“Impossible. He was buried under forty feet of ruble. No one could have survived that. Unless…” In order not to kill the fucking idiot, Jace let go.
Hands in his pockets, the healer shuffled, and said, “He could have harnessed the power of the stone to create a shield.”
“You know for certain he’s alive?” Jace glared.
“He called me earlier this morning. Had me pick him up in the desert.”
“And you didn’t think to tell me this before?” Every muscle in Jace’s body twitched to strangle the man. He grabbed him by the scruff and shoved him against the wall.
One of the security men exited, hand on gun. “Do we have a problem?”
Jace turned and growled, letting paranormal fire light the center of his eyes. “Give me just a moment, if you would.”
Paling, the uniformed man stepped back.
Meanwhile, Falcon squirmed, as if about to piss himself. “I-I’m sorry. It’s ju-just he controls my clan. If I didn’t do what he asked…”
“If anything happens to her, this will be on you.”
“I know.”
“Let’s go.” Jace pushed him out of the building toward the parking lot. “You’re going to show me where this warehouse is.”
“I-I can tell you, but there’s no sense me going with you. It’s not like I can help fight.” Falcon followed behind him, fidgeting with his car keys.
“You said you cared about Terra. Well, stop being a fucking coward and prove it. You drive.”
Ears red, face pale, Falcon gave a small nod.
“Wait.” Jace knelt and put his hands to the pavement. After shocks. That’s what the news would call it. After the past few days, some might say there was a new fault in the desert.
But what he felt in the almost undetectable tremors was her. And she was in trouble.
“How far is this place?” He opened the door to the old Ford Escort.
“The other side of town. With no traffic, maybe thirty minutes.”
“Make it fifteen.” At the stoplight, Jace stomped his left foot over Falcon’s right.
Spinning the wheel, to avoid getting sideswiped, they righted onto a one way street. Then, after a couple more turns, Falcon pulled into a driveway.
“That’s Eddie’s truck.” Falcon pointed at the open bay door. “I see her. There. She’s in the back, behind the loading dock.”
“Terra.” Jace jumped out of the small compact, vaulted onto the dock, and shouted over the loud hum that came from the rough-cut turquoise.
With eyes glazed and body rigid, she stared, expressionless.
“Terra. It’s me.” He took another step towards her and the cement beneath his feet shook and cracked.
“She can’t hear you.” Falcon grabbed his shoulder and tried to yank him back.
He’d felt the stone’s attraction himself. Knew how easy it was to be lost to that much power. Soon, it would totally consume her mind. Play on her fears and weaknesses.
If he blasted the stone, there was a possibility she’d get seriously hurt.
He produced a fireball in his palm, the familiarity reassuring.
“What’re you doing?” Falcon grabbed Jace’s arm.
Jace growled low in his throat. Not many men who attempted that were left standing. He let the flame rise.
“I need to get her away from the stone. If I destroy it–”
“You could kill her.” Falcon stared with real anguish in his black eyes.
Jace tightened his fist and extinguished the blaze. Frustration made his mind go blank.
“Then what do you suggest I do?”
“You’re her mate.” Falcon’s mouth skewed down on the word, but he continued, “You need to get into her mind. Neutralize the stone’s power.”
The next wave of her out-of-control power made the cement floor roll. The sickening sound of bending metal groaned all around them.
“And just how the hell do I do that?” He was shouting now, his heart racing.
“I don’t know.”
Well that was fucking helpful.
“Get out of here. If I can’t control her, the entire building will collapse.” Pieces of ceiling rained down as small cracks grew wider.
Falcon glanced at Terra, then back at him and nodded. “Good luck.”
He was going to need a hell of a lot more than luck.
Another of her blasts nearly knocked Jace off his feet.
Falcon dashed for the door, pausing to dodge a huge piece of cement that crashed in front of him.
“Terra,” Jace yelled over the growing hum.
