Hell and Back: The Protector Guild Book 4

by Holborn, Gray

  I bit back a grin as Wade took a step back from her. I had to agree with Izzy. Even half-starved, this version of Wade was just so much...more. It was like he was being shadowed in his old life. Now, he radiated power and strength. His chest was perfectly sculpted, not that I’d really had the opportunity to study it in detail before, and his skin was flawless, like he’d been airbrushed to model-like perfection.

  But his eyes were the biggest shift. They were just as intelligent as they always were, just as filled with vulnerability and curiosity. But now they had a way of drawing me in and not letting me go. I didn’t think I’d ever get tired of staring at them, trying to unravel the thoughts and emotions below the surface.

  “Er, thanks,” he answered, clearing his throat awkwardly as he glanced between us. “I guess.”

  “So, where exactly are you freeing him from?” she walked back over towards me, plopping down on the bed again so that she could admire him from afar. She had that lazy focus she always got when she was ready to dive into a good book or movie.

  “Hell,” I said, hoping we could just glaze past this part of the conversation as quickly as possible.

  Her head snapped to me so quickly I was half-afraid she’d broken her spine. Then she broke out in a slow, amused laugh, the lilting sound carrying around the room. Weird how many things the dream world got right. Apparently my imagination was better than I gave it credit for. “I’m serious, where’s he being kept?”

  When my jaw remained closed, nose scrunching as I cringed, her humor dried up until a look of pure horror and anger eclipsed her face.

  “You’re shitting me? What the hell are you thinking, Max Bentley?’ She stood up and started pacing before adding a quick “no pun intended,” and then chuckling like she couldn’t help herself.

  “I’m thinking that that’s where he is now. The night he was killed—er, killed-ish anyway—a man basically teleported away with him.”

  “You never told me that before,” she said, her brows scrunching together as her gray eyes filled with hurt.

  I shrugged. “I didn’t remember it happening. Or, if I did, I think the trauma and exhaustion of the moment just blocked it out somehow. If I had seen it happen, I would’ve thought my eyes were playing games. But Atlas and the rest of Six saw it happen. They confirmed. Straight up teleported away.”

  “Jesus,” she leaned against the wall like she needed to be propped up. “And how exactly are you going to get to hell? Protectors have been trying to find a way for years. Probably centuries. Basically for all of time,” she said, shaking her head back and forth like I was ridiculous for thinking we stood even the slightest chance. “And now, not only do you decide to run away and go to hell, but you’re doing it without me? What the fuck?”

  Ah okay then. Not ridiculous for thinking I could find my way to hell, but for going without her. That was actually pretty on brand for Izzy.

  “We made a deal with a vampire, after busting him from the lab,” I said, unclear if she’d heard that part of our break out story or not. I wasn’t sure how much would be common knowledge for most of the students. Guild members seemed to be pretty tight-lipped—more so than any of us ever realized. “And he’s going to lead us there.” I paused for a long moment, hesitant to ask what was really on my mind, until the curiosity threatened to swallow me whole. “Um, speaking of which. How’re Ro and Cy? They don’t want to kill me do they? What’s everyone on campus saying about this whole unsanctioned mission?”

  Even though I promised Darius I wouldn’t go straight back to campus after we rescued Wade, the thought of being banned altogether had my body thrumming with anxiety. I’d just found a home and a best friend, and it was where Ro and Cy were. It would eat me alive if I would never be welcomed back. Where the hell would I go?

  Don’t get me wrong. It’d be worth it, if it meant we saved Wade from rotting away in a hell dungeon. But it would still suck.

  A sly grin crept through her disbelief as she shook her head. “They’re not saying much. Mostly because Alleva and the rest of them are pretending it’s not happening. At least publicly anyway. As far as everyone on campus knows, Six took you on a sanctioned mission and will be back soon. Reza, meanwhile, has moved back in with her former team. She and her mom are selling it as a final chance to explore her options before her official bonding ceremony, which they’re hoping will happen in a few weeks. But you should see her—she’s storming around campus, nostrils flared at all times like someone kicked her puppy. I think she’s under the impression Six straight up ditched her ass. Er,” she glanced at Wade, wincing slightly, “your father is flying into town though. Heard he’s expected to be here by the end of tomorrow. So I am guessing Alleva told him what happened—what the guys and Atlas did. And well, you know better than anyone that he’s probably not taking the news well.”

