Page 70 of Claimed by the Fallen
I find it hard to speak. I’ve been awful to Adrian. Yet, here he is, looking like the only thing he cares about is mywellbeing.
The muscles around my heart tighten… but not in a painfulway.
“Ron?” Zeke pulls my gaze away from his brother. He, too, looksconcerned.
“I’m fine,” I manage to say past the lump in my throat. “Myparents?”
Before either of the angels can answer, the landing beneath us shakes. Adrian shoves me back until I am against the wall, away from the unstable railing. I hear the rusty stairs crash to thefloor.
“Stay here,” Zeke commands. Then, over Adrian’s shoulder, I see him leap off thelanding.
“What’s going on?” I lift my eyes and I’m startled by how close Adrian’s face is to mine. His chest is pressed against mine, and his shoulders are rounded over me. He is using his body as a shield. Adrian’s warm eyes flicker between mine. He isn’t convinced I’m unharmedyet.
“Adrian.” I place a hand on his arm. “I’m fine. I promise. Please… tell me what’s goingon.”
Adrian shudders when I touch him. He closes his eyes and breathes through his nose. I can feel his breath against my forehead, and our continued closeness gives me goosebumps. The arm beneath my hand is all muscle. I stare at our connected skin, and marvel at the warmth I feel from the contact. I know I should remove my touch for modesty’s sake, but I don’t want to. I continue to feel his muscles and revel in our proximity as I wait for hisanswer.
I’m so focused on my fingers resting on his arm, I miss when Adrian opens his eyes. I can feel them watching me. Slowly, I lift my gaze. He looks in control, but I see desire in the depths of his hazelirises.
“We tracked the yancor pack to the warehouse,” Adrian reveals. “Most of them have been dealtwith.”
Mention of the demons breaks the pleasant tension I’ve been feeling between us. “The demons followed me here? That’s how you found me.” After seeing the number of demons on the floor below, I’m beyond grateful they did. I wouldn’t have been able to escape on myown.
“Yes.” He grunts, straightening his spine, but he doesn’t step back. Adrian won’t lecture me right now, but I don’t doubt it will be coming soon. And he probably won’t be the only one to let me have it. I’d acted foolish by meeting Lukas alone, especially considering I thought I was walking into a meeting with ademon.
“What about my parents?” I lean my head against the wall so I can look up at him more clearly. “Have you foundthem?”
“We’ve been fighting yancor demons this whole time. I haven’t seen themyet.”
Now, it’s my turn to straighten my spine. “They’re tied up in a room downstairs. There’s a glass wall. We need to go get them.” I refuse to consider the demons may have already reachedthem.
Adrian nods. He steps back and holds out a hand as his wings flare out behind him. I eye the limbquestioningly.
He smirks. “The stairs are gone. There’s only one waydown.”
He’s right. Still, the thought of flying with an angel is takes me by surprise. I mean… I’ve acknowledged angels exist, and I kind of accepted the fact I might get wings one day, but I never really thought about flying. I hate planes, but I have to admit the idea of flying with Adrian is both terrifying andexciting.
Ireachout and grab Adrian’s hand. He pulls me to his chest, wrapping a strong arm around my waist. Then, before I know it, he launches into the air. My stomach feels weightless. Adrian glides through the warehouse with ease. We’re on the ground floor in less than ten seconds. My feet touch the floor, but Adrian doesn’t immediately letgo.
“How do you feel?” He wears his characteristic smirk. He could tell I wasnervous.
“Fine,” I say. “You can let go now.” Despite how nice it feels to be wrapped up in Adrian’s arms, I can’t forget we are standing a warehouse with dozens of demon corpses. Their smell is nauseating. Briefly, I wonder where my other angelic bodyguards are, as well as Lukas and Charles. Are they still fighting yancordemons?
With obvious reluctance, Adrian drops his arm and releases me. “Where is this glasswall?”
“Right h—” My words die out as I turn around, gesturing towards the room where I’d seen my parents. The glass wall has been blown out. Shards litter the ground, and my blood runs cold. A demon stands there, facing me, and it is holding a dagger to my mom’sthroat.
“Mom!” I lunge forward. Adrian grabs my wrist and nearly dislocates my shoulder as he pulls meback.
The demon grunts something in its unfamiliar language. Adrian growls something back, also in the gutturallanguage.
I face him. “What is itsaying?”
Adrian clenches his jaw. “Nothing.”
“Don’t lie to me!” I shout, my fear for my mom makes me lose my temper. I can see the demon has said something to make Adrian upset, and I suspect it has something to do withme.
The muscle in Adrian’s cheek twitches. “The demon wants a trade. You for yourmother.”
