Page 38 of Dying in Flames (Reborn 4)
Maya frowned. “He bruised me, and seconds before you came in, he pinned me onto the ground. He tried”—her voice got choked up—“he tried to pull down my—”
“You don’t have to say anything else,” I promised her softly, despite the visceral need to know what had been done to her so that I could do worse.
She inhaled sharply. “I killed him.I killed him before that could happen. He’s dead. He is…dead. Lorn is dead, and he didn’t get to touch me. Not like that. I don’t think I need to see a doctor. Not a physical one, at least…or maybe I should because my head still hurts…” Her words were soft and filtered off at the end.
I was furious about what happened to Maya, but the fact that she incinerated him before he could physically injure her any more—or worse—made me feel relieved. If I had found out that Lorn had done anything outside of bruising her, I would have probably given into the darkness I could feel building under my skin. I was keeping it at bay, though, because the most important thing to me was my angel and making sure that she was okay. Making sure she could heal from what had happened to her.
I knew that she was probably feeling a lot, and I could help with some of it, but I also knew there were emotions she was feeling that she probably couldn’t explain. I had never been overpowered by someone because of size, but Maya had…often. I had never been sexually assaulted, but Maya had nearly been. I wanted to help her, but I didn’t know how.
I didn’t know how to help my own mate. Fuck. How did I keep failing her?
“I’m sorry,” I murmured, tilting her head back. “I’m so sorry I wasn’t there, Maya. I am so sorry I failed you. Never again—”
Her lips pressed to mine as she went up on her toes, already shaking her head. “You did not fail me, Atlas. None of you did. None of us could have expected this.”
“What can I do to fix it?” I asked nearly desperately.
“Stay with me? Sleep with me? I want to feel safe again.”
So that’s exactly what we did. Her soft breathing and Bella’s snores filled the space, allowing me to relax just slightly. I stared up at the ceiling, hearing the others moving around the house and talking. For once, I didn’t bother listening, instead taking the moment to just appreciate that she was in my arms. Safe.
I hope I made her feel safe.
After a few hours, Croy came to the door, somehow managing to keep calm in comparison to everyone else in the house. I didn’t trust that, though, because usually the calmest was the most dangerous.
I answered his unspoken question. “She’s okay. Shook up, but she killed him and defended herself before the bastard could hurt her any further.”
Croy walked to the edge of the bed, crouching down in front of her, and brushed some hair from her forehead. I could tell he wanted to say something about her, but instead he delivered a message from Marco.
“Marco wants your opinion on what to tell Lorn’s father… And he received some intel regarding what Maya had him look into.”
“What?” I immediately asked.
“Apparently, one of his contacts has news that Malcolm was seen off the coast of France.”
“What the fuck is he doing there?”
“No idea,” Croy muttered. “Apparently”—he lowered his voice even further—“Apparently there have been more rumors there. Rumors of phoenixes being seen, along with some dragons.”
Shit.
“We can’t go,” I started, knowing that any amount of traveling right now was a horrible idea.
“Yes we can.” Maya’s voice had me snapping my head down to find her opening her eyes sleepily. “We can go there. Weneedto go there. That is far too odd of a coincidence.”
“Sugar,” Croy grunted, “after tonight…”
Her voice trembled slightly. “I—I know we just got back, but every time we are here, something bad happens. I would like to go somewhere warm and safe for a bit. I love this house, but everything about Seattle right now is reminding me of all the upsetting things that have happened.
“Plus, I am not giving up on the others. I know Malcolm has them somewhere. I won’t let them go through what I did. Constant pain at the hands of people who think they have a right… No, I need to do this.”
Then we would.
Looking at Croy, I nodded. “Tell Marco the plan. If my angel wants to go, then we will go.”
Maya’s eyes closed once again, and after exchanging a look with Croy, he left, leaving me to hold my brave, strong, beautiful mate. I would help find these other girls for her. It was going to be one of many ways to atone for my failure as a mate.
