Dark Wolf Unbound (Heart of the Shifter #2)(22)

He leaned his head back against the door and closed his eyes, trying to  focus enough to reach inside him and assess his injuries. As a shifter,  he had extensive healing capacities, but he hadn't had time to work on  it. He trusted Drake implicitly, and if the other wolf said the place  was safe, then it was. There were only two wolves he truly trusted, and  Drake was one of them.

He checked his ankle first, grimly assessing the damage. It was as bad  as he'd thought. The bones were completely shattered, pulverized into  fragments and dust. Not healable. Fuck. The enormity of the situation  settled on him like a crushing weight. How the hell could he keep Abby  safe from Lucius on one leg?

He couldn't.

Swearing under his breath, he concentrated on his ankle, pouring healing  energy into it, refusing to concede defeat. "Come on," he muttered.

A light hand touched his shoulder, making him start. He grabbed it even  as he opened his eyes. Abby was crouched in front of him, her eyes dark  with worry. "Jace. I want you to meet Kiernan."

Beside her was the unfamiliar shifter. He was early thirties, strapping  and strong. A powerful wolf that exuded dominance. He was wearing jeans  and a tattered tee shirt that didn't hide the unrivaled strength of his  frame. He had one hand on Abby's shoulder, possessively marking her as  his.

Jace sat up quickly, his wolf roaring in fury. "Don't touch her," he snarled.

Kiernan's eyes narrowed, and Abby's mouth dropped open in shock. Shit.  What had he just done? He knew what he'd done. He'd claimed her. Marked  her as his own in front of a competitor. He had no business doing that,  but he couldn't make himself retract it. He just met Kiernan's gaze,  letting the other shifter feel the full force of his power and his  claim. For a moment, Kiernan didn't move, then Abby quickly moved to  Jace's other side, away from Kiernan, breaking the tension. Kiernan,  Jace noticed, didn't try to stop her.

Smart move.

Abby put her hand on Jace's shoulder, squeezing gently. "Kiernan," she said softly. "Jace needs help. His ankle and his arm."

Jace narrowed his eyes at the shifter, unwilling to submit to a wolf he didn't know. "Who are you?"

"I heal." The shifter gave no other answer, but Jace could feel a  humming vibration in his ankle, as if he'd already started working on  Jace's leg.

"I didn't give you permission," he snapped. He didn't like this at all.  He was in this shifter's lair, injured, and the only one who could vouch  for him was Abby, who hadn't even been sure he was trustworthy. For all  he knew, Kiernan would pull out a recording of that song and-

Shit.

He'd be fucked. He was locked in a basement with a bunch of shifters  that he could turn on in a split second. What if Lucius started blasting  the song from upstairs? Would they hear it? How long would it take for  Jace to attack them all?

I'm on it. Drake's voice was hard and unyielding.

He locked gazes with Drake, who was standing just behind Kiernan, his  hands relaxed by his side, the rest of his body primed and ready to step  in. I don't like this, Drake.

Drake nodded. You need help, Jace. If he can help you, take it. He met  Jace's eyes, his expression too knowing about the extent of Jace's  injuries. If he pulls out the song, I'll kill him instantly. And you, if  I have to.                       
       
           



       

He hated being so weak that he had to put himself in a vulnerable  position. It went against every fiber of his body to endanger Abby and  Drake because he needed help.

"Jace." Abby touched his shoulder, drawing his attention back to her. "Let him help you. He's gifted. He saved my life."

Jace turned his attention back to Kiernan. He studied the shifter,  reaching out with his mind to try to pick up on his energy signature,  but he got nothing. He couldn't even catch a scent from him. It was as  if he was a mirage, not truly present. "I can't sense you."

"As it should be." Kiernan looked at him, resting one muscular forearm over his knee. "I can help you."

"Why would you?" Jace shot back.

"Because it is my calling." Kiernan's voice was calm and steady. "It is  my gift and my curse. You found me, so it is my duty to help."

