43. Jax

Chapter 43

Jax

H e wanted nothing more than to press her closer, to absorb her warmth and bury himself in her scent. It took a second for his brain to fully wake, shaking the grogginess off to realise that Thea in his arms wasn't a dream. That the salty taste of her lips was real. Which meant watching her be hurt, screaming, had been real, too.

Her blood fragranced the air, spiking his rage and rousing his drowsy beast. With the collar gone, he could feel Thunder, and that gave him enough strength to lift his head.

"You need to leave."

"Of course not." Her smile broke open a cut on her bottom lip, causing a little blood to trickle. "Trust me, this is all part of the plan."

"Thea…"

"Honestly, it's been three seconds and you're already making demands."

The sound of her voice tightened his chest, and he couldn't stop himself from laying his forehead against hers. "You can't be here," he said. "I need you to drift home. "

"No. I'm not leaving without you."

"Thea," he growled, only for her to roll her eyes. They'd both just been tortured, and were fuck-knows-where, and she just rolled her fucking eyes at him.

"I've told you, this is all part of the plan."

"Giving Gideon the third page was your plan?" He was already powerful, but with the enchanted chalice, he was going to be impossible to defeat. "You shouldn't have come."

"What, you expected me to just leave you here?" Her eyes drifted to the dead Skull, and Jax only just noticed her silver hair was even more glittery than before. "You need to trust me. Now, get up, we've got to go."

Jax climbed to his feet, using Thea and the wall as leverage. It was wet to the touch, with various glyphs carved into the stone. Many he recognised as general protection wards, but others were old, ancient in design.

Thea grunted under his arm. "You're too big."

"So I've been told." It took a moment for his legs to handle his weight, his body having taken more damage than he originally thought.

Thea snorted, stepping back. "We have to talk about this sense of humour of yours."

Jax turned to her, his reactions slower than normal. He fucking hurt, his strength stripped bare. Even each inhale took great effort, his lungs tight. He knew it would recover, but not fast enough. When it was just him, he'd accepted his fate. But he wasn't alone, and he'd do everything to make sure Thea survived.

He was built to withstand more damage than most; so, he could last long enough to get her out of there. He didn't have a choice.

Thunder howled in agreement, even if the mating bond was barely there. It didn't matter to him anymore, not when he knew there was a strong possibility he wasn't going to survive it. Because if it was between his life and hers, he'd choose hers every fucking time.

Moving to the corridor, he slowly peeked around the corner, finding it lit only by candles. There was a faint buzzing, barely audible which he followed cautiously.

There hadn't been time to explore before, Gideon drifting him straight to the main room where he was made to kneel. He didn't get to look around, or figure out where he was.

Bones crushed underfoot, each step giving away their position. The candles flickered in their sconces, a faint breeze coming from somewhere.

"It's a bunker," Thea whispered, a ball of tension behind him. "Look." She pointed to a set of bunk beds, the sheets neatly made but covered in years of dust and grime. "Do you think we're underground?"

They walked around a bone much larger than an earthen humanoid. Shit and guts piled randomly, the distinctive skitter of rats coming from within the rooms.

Crouching, Jax tracked the sound inside the wall. He followed it until he found a little hole. Reaching inside, he pulled out the Scout, the rat-like Shadow-Veyn. Only a classification A, but a vicious little fucker. With a screech, the creature twisted its long body, large front teeth biting straight to the bone. Its tail wrapped around his wrist like a snake, tightening enough his fingers immediately numbed.

With a grunt Jax pulled its teeth from his arm, pulling a chunk of flesh with it, and broke its neck. It fell to the floor with a heap, its short legs curling into itself.

"Scout," he explained, flexing his fingers as blood rushed back into them. "It's been tracking us." Jax studied the wall, pressing his palm against a place without glyphs. Scouts rarely worked alone, and were used as spies. If there was one, there would be more. "Gideon knows where we are."

"Then why hasn't he found us yet?"

Great question.

"Maybe he's busy torturing someone else." Thea shrugged, the bottom of her T-shirt riding up to show the skin of her back, and the bruises already darkening. She tugged down the fabric, giving him a gentle smile. "Come on, we should keep moving."

