extent of your powers, other phantoms will show up for you. You’re going to have to be strong enough to resist them if you want to have any chance to save your kitsune and keep us alive.”
He knew her inside out, probably knew her better than she knew herself, and he was giving her the one thing she needed most right now—a way to rescue Logan.
“I’m ready.” Annora didn’t even hesitate. “I’ll do anything.”
She’d spent her whole life yearning for a family to call her own. Now she’d found them, she had no intention of letting them go.
She’d survived hell for ten years.
She was more than willing to walk through it again to save them—they were worth any price she had to pay.
The End
Acknowledgments
To my readers—
Thank you for all your support! Without you, I wouldn’t be able to do what I love.
Tethered to the World: A Phantom Touched Novel Page 29