Page 34 of Tethered to the World
He stared straight ahead for a few seconds, breathing hard, his grip strangling the steering wheel. When he turned toward her, his face was white, his expression granite, but his wild, frantic eyes gave him away. He gently lifted her arm. “Let me see how bad.”
Annora shrugged, the flash of pain stealing her breath for a second before it dulled and her system flooded with more endorphins. “I’m fine for now. Just get us back to the house. I can clean it up there.”
His gaze snapped up to hers, searching her eyes before his mouth tightened and he nodded. Logan didn’t speak a word until they were a few minutes out from the house, when he took out his phone and dialed a number. “We’re coming in hot.”
That was all he said before he jabbed his finger at the phone and tossed it to the floor. His clipped voice was so full of menace she curled back into her seat, slowly stroking Edgar’s small ear where his head poked out of her shirt.
A minute later, he was speeding through the university’s streets with a squeal of tires that warned everyone to get out of the way. He didn’t slow down for pedestrians, nearly mowing over two of them in his rush.
They screeched up to the house in record time.
Logan flung open his door, not bothering to close it as he rushed around to her side of the car. To avoid the inevitable confrontation, she threw open the door before he could get there and hauled herself out, a flash of pain shooting down her arm for a second before she could block it.
She could only deal with the damage done to her body for so long before it shut down and went numb.
She was reaching her limit, the raw flesh tingling dully. The only reason she could still move and function was through long practice—she couldn’t afford being weak, and she’d conditioned her body to take far worse and keep going.
The door to the house slammed open a second later, and she was surrounded. She gave them a bright smile. “I’ll see you inside.”
Then she took the coward’s way out and ghosted them, going invisible for a few seconds so she could dash around them. She heard them cursing as she rushed toward the house, but she didn’t stop until she was in her room…and jerked to a halt when she saw two other Edgars already waiting for her.
She blinked at them, then scooped up the one currently napping around her neck and lifted him to eye level. “I think you have some explaining to do.”
They each blinked up at her at the same time, but when she heard boots thundering up the stairs, she dropped the ferret on the bed and beat a hasty retreat to her bathroom, locking the door behind her, knowing the thin barrier wouldn’t buy her much time. She gingerly eased off the shirt Logan threw over her, then winced at the horrible mess of her shoulder, the raw flesh looking worse than she expected, the wound sill oozing blood.
Not a second later, pounding sounded on the door. “Open up right this second.”
Logan sounded so pissed she bit her lip. “I’ll be down in a few minutes.”
She didn’t want them to see her weak and vulnerable.
Slipping back into the afterworld to heal herself was out of the question. Whoever was stalking her would be too close. Not to mention the energy required to heal serious injuries would knock her out for at least a day, and she couldn’t afford to miss so much time.
There was a moment of silence on the other side of the door. She leaned closer, and heard the men whispering…loudly…and she hastily shoved her arms through the borrowed man’s shirt to cover the extent of her injury, the touch of the starched fabric on the open wound leaving her dizzy.
“What the fuck happened?” Camden’s voice was harsh, easily recognizable.
“You were supposed to keep her safe.” Mason’s tone was sharp with a reprimand.
“Were you ambushed?” Xander was in warrior mode.
“I fucked up.” Logan sounded tortured. There was a scuffle when he spoke again. “Let me go. She’s fucking injured and needs help.”
Not a second later, wood splintered and the door to the bathroom was ripped clear off its hinges.
All four guys stood there glaring at her.
“Downstairs. Now.” Camden turned on his heel and marched away.
Xander scanned her from head to toe, his eyes lingering on the matted blood on the shirt, as if he could see her injured shoulder, before he too left. Logan and Mason didn’t move—they were waiting for her to go first, not giving her a chance to disobey.
Heaving a frustrated sigh, she stomped across the room, jarring her shoulder as she did, setting off ribbons of pain to streak down her arm, but she didn’t care. She barely felt it anymore. She marched into the kitchen to find Xander had opened two large tackle boxes full of medical supplies on the kitchen table, and saw even more boxes stacked on the seat next to him.
“Sit.” Xander didn’t bother to look at her when he issued the order.
Annora glanced around the kitchen, feeling cornered as they surrounded her, and she couldn’t stop the way her heart began to slam against her ribs. Darkness began to swim around the room, and she struggled to keep herself whole. “Back up. Please! Everyone needs to back up.”
She gripped the counter as her knees shook with the need to run, and she concentrated on controlling her breathing. The three ferrets scurried into the room, then circled her shoes, hissing at the guys. She knelt, grateful for their support, gently rubbing their heads until they calmed, each stroke easing her own anxieties.