This time she turned to him, but her eyes held no recognition. Her pupils were dilated, rimmed only by a thin edge of blue, the blackness reflecting the purple glow of the stone.
“Shit.” He ducked when she threw a fireball at his head.
An aura of power swarmed and glowed around her. Streams of light sizzled and sparked. Her hair tangled around her face as if she were caught in an electric windstorm. Eyes wide, unseeing. It was as if she was sucking in the essence of the stone itself.
He needed to break the link or find a way to connect to the stone itself.
Without another thought, he lunged into the brick wall of energy. Searing pain slammed at his chest, but Terra’s hands remained glued to stone. Her rigid body pulsated with power.
“Let go,” he screamed. “Sweetheart, let go. It’s killing you.”
She blinked once and pupils returned to normal size. Then just as quickly, they enlarged. Within her, an enormous geyser of power rumbled, about to burst.
Fuck it. He placed his hands on the stone. It was the only way to stay connected to her, to equalize the distribution of power. Electricity shot through his hands and up his arms, a siren calling him into a dark abyss.
Clenching his eyes shut, he fought to gain control.
“Don’t. Let. It. Win.” Every word was a strain. With tremendous effort, he slid his hand across the stone and placed it on top of hers.
Terra’s eyes widened, and in that moment, he knew. She wasn’t just fighting against the stone’s powers, she was fighting her own demons, and she was losing.
Her memories flashed inside his head, running like an old black and white film. And what he saw destroyed him.
She had given up.
Chapter 29
“Terra.” The voices called out to her. So many voices that she couldn’t differentiate one from another. “Terra, Terra, Terra.”
She wanted to scream, but her own voice was trapped, muted in the chaos. The stone held her prisoner, and no matter how hard she tried, she couldn’t get free. It attached to her like a leech, sucking all goodness from her and filling the void with despair.
Images of the past crashed into her mind like a tsunami.
“You’re no better than your father,” the voices whispered.
“Murderer.”
“Killer.”
The words hissed through her mind, intensified by the growing hum of the stone.
A woman’s hazy form approached, her face familiar and at the same time distorted.
“Mom?”
“Terra. What have you done?”
The image altered. The cold gray warehouse morphed into the red sands of the Nevada desert. Another approached. This time, it was a young girl of no more than fifteen, her mass of blonde hair tied back in a messy braid. When she looked up, Terra’s own eyes blazed back at her.
“I hate you,” she screamed.
Those three words burned like a hot poker. The horrid thing she’d said before the ground gave way under her mother’s feet. Before her small form was sucked deep into a crack in the earth, gone forever.
One stomp of her foot, one temper tantrum, and she’d destroyed the only person she cared about. The only person who’d ever loved her, unconditionally.
The scene replayed over and over, a hellish nightmare.
Stop. Dear God. Please make it stop. Her soul broke each time her mother fell, followed
by the woman’s deafening screams before she hit bottom, with a sickening thud.
The younger self continued to rant. “I hate you. I hate you.”
Deep blue eyes glared accusingly at Terra.
It was herself she hated. Not her mother. Never her mother.
“Let go.”
“Give in.”
The voices taunted, edging her toward total despair, promising relief from the pain. If the darkness consumed her, she’d be able to control the power. Control the stone.
“Terra.” A new, familiar voice broke through the anarchy.
Jace.
“Don’t give in. You’re stronger than this. Fight.”
Fight? For what? Nothing was left to fight for. She was alone. She’d always been alone.
“You’re wrong.” Jace spoke as if inside her mind. “Fight for me. Our future. Our child.”
A shiver ran down her spine. The fog lifted for a moment, and he appeared.
“I can’t…You don’t understand…”
His mouth didn’t move, yet she could hear his words. “I saw what the stone showed you. You were young. It was an accident.”
“I killed her.”
The stone screeched, mocking her.
“You had no control of your powers.” His dark pupils reflected the purple glow of the stone. “Don’t give into the darkness.”
