Will let out an exasperated breath. “When I leave here, you will not follow me. We have less than twenty minutes to do this, and then you’ll have only thirty minutes, give or take a few, to go to the address I’ve given to Katy.”
Daemon glanced at me quickly. “Is this a scavenger hunt? I so do love them.”
Always a smartass, I thought, even in the worst situations. I think I kind of loved him just for that.
“Possibly.” Will slowly approached him, pulling out a gun from his back. Daemon just arched a brow while my heart tumbled over. “You’ll have a choice to make after you let her out of the cage. You can come after me or you can get the one thing you’ve always wanted.”
“What? A tattoo of your face on my ass?”
Will’s cheeks flushed with anger. “Your brother.”
All of Daemon’s arrogance vanished. He took a step back. “What?”
“I’ve paid a lot of money to get him in a position where he could’ve ’escaped.’ Besides, I doubt they’ll really be searching for him.” Will smiled coldly. “He’s proven to be quite useless. But you—you, on the other hand, are stronger. You’ll succeed where he’s failed time and time again.”
I wet my dry lips. “Failed…at what?”
Daemon’s head jerked toward me, his eyes narrowing at the sound of my voice, but Will spoke up. “They’ve been forcing him to mutate humans for years. It hasn’t been working. He’s not as strong as you, Daemon. You are different.”
Daemon drew in a breath. Will was offering Daemon everything he’d wanted—his brother. There was no way he’d turn that down. And he was fighting not to show any emotion. To Will, he was expressionless, but I recognized the minute ticking in his jaw, the way his eyes flickered, and the tight line of his mouth. He was caught between excitement and the knowledge that he was creating someone who could ultimately destroy the ones he loved. And someone who would be tied to him irrevocably—and to me. If Daemon healed Will, their lives would be joined.
“I’d prefer to hunt you down and break every bone in your body for what you’ve done,” Daemon said finally. “Rip your flesh off your body slowly and then feed it to you for hurting Kat. But my brother means more than vengeance.”
Visibly shaken by his words, Will paled. “I was hoping that would be your decision.”
“You know, you have to be hurt for this to work.”
Will nodded, aiming the gun at his leg. “I know.”
Daemon looked disappointed. “I was so hoping I was going to get to inflict the damage.”
“Yeah, I don’t think so.”
What happened next was truly macabre. Part of me wanted to look away or cave to the pain, but I didn’t. I watched Will c**k his arm back and then after a minute, he shot himself in the leg. The man didn’t make a sound. Something didn’t seem right about that other than the obvious, but then Daemon placed his hand on Will’s arm. The onyx didn’t block his healing powers. Daemon could’ve let him bleed out, but he would never get passed the onyx to get me out.
I blacked out again, unable to really fight through the pain anymore. Coming to, I saw Will unlatching the cage door. He moved over me, healthy and whole, unlocking the chains above me. The manacles slipped off my wrists, and I almost cried just for that.
Will’s eyes met mine. “I suggest you don’t tell your mother about this. After all, it would kill her.” He smiled, having gotten what he wanted. “Behave, Katy.”
Then he was out of the cage, and out of the room. I didn’t know how much time we had left. Couldn’t be more than ten minutes. I tried to sit up, but my arms gave out. “Daemon…”
“I’m here.” And he was. Carefully entering the cage and helping me out. “I’ve got you, Kitten. It’s over.”
The healing warmth was in his hands, fueling what strength I had left. By the time he placed me on my feet outside of the cage, I could stand alone, and I gently brushed his hands off me. After healing Will, I knew he wasn’t at full strength. And there were officers on their way, limited time to reach Dawson.
“I’m all right,” I whispered in a throaty voice.
Making a deep sound in the back of his throat, he clutched my cheeks and placed his lips on mine. I closed my eyes, sinking into his touch. When he pulled away, both of us were gasping for air.
“What did you do?” I asked, wincing at the sound of my voice.
Daemon pressed his forehead against mine, and I felt his half grin against my lips. “For the mutation to work, both parties have to be willing, Kitten. Remember what Matthew said? I wasn’t entirely into it, if you get my drift. And not to mention, he needed to be dying or close to it. The mutation probably won’t work. At least not to the extent he thinks.”
I laughed in spite of everything, the sound rasping. “Evil genius.”
“You betcha,” he replied, his eyes moving over me, his fingers threading through mine. “You sure you’re okay? Your voice…”
“Yeah,” I whispered. “I’ll be okay.”
He kissed me again, soft and deep, and he took away most of the hours spent there, even though I was sure they’d linger for some time, creeping up like most dark things do. But for a moment, we weren’t in such a terrible place, there wasn’t this giant clock ticking over our heads, and I was safe in his arms. Treasured. Loved. We were together. Two halves of the same atom brought back to make one that was infinitely stronger.