  My eyes widened with surprise. Wade’s father hadn’t even come to town after his death. It was strange at the time, but to think he cared more about one son ditching The Guild for an off-book mission than the other’s death was almost unfathomable.

  “Shit,” Wade muttered, his hands sweeping through his hair as he turned away from us both, trying to compose his emotions. I didn’t know too much about the boys’ father, but I knew that he wouldn’t handle having an incubus and a werewolf for heirs lightly. He seemed like the art of guy that clung to Guild beliefs and traditions with an iron-clad grip. “Atlas is going to be in a world of trouble. You can’t say anything to him. Not until my brother decides how he wants to handle this whole thing.” He looked up at Izzy, his blue eyes wide and striking against his brown skin. “Please. I know he’s not an easy person to lie to.”

  I noticed he didn’t include himself in the decision-making process, and I had a feeling it was because he was convinced that despite our efforts, he’d remain a prisoner—or worse. While I couldn’t control his confidence in us fixing everything, I could control whether or not we did everything within our power to try.

  She rolled her eyes. “I’m not dense, Wade. Even if I didn’t have any information, I’d stay far away from Tarren. He’s terrifying as fuck. I’ve only seen him in person a few times, but the rumors surrounding that man are enough to keep me on edge. And I’d never sell my girl out like that.”

  He nodded, his muscles still tense, but his breathing more relaxed.

  “And Ro?” I asked, almost dreading the response. If Izzy was mad I didn’t bring her with us, Ro would be irreconcilable. “What’s he been told about everything?”

  “Well,” she started slowly as she swiped a thin hand through her hair, combing through the waves that were mussed with sleep, “Ro is the reason that I even know some of the details in the first place. Cyrus is keeping him in the loop. At least partially anyway. He went a little batty when he came home and you were gone. So thanks to him and his surprisingly terrifying temper, we know that you ran away. And I mean, obviously the note you left for Ro helped explain that some. Although you were annoyingly vague. Now I understand why, I guess. And we also know that you broke the hot vamp out of the lab again. Which, by the way, Ro and Cy are both fuming about.” She wiggled her eyebrows at me when she mentioned Darius.

  “You’re not fuming?” I asked, while Wade watched the exchange in silence, studying Izzy with a bemused expression on his face.

  She shrugged and then winked at me. “Figure if he’s hot enough, I guess I get it. Plus, while trusting a vampire sounds like a terrible idea, and dangerous as hell, I trust your judgment. He didn’t kill you last time you broke him out, so I’m just going to hope that trend continues. And if it doesn’t, I’ll hunt the fanghole down myself.” She tilted her head, studying Wade again. “Plus, I mean, you’re going to go rescue an incubus. And Wade’s never seemed particularly evil to me. Moody and difficult to read sometimes, but never evil. Maybe your pretty vamp isn’t either. Who knows? Nothing makes sense anymore, everything’s changing.” Her eyes narrowed as she got lost in her thoughts. “It’s strange, isn�
�t it? Can you feel that things are changing too? Like we’re on the cusp of something brilliant, or the cliff of something dangerous? Weird how both things feel the same.”

  As far as The Guild went, Izzy’s words were basically blasphemy. Cyrus kept me out of trouble when I let Darius out the first time. It paid to be the adopted ward of one of the most badass protectors in our modern history. But would he protect Izzy if she started questioning Guild philosophy out in the open like that? Izzy never talked about her family—hell, she hardly even mentioned her brother even though he was in our cohort—but I had a feeling that if they held sway over Guild leadership, they might not exercise it for her.

