Page 50 of Warrior

“I didn’t know where else to go. I’m more familiar with Emerald Cove, although I was sort of hoping your brother and his friends could meet up with us…” His eyes narrow. “What do you remember?”

WhatdoI remember?

The first thing to jump into my mind is sitting at a booth in Madness, waiting for Kade. But Kade didn’t…

I left him sitting there, and Gabriel awaited me.

“Gabriel,” I answer. “He…”

Reese pulls out his phone and flashes the screen at me. An image of me, unconscious and on a couch. Laid out, my hands folded over my stomach.

I could be sleeping, but I know I’m not.

And now I’m here.

I swallow sharply around the sudden lump in my throat. My eyes burn.

What is this reaction?

I blink and try everything to keep my expression blank, but it doesn’t work. It takes me too long to pinpoint why my body is doing this.

“You came for me?” My voice squeaks.

He tosses his phone on the counter and takes my hands. His brows furrow. “Of course I did.”

“I…” I pull back ever so slightly. “Where’s the bathroom?”

“Down the hall on the left.”

I nod and scurry back the way I came. I pass the bedroom I woke up in, find the bathroom, and lock myself in.

What the fuck is wrong with me?

Panic claws at my throat.

Saint’s ire I can handle.

Kade’s betrayal, sure.

ButReese?Reese coming to my rescue?

I pat myself down. Gabriel drugged me—I remember that much now. Sitting at the computer in that little building on the edge of town. The sting of the needle entering my arm…

My heart skips just thinking about it.

And then my fingers brush my pocket, and my heart full-on stops.

I know what it is before I pull the slender syringe out of my pocket. It has the amber liquid already in it, the needle capped and ready to go.

Without thinking, I shove my sleeve up. I flick the cap off with my thumb and slide the needle into my skin. Draw it back to confirm I hit a vein,pause. The bite of it is delicious, and anticipation claws at me.

Then there’s no more waiting. I remove the used syringe out and recap it before I forget. My hands shake, and I stuff it in my pocket. I tip my head back, my eyes closing, and wait for the rush.

There’s nothing quite like it. It’s being in the center of a symphony. It’s a thousand mouths on my heated skin. It’s the freefall leaping off a cliff.

It hits me hard, and I grip the counter.

OhGod.

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