Kit roared as he held a guard above his head, not appearing to bow beneath the weight of a full-grown man as he threw the guard into the wall. His head smacked against concrete, breaking open upon contact. Blood went everywhere.
She was going to be sick.
Everyone was dead. She didn’t see the man with the briefcase, so she assumed he had gotten out or was somewhere scattered amongst the gore.
Blood dripped from the ends of Kit’s hair. He reached for his mask and tugged it down, revealing the perfect curve of his lips, the line of his jaw, the freckles scattered across his nose. Her Soul broke into pieces.
He tipped his head back, and he stared right at her, where she knelt in the rafters.
Kit’s lips twitched. It was as though he did not know if he wanted to smile at her or bare his teeth. Blood dripped steadily from the tips of his fingers. He reached out for her with a steady hand, and she made only the faintest of sounds at the gesture. It was enough to break the mellow sense of waiting between them.
Kit’s face grew murderous. "I found you." His voice carried up to her. "I win. And you lose."
He began to run, and Rin fell back into Rhyden’s arms.
"He can’t—there’s no way up here, right? No ladder?" Rin’s voice wavered from fear.
Rhyden hurriedly lifted his rifle, but instead of folding it away, he kept it at the ready, grabbing her by the arm to yank her away from the edge of the rafters. He all but dragged her on her knees to the broken window.
The entire warehouse shook with the force of a battering ram, thumping against the concrete pillars that supported the rafters. Dust fell around their heads.
"Rhyden," Rin warned. The concrete beneath her trembled.
Rhyden brushed the remaining glass away to leave a clear exit point, uncaring that it broke his skin, his blood dotting the edges of the broken glass. "Go. Quickly."
She placed her hand on the cleared edge of the window frame, but as the structure shook, her palm slipped, slicing a long gash on the center of her hand. She gasped.
"Fuck," Rhyden cursed, long and drawn out as the iron scent of her blood filled the air. His hands tightened on her arm.
She turned her head to meet his vibrant, red eyes and felt like a predator caught between two raging wolves, fighting over their territory.
Atlas must intervene.If he did not…
The Celestial shuddered.
His Vesperin would be torn apart—by them both.
The time for Kiton and Vesperin to cross paths again was not yet, but soon. Created to be a weapon, but love would stop Kiton from killing her. The weapon would no longer be used against her, butforher. He would become her most fierce protector.
Just as Kiton had hunted Vesperin, Atlas had tracked him—leading him inevitably to her.
Atlas let his hand phase through the shadows in which he resided. He felt the technology in the area ripple, as if it sensed a force beyond comprehension.
Kiton pushed against the concrete pillars.His breathing was not labored. It was easy for him to do so. He kept staring up above, as if he wished to catch a glimpse of her once more.
Atlas’s arm came out of the shadows, then his shoulder. There he stopped, one arm fully revealed. Atlas made a fist, and Kiton paused where he stood, one leg behind him, palms braced on the concrete as he pushed. He was frozen by Atlas’s will.
Kit staredat the shadowed arm sticking out of the wall. He was immobilized, only able to turn his head.
He narrowed his eyes.
The shadow had hunted him. At first, he thought it was an ally, leading him to the one who haunted him. Now, he was not so sure. The shadow kept him from the one he wanted to crush.
Kit bared his teeth, watching as the shadow swept his hand out, pointing to the blown-open door.
He knew nothing but the single-minded need to hunt Vesperin down. The shadow had led him here. The shadow now wanted him to leave. He was the Phoenix. Made to be this. Made to be a weapon. He did not obey.
Return to the base. Return to the base.
