Wicked Bite (Realm Enforcers #5)(18)

        

They might need to cover Angie's screams as people left.

He shoved into the massive storage room and slammed the door. Shelves filled with alcohol and bar food lined all four walls. Lucas had set Angie down on the floor in the middle of the room, and her body was convulsing wildly, her fingers randomly shooting flames. Bear jumped out of the way of a stream of fire. "What the fuck? Apollo?" The only way a human could create flames was by taking too much of the drug.

Lucas knelt and pressed both of her shoulders to the floor, trying to hold her still. "Angie? How much did you take, darlin'?"

Angie struggled against him and let out a high-pitched scream.

Bear's stomach rolled. The drug was burning her from the inside out. Why wasn't the shit off the streets? The main distributor had been blown up.

Nessa crouched down and placed her hands on Angie's upper chest.

"Wait a minute." Bear leaned and grasped Nessa's arm. "This is a drug that harms witches, too. Will this hurt you?" He wasn't going to allow her to harm herself helping somebody who'd taken an illegal drug, probably knowing the risks. "Nessa?"

"Let me see how far gone she is," Nessa said, her body stilling. She shut her eyes.

Fire burst from Angie's mouth, and Lucas sat back. The flames danced for a second on Nessa's face and then disappeared.

Lucas gaped. "What the hell?"

Nessa breathed in and settled herself. "She took a lot."

Angie whimpered. Her body jerked several times.

Nessa grimaced.

"That's enough." Bear tightened his hold on her arm.

She shook her head wildly, dislodging him. "No."

Angie reared up and let out a scream of pure agony. Fire flashed from all her fingers, shooting across the room and lighting the alcohol-laden shelves on fire. A bottle dropped and shattered.

Vodka spread across the floor.

Almost in slow motion, a flame arced from a shelf to the liquid.

The wooden shelves ignited.





Chapter 6

Nessa kept her hands pressed against Angie's chest, trying to push a healing balm around the woman's burning internal organs. Fire crackled around the two of them, but she had to concentrate.

Apollo was made from a mineral called PK that harmed witches. Most witches used fire. So when humans took the drug, they created fire until they burned up. Using her knowledge of PK, Nessa tried to counter the drug. Water beat fire, so she imagined water and healing gel throughout Angie's body.

The woman cried out, the sound full of pain.

"It's okay," Nessa whispered, looking up.

Bear had taken his shirt off and was trying to slap out the flames on the floor. The cotton instantly caught fire, and he dropped it, giving a snarl. Lucas shrugged out of his leather jacket and threw it at Bear while turning for the nearest shelf, where he shoved bottles away from the flames. 

Smoke clouded the room.

"Open the door," Bear ordered, pressing the leather coat onto the flames.

Lucas coughed and shoved open the door. Smoke followed him. He hustled out to the bar and returned with a bucket of ice to throw across the floor.

Bear finished extinguishing the flames.

Nessa breathed shallowly, keeping her head low. Black smoke spiraled up, trapped against the ceiling.

Angie convulsed again.

Nessa closed her eyes and pictured the interior of a human body. She usually couldn't mess with human physiology, but the Apollo drug was created by altering planekite, which only harmed witches. Nessa was used to dealing with planekite poisoning, so, this once, she might have a chance to help a human. The smoke burned her lungs, but she couldn't stop. The balm she'd created soothed Angie's body, and Nessa felt the moment its protection kicked in.

Angie's head jerked back. The heat inside her cooled. The young woman settled back to the floor with a sigh. Her eyelids closed, and she passed into unconsciousness.

Lucas knelt down again, soot across his brow. "What are you doing?"

Nessa didn't have the strength to answer. She swayed.

"Whoa." Bear dropped to his haunches and supported her. "Nessa? "

She leaned against him. "Angie will be okay." She lifted her shaking hands. Her stomach felt hollow. The alcohol she'd consumed settled like a lump, and her head spun. Wildly.

Lucas smoothed hair back from Angie's sweaty face. "How did you do that?"

"Long story," Nessa said wearily.

Bear stood and assisted Nessa to her feet. "Lucas? Get Angie somewhere safe for the night."

Weakness swept through Nessa, and her knees gave.

Bear caught her before she hit the floor.

"I'm fine. Just tired," she mumbled, shaking her head to regain focus.

"Right." Bear lifted her, barely taking a step back as he took her weight.