Nearly a second later, the weight above me is pulled off as Liam attacks the man. I roll over and push myself up, trying to catch my breath. Liam walks over to me after he takes care of the man and helps me up. I lean against him briefly but quickly recover when I hear the sound of footsteps behind me. Liam glances over my shoulder and starts walking backward.
“Time to go,” he says as he reaches out for my hand and starts running. Taking a deep breath, I start running after him. Rounding the left corner, we stop short when we come across the wall of men blocking the right hallway. I look over at Liam and nod, telling him that I’m good to fight.
Five guys run toward us. I take on the two on the right while Liam takes on the three on the left. I swing my leg up and kick the first man on the chest and spin around and hit the other with my elbow. I continue fighting against these men until I start noticing a pattern. The one on the left relies mostly on his left to hit, which is different from those I usually fight. The other man relies on strength and precision. He isn’t following a pattern but is definitely getting some good hits in. I’m pretty sure a couple of my ribs are broken, and my shoulders and arms are covered in bruises. I am tiring quickly with no avail against these guys. My wrists sting with each movement from rope burns.
I punch the left dominant man in his solar plexus. He falls to the ground winded, but I can’t turn around quick enough to go against the other man. I see the fist coming for me right as it connects with my cheek. I swing around and fall to the ground. Rolling over, I swing my leg out and kick him in the chest, knocking him back into Liam, who has just finished off the third guy. Liam hits the man on his pressure point. I attempt to get up when the last guy reaches out and grabs onto my leg, pulling me back down. I land on my shoulder. Wincing I try to roll over, but he grabs onto my other foot. “Liam!” I say, hoping that he’ll come help me.
Liam jumps down and pulls the man off of me, taking care of him quickly. I really need to learn about that pressure point thing. Reaching down, he helps pull me up. I thank him and look at him for injuries. He has a split lip and black eye but looks fine. Without saying anything to me, he grabs onto my hand once again and starts running down the right hallway. I try to keep up, but I’m having difficulty getting oxygen into my lungs.
We make it to the end of the hallway, and Liam throws open the door. Taking a single step outside the door, Liam grabs me around the waist, closes his eyes, and transports us out of the dream world.
Chapter Twenty-Four
Colton
“Something is happening,” I say as I look down at Ryanne. She has started stirring but isn’t waking up. “What could be going on?” I grab onto Ryanne’s hand hoping that she’ll wake up when I touch her.
Her head turns toward me, and I see the skin under one of her eyes darkening. I reach forward and lightly trace the outline of the bruise. Out of the corner of my eye, I can see the pen marks on my wrist from earlier. Somehow, I’m going to make it permanent.
Can’t she just get a break? Even with me, they’re finding a way to get to her. She can’t take much more of this. Natalie reaches out and places her hand on my arm again, calming me. I press my lips together, trying to keep from acting out. Even with her calming magic, there are some emotions you can’t take away. I want to put an end to all this.
I walk away from Ryanne and start pacing behind the couch. I need to move. I need to do something. I need Ryanne to wake up so I can see that she is all right. “Liam’s bleeding,” Natalie says.
She moves so that she is sitting beside him. Hesitantly, she reaches out and lightly touches his lip. Pulling back, there is bright red blood on her finger. They are fighting someone. Liam gasps and jumps up from the couch. Startled, Natalie screams and moves back, landing with a thud on the floor.
Liam blinks back into the present and looks around. Seeing Natalie on the ground, he bends down and helps her stand up. “Thanks,” she whispers.
Liam looks at Natalie briefly before turning his attention back to Ryanne. “Logan, she’ll need you to heal her when she wakes up. We had some difficulty fighting. They got some hits in on her. I think she has a couple broken ribs, bruised arms and legs, a black eye, and rope burns on her wrists. She could have more, but I won’t know until she wakes up.”
Logan walks over and stops in front of Ryanne, waiting for her to become alert. “What happened?” I ask him.
“Long story short: Valdus was going to give Ryanne to Dravin. Ryanne gave a little speech. Valdus changed his mind and helped us escape. We got attacked. We fought. We came back.”