Page 19 of You Only Love Twice
"You survived," she slurred, as her knees went out from under her.
The floor pitched toward her, but he was there. Strong hands caught her before she hit the floor, and he slung her up into his arms as her pistol clattered to the ground.
"Dmitri died," the man said in a toneless voice. "All that's left now is Obsidian."
And then the world vanished around her as everything went dark.
Chapter 6
Five years ago...
The first thingDmitri knew was the dry, pasty taste in his mouth.
Heat warmed his skin.
Light bloomed in the room.
His body felt heavy and hot, and as he couldn't sweat, his breath was coming in short, sharp pants as if he had to dispel the heat somehow. Pain screamed along his back as the heat burned him.
Rising up to a level of full awareness was difficult. His bones felt like lead. Dmitri finally managed to open his eyes, and what he saw made his heart stop dead in his chest.
The curtains on the bed were on fire, flames licking at a blanket thrown haphazardly across the end of the bed. Smoke choked the air, and he could see flames eating at the doorframe. His bed was empty, only the vague indentation of a woman's body lingering in the sheets revealing his mind wasn't playing tricks on him. He hadn't been alone when he fell asleep.
"Holl-is?" he tried to yell.
Nothing. No sign of her.
Panic roused him as nothing else could. Dmitri coughed and spluttered as he dragged himself off the bed, his heavy body still fighting him.
He staggered toward the wall, the muscles in his thighs shaking, as if they could barely handle the weight of him. His arms were blistered, and the pain nearly drove him to his knees.
Smoke thickened the air, driving him low. Dmitri choked as his lungs found no oxygen. He had no clue where the window was. Fire bloomed between him and the door.
How the hell was he supposed to get out?
Where was Hollis?
The last he knew she'd been in his arms, her naked skin pressed against his as they lay there content. A single stolen moment with his Master's enemy before they could be found. They'd both known the risks, but he hadn't been able to stop himself from capturing her mouth for a kiss that night. Hadn't been able to turn her away as the long-suppressed passion that burned between them flared to life.
"Obsidian?" someone yelled.
Silas. His head turned in the direction of his brother-by-blood's voice. "Here!"
A dark shape loomed out of the shadows, Silas emerging from under a sodden blanket. "Ruttin' hell." He draped the blanket over Dmitri. "What in the blazes happened here?"
A sudden roaring whoosh burst over them, a fireball blooming in the air as the flickering flames found the overhanging canopy of the bed.
"We need to get out of here now!"
His head still swam, mouth sticky. All he could see was smoke swimming around him, burning down his throat.
"This way!" A hard body shoved him toward the right.
The steaming blanket Silas draped over his shoulders tore the blistered skin from his arm and back, but at least it provided some protection from the flames.
A chill guided him toward the window, the cold air outside. He tried to get the latch open, but Silas grabbed his arm.
"No time," Silas gasped.