“It’s too late.” Cold slithered, slug-like throughout her body. She clenched her eyes and shook her head. She couldn’t save herself, but she could at least try to save him. “Get out of here. Before it’s too late.”
*
He was not going to lose her, and there was no way in hell he was going to leave her like this. Not while she was shutting down and letting the stone take what little hope she had left.
As hard as he tried, he couldn’t neutralize the power. He wasn’t that strong.
Jace let go of the stone, cupped her cheek, and forced her to look at him. “Come back to me.”
A soft cry bubbled up from her throat and her beautiful face contorted in pain.
The hellish energy threatened to drive him away, but he planted his feet, and held her firm.
“Come back to me, Terra.” He willed her essence forth.
“Everything is gone.” Her pitiful cry tore him in two.
“Not everything. I’m here. I’ll always be here.”
Hope soared when a tear slid down her cheek. “Why?”
“Because I love you. You’re my mate. And I won’t give up on you. Ever.” He mustered every last ounce of his power and shoved it into her. If this didn’t work he would die with her.
The minute her eyes widened, he knew he had won.
“I love you, Terra. Let go.” He forced his dreams of their future into her head. Images of them together, their unborn child, happy times, all the things he dreamed for them to share.
Her body shook uncontrollably. Then, a loud pop broke over the hum.
As her hands flew off the stone, she fell backwards, taking him with her. He rolled midair so she would be on top when they hit the ground.
The large stone sizzled, glowing with purple heat. Then with a loud crack, it shattered, sending jagged pieces flying across the room.
Jace pulled Terra against his chest, protecting her body with his own. Slivers of rock sliced into his skin, and he gritted his teeth at the pain. He held his precious world tight, protecting her from the sonic blast.
Something hard slammed into his temple. His vision blurred, bright blue eyes the last thing he saw before darkness consumed him.
Chapter 30
Jace’s body went limp, and suddenly she was weighted down by his full mass.
Without the hum of the stone, the room went eerily silent. Jace’s soft, irregular breathing, the only sound besides the ringing in her ears from the blast.
She pushed on his shoulders, rolling him over. There was a large ugly gash just above his left temple.
“Jace.” She shook his shoulders gently. “Wake up.”
His lashes fluttered, his eyes opening in small slits. His mouth curved up slightly, then his eyes closed and he let out one last breath.
“Jace.” She put two fingers to his neck. Nothing. No pulse. Heart racing, she shook his shoulders and begged, “Wake up. Please.”
He didn’t move. Didn’t respond. She placed her ear against his chest, desperate for a heartbeat.
“Terra.” Falcon stood above her, his face pale. “His aura’s gone.”
“No,” she cried out. Oh, God, No. She stood and pounded against Falcon’s chest. “If you ever want me to forgive you, heal him now.”
Falcon gripped her wrists, preventing the next hit. “He’s gone. I can’t do anything.”
“Bullshit.” She ripped away and fell to her knees beside Jace’s body. A brutal sob escaped over the knot in her throat. It couldn’t be. Not after all they’d been through.
Falcon touched her shoulder. “I’m sorry.”
“No. You don’t get to be sorry. And he doesn’t get to die.” She conjured a giant ball of fire mixed with her earthly power and willed it straight into Jace’s heart.
His body lifted for a moment, then fell back lifeless on the cold cement.
He’d told her he loved her, and she hadn’t even had the chance to tell him back.
She blasted him again.
“Terra, stop.” He knelt and tried to push her away from the body.
“Get away from me, Falcon.” She blasted Jace again. “Wake up, damn it.”
“There’s nothing you can do.”
With clenched fists, she pounded against the motionless chest, then fell across his body with an anguished cry.
“I love you,” she whispered. Placing her hands on his cheeks, she brushed her lips over his. “I love you, Jace Fialko.”
A piece of mortar crashed to the ground and Falcon jumped. “Terra, we need to get out of here. The building isn’t safe.”
“Go, then. I’m not leaving him.”
