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But something else registered in my mind.
Left us … “Do you mean other Nightshade wolves are alive?”
“Why are you doing this? Pretending not to know anything? You think this is funny?”
“Nothing about this is funny.” If only she knew how much my chest hurt right now at seeing her, at finding out she hadn’t died last year. By the moon, my fingers itched to touch her again. “Raika, you have to believe me, I didn’t know.”
She shook her head. “You don’t need to come up with excuses, Shane. You don’t owe me anything. You made your choice. Your freedom, your happiness over your pack. Over your own sister and brother.”
I stilled. “What did you say? My sister? My brother.”
“Ah, now you care? Don’t worry, I’m taking care of them.”
“Minsi and Tyren are alive?”
“Oh my God, Shane, stop.” She pressed two fingers to her temple. “Here’s the deal: take a step back and let me go. I’ll pretend I never saw you here and you can go back to being oblivious to everything. You can continue to enjoy your freedom and not care about your pack, while I go back there and try to make everyone’s lives less miserable.” I didn’t understand. What had happened that night that our stories, our experiences, didn’t line up? “Besides, you never really cared about me. No need to start now.”
All right, that one was on me.
I let out a long sigh and ran a hand through my hair. Raika tried moving when my arm was gone, but I pressed my hand against the wall again, keeping her right in front of me. If it depended on me, she would never leave me again.
I wished I had had the guts to do that a year ago when the mating bond snapped. Or even before that, when my soul and my heart called for her. Deep down, I had known she was my mate since I first laid eyes on her when were kids on her first day in school. I remembered how beautiful she was, how fierce and energetic. I had been ensnared into her web long ago and she had no idea.
“That’s not true,” I started, ready to finally tell her everything from my perspective. “I—“
“Shit.” Raika clasped my shoulders and pulled me to her. “Duck!” she yelled.
I ducked. A whoosh swiped above my head. My instincts kicked in and I whirled, my wolf fangs showing.
Three humans stood in front of me, their eyes pitch black. No, not humans. Demons. Conri’s lackeys.
And they were here to take her.
Over my dead body.
The demons charged me. My claws extended, black fur covered my skin, and I met them head-on. One demon went flying backward, slamming into a group dancing and knocking over a table and stools. The others seemed stronger. A blow struck my face from a second demon, but my claws ripped through the flesh of his bicep, almost taking off his arm. The demon recoiled, holding his cut arm.
The group who had been dancing joined the fray, diverting the demon's attention from us. I reached for Raika behind me ...
But she was gone.
My chest constricted and I scanned the area, trying to find her in the confusion. It took me five desperate seconds, but I saw her. Across the growing fight around me, being dragged by the arms by two demons. She jerked against them, but with the cuffs on, they were too strong for her.
Rage burned inside me.
I started after her.
The three demons were back, and the fight around us became bigger and wider. The music stopped, the lights came on. Security personnel ran among the guests, breaking them apart.
Shifting half of my face, I bit down on the neck of one of the demons and ripped out his throat. His body fell at my feet. The other two didn’t even blink as they came at me, intent on killing me.
But they never touched me.
Killian and Lavinia were there, holding the demons back. They sank their fangs into the demons’ necks, killing them instantly.
A witch threw magic bombs at the crowd, trying to disperse them. Killian and Lavinia approached me and we retreated. On the way out, we found Twyla and Daleigh.
Most supernaturals in the nightclub were leaving and the chaos was almost as bad on the outside. For a moment, the parking garage was flooded with people and cars. The supernaturals spilled onto the sidewalk and Broadway Avenue, causing humans to scream and run. Cars stopped or sped away.
