Chapter 19 · Mara said

She placed her palm over Rhys's heart.

His coat was rough beneath her fingers. Heat leaked through the fabric in uneven bursts. His heartbeat stumbled against her hand, weak and frantic.

The contact pulled the bond open.

Pain slammed into her.

Mara cried out and nearly fell sideways. Rhys's mind hit hers in a flash of broken images—white restraints, a metal table, a child's voice counting backward, blood-dark power spilling from his hands.

She ripped her palm away.

Rhys's heart stuttered.

"No," Mara said. "No, no, no."

"What happened?" Talia demanded.

"He pulled me in."

"Then hold the line."

"I saw—"

"Don't chase the memory. Stay on his breathing."

Another blow struck the door. The silver muzzle vanished. Someone was preparing a breach charge.

Mara pressed her hand back down.

Rhys's mind snapped around hers.

This time she felt him. Not the hunter. Not the controlled weapon the company had sold to rich clients. A furious, exhausted man caught in a dark current, fighting so hard he couldn't tell which way was up.

"Rhys," she said aloud. "You want to live?"

His fingers dragged across the concrete.

"Answer me."

His mouth moved.

"Don't..."

"Don't what?"

The bond pulsed.