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I drop my phone and try to push back my panic. Oliver needs me. Enzo said to keep pressure on his wound. I can do that. I quickly pull Oliver’s scarf up so that it’s shielding Oliver’s face from the frozen ground, and then I search for the wound I know is on Oliver’s back. It’s hard to find because Oliver’s coat is thick and dark, but I don’t want to take the coat off. Oliver will freeze if I do. Eventually I feel the blood seeping through the coat and find the tear the knife left. I get up on my knees and push down on the wound hard. Oliver doesn’t respond at all. He’s completely unconscious. The lack of response—not even a groan of pain—triggers my sobs all over again. I have to remind myself that help is coming. We’re alone in this parking lot, and Oliver is unconscious, but help is coming. Enzo is coming, and he’s never let me down before. The man can work miracles.
The minutes it takes for Enzo to arrive feel like an eternity. When he finally screeches into the parking lot, my arms are sore from pressing so hard on Oliver’s wounds, my entire body is shaking, I’m covered in blood, tears are freezing to my chapped face, and I think I might be in shock. I’m so out of it that I don’t realize Enzo came with Nick until Nick is gently shaking me by the shoulders. “Nora. Nora. What happened? Who’s the stiff?”
My eyes drift to Mitchell. His body is lying on the ground, face up, his eyes staring lifelessly at the cloud-covered sky. His face is contorted in agony. I shudder. “I killed him.”
“I can see that. What happened?”
Nick ducks his head trying to catch my gaze, but I can’t take my eyes off Mitchell. “He’s dead. He hurt Oliver, and I just…I sucked the life right out of him.”
“Nora.”
Nick shakes me again, and I look his direction, but I can’t focus. “I devoured his soul. I’m a monster.”
Nick lets go of my shoulders, and I turn my attention to Oliver. Enzo is kneeling over his body. Hopefully he’s fixing him. I don’t really know, because I can’t think straight.
“Terrance? Yeah, we have a problem. Oliver and Nora were attacked. Oliver’s down. Enzo’s working on him. It looks like Nora killed the attacker, but I can’t get any answers out of her. She’s in shock.” Pause. “Wulf’s place.” Pause. “Yeah. See you in ten.”
Nick scoops me into his arms and places me in the front seat of Oliver’s SUV. “Sit tight,” he says as he straps the buckle across my lap. “We’ll get you to your men soon.”
He shuts the door, and I’m left alone in the car with my thoughts. That’s not a good place to be right now. I keep seeing Mitchell’s face as I yank his soul from his chest. I consumed it. I can feel the energy of it inside of me. The life humming in my veins. It’s invigorating, and yet it repulses me at the same time.
The back of the car opens, and Nick lies Oliver across the seat. Enzo climbs in behind him and rests Oliver’s head in his lap. Oliver is still unconscious, and Enzo looks pale as a ghost. He places his hands on Oliver and closes his eyes. When he continues his healing, he starts breathing heavy, and sweat breaks out on his forehead. Something’s wrong. I’ve never seen Enzo look so worn out, and I’ve watched him heal injuries a lot more complicated than a single stab wound.
Nick slides in behind the wheel and takes off.
“What’s wrong with him? Shouldn’t he be awake by now?”
Nick cuts me a sideways glance. “You back with me now, little temptress?”
I ignore the question. “What’s wrong? Why isn’t he healing?”
Enzo answers in a strained voice. “The blade was spelled. It’s like magical poison. It’s making healing the wound difficult.”
My stomach drops. “Poison? Magical poison? Will he be okay?”
Enzo grunts and pants before taking a deep breath and answering my question. “It’s more difficult, but I can heal the physical wound. I can’t do anything about the magic, though. Oliver will have to fight that off himself.”
I swear I have a heart attack. Anactualheart attack. My heart stops for a few beats before starting up again. Anxiety hits me all over again, and I can’t breathe. Nick reaches over the center console and grips my hand. “He’s the strongest sorcerer in the entire Midwest. Maybe even in the whole U.S. Whoever spelled that blade couldn’t be anywhere near as strong as him. He’ll fight it off, Nora.”
“It will be easier for him once his wound is healed, too,” Enzo assures me.
I take a deep breath and try to believe them. Oliver is strong. I saw how easily he beat Mitchell. He could have done it in his sleep. Oliver will fight off the magic, and he’ll be fine. Hewill.
We pull up to the den, and my entire clan is waiting for us. Terrance steps in to help Nick with Oliver, Charlie helps Enzo, who looks so exhausted he can hardly stand on his own two feet, and Rook opens my door. He takes one look at me and doesn’t ask, just unbuckles my seat belt and scoops me into his arms. “Come on, baby, let’s get you taken care of.”
“Oliver…”
“The guys have him,” Rook assures me. “They’ll take good care of him. We need to focus on you—get you cleaned up and feeling a little better.”
He carries me downstairs and heads straight for the en suite in my room. He sets me down, turns on the shower, then starts to take my clothes off. My coat and scarf are destroyed. If I were feeling even a little bit better, I’d be pissed that I’ve ruined my favorite coat again, but I can’t bring myself to care right now. Rook strips my shirt off next and peels my skinny jeans down my legs. “Step out of them for me, baby.”
I do as he says without questioning him. I’m left in only my bra and panties, but I can’t seem to care about that, either. Rook gently guides me into the shower, and all I can think about is the water running red at my feet. That’s Oliver’s blood.
I startle when Rook steps into the shower behind me. He’s stripped down to his boxers. Later I’ll probably regret that I’m too out of it to appreciate his rock hard beautiful body, but right now I can’t take my eyes off that damn red water.
“Chin up. Let’s get the blood out of your hair,” Rook murmurs, tilting my head up so that the hot water hits my forehead and cascades down the back of my head.
He squirts some shampoo into his hands and then digs his fingers into my hair, massaging my scalp. The feeling of being taken care of is so soothing I finally relax and start to come back to myself.