  “Just don’t go spreading that opinion around. At least for now anyway,” I said, suddenly worried about her getting in trouble without me there to back her up. I could handle it if I got myself in trouble, but not if I was responsible for Izzy fucking up her life and prospects. Our world was dangerous enough without garnering enemies from our own people.

  “I see how it is,” she said, narrowing her eyes at me, “you’re the only one who gets to have any of the fun. I’ll remember that, Bentley.”

  I burst into laughter, shaking my head at her, while Wade stared at her, eyebrows raised, like she was a swamp creature from outer space that he had no hope of ever figuring out. I didn’t blame him, she was something special, that’s for sure. “Anyway, do me a favor and let Ro and Cy know that I’m okay. The fewer the details everyone knows, the better it’ll be. Don’t want you to get into too much trouble for harboring a fugitive in your dreams—even if you have no choice in the matter. We’ll be back soon.” I paused, wondering if it was the truth. The last thing I wanted to do was lie to her—I’d been keeping enough secrets. Adding in another would push me fit to bust. “Hopefully.”

  Wade walked over and sat next to me on the bed with a heavy clunk, like he couldn’t support all of his weight anymore. His face was drawn slightly, and I could tell that he was growing tired. I saw the same exhaustion on his features that I’d been feeling for months. His eyes deepened a shade further, until the light blue color was almost completely eclipsed. The second his hand touched mine, a deep desire to run my tongue through the seam of his lips overpowered me. I leaned into him, my side pressing against his as much as possible, like I couldn’t bear for there to be any distance between us. Izzy was suddenly long forgotten.

  She shook her head, eyes growing wide. “Oh, I don’t think so. You’re not getting out of this that quickly. You mentioned that you were traveling to hell. That means you’re not currently there at this exact moment.”

  “So?” I asked, staring at Wade while the rest of the world shimmied and melted away around us. I could feel him losing his grip on the dream, which made it difficult for me to focus on the conversation.

  “So you have time to tell me where the hell you all are now so that I can come join you. You think I’d miss out on a chance to go on a rescue mission in he—”

  Just as soon as Izzy’s room vanished from view, the dark dungeon filled its place.

  We both landed hard on Wade’s concrete slab of a bed, winded and exhausted.

  A glance at Wade’s eyes, now practically glowing, told me everything that I needed to know: he was starving.

  “Are you okay?” I asked, reaching a hand up his arm, his shoulder, and landing softly on his cheek. “Did that take too much out of you? I’m sorry, we’ll find a way to make it easier next time.”

  He stood up, trying to catch his bearings, only to fall back against the wall, like his legs were made of jelly and he couldn’t support himself without assistance.

  “Wade?” I reached a hand out to grab his arm, to support him somehow, but as soon as my skin met his, it was like a wave of need devoured me.

  His eyes latched onto mine, both of us unable to resist the pull as our faces inched closer and closer together, until I closed the distance completely with one long breath and pushed my lips against his.

  Our lips met in an angry war, like they couldn’t quite accept that they were already together, desperate instead to get closer somehow. Wade gasped and I slipped my tongue between my lips to meet his.

  An intoxicating heat spread throughout my body, my knees buckling as our tongues collided again and again, rolling together in the most delicious way imaginable.

  He pulled me against him and spun us around until I was pressed back into the wall, his hands there to cushion my head against the stone.

  I bit his lip and draped my hand down his bare, incredibly smooth chest, until I reached the elastic band of his sweatpants. He let out a heavy gasp as I slipped my fingers below the fabric and grabbed him in my palm. Somehow, he felt hard as stone but smooth and silky at the same time.

  Just as eager to explore my body, he slid his hands under my top until one grazed the back of my bra, just as the other teased the lace of my underwear. Every touch of his skin against mine, every soft indent his fingers created had me flooding. Part of my brain knew that we should stop, that we should slow down, but as soon as the thought filtered through my brain, I pushed it away—as far away as I could shove it. This couldn’t be wrong. Everything about this, about being pressed against him, wanting him as much as he wanted me, felt right. Like this was destined to happen again and again—and we were powerless to fight it.

