Strength (Mark of Nexus #1) (39 page)

“Oh no, I’m afraid we’ve left you with the wrong impression.” Faye smoothed a trembling hand over her heart. “Our interference wasn’t meant to antagonize you. We were simply looking out for our mission, for progress. You must understand.”

Cole snorted and eased Clara behind us, but Faye didn’t stop there.

“It was my fault for underestimating you. I never expected you three to be such bright, open-minded individuals. Why, you might even consider joining our internship program. To think, two more Dynari and a…”

She paused and gave me the once-over. “What exactly are you, my dear?”

I could’ve groaned. Was it that hard to tell? “I’m human, Faye. But thanks for asking.”

“Human?” Her nose wrinkled. “You’re certain of this?”

“Yes,” I gritted out. “Is that a problem?”

“Of course not.” She waved me off with a dramatic flourish. “It’s just that I’m not in need of someone with your particular…skill set, at this time. It is a competitive program, after all. Only those with the most unique capabilities are admitted.”

I bit down on my lip. “Oh.”

It wasn’t that I wanted to join. These people were obsessed, ethically-damaged science geeks. But that didn’t stop what Gail said about killing those they didn’t have a use for, from echoing in my mind. Was I a loose thread?

“We’re done here,” Wallace told Faye, his jaw tight. “I’m not interested in your program, I’m not interested in your mission, and I’m not interested in any other garbage you have to sell to me. Just let us go, and we’ll forget this night ever happened.”

She tilted her chin. “I’m sorry you feel that way.”

I wasn’t. “He’s right. We’d better get g—ah!”

A sharp tug on my coat sleeve sent me reeling to the left as the material ripped apart. “Hey!” I latched onto the back of Wallace’s shirt for balance, trying to right myself. “What the—”

“Hold still.” Cole carefully slid the purple sleeve down my arm and over my mutilated wrist. I hadn’t even seen him leave Clara’s side.

Wallace looked tired, glancing over his shoulder at his brother. “What are you doing?”

“Wool is stiff,” he said in a matter-of-fact tone, tearing the sleeve into shreds. “Her wrist should be immobilized. It looks like shit.” He reached into his pocket, produced two slightly damp twigs, and tied them to my wrist with startling dexterity. A makeshift splint. Just like that. “So, did I miss a catfight or what?”

“Huh?” Was he going to completely ignore what just happened?

Cole nodded toward Gail as she started to come to, rubbing at the swollen, discolored part of her face. “You’re still standin’, so I’m guessing it’s safe to call this one yours.”

I opened my mouth to correct him, but stopped before the words could pass my lips. He didn’t need to know Wallace had been the one to hurt me. “Thanks.”

“Just promise you’ll call me next time. I would’ve liked to have taken pictures.”

“Nicholas,” Clara sighed, massaging her temples. “Please be respectful.”

He grinned like a little boy caught with his hand in the cookie jar. “I’m respecting the art of female combat.”

“My God, does he ever shut up?” Gail groaned, pressing her palms to her eye sockets. “There wasn’t a catfight. I lost consciousness after abusing my power to manipulate them during the assessment.”

I moved my arm and flexed my fingers, testing my circulation. Not bad, actually. My wrist still hurt like crazy, but the sturdiness was reassuring. Maybe I could—

“Rena,” Clara suddenly breathed, staring at me in awe.

“What?”

I followed her gaze to the now-visible band around my arm. No wonder everyone had gone silent. The Mark of Nexus was doing that freaky, glowy thing again, emitting an otherworldly spectrum of colors.

Faye moved around the fire, her eyes locked on my marking. “I don’t believe it.”

Cole’s lips twisted into a smirk, and I couldn’t help but wonder if he’d revealed it on purpose.

“Impossible,” Gail spat as Maverick set her down on her feet. “The Nexus was forged of legend. There’s never been a recorded case of an actual, modern-day occurrence. It’s an illusion.”

