Into the Lair (Falcon Mercenary Group #2)(33)

“He won’t be alone,” Jonah said. “Marcus is going with him.”

“Where?” Her voice cracked and shattered like glass.

“I want him to try alternatives to medicine,” Marcus said. “As I said before, I think the key is psychological. His DNA has been altered, and there is no cure for that. I can bandage it, but it won’t fix the problem. I firmly believe…” He glanced around at D’s family. “There is no cure right now. As much as we want there to be one. Damiano is going to have to learn to control his abilities or they’ll kill him. There’s no way to soften that truth.”

“Where are you taking him?” Tyana demanded hoarsely. “Why can’t I stay with him?”

“He has to do this alone,” Marcus said. “It’s best if you don’t know where. I want him to take on a regimen of meditation and spiritual honing. Mind over matter. He needs discipline.”

Tyana’s mouth twisted. “It sounds like a bunch of bullshit”.

“He’s going, Ty,” Jonah said.

Panic and grief crashed over her like a wave. “When?”

Mad Dog’s expression drew into a grimace.“As soon as the chopper gets here”.

Eli’s grip tightened around her, but she didn’t want comfort. Not when Damiano was going to be alone. Without his family. Without her.

“Where is he now?” she demanded.

“He’s resting under guard,” Jonah said.

“I want to see him. To say goodbye.”

Jonah nodded. “Of course. As we all do.”

“Does he know?” she asked.

“He knows,” Mad Dog said quietly.

She closed her eyes against the sudden tears. She and D had been together since they were children, never separated for longer than a few days. He needed her now more than ever, and he would be alone. She’d sworn he’d never be without her. And now she was forced to break her promise.

Gently, Eli helped her to her feet. The agony caused by the tiger’s attack was nothing compared to the pain lashing at her soul. Ignoring the crutches and the hands that reached to help, she dragged her casted leg behind her as she hobbled to the door.

When she walked inside, she saw D sitting on the couch, his face in his hands. Four of the Falcon secondary stood guard around him.

Slowly, painfully, she made her way toward him. When she was but a few feet away, he looked up. The anguish in his eyes was her undoing. She dropped heavily to the floor, her hands clutching at him as he reached to hug her.

“I’m sorry, Ty. I’m so sorry.”

His voice was muffled in her hair. She hung onto him, her tears seeping into the material of his shirt.

She pulled slowly away and touched her hand to his cheek. “Don’t be sorry, D. I’m the one who’s sorry. I’ve failed you. I swore to find a cure.”

He shook his head. “I could have killed you. Marcus is right to take me away.”

She shook her head harder. But he stilled her motion with a finger to her lips.

“I have to do this, Ty. For me and for you. I won’t stay where I might hurt you. It’s already happened once before. I could have killed you this time.”

“I love you,” she whispered.

He cupped her cheek in a loving gesture, and with his other hand, he stroked her hair. “I love you more.”

He glanced up at Eli who hovered protectively over Tyana. “Keep her safe for me.”

Eli nodded. “You know I will.”

D’s gaze went to Jonah and Mad Dog. He swallowed as though he didn’t know what to say. And then he stood, letting his hand fall from Tyana’s face. Eli helped her to her feet so that she was beside her brother.

“You take care, little brother,” Mad Dog said gruffly as he enfolded D in his beefy embrace.

Then it was only D and Jonah, standing face to face. Dark emotion, so uncharacteristic of Jonah, clouded his face. His eyes flashed with pain, and Tyana felt guilty for all the times she’d thrown such nasty accusations at him.

“You’ll beat this, D,” Jonah said. “You’ll beat it and you’ll come back to us. Your family. We’ll always be here for you.”

He hugged D tightly, stiffly, his face a mask of sorrow.

“The chopper is two minutes out.”

The statement came from behind Jonah, from one of the secondary standing guard. Tyana stifled the urge to scream. She turned into D’s arms and held on tight.

D stroked her hair in his quiet, generous way. God, it should be her offering him comfort, but as always, he took care of her.

“Come back to me, D. Swear it.”

He pulled away and brushed his lips across her forehead, his words whisper soft. “I’ll always be wherever you are.”

Chapter Seventeen

Braden dragged his eyelids open but couldn’t for the life of him get them to stay that way. It felt like bricks were sitting on his eyes, and his head pounded like someone was taking a jackhammer to it.

He moved his hand, surprised to feel the roughness of carpet under his palm. He blinked and then blinked again as he became aware that he was on the floorboard of the SUV, his nose pressed against a floor mat.

What the ever-loving f**k?

His nerves were jittery and jumping around, but not like what happened right before a shift. This was different. And damn, he hurt from head to toe. What had Ian given him? And why was he on the floor?