  For a second, he pressed his weight into me with a low, sensuous groan that I felt deep in the pit of my stomach, until I was throbbing with need. But then, instantly, the mood shifted. Suddenly I could feel him changing his mind, could feel the exact moment he decided to stop, even before he acted on it.

  With a flash he pushed off the wall and fell back against the bed, creating a few feet of space between us that felt like miles. I felt completely bare even though I was still fully clothed. Chills ran up and down my body as a hollowness filled my belly. I was dizzy with the feel of him, with the taste of him still on my lips—he was somehow sweet and spicy at once.

  “I’m so sorry. We shouldn’t have—I shouldn’t have. A-are you okay?” he asked, his indigo eyes wide and alert as they studied every inch of me. They were glowing and I knew that he’d been pulling from me, but I didn’t care. I felt fine. “Holy shit, Max. Your eyes.”

  “What about my eyes?”

  “Ah, I see I’m interrupting. How unfortunate. Interesting that you managed to pull a visitor here, but unfortunate for everyone concerned, all the same.”

  I spun around and could feel my heart pulse throughout every inch of my body as I came face-to-face with a shrouded figure. He was tall and lean, but his features were all muddled together, like he was perpetually in shadow. I couldn’t discern any of his features, no matter how hard I tried.

  I felt, rather than saw Wade stand up and push me behind him, like he could protect me from this creature. Even I knew that his efforts were futile. Something told me that if this man wanted either of us dead, there wasn’t a damn thing either of us could do about it. Not from here, both of us weaponless and half drained of power.

  And the creature standing in front of us was pulsing power—so much so that I felt it down to my marrow. We wouldn’t stand a chance.

  “Who are you?” Wade asked, his voice still husky and breathy, though now with a different sort of adrenaline and heat. “You need to let her go. Let her leave. It’s me you want.”

  I rolled my eyes, squaring my shoulders. I wasn’t part demon like Wade, but I also wasn’t a damsel in distress either.

  “Where the hell is this place and what do you want with my friend?” I asked, narrowing my eyes where I thought the man’s face might be, even if I couldn’t quite make them out. “And what the hell are you?”

  “Sorry girl, now is not the time for false bravado.” He let out a low, haunting chuckle before raising his hands and shoving me with a magic that felt light as air but more powerful than anything I’d ever felt before.

  I flew away from Wade, beyond his bed, and into—no, through—his wall. The sound of Wade’s scr
eams rang through my ears as he tried desperately to reach me, his body colliding solidly into the wall that a moment before had opened to welcome me.

  And then, all I saw was black.

  4

  Max

  My eyes slid open, like the shutter of a camera, heavy and reluctant. Soft sunlight crept through the opening between two thick, dark blue curtains. My hands slid against an impossibly soft set of sheets and blankets. I pressed my head down, letting the cloudlike feeling underneath it wash over me. Beds this comfortable shouldn’t be made. Who would ever want to wake up?

  I blinked again, trying to remember where I was or how I’d gotten here, but my memories spun in complex patterns and whirls. I couldn’t make sense of them in any sort of linear way. It was like I was living my own version of Alice in Wonderland.

  The fragments were in such a hurry to get somewhere, I just couldn’t quite understand how they were weaving together or where they were going.

  I closed my eyes and tried to focus, to think about the last thing I remembered in any concrete detail.

  I was alone in a room with Declan, both of us shrouded in a strangely intimate moment, her lips just a breath away from mine.

  I was fighting a wave of never-ending vampires as they spilled into the hotel suite, the rest of us trying desperately to survive long enough to reach our next breath.

  Flashes, all of them, a moving picture that didn’t rest in any one spot long enough to stick.

  Villette—sensuous and intelligent, was watching me, toying with me, while Darius tried to pull answers from her that might save my life.

  Cyrus—forcing me to stay home while the members of my team went on a mission without me.

  Wade—caressing my skin as he tried desperately to keep from giving into temptation.