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“Thank you.”
Zenix reached out through their bond.“I can sense something is wrong. What happened?”he demanded.“Are you okay?”
“Kora is pregnant and feeling sick. Can you tell Steven she isn’t feeling well and needs her scent inhaler?”
“Of course.”
“Thank you. We came up to the bathroom on the top level since it was less crowded.”
“Wait up there for me. We’re on our way.”
While she waited, Ayla decided to grab a bottle of water for Kora. She made her way toward the bar that had been set up on the top level, then gasped when a hand reached out and grabbed her arm in a bruising grip. She blinked in surprise as Nolan Dovico slammed her back against the railing. The usually quiet, gentle male looked completely disheveled. His eyes were red as if he’d been crying, or perhaps he’d had too much to drink.
“Nolan?” she asked, trying to pull her arm free. “Are you okay?”
His grip on her tightened, and he pressed his body closer to cage her in against the railing. “I’m not okay! How could I be okay? You didn’t give me any time. It wasn’t supposed to happen like this.”
“What wasn’t?”
“How could you have a human keeper? It just doesn’t make sense. Why wasn’t it me? I’m the one who understands you. I’m the one who understands your music.”
Ayla reached out to Zenix again.“Umm, Nix? Nolan is saying some crazy things to me right now. I don’t know if he’s drunk or if something is really wrong with him.”
“I’m almost there, sweetheart.”
She glanced over Nolan’s shoulder, and relief swept through her when she saw Zenix coming toward them. Unfortunately, Nolan must have sensed him coming as well because he suddenly pulled a knife from his pocket and swung her around in front of him. He pressed the blade against her throat, and the slight sting of pain made her freeze.
“Stay back!” Nolan screamed as he used her body as a shield.
“Let go of her, Nolan,” Zenix demanded, holding up a blaster that Ayla hadn’t even known he’d been carrying with him.
“No, no, no! You’re ruining everything! We were supposed to spend the rest of our lives making music together. You promised,” Nolan cried. “You promised!”
With the sharp knife pressed against her, Ayla was too afraid to speak. Hell, she was afraid to breathe. She had promised to look at his new song, but she’d never suspected that he might have misconstrued her offer to help as something more.
“Don’t. Nothing you did caused this,”Zenix assured her.
Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Anissa approaching from the right, while Xian crept closer from the left. Both of them were holding weapons, but with Ayla standing in front of Nolan, she was sure none of them had a clear shot. Still, seeing them made her feel a little better, but she kept her focus on Zenix.
Her mate would save her.
“You don’t want to hurt Ayla,” Zenix said softly as he slowly moved closer. “She needs to see your music. You need to show it to her.”
“I do,” Nolan whispered. “I need to show you that we’re meant to be together forever.”
With that, he wrapped his arm around her waist and tumbled them both over the railing and into the water below. She barely had time to gasp before they were sinking under. The splash they made as their bodies hit the bioluminescent water made it flare with light, making it impossible to see.
“Fuck!” Zenix shouted as he rushed toward the railing.
Without thinking, he vaulted over the railing and jumped, following them into the water. He heard Anissa and Xian shouting his name, but he didn’t bother responding. His mate was in danger. The light in the water was disorientating, but he managed to surface again pretty quickly.
He immediately started searching for Ayla and wanted to sob with relief when he saw her pale hair. Then, he noticed she was busy trying to fight Nolan off as he tried to drag her under again. Zenix swam toward them, immensely glad for his countless hours of water training. He narrowed the distance between them in no time, then slammed his fist into the crazy man’s face once, twice, three times until he finally let go of her.
Before Zenix could say anything, Ayla wrapped herself around him. Her wings burst free from her back, and he clung to her as she lifted them straight up into the air.
“Umm, sweetheart? I don’t mind flying, but—”
“There’s…something…in the water,” she panted out.
