“I saw arms. Legs. What almost looked like a fac—”
Abruptly he exploded into action, running full tilt in the direction of the foyer. I hesitated for a moment, but only because I was so surprised. Two seconds later I was sprinting after him, racing barefoot through the timeworn hallways and struggling to catch up.
“Bryce! Wait!”
My words fell on deaf ears as he unlocked the front doors and exploded through them.
Fifty-One
KARISSA
I spilled out into the courtyard, my arms pinwheeling as more motion lights came on. They illuminated the whole front of the construction site; pallets of stone and marble, a 30-yard dumpster, two Bobcats with their buckets held high…
… and a man in a ski mask, dressed head to toe in black.
Holy shit!
Bryce was running as fast as his legs would carry him, but he was big, broad, bulky. The man, it turned out, was faster.
“He’s headed for the gate!”
I bore down and really dug in, pumping my arms for that extra burst of speed. I’d always been fast. Back at the academy I’d almost broken three records during my cadet training, even. But right now I was shoeless, and the intruder was not. I was running over all kinds of gravel and rocks and jagged pieces of construction debris that could be anything from broken screw heads to errant staples from wrapping the exposed parts of the building in Tyvek.
“Don’t chase him!” I heard Bryce call as I leapt passed him.
I ignored his cry, just as I ignored the pain. My legs were longer than the man in front of me, and he was weighed down by his boots. I was gaining, and rapidly too. Halfway to the gate, he was within arm’s reach.
“KARISSA NO!”
I tackled him around mid-leg, dragging him down to the cobbles. We bounced hard off the rough surface, both of us groaning loudly as the wind was knocked from our lungs. I could see him rolling away. Struggling to breathe, like I was.
Then suddenly Bryce was there, straddling the man’s chest.
“Got him!”
An unexpected fist caught my lover in the jaw, followed by a knee to his midsection. Bryce went down, rolling to one side. The man in black got up again, and looked fleetingly toward the gate.
Then he turned around and kicked Bryce in the ribs.
“You bastard!”
I pushed myself to a standing position, my lungs still gasping for air. The man kicked again, and I heard a dull snap. He was rearing back for a third kick when I grabbed his foot and shoved forward with all my might.
“Get… the fuck… off!”
The man in the ski mask fell backward, rolled deftly, then returned to his feet. He glowered back at me through the slit in his mask, his eyes murderous, his gaze full of hatred. The look was so intense it froze me for a second. Kept me from acting…
Then he was kicking and punching Bryce again.
“Stop it!”
I shoved my body between them, twisting to maintain my balance and expose my unprotected back. No blows came. Apparently the man wasn’t interested in me at all, his vengeance was directed solely on Bryce. Even now he was raising his arms again, preparing to rain down additional blows.
“I said STOP!”
In the middle of his next punch, the man disappeared. One second he was standing there, the next he was totally gone.
What the—
I looked sideways and there he was, rolling across the gravel-strewn cobbles. Camden had tackled him from one side, so fast that I’d missed it simply by blinking. He was in the process of kneeing the guy between the legs when Roderick’s hands locked themselves possessively over my upper arms.
“Are you alright?” he cried, shaking me frantically. His eyes scanned me up and down.
“Yes!” I shouted quickly. “But… Bryce!”
He knelt to check on his friend, but only long enough to get Bryce’s slow nod. He was still holding his side, his face grimacing in pain. But he was getting up. He was still moving.
“Unnngghhh!”
The next cry came from the man in black, and it was a cry of frustration mixed with pain. Camden had hit him already, knocking the mask crooked across his face. His eyeholes were no longer lined up. His mouth, twisted into a snarl, was half covered by the thick wool fabric.
“Hold him down,” Roderick growled, kneeling beside the man’s head. “Pin him tight!”
Camden did exactly that, shifting his entire weight until he was screwing his knees into the man’s shoulders. It was over and he knew it. The man stopped struggling.
“Now, who the fuck—”
In the middle of taking the mask off, Roderick stopped talking. His face went white with surprise, as did Camden’s, and Bryce’s too.
“What?” I said weakly.
They were all frozen, staring down into the man’s face. He was young and nondescript. No one I recognized. Aside from being twisted in pain, his face was almost handsome.
I was so angry I went to slap him.
“No.”
A hand caught mine, wrapping itself around my wrist. It was Camden’s.
“Leave him.”
I looked again, and the man on the ground no longer looked angry. And his pain wasn’t physical. It was emotional, for sure.
“Ryan…”
Camden stood up, and Roderick helped the intruder to his feet. His lip was quivering. He was crying openly. Practically bawling.
Then they were hugging him tightly…
And he was hugging them back.
Fifty-Two
KARISSA
I was beyond shocked. Completely at a loss. This man had crept up on us and attacked us and kicked Bryce so hard I heard his ribs crack. He’d shown up at our gate in the dead of night. Set fire to our supplies, most likely.
And now we were… hugging him?
“Ryan… why?” Bryce was asking. His voice was broken. He was still clutching his side. “Why would you—”
“Because of this,” the man sobbed, waving an arm. I looked back and realized he was pointing in the direction of the manor. “Because I hate this! I hate all it stands for!”
“But it stands for her,” Roderick insisted calmly. “So much of it because she had a vision. Because
