out of his captors. When that didn’t work, he tried to utter a spell in Latin, but Nick slapped a hand over his mouth hard, risking a nasty bite to stop the chant.
“Bring him here!” Mac called.
They struggled but managed to maneuver him into the cell, where Nick and Jax tossed him across the space, then let him go and hauled ass out of there. As soon as they cleared the door, Mac and her father slid the heavy bars home. They locked into place with a loud clang that was awfully final.
Hands still bound behind his back with the chains, Kalen hit the bars, causing the whole door to rattle on its track. Mac stood immobile, watching the man she loved slam himself into one wall, then the other, totally out of his head.
“Let me go!” he screamed. “I’ll fucking kill you! Every last one of you! And I’ll laugh while I’m doing it!”
Tears welled in her eyes, trickled down her cheeks. She couldn’t stand seeing him like this. “Daddy,” she whispered, grabbing his hand. He held on to her tightly. “What can I do? How do we help him?”
“I don’t know, baby girl,” he murmured. The entire team gathered around, looking equally stricken.
“Feast on your carcasses,” Kalen raved. Laughing, he slid down the far wall next to the bed, uttering curses. Perhaps parts of spells that had no effect in the iron-and-silver-fortified room. His eyes were those of his cat, green, glittering, and elliptical. He smiled, showing off the huge fangs that had almost gotten a piece of his friends. “This is what I am. Blood will tell, won’t it?”
Nick stared at Kalen, his eyes suspiciously moist. “We can’t let him suffer like this.”
“I agree,” her father said.
Aric spoke up. “If we can’t reach him, he’ll eventually bring this place down around our ears. He’s too strong to be kept in a cell for long.”
Nick withdrew his gun from his waistband. “I’ll do it. He’s my responsibility.”
“What?” Mac shouted. “No! You can’t give up on him just like that! I can reach him. I know I can!”
“Honey,” her dad began, his face wretched.
“Please. I’m begging you. Give me a chance to get through to him.” Her voice broke. She trembled from head to toe, terrified that Nick would deny her plea.
“Mac, he’s too far gone,” Nick said gently, eyes sad.
“He’s a man, not a dog to be put down,” she spat angrily, wiping her cheeks. “He promised me he would fight this, and I know he’s in there somewhere.”
“God,” Jax breathed. “Where’s the justice in this? We gave him our word that we’d have his back. What’s our word worth if we let him drown the first time his head goes under water? Even Raven is still here, though he’s been stuck in wolf form for almost six years.”
“Raven isn’t a Fae Sorcerer with an Unseelie sire and the power to destroy the entire world as we know it.”
“Another chance, Nicky. Please.”
One by one, the guys voiced their agreement. Against their united front, Nick wavered, then finally relented. “Forty-eight hours. If he’s not showing signs of improvement, I won’t allow him to suffer any longer. Or to endanger us all.”
Even against the backdrop of Kalen’s vile rampage, the guys were visibly relieved. Kalen was one of their own, and they didn’t want to give up on him.
Nick slumped, looking wiped out. “I need to go check on Phoenix. Melina’s taking care of him.”
One by one the guys hugged Mac, then headed for the infirmary to await word on their old friend, found and home once more. Mac was torn, but opted to stay with Kalen for a while. Nick wouldn’t hear of her remaining behind alone and ordered A.J. to stay with her. Just in case. A.J. nodded, lips pressed into a thin line. He understood the situation very well. And he was trained to handle it.
Mac eyed the rifle with the wicked-looking scope slung over the sniper’s shoulder and her gut cramped in dread. She sent a prayer to whatever deity might be listening for her mate to come out of this safely. Alive and whole.
After the others were gone, Mac turned to A.J. “What happened at the research facility?”
The man shook his sandy brown head. “I was on a hillside doing my part to pick off the uglies. I didn’t know what was going on inside, but suddenly the central area of the building exploded and fell in. I raced down there, but it was all over by the time I picked my way to where the guys were.”
“Surely Nick told you something?”
The handsome man looked away. “Doc, all I know is that the team was ambushed. They were able to get into the research lab and the prisoners way too easily. Then a shitload more Sluagh arrived and they were outnumbered.”
“They don’t think Kalen had anything to do with that . . .” The idea was horrid. But given the way he was acting now—not unreasonable.
“Nick doesn’t think so. But the bloodlust of battle got to your mate. The others said he went into a rage and killed practically the whole damned bunch of those monsters on his own. But they didn’t realize he’d stopped distinguishing between ‘them’ and ‘us’ until he turned on Ryon and came close to killing him, too.”
Mac looked to Kalen, sitting on the floor of his cell. He had his chin tucked to his chest now, dark hair hiding his face, babbling to himself. She couldn’t tell what he was saying, but he seemed a bit more calm. But only just. He was still plenty agitated, rocking back and forth, oblivious to her and A.J. watching.
She moved a little closer to the bars. “Kalen? Sweetie, it’s me—”
His head came up and he growled, baring his fangs. His elliptical, kohl-rimmed eyes showed not the slightest hint of recognition. He was angry, straining at his bonds. And he was afraid too. Confused.
The emotions slammed into her hard, and she gasped. She felt his fear through their bond, and a ray of hope made a pinprick in the gloom as she recalled that he could feel her emotions as well. She could use that to their advantage. Try to reach him.
Moving slowly to avoid agitating him more, she sat cross-legged on the floor. A.J. leaned on the wall nearby, ready in case of trouble. She blocked out the terrible image of his scoped rifle and concentrated on her bond with her mate. Thought of their baby. Her dreams for the three of them. Sent waves of love to him in an endless stream.
His snarling gradually stopped. His fangs receded and his eyes were humanlike again. But humanity was still absent. He remained confused, but the awful rage had subsided. He studied her for long moments before his lids began to droop. Worn out from the events of the day, he slept.
Slumped against the wall, separated from her mate, so did she. Fitfully.