To his surprise, Jace felt the truth resonating in Kiernan's words. The  shifter truly did believe it was his duty, and that was something Jace  understood, being driven by his own duty to protect other shifters, to  create a pack that would keep them safe. "I accept."

Kiernan nodded, and rose to his feet. Without another word, he walked  across the room and disappeared through a door that Jace hadn't even  noticed. "Chatty guy," Jace observed.

Abby stood up. "He's waiting for you. Come on."

"Back there?" Jace tried to stand, but it took both Abby and Drake's  assistance to get him vertical. His body was shaking, and he could  barely focus. He knew his body was going into shock, and that was not a  good sign. He'd pushed hard after his injuries, yeah, but he'd done that  many times in his life and he'd never hit a wall like this before.

He could barely support himself as they helped him to the other room,  and the cot they set him on seemed to come up faster than he expected  when he tried to sit down on it. Or maybe he'd gone down too fast.  Either way, he knew he was in bad shape.

"Get him on his back." Kiernan's voice was distant, fading, and Jace  frowned, trying to stay focused as several sets of hands moved him,  rolling him over. Pain shot through him, and he sucked in his breath as  his ankle hit the side of the cot.

"Why is he in such bad shape?" Drake asked, but Jace could barely focus on his words.

"There's silver in his blood stream," Kiernan said.

Silver? "How?" It was a tremendous effort to form the words.

"Point of entry was the ankle." Kiernan's hands closed around Jace's  leg. A scream of agony tore from Jace's throat, and he fought to get his  leg free, but he couldn't move.

He opened his eyes, and saw Drake leaning over him, holding him down. "Get the fuck off me."

Drake glanced at him. "Sorry, Jace. It has to be done."

Kiernan did something to his ankle again, and another scream tore from  Jace's throat as the pain ricocheted through him. Jesus. He gritted his  teeth, sweat streaming down his temples. He'd felt pain before, and he  was an expert at managing it, but he'd never felt anything like this  before.

"It's incredible he's still functioning." Kiernan sounded impressed,  almost in awe. "He should have been dead hours ago. I've never seen  anyone be able to compartmentalize silver before, and yet he did it,  even with his body under such duress from his other injuries." More  pain, and another scream.

Jace arched his back, unable to stop the scream as it tore through him.  His mind was fragmenting, shattering into dozens of pieces. Memories  flashed through his mind. The screams of the woman he'd killed. Melissa.  Dying. Crying. The taste of her blood. His need to kill. The burning,  insatiable need to kill-

"Jace." Gentle hands framed his face. "It's Abby. Focus on me."

Her voice was like an angel's whisper, easing the agony trying to  consume him. He focused on her green eyes, letting himself be swept away  by her voice. Her warmth seemed to wrap around him, a soothing,  powerful shield that distanced Kiernan and Drake, leaving him with only  Abby. He reached for her, and she took his hand, squeezing tightly.

Pain screamed through his body now, as if Kiernan had released the  silver and it was burning him up from the inside out, his blood searing  its way through his veins. It felt wrong what he was doing. It felt  dangerous. It felt like death. He tried to get up, but Drake was still  holding him down. "No," Jace gritted out. "It's wrong. Don't trust him.  Stop him."

Drake and Abby looked at each other across Jace's body, and he saw their  silent exchange. Then the searing pain slammed into his brain, and  darkness descended.





Chapter 13





Jace snapped awake, bolting upright in bed. The room was pitch black,  but his eyes adjusted swiftly as he rapidly assessed the situation. Abby  was asleep on a chair next to the cot, and Drake was standing guard in  the hallway just outside the door. He could sense the other two shifters  in a room down the hall, but he couldn't find Kiernan. He sensed no  other shifters at all.                       
       
           



       

The hold was secure.

Some of his tension eased, and Jace took a moment to look around. He was  in a windowless, cramped room, less than six feet wide, housing only  the cot, and Abby's chair. The night was silent, and quiet, no tension  lurking, giving him the chance to breathe again. He was in Kiernan's  lair, and it was secure at the moment.