I rolled my eyes. “Yeah, that’s it, because we all know I’m totally capable of that.” She acted like I was trying to trick them. What would I even get out of that? “If it’s not real, why do you guys pass down stories about it?”

“Why do humans pass down fairytales and bedtime stories?” she countered.

“Touché.”

Clara reached out and brushed her fingertips across the strange, angular lines. “It’s beautiful,” she muttered, a ghost of a smile tracing her lips. “Wallace, do you have one too?”

He didn’t answer.

“Honey?” She turned to look at him, worry creasing her eyes.

“Cole,” Wallace bit out, meeting his brother’s eye with an unspoken command. His expression tensed in indescribable emotion as he shifted his weight.

Cole nodded. “Just go. I got this.”

What?

Wallace didn’t look back at me, edging around the others without a word of explanation. He hadn’t made it three steps past the fire when Gail spoke up.

“Where do you think you’re going?”

He didn’t falter, taking long, near-staggering strides toward the darkness.
What the hell?
Was he mad? Where was he going?

I was about to say something when a strange feeling pierced my consciousness. Dark and foreboding, it pulled for attention as it crept closer. The others started talking, but I couldn’t focus on anything they were saying. Their words jumbled together in a dull murmur. Something was wrong.

Hot tears welled up, fast and urgent behind my left eye. “Wallace…” I barely recognized my own voice as I stumbled after him, brushing past their outstretched arms. Yeah, something was definitely wrong.

The light from the fire faded, and icy raindrops welcomed me back into the night. They slid down my face as I followed him, lost in a haze of wispy concern. Somewhere, the voices rose in argument and fell into the background.

There was a heartbeat pounding in my ears. Whether it was his or mine, I didn’t really know. My thoughts were fragmented. He was in pain.
Pain
. The word echoed around my mind as he let out a tortured groan from within the shadow of the cliff.

What time is it?

I ran to him, tearing through the wet, dirty sand. “Wal…” My words ran dry as a chaotic swell of emotions crashed over me, slowing my step. I couldn’t go there. It was like an invisible barrier had separated us, leaving me on the outside.

He’d already slipped into the world of nightmares, lost to his nightly sentence of torture. How had I lost track of the time? A cluster—
now
?

The rain held me in its chilled embrace as I stood there, frozen, watching his darkened form collapse onto the ground. Even as he screamed out, gripping at his head, crushing his eye against the cliff side, there was nothing I could do to ease his pain. I’d never felt so useless.

Now, in his proximity, I could sense the disturbance in our bond. I wasn’t experiencing his pain firsthand, but it was something I was intimately aware of. It was like heat lightning. The flashes were there, but the storm was too far away to seem real.

My fist—the good one—clenched at my side.

I couldn’t fight the battle with him, but I’d be damned if he’d feel alone. The only thing I could do was wait. Cole said Wallace lost his strength around these episodes. If that were true, he’d be vulnerable afterward.

I’d stay and stand guard.

It was the only thing I could do.

Chapter Forty-Seven

I watched as silvery streaks rippled the inky surface of the lake, reflecting hints of moonlight. It felt like more than half an hour had passed, but I had no way of knowing for sure. No one had come after us.

Wallace lay exhausted against the rocks behind me. Watching his struggle had stolen something from me—something I’d never get back. Ignorance. Naivety. Something. The harshness of reality shouldn’t have had a place there, among the supernatural happenings of the night. It felt so wrong.

After giving him a moment, I turned and met his shamed gaze. Neither one of us said anything as I trekked through the wet sand and fell to my knees beside him. I closed my eyes and pulled him close, rubbing my hand over his shoulders.

He didn’t protest. Soon, his breathing deepened, and I felt his body relax against me. To be honest, I didn’t know which one of us was being comforted. It was such a peaceful, removed moment in time. I didn’t know how to take it.

How many tribulations were ours to bear? Surprisingly, the thought didn’t bother me as much as I thought it would. It didn’t matter anymore. We had each other now. Whatever happened, we’d find a way through it together.

