His fingers wrapped around her wrists, and then he was tugging her to a sitting position, shifting her so her back was resting against the cushions.
Max stepped into view, but Loren couldn’t keep her eyelids open long enough to notice if anyone else was here.
“We need to get that out of her,” Darien was saying. Her head lolled against her chest, but a hand grabbed onto her chin, and another came down on her shoulder, holding her upright. “Open up, Loren.”
Open up, Loren.The words echoed and echoed and echoed.
“Don’t threaten me with a good time,” Loren slurred. A laugh gurgled out of her, but it was abruptly cut off by Darien forcing her mouth open and placing something round and chalky under her tongue. She grimaced and made to pull away, but Darien didn’t let go of her. She wantedhimin her mouth, wanted to taste him, not some stupid pill.
He closed her mouth but kept her chin in his grasp, forcing her to let dissolve whatever he’d put under her tongue.
As soon as the pill had melted into her mouth, and Darien let go of her chin, her heart kicked into a sprint, and she broke down into hysterics, grasping at the empty air for him. But there were three of him, and she couldn’t find him, couldn’t get to the real Darien—
“Don’t leave me,” she blurted. “You can’t leave me—”
“I’m not leaving you, Loren.” Darien’s voice was far, far away, fading with every word he spoke. His hands found hers and gripped them tightly. The squeezing in her chest eased, her heart slowing its erratic rhythm. “Do you hear me? Not now, not ever.”
“Promise?” she croaked.
“I promise.” His words calmed her, though only just. And soon darkness was ushering her away again, beckoning her into its claws.
She didn’t want to go, but she had to. She wanted to take Darien with her, wanted him at her side, always—
Fog swallowed her whole, washing her wounded thoughts away like rain down gutters.
—
Darien was just hanging up the phone when the front door to Hell’s Gate swung open, and he turned around to see Logan and Sabrine rushing in, the other Devils with them. Travis and Jack were carrying the unconscious warlock between them, his limp arms draped across their shoulders.
Logan took note of the murderous look on Darien’s face and hesitated in the entrance hall. Sabrine stilled beside him, her eyes flickering between Darien and Loren, who was passed out on the couch behind him, her head resting in Dallas’s lap. Sabrine’s mouth popped open as she made to say something, but Darien spoke before she had a chance.
“You called Calanthe?” Darien thundered to the alpha, gripping his phone so tightly the screen nearly cracked. Behind him, Loren stirred, muttering drowsily.
Logan’s hands curled into fists at his sides. His whole body began vibrating as he actively fought the urge to shift. The Devils who stood around him made for the sitting room, for standing next to a werewolf when he shifted was never a good idea.
Logan bit out, “I made a deal with her—”
“And you made a promise tome,”Darien retorted. “If you told her anything about Loren, I swear—”
“Don’t threaten me, Devil,” the wolf growled, his fiery eyes sparking. “I said nothing about Loren to the Head Leech. Forgive me for wanting to stay on Calanthe’s good side so she doesn’t change her mind about my breaking of the pact.”
“Staying on her good side is pretty much shot to hell, now that she knows I’m keeping things from her.” Calanthe wanted in on all their doings, and as soon as Logan had informed her of what went down at the Devil’s Advocate tonight, she had called Darien, fuming about not being included in their plans.
Logan snarled and took two steps forward, hair swaying. “This isn’t just about you. This is about every wolf in the Silverwood District, Darien. Innocent people could die if I don’t follow through with the bargain I made—”
“If you’re so worried about innocent lives, here’s another one you should consider,” Darien snapped, gesturing to Loren. “I don’t care what I have to do to keep this girl safe, but you’d better learn to listen to me or we’re going to have a fucking problem. If you get her killed,Iwill be the one to slaughter you and every one of the wolves in your Silverwood District so fast, you’ll wish Calanthe had been the one to do it.”
A growl ripped through Logan’s bared teeth. The other Devils moved to stand at Darien’s side, while Sabrine lunged forward and grabbed one of Logan’s trembling arms, stopping him from taking another step.
But she pulled back as soon as she touched him, drawing a hiss through her teeth. The pending shift had caused his skin to heat up, burning her immediately upon contact.
Logan’s fiery eyes cooled, the trembling from the shift ceasing. Darien saw his breathing calm as he faced Sabrine. “I’m sorry,” he said to her. His voice was rough and broken.
Darien bit his tongue to still the words still hovering at the tip of it. He turned around to face Loren, whose eyelashes were fluttering as she dreamed, and scooped her into his arms, being careful not to wake her. He concentrated on his breathing as he carried her out of the sitting room, toward the staircase in the entrance hall. The other Devils moved aside to let him through.
As he passed Logan, he slowed. “From now on, you will consult with me,” Darien said, every word measured and low. “Abouteverything. You do not go to Calanthe unless I tell you it’s okay to do so. Can you handle that?”
Logan’s nostrils were flared, his jaw tight. He glanced at Loren, limp in Darien’s arms. “I guess I have to, don’t I?” he hissed.
