Page 42 of Scars of Fate

The round struck several feet to my right.

I covered the little girl’s head with my arms.

Then Lucas was there.

He crossed the final twenty feet in what felt like a heartbeat and dropped behind the boulder beside us.

His silver eyes locked on mine.

One arm wrapped around my shoulders.

The other covered the little girl.

His body became a shield over both of us.

Another round slammed into the opposite side of the stone.

The impact sent a tremor through the boulder.

Dust filled the air.

Lucas’s chest rose and fell rapidly.

For several seconds, neither of us spoke.

He looked down at me, his silver eyes searching every inch of my face.

“You hit?”

I shook my head.

“No.”

“The little girl?”

“I’m okay,” she whispered.

Only then did I realize Lucas was bleeding.

Blood soaked through the sleeve of his tactical shirt.

My stomach dropped.

“Lucas…”

He glanced down as though he’d forgotten he could be hurt.

“It’s nothing.”

“It is not nothing!”

“It’s a graze.”

I reached for his arm.

He gently caught my hand.

“I’m fine.”