Pieces of the ceiling pelted them, cutting skin.
“Terra. Now.” Falcon’s fingers dug into her upper arm and she swung at him.
She had a fireball in her palm when he tugged at her shirt, but stopped short when her peripheral vision caught the subtle movements. There. Oh my God. Her mate’s chest rose and fell.
“Falcon? His aura?”
“Holy shit.” The healer released her arm and dropped to his knees on the other side of Jace, placing his hands on his chest, pumping healing energy into him.
Terra gripped Jace’s hand, and willed life into him as well. A small breeze brushed by her face, as all free electrons were sucked into the newly alive man.
Unable to trust her voice, she kissed the tip of Jace’s nose, his eyelids, his lips.
Suddenly, one side of the garage cracked and bent inwards as if made of rubber. She screamed and sent an alternate force toward it.
Adrenaline still coursing through her veins, she scooped her arms under Jace’s shoulder and pulled. She moved him a few feet, before collapsing on the ground. He was too heavy, and she was too weak.
“Falcon, help me.”
Another crack and more debris fell around them.
Covering his head, Falcon ran out of the garage, shouting over his shoulder, “I won’t die for you. I’m done”
She was going to strangle Falcon if she got out of there alive.
Terra pulled on Jace’s belt and he moaned.
Seconds remained before the building would collapse. She didn’t dare touch the turquoise again. But what was she going to do?
She glanced around wildly, looking for anything she could use. Finally she spied it. Four pieces of wood and four little wheels. A dolly. No magic required.
Moving quickly, she placed it next to Jace’s chest. He rolled easily onto his belly, still limp. Then, she half-dragged, half-wheeled him to safety. At the end of the dock, Falcon stood, ringing his hands.
“Help me,” she barked.
H
e flinched, then ran towards her.
Jace groaned, holding his head when she moved him into a sitting position. Falcon helped steady him as she maneuvered him off the dock.
“Terra?” Held up between them, Jace stumbled forward just as the building collapsed with a deafening crunch.
“I’m here.”
They collapsed onto the parking lot tar. White dust covered them, whooshing out of what would’ve been their grave.
“That was close,” Falcon muttered, standing.
“You jerk!” She jumped up, clenched a fist and plowed it into Falcon’s jaw.
Falcon’s head snapped back and he stumbled.
“Shit.” Her knuckles swelled and throbbed.
Jace chuckled from where he lay on his back, then lifted onto his elbow.
“Come over here and let me see what you’ve done.” He inspected it and kissed away the hurt. “You’ve got a fierce upper cut.”
“I guess I deserved that.” Falcon stood, rubbing his jaw.
“Damn right you did.” She pointed a finger at him and glared. “You’ll be lucky if I don’t tell Wovaka everything.”
“You wouldn’t.” Falcon went pale.
“Get the car. I’ll think it over on the way to the rez.”
Grumbling, Falcon stuck his hands into his pocket while he jogged to his car.
With her help, Jace stood. He pulled her to his chest and kissed her fully on the mouth. “You are one mean little badger.”
Chapter 31
Sitting semi-upright in the backseat of the car, Jace’s whole body hurt like a son of a bitch.
Falcon leaned over him, pulsing heavy-duty healing energy, and the whole car buzzed.
By the time the Escort pulled off onto the packed dirt road, Jace’s vision had finally cleared. He took in a deep breath, exhaled fully, and caught his mate’s worried gaze in the rearview mirror.
“Terra.” Leaning forward, he reached between the seats and squeezed her thigh.
She gave him a tight smile, and stretched out her hand for him to take. “You okay?”
“I was only dead for a little bit. No worries.” His attempt at lightheartedness was not well received, but under the circumstances, he thought it was pretty good.
Twenty minutes later, she silently parked the car next to a round mound of dirt topped with grass. It had a polished cedar door and smoke poured from a chimney.
Dark Tremor (Mated by Magic #2) Page 14