With a nod, he continued, many of the rooms off the single corridor similar. The rat's skittering was gone, but the earlier buzzing had only grown the further they'd moved. Sweeping out his chi he felt… nothing. No source of life, at least nothing that registered against his senses.

The next door opened with a creak, Jax catching it before it revealed more. But Thea had already peaked beneath his arm, immediately stumbling back. She gasped, catching the sound with her own palm. Inside were bodies, Skulls in various states of decay. Many were piled on top of one another, the charm that gave them their skeletal makeup still activated even in death. But around thirty stood straight, facing the wall. They stood as still as statues, and Jax would have said they were just as dead as those that littered the floors except for the buzzing. The sound was coming from their throats, all the exact same pitch.

Jax gently closed the door, turning to find Thea with her eyes wide.

"It's like they're charging," she whispered.

Jax wanted as much space between them and the room. Skulls were powerful because they didn't feel pain, meaning nothing but complete death would stop them. If he woke them from whatever hibernation they seemed to be in, he wasn't confident whether he'd be able to win without shifting. And if he shifted, he knew he wouldn't be coming back anytime soon. If at all.

Thunder pressed inside his mind, scratching to come out.

MY TURN, he huffed.

Jax spared a glance at Thea, the fresh glittery hair strands glistening in the candlelight. Not yet. He wanted to savour every moment for as long as he could.

"You're bleeding," she said, touching the wound on his shoulder. Her fingers came away red, her skin paling. "Jax?"

Each breath was harder than the one before. "You need to promise me something."

"I'm not leaving you." Her head tilted in defiance, even if her lips trembled. "Don't even – "

"Please." There wasn't much in which he would beg, but for her he'd crawl. "When it's time, you'll drift."

Thea blinked, a single tear escaping. "I... Jax!"

He felt the air stir behind him, turning just as the Skull struck. The blade sliced along his shoulder, but it wasn't aiming for him. No, it was aiming for Thea. Rearing back his arm, the Skull stabbed down, the speed almost a blur as Jax shoved her out of the way a fraction too slow.

Gripping the Skull's wrist, he twisted until he felt the distinctive snap. The Skull didn't even react, his head turning toward Thea as if he wasn't even there. He tried to move past, his entire weight stumbling forward and… he sagged, a bone protruded from his eye socket.

Jax released the Skull, who dropped to the floor with a thump. Thea stood beside him, lips open with a silent gasp as she reached down and pulled the thick bone. It jerked from the socket with a squelch, the tip clearly broken, sharp.

She blinked up at him, arm shaking with the bone gripped so tight in her fingers her knuckles were white. Her eyes dipped down, and he followed her line of sight to where a dagger stuck from his chest.

"No, no, no!" Thea pressed her palms around the blade, trying to stem the flow of blood. With a frown, he touched the end, an intense cold radiating from the metal. "Jax?"

His legs gave out, and he barely caught himself as he fell. Thea followed him down onto her knees, trying to stop him as he reached for the knife. He pulled, the intense cold remaining. Even the blood coating the blade was cool to the touch.

"Stop!" she cried. "What are you doing?" Her palms come back to the wound, adding pressure. But even he could see the blood seeping from between her fingers, pumping faster than she could stop.

He held out the dagger, offering her the hilt.

"You're going to be okay," he reassured her, tears glistening on her cheeks. He could feel himself growing weaker, and it took everything in him to remain conscious. "Take it."

Thea knocked his hand away, sobs caught in her throat.

Fingers numb, he cupped her cheek. "You're going to have to leave me."

"No, you don't get to do this." Her palms pressed harder, trying and failing to stem the flow. "You don't get to do this. You can't make me fall for you, and then just die."

"Thea…"

"No!" She didn't simply accept their mating bond; she shattered whatever shields had been strangling it. It snapped into place, connecting them in a way neither of them truly understood. He felt it swell, a warmth that fought against the impending cold. But nothing could stop it. He was too far gone.

"Jax." Her voice cracked. "Please, I need you. "

He smiled, darkness encroaching on his vision. "I wished I could have lived in your world of colour, my little thief."