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He kissed her, his lips dominating hers as he poured his love and conviction down her throat. Their shadows intertwined, allowing him to feel her sorrow for allowing Stern’s attack. A man who had survived fighting for his country, only to die in a public park.
She pulled away when her shadow reached for his, her lust as real and insatiable as his own. She wasn’t pulling away from him. She reached for the icy darkness as a punishment. One bestowed on those who betrayed their own.
“What type of lights are in the box? Are they special in some way?” she asked.
Raine allowed her retreat. “No, just high-level white LED lights, but the absence of darkness means no way of escape. We construct the cell with titanium, so the human part of him can’t break free. The demon becomes weaker the longer it goes without darkness. In theory, you could kill a reaper this way, but it would take years and be extremely painful. No shadow will condone such an action.” He didn’t add that starvation wouldn’t take as long but would be just as torturous.
Gavil rolled onto his back, coughing up black blood. His eyes remained closed as his chest wheezed. Each breath he took struggled more than the one before.
Dannika put her hands on the box. “What’s happening to him? He can’t die. I need answers.”
Raine peered through the slats. “I’m not sure. I’ve never seen a reaper do that.”
Dannika yanked open the door to the cage and rushed toward the wheezing reaper.
Gavil’s eyes snapped open as he grabbed her. He bit Dannika’s hand and darted for the door.
Raine punched Gavil in the face. His jaw cracked before he screamed and fell to the floor, curling into the fetal position.
Raine grabbed Dannika’s hand and pulled her from the cell before locking it. “Let me see your hand.”
Dannika held it up, but the wound was already healing. “It’s fine.”
Raine moved her hand back and forth, looking at the wound from both angles. “It isn’t infected. There are no black veins. I’m not sure if it’s because you are immune or if it’s because he’s so weak.”
She glanced up at Gavil. “You’re right. He lacked the strength of a shadow shifter, and I think you broke his jaw.”
“Gavil can’t shift yet and has the strength of a human.” He ran his finger over her perfect skin. Not even a red streak remained.
Colton entered the cave. “Well, that was unusual.”
Dannika huffed. “Story of my life.”
Colton motioned toward the reaper. “Don’t let him trick you. They are inventive when trying to escape. Gavil has mimicking skills. He can reproduce any sound.”
Dannika pulled her hand from Raine’s. “How is Stern? Why was he in the park?”
Colton rubbed his chin. “He was just discharged from the military. He’s resting, but it’s too soon to determine how he will fare during transition.”
Dannika’s face hardened. “He’s in excellent physical shape. Surely that helps.”
Colton and Raine shared a glance before Raine touched her back. “Honey, that isn’t the only factor for a successful transition.”
Her eyes welled, her desperation as apparent as her pain. “He has to make it. I can’t be responsible for another death.”
“You understand the success rate is low,” he whispered.
Dannika walked away with her arms crossed. “But this was my idea. It’s my fault. I’m the reason he is sick.”
This was the bitter truth of being a shadow shifter. It would be a hard lesson, one of many to come.
He hated what he had to do; he had to make her face an irrevocable fact. “He’s dying, Dannika. Stern’s life is about to end.”
CHAPTER27
Dannika turned away from the sounds of Gavil’s pleading. The walls of the cave wavered as she reached for her shadow. There was nowhere to run. This fiasco was all on her.
“I need a minute.” She exited the cave with Raine trailing behind her.
