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Which was when Thane realized that Dahlia, Nikki, and Roarke were also there, looking like they'd all run to his aid, but hadn't quite made it in time. Cain, however, planted himself between Thane and all the eidolon staring at him in shock.
"This is our hunter.Ourinquisitor. He is my friend, Dahlia's husband, and a member of this community. If you have a problem with him?" Cain pointed off into the distance, away from the apartment complex. "Then go. No one is making you stay. No one is demanding that you accept him. No one is forcing you to be here, so leave. Get far, far away - but if you touch our hunter, one of us will put a stake in you."
"Fuck that shit," Laci grumbled, turning around to storm away.
"If you want a war," Cain told the rest, "then pick your side. Either you will fight the Inquisition with us, or you will fight against us, letting the Church keep killing us. Just know that we..." And he gestured to where Dahlia, Nikki, and Roarke stood. "...Will fight with Thane. He just proved that he can hold his own too. The only law we have left is survival of the fittest, and we are the fittest of the eidolon. So think hard before you come at us again."
"I stand with Thane," Joshua said from behind them.
"Me too," Surya added, speaking up from the middle of the crowd.
Standing in the breezeway, Hudson and Zion just stepped back, doing their best to disappear quietly. Thane didn't say anything, but he saw them. He also decided that he wouldn't turn his back on them again.
ChapterThirty-Nine
DAHLIA
When the ghost lunged at Thane, Dahlia felt her heart stop. She wanted to rush in, and tried, but Nikki grabbed her arm. Vivian dissipated, slamming into Thane when he couldn't see her, and still Nikki refused to let go. All Dahlia could think was that she needed to protect him. She had to kill Vivian before anything happened to Thane. She needed to be there, not here!
"He's got this," Nikki said, keeping a tight grip on Dahlia's arm. "That fear you feel? That's not for him. You can't say he's strong and then worry that he can't take care of himself, Dahlia. You have to trust him."
"I do!" she insisted, leaning that way.
Nikki gave in and let her walk, but she refused to let go. Before them, Thane ducked, dodged, and hit the wall again. Dahlia couldn't tear her eyes away even as Roarke fell in on her other side.
"So he's going to kick the shit out of that little cunt, huh?" he asked.
"What if she - "
"No," Nikki said. "Stop." And she tugged Dahlia around to face her. "That man is a hunter. You've said he could defeat you. Vivian doesn't stand a chance, and he needs to do this without you babysitting him."
"Don't emasculate him," Roarke agreed. "Stop thinking he's going to die, Dahlia. Nikki's right. You can't call him a partner and then treat him like he's helpless."
"Like a child," Nikki added. "He's not Mei." But she caught Roarke's eye and tilted her head towards the fight that was still going.
"He's not Mei," Dahlia admitted, finding it easier to say without Roarke listening. "He's..."
"It's ok to like him," Nikki promised. "No one is judging you."
Dahlia turned to look at Thane again, and this time she realized how easily he had this. Sure, Vivian was slamming into him, but he wasn't really trying to fight back. His arm was tensed, ready to do what he had to, and the man's bicep was thick when it was flexed like that. Thane was strong. He was a hunter. He was made for this, and damned good at it.
And that was all she'd ever wanted.
When Vivian came at him again and Thane buried the stake in the ghost's body, it wasn't just the wave of energy that rocked her off her feet. It was something bigger, something deeper. Something she'd been trying so hard to ignore, but it kept hitting her in the face and she was done fighting it.
"I'm falling for him," she breathed.
Nikki just rubbed her back. "Good, because I'm pretty sure he's doing the same. Now just stop fighting it."
"I'm not ready for this," Dahlia admitted.
Nikki tugged her forward, aiming for where Roarke stood. "He doesn't need to know yet, valkyrie. You do, but he doesn't. He's also not going away."
Then Laci screamed, but Cain was there. Taking control, he made it clear exactly where he stood with Thane, going so far as to claim him as their own. The father of the eidolon ranted, daring any of the younger ones to challenge him, and none of them were dumb enough to try.
Then Joshua looked up from where he was holding the powerless priest. "I stand with Thane," he called out.
"Me too," Surya said, her voice coming from somewhere in the crowd.
