Wicked Burn (Realm Enforcers #3)(7)

Nick coughed. “Bullshit.”

“Excuse me?” Simone snuffed out her plasma.

“A conviction for treason means your powers are blasted out of you, or it can mean death.” Nick flashed his teeth. “Bear, if you want your old friend to survive, you’ll help us out of here before her transport arrives.”

The soldier guarding the door shook his head. “Any action to prevent our mission is tantamount to a declaration of war.”

“Like I give a f*ck.” Bear kept his gaze on Simone.

Nick gave the equivalent of a demon growl. “I concur with Bear.”

The soldier snarled. “Unless Zane Kyllwood condemns your actions, demon, the Coven Nine will declare war on the entire demon nation. Again.”

Unfortunately, the soldier had a good grasp on the political situation.

Nick set his stance. “Zane Kyllwood has no idea I’m with Simone, and he certainly did not approve my actions. This is all me and not the demon nation.” He studied Bear. “You in or out?”

Bear lifted one dark eyebrow. “Simone?”

“I need to face these charges.” She tried her damnedest to keep panic from her voice. “We just finished a war . . . Let’s not start another one quite yet.”

“True.” Bear shrugged. “Yet, I’m in.”

He’d barely gotten the words out before the lead guard hit him with a plasma ball in the center of the chest. Bear flew through the air and slammed into the bar. He rose, beginning to shift, and the other three guards pummeled him with plasma until he dropped unconscious.

Lucas ran forward and faced the same attack to save his boss. One of the guards drew a gun and shot him several times in the chest. He clutched his arm and fell, falling on his face, out cold.

Nick growled. Vibrations of air from him, dark and menacing, pierced the oxygen. The Guard soldiers cried out, two of them grabbing their temples. One fell to the ground, his body convulsing.

Simone panted, her eyes widening at the nightmarish scene. Turning, she watched Nick’s eyelids droop as he managed the demon mind attack and ripped through their brains. “Stop it,” she whispered.

“No.”

She glanced over at Bear, who was out cold and bleeding freely. Thank goodness the wounds were in the chest. Shifters had a hard time recuperating from head shots. And politically, he was all right. No matter how the day ended, at least he’d be protected because he hadn’t had a chance to do anything amounting to a declaration of war. But man, was he going to be pissed.

A second soldier dropped unconscious to the ground from Nick’s attack.

The third tried to form plasma down his arms, but the flames sputtered.

God, Nick had gotten even more powerful through the years. Most demons could perpetrate mind attacks, but not to this degree. They shot both images and pain into their victims’ brains, which could be destroyed forever. “Nick. Stop it.” Even though the Guard was after her, these were her people, and they were just doing their jobs.

He ignored her, his chin lowering.

A helicopter set down outside the wide block of windows, and several Guard soldiers jumped out.

There was no escape, and they’d kill Nick.

Simone sucked in air and drew on all her power. Nick was concentrating hard on the soldiers and didn’t turn her way. The bastard wasn’t leaving her a choice. She concentrated, drawing on the power of the universe and the molecular compounds around her, creating plasma out of oxygen. Taking a breath, she threw a ball of plasma at his back.

The fire hit hard and knocked him into the sofa.

He jumped up and spun around, red spiraling into his face. “What the hell?”

Winding her arms, she propelled ball after ball at him, burning his clothes, but stopping short of a truly damaging shot, just in case she needed his help getting out of there. She hit his arms, his shoulders, his legs. He growled, twisting and turning from the blows, but not attacking her mind.

She’d counted on him not harming her. Physically, anyway.

Bootsteps pounded outside the building. Damn it. To keep him alive, she had to knock him out before they entered the room. Not for one second did she question her need to save his life.

So she twisted her aim for his face.

He ducked, and the fireball smashed into the door, throwing it off the hinges. Bellowing, he lunged for her, hitting her mid-center and taking her down with a tackle that stole her breath. He landed on top of her, his furious face an inch from hers. “Do not make me hurt you.”

Hurt her? He’d just bruised her entire body. She sent flames down her arms.

“Damn it.” He flipped her over, planted a knee in the small of her back, and clasped her wrists together, ignoring the fire. Seconds later, something strong wrapped around her wrists and up her forearms.

He stood and jerked her to her feet.

Her mouth gaped open. He’d tied her hands behind her back with his damn belt. Then she smiled. Idiot. She changed the oxygen and increased the heat of her flames, burning the leather completely away.

Her hands remained tied.

Her smile slid away.

He leaned in, rubbing the burn marks along his hand. His gaze was hotter than any flame she could create. “Do you really think I fetched you without some protection from your fire?”

She jerked against the restraints. “You dick.” His belt had been leather over coiled steel.