AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“That’s because Curtis was a good man,” Ben said, likely trying to distract Maverick as Ben took a step forward and closer to his daughter. “Something you never were, Maverick. Oh… and by the way, Maverick is such a stupid name. You’re no Maverick, you’re just a follower. You were always one of Daniel Knight’s minions just like Copeland and Snake were. The council leader had all three of you dancing to his tune.” As Ben continued to talk, he took three more steps sideways until he was blocking Maverick’s direct line of sight to Sam.
“I was never a minion,” Maverick spit out.
Ben’s taunting had gotten to the man. It seemed he was good at dishing it out but obviously not taking it. As Maverick continued to rant, Isaac copied Ben and moved over in front of Kate.
Isaac was willing to protect Kate with his life. Glancing around his shop, he realized that it just might come down to that. From the sounds of the shouting in the other buildings, it didn’t seem like anyone would be coming to their rescue. It was only the four of them, and as independent and strong as Kate was, he would do everything in his power to make sure she was safe. Regardless of their recent argument, he cared more for her than he’d ever cared for anyone.
“I bet you would make a fucking fantastic minion Ben, since you’ve been following rules all your life.”
Isaac listened with half an ear to the taunts that Maverick and Ben continued to throw back and forth. It was then that two truths struck Isaac like a battering ram. One: if he had tattooed Kate when Damon had first mentioned it, she might not have been injured last night and could possibly be protected against whatever Maverick came at them with now. Maybe Kate was right, and Isaac hadn’t trusted her. But it had nothing to do with her being a woman. She was wrong about that part.
The second truth was that Isaac had made a strategic error when he had copied Ben’s actions. Kate was now standing behind him and Isaac couldn’t see her if she stepped to the side, or if Maverick flashed behind them.
“Nice chat, Ben,” Maverick said, once more in a friendly voice like he had come for tea. “Now, I really must get on with what I came to do. But I think I’ll alter my plans slightly. At first I thought I’d just kill Curtis’s daughter, but now I think I’ll add a twist to it.”
As Maverick finished his sentence, Isaac saw the gleam in the man’s eyes and spun around toward Kate. As Isaac reached for her, a blast of magic hit her from the side, sending her flying backward.
Isaac lunged forward, using his magic to propel himself faster. He grabbed Kate’s ankle just as the wall behind her opened, revealing a black void, and sucked them both through the gaping hole.
A bitter cold slapped at Isaac while air pummeled them. It pulled at them and whipped their clothing around them, threatening to rip Kate from his hold.
Isaac fought against the wind and pushed his other hand forward, fighting against the gale forces. After what felt like minutes but was probably only seconds, his arm started to tire and he caught Kate’s other ankle in his grip.
“Kate!” he yelled as they were dragged through the blackness. He held on to her with every ounce of strength he possessed.
The wind battered him from all sides and his legs flailed behind. Isaac feared Kate was unconscious, but the tingling of his magic through his palms told him she was at least still alive.
For so long after his brother’s death, he wondered if his magic specialty was a curse. Now, he knew it for the gift it was because he could feel Kate’s living essence.
He didn’t know how long they were hurled through the black abyss. Isaac lost all sense of time, with holding onto Kate as his only focus. His fingers had long since gone numb and the only thing that kept him holding on was the feeling of Kate’s life force through his palms.
Without warning, the current around him slowed down, and they began to drop.
He wouldn’t have thought anything could be worse than being hurled through the cold darkness with Kate ahead of him and unconscious.
But Isaac was wrong. A new fear crawled through him. They were falling fast, and he had no idea what lay below them.
The darkness surrounding them was impenetrable, not a single point of light shining through. They could have miles left to fall or only a few feet. He had to figure out how to stop Kate’s unconscious body from smacking into whatever they would hit.
As they continued to fall and the air lessened its force, Isaac knew he was running out of time.
Using all the strength he had left, he jerked Kate’s legs toward him, forcing his arms down toward his knees. When her body came alongside his, he let go of one of Kate’s legs. His fingers were stiff, but he didn’t have time to loosen them up as he flung his arm around her torso. As quick as he could, he did the same with his other hand.
Still falling toward who the fuck knew what, Isaac let a breath escape him. Finally having Kate secured against his body made him breathe just a bit easier.
Flipping them over in the air so that Kate now lay prone on top of him, he hoped it would be enough.
11
Isaac noticed the change in the wind first. It no longer whipped around them at quite the same speed. Then the air became warmer. Not warm like in a home, but not the frigid cold it had been.
Their downward trajectory slowed again as if they were floating now instead of falling. Fisting Kate’s shirt with one hand so he had a firm grip on her, he let go with his other. Pushing his free hand below him to feel something—anything—he waited, hoping it would be a solid surface.
A moment later, his fingers touched wood and then his arm folded as he hit the floor, Kate’s weight collapsing on top of him.
A loud bang echoed through the space.
Isaac flung his other arm back around Kate and protected her head with his hands as best he could.