Being with him wasn’t the sacrifice he’d claimed it to be; it was a blessing that’d come in disguise. It was hard to believe that, at one point, I’d been afraid of him. Now I could only fear what I’d be without him.

Feelings were stirring within my heart—ones I didn’t recognize because I’d refused to acknowledge them before. Adoration and longing, gratitude and devotion. They all seemed so simple in theory. Why did I have such a hard time vocalizing them?

I blew out a sigh and opened my eyes.

The rain wasn’t cold anymore. It plastered our forms together and washed away the rest of the world. Everything seemed so far away.

He lifted his head and studied me for a moment. The side of his face was swollen, framed with scrapes and cuts where he’d tried to escape the maddening pressure. His eyes sparked intensely behind his weary glaze, too stubborn to fade into exhaustion. That man…

The warmth of his breath caressed the side of my face as he watched me, his lips curving into a slow smile.

It made me self-conscious. “What?”

“I love you.” He’d said it with a shrug, as if it were the simplest thing in the world.

My heart stopped beating. “What?”

“I know you can probably sense it, but I…I guess I just needed to say it out loud.” He didn’t look away, confliction maturing the hardened lines of his face. “I don’t know what to do. I don’t want to hurt you.”

“You won’t hurt me.” The reassurance was a knee-jerk reaction. Why did he always have to make me so nervous?

His gaze slid down to my wrist, glowing a guiltier shade of blue. “Saying I’m sorry isn’t enou—”

“It’ll heal,” I assured him, still trying to grasp the implications of his words. “It was an accident.”

His brows lowered. “There are always going to be accidents with me, Rena. Maybe one of those times it won’t heal.
You
won’t heal. Then what?”

We were
not
having this discussion again. “Wallace, listen to me, because this is the last time I’m going to say it.” I met his gaze, banishing any lingering worry to the back of my mind. “I’m in this, assumed risk and all.”

He opened his mouth to respond, so I pressed my fingertips to his lips, silencing him. “There will be times when you hurt me, and as much as I hate it, there will be times when I hurt you, too. It happens.
Accidents
happen. Nobody gets to live forever.” I traced down his chin to the strong set of his jaw, lowering my voice. “Not even you…”

Heart. Stab.

We were both silent for a moment before he straightened with a sigh, pulling me close. “Rena…”

“Think of it this way,” I whispered, taking a deep breath of the smoky, rain-infused scent that clung to his shirt. “If one of us dies, the severed bond will make life insufferable, right? Doesn’t that make us mutually dangerous?”

He paused. “After that punch I saw earlier, I’d say you’re dangerous, anyway.”

“Funny.” I rolled my eyes, pulling back to look at him. Then it hit me. “Wallace, do you realize that you’re—”

“A little weak at the moment?” he asked, dropping his hands to my waist with a tired grin. “Yeah, but it’s not for long, though.”

“Well, then…we probably shouldn’t waste it.” My heart fluttered with bittersweet possibility. Would it be wrong to steal just one, forbidden moment of normalcy? We could finally—

“You’re right,” someone interrupted from the fall of shadows. “We shouldn’t waste it.” Two sets of eyes blinked into focus as something blurred in my peripheral vision.

Before I could react, Wallace grabbed my shoulders and angled his body over mine. “Move!”

“Wha—” My back hit the wet sand as a loud crack was heard. Wallace’s eyes shot open wide, and the slightest gasp parted his lips. A huge chunk of wood fell to the side with a dull, unceremonious thud.

Chapter Forty-Eight

“Shit!” I recognized the voice as Maverick’s, and as soon as I looked up, I realized what’d happened. He’d tried to club Wallace over the head with a log from the fire, and the thing had broken over his dense skull.

Strangely, I felt kind of proud. His body was solid and able to withstand the stress of his ability. It only made sense that he was able to take a heavy blow like that—even in a weakened state.