AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Johnathan nodded at the wounds on Nash’s arm as they faded to bruises. “You’re not healing fast enough. You can’t heal. Those things will tear you to shreds.” He indicated his truck with a jerk of his chin. “You remember those A-1 MRAs they used to send with you in the field?”
“You have some?”
“I’ve got something better.” He put Nash’s arm over his shoulders. “C’mon.”
Nash struggled to his feet. “How many were there?”
“I don’t know, two hundred, maybe three. Hard to keep score when you leave little to go by.” Johnathan maneuvered around a pile of bodies too high to step over.
“Not what I killed, what got away?”
A few curs meandered in the field, either confused, damaged, or too tired to pick a fight. They seemed to have no interest beyond eating the remains of those in their horde.
“Not a lot, I promise.” Johnathan set Nash on the ground by the front tire. “Wait here.” He retrieved the small metal box from his truck and returned. “You really made a mess of those things out there.”
Johnathan opened the box. Inside were a series of vials and a jet-injector. The small metal device had a thumb switch and two ports on the top.
“That doesn’t look like A-1s,” Nash said.
He showed Nash a vial. “ATP2. Each one of these contains the equivalent of fifty thousand calories.”
“Jesus.”
Johnathan loaded two into the injector. “It’s going to feel like lava when it hits your bloodstream.” He pressed the nozzle to Nash’s arm. “You ready?”
Nash locked his hand on Johnathan’s wrist, squeezing hard enough to make his bones ache. What looked at Johnathan wasn’t the man.
“Ex… splain… it… to the… Anubis.” Tremors ran down Nash’s limbs. “Ex….” He bared his teeth and his canines lengthened.
“It’s going to help you and Nash heal.”
The grey in Nash’s eyes vanished under green fire.
“You’re weak. You killed a lot out there. You’re protecting Luca.”
Nash growled.
“I’m trying to help you keep protecting him. If you don’t get calories in you, you won’t be able to keep doing that.”
Nash looked at the injector with a confused expression.
Johnathan showed it to the Anubis. Because Nash was no longer in the driver’s seat on this one.
“I know Isaiah did you dirty when he put something in you. But this is going to make you better, not worse.”
It met Johnathan’s gaze, and he held it despite the fury of the Anubis in Nash’s eyes.
“I know I’m nothing compared to you. In fact, I’m beneath you. You made my ancestors, and we stole from you to get back what humans took from us when they destroyed you. But I am not your enemy. Neither is anyone else in my team. We want to protect Luca and Dr. Dante. And I can’t do that without you. I’m nowhere near strong enough.” There was no change in Nash’s expression. “I swear to you—”
Explain it to the Anubis.
“This is an injector.” Johnathan held it up. “These vials have serum—” Bones crunched in Johnathan’s arm. He gritted his teeth. “Not Rakta. It’s like the A-1 rations you ate on missions. It’s concentrated. Ten times as many calories. It will help you heal the body you’re in.”
Nash flared his nostrils. In the distance, howls echoed.
“That’s more of them,” Johnathan said. “You don’t stand a chance without this.” He had to prove that he wasn’t trying to poison Nash to the creature. “I’ll inject myself. I’ll show you it’s safe.”
Nash opened his hand.
