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She rushed to him, wrapping her arms around him. If this was the end and this entire mountain collapsed, then at least she would be in the arms of the man she loved. They both went to their knees.
“Hey,” she said.
Colton’s eyes met hers. One was red and the other was black. “I don’t have much time. I need you to do something for me.”
“Anything,” she whispered.
He grabbed the discarded reaper blade from the ground and put it in her hand, before resting the tip against his heart. “I can’t stop it. And I won’t become a tool for the demons to use against humanity. Let me leave this world as I am. The man you love. Your mate.”
Her jaw sagged as her heart crunched in her chest. “No!”
“Honey, I love you and am thankful for every second we had together, but this is bigger than me. Thank you. Choose another. Have a life. Fight.” His breath came in short gasps as he spoke.
Riley shook her head. “I was able to burn his blood from my body. You can too.”
Colton frowned. “How?”
Riley cut her hand, coating the reaper blade. She looked him in the eyes, allowing the guilt to shine through. “I’m sorry,” she said before she stabbed him in the chest.
He yelled as black oil bubbled from the wound. He fell back arching on his back as black blood seeped from every cut and abrasion. She pulled out the blade, but that wound healed immediately.
His eyes went black as smoke whispered off his body. His limbs shifted to the shadows, becoming dark and opaque as his torso remained solid.
Steele knelt beside her. “What’s happening?”
“I don’t know. I stabbed him with my blood on the blade. Since I was able to purge Deruthel’s venom from my veins, I hoped it would do the same for him. Is it working?”
Steele inspected Colton’s shifting form. “It’s almost like he’s going through the transformation again.”
“Is that bad?”
“I have no idea.”
As if to answer the question, Colton’s body solidified and went still. His chest rose and fell as Riley hovered over him anxiously. His eyes fluttered open before he groaned.
Steele helped him sit up. “The portal?”
They glanced at the dimming orange light. “It’s closed, but Deruthel managed to get the first-generation demons over first,” Riley said.
Steele frowned. “You will have to share what you learned while in captivity with the demon general. But we need to cull the reaper traitors first.”
Colton stood as Irdane scrambled from the pack. His eyes were wide as Colton’s alpha emerged, growling its displeasure.
Steele put a restraining arm in front of Riley. “Don’t interfere.”
She nodded as Colton launched at the startled reaper. Irdane’s shadow warrior emerged, dodging the initial blow as Colton’s blade cut through the air.
Black smoke rolled in waves off Colton’s massive form. The smaller reaper had little room to maneuver as the alpha cougar continued to beat the reaper back with slashes and hard blows.
Riley covered her ears when Colton’s blade punctured Irdane’s heart and the reaper screeched for the last time, then slid from Colton’s blade and dropped to the floor.
She lifted her head to meet her mate’s gaze. The anger dissipated from his eyes to be replaced with love. Pride. His warrior receded as he approached her.
Steele pointed to the reapers as they dissolved, entering the pathway. “Ferguson is chasing the reapers, and the shadow clans are pursuing the demons. They are on foot, and we aren’t sure where these tunnels lead, so we hope to catch them before they reach a pathway.”
Riley swayed on her feet before Colton scooped her into his arms. “We are going home.”
Steele touched his arm. “We need a report from Riley about everything she learned here.”
