Jonas (Darkness #7)(34)

Jonas ripped the door open and burst out. Charles went next followed by me, magic spell to kill at the ready. Charles stabbed someone in the back as Jonas ripped someone else off the ground and threw him. I burst through with a spell and ran smack into Stefan, Jameson, and the huge bear that was Tim. They knew we were in there and were coming for us.

I probably should’ve felt that, but I was just a bit off my game…

When Stefan saw me emerge, he ripped me toward him and crushed me to his chest. “I thought he had you. Jesus, Sasha, I thought he had you.”

I gave myself five full seconds of his tight embrace, feeling his warmth and safety hugged around me. Feeling our hearts beating rapidly together. Then I pushed away and composed myself. “Oh ye of little faith.”

His dark eyes stared down at me, touching the deep part of me no one else could get to. A fog of desire enveloped me.

“Not the time, human,” Jonas growled.

“Right.” I sighed and tore my eyes away from my love. Battle still raged around us, kept away for the moment by Tim’s crew of snarling, ravaging shifters.

I looked back up at Stefan. “I gotta go.”

“I know. We’re going with you. We’re dominating in battle, but losing in magic. Cato is on his knees. We don’t have much time.”

A shock of guilt and adrenaline both pierced me. I turned back to Emmy, who had melted against the door. She really didn’t seem to like the presence of Stefan’s race, especially those in the leadership role.

Time to get over that ridiculousness. “Okay, Emmy, you’re up. And don’t worry about, like, social stuff. Okay? We’re all equals, here.”

“Hardly.” Charles lifted his eyebrows when he saw mine and Jonas’ glare. “We pride those with more talent over those without. That’s all I meant!”

Jonas held out his hand. Emmy grasped it, immediately. Jameson and Stefan’s eyes both went completely round. I snickered. Jonas had found lurve. How cute.

Charles and I would totally bust his balls!

In the next moment, as Emmy began to move with purpose, my smile melted back into my mask of determination. With the shifters shadowing her sides, and rushing ahead to clear a path, and the rest of us directly behind, we all moved as a unit through a wide hallway to the middle of the building.

“We can trust her, right, bro?” Charles muttered in a low tone.

If Jonas answered, I couldn’t hear. Screaming drowned out my thoughts as we passed an intersecting corridor in view of a wide set of stairs. A mage had some of our guys on the ground, blasting them with a spell that caused convulsions and the blistering of skin. The mage in question was completely calm as he tortured those on the floor at his feet.

My stomach turned as I whipped out a circular array of electric current. As the spell was released, the mage turned toward us to hurl something. He never got the chance. A crack had a sickening line of red opening on his throat. The skin seemed to blister as it turned away from the whip slash. He gurgled out a scream and clutched at his throat as my spell hit, electrocuting him on the spot and stopping all his vitals.

“You learned some nasty spells, human,” Jonas said as we pushed forward.

“There are a lot of them here. I’ve made mine at least kill quickly.”

“The group elected to come to this compound are the best. The best at fighting, and the best at offensive spells.” Emmy took the stairs two at a time. “They intended to take the Council. I don’t think they expected the Council to come to them. They usually underestimate Americans. Always have.”

“Well, good for us,” I said.

We found an empty hallway at the top of the stairs, which immediately had me grabbing Emmy by the back of the gown (odd choice of clothes) to slow her. I veered to the side. Stefan and Jameson stepped in front of us. Jonas walked lightly to the other side. The shifters, one and all, put their noses to the ground.

“Nathanial is too good to leave his back unguarded,” I whispered as my magic drifted down the hall in front of us. “Which way is it?”

“Straight down the hall to the middle, left through a door, down a hall, and then up a few steps and over to the ledge.”

“Do you know who guards him in battle?” Stefan asked softly.

“The man you just killed is one. He probably descended from the top of the stairs. Then Nathanial will have five with swords, and I don’t know how many magical people.”

“Cato said four, but we took two down,” I said.

Emmy shook her head. “He has replacements always ready. He can only hold a certain power level in a link, so when someone falters, he brings on someone else in their place.

“Do you have a blood bond?” Stefan looked at her keenly. “Will he know you’re coming?”

Emmy shook her head again, a look of pure disgust crossing her face. “If the black mage took off the tracker, then no. I have never taken his blood—he has only taken mine.”

Stefan nodded and glanced at Jonas. We were all wondering if Emmy could be trusted. Being kept was a funny thing—you might hate your captor, but if that was all you knew, change could be scary. And fear made a person do irrational things. I trusted Jonas, but Emmy was very pretty, and very good with Jonas’ sexual pleasure of choice. It would be easy for his male anatomy to make decisions his brain never would.