Not that Fabiana needed any reminders. The best she could do was stay in place and not bring attention to herself. As long as she remained still, the Zealot didn’t move.
“My mate can’t stay here.”
“Agreed. Think I can get her into that building over there with the columns? If she’s at least hidden away, we may be able to regroup.”
Raph grunted. “He’s going to follow.”
“It’s better than nothing, Raphael, until Zahara gets here.”
Adonis moved closer to her and captured her mouth with his. “Be safe. I swear to the Goddess, you won’t sit for a week if anything happens to you. Do you hear me?”
“Yes,” she whispered. She wanted to pull him back to her mouth, claim him, tell him she loved him, but this wasn’t the time or place. Fabiana wanted them to be okay, to have a chance to fix what she might have started to break.
Adonis turned away, heading back into battle. “We push them back as far as we can. Giuliana, get ready to run.”
“Got it.”
The men worked together, spreading out and attacking different Hollows instead of teaming up on them. It widened the circle until they were nearly at the Zealot.
“Go!” Adonis ordered.
Giuliana scooped up Fabiana and broke away. The Zealot roared, mouth wide open and spittle flying everywhere. They were gone, racing toward the Temple, but the Zealot was faster. Raphael, Adonis, and Pasquale all went after a different leg on the beast, fighting to bring it down. They broke off bone, but the Zealot kept coming.
“Fuck!”
Giuliana got to the stairs, and the Zealot lowered its head and rammed the columns. It was all they could do to roll out of the way, hitting each step hard as they tumbled back toward the ground. Marble crumbled and pieces peppered the ground around them. Their escape route was cut off and the Zealot was closer than he’d been before. It reared its head, screeching.
“Giuliana!”
“Fabiana!”
Hands gripped her, yanking her away, even as Adonis got hold of Giuliana. Pasquale took point, guarding his mate’s body and taking the brunt of the blast. He went into the air, impaled on one of the pinchers in the Zealot’s mouth before dropping back to the ground.
“Pasquale.” Giuliana moved to her mate’s side, her hands glowing with her healing. “Don’t leave me,” she choked out.
Pasquale coughed, blood spraying from his mouth. Fabiana couldn’t move. He had been everything for so long—her protector, her brother, her confidant. He’d been the only good thing that came from Primo.
And he’d just risked his life for his mate and her.
“Get the medical team out here!” Adonis yelled into the mic. “If he dies, they die. I want them all out here. Divert resources to this location. We need to move the Zealot so Pasquale can be worked on. I want every fucking Hollow withing a hundred feet of them dead.”
He turned to Raphael, his eyes wild. “Take her. Run into the house. The Zealot can’t beat you. Get her as far away as you can. I don’t care if you have to drive away.”
“I’m not leaving you,” Raphael argued.
“And I’m not letting her brother die. Go! Fabiana,te amo. Take care of them.”
He meant the pack. In case he died, she was supposed to take care of them.
“Adonis, not without–”
He snapped their connection closed, not allowing her to say anything.
“No!” she screamed when Raphael lifted her off the ground. “Adonis!”
The Zealot turned toward her, watching.
“Adonis, I love you!”
