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Three seconds—okay, that was seriously impressive.

“I’m fine,” she said, her voice hardly a flutter.

He stared at her for a beat, as if waking from a dream. No—a nightmare.

And then: “I wanted you safe.” His statement was gruff with defeat. Broken with regret. The pain lining his face, as if he were being tortured, nearly buckled her knees.

“So keep me safe,” she pleaded softly. “I’m here now. I survived and I’m fine. I’m fine—see?” She gestured to herself, her heart thrumming so fast it felt like a hummingbird was caged inside her chest. The hospital was so dark it felt dangerous, and yet there was a part of her—a foolish part, maybe—that told her she didn’t have to be afraid. Because these shadows…they were Darien’s. These shadowswereDarien. And she knew he would never hurt her.Ever.“So get your shadows under control,” she said, her words cracking again from her own emotions—from the unbearable anguish on Darien’s face, “and keep me safe.”

Tense silence once again filled the area, interrupted only by the droning of unanswered phone calls. The receptionists werewatching from behind the desk. One was halfway out of her seat, phone in hand.

It was that same brave soul who called, “Do you got it figured out, or do I need to call security?”

“They’re fine,” Ivy said, though her tone was frayed, and she looked as frazzled as Loren felt. Her gaze bounced between her brother and the Reaper he was still pinning against the wall. “Aren’t you, Darien?”

Darien didn’t respond. Didn’t let go. Didn’t tear his eyes off Loren—not for one second, not for onemillionthof a second.

“Malakai,” Aspen whispered, her tone reproachful and taut with fear.

“I’m not doing anything—it’s Darien!” he spat. “It’salwaysDarien.”

Jack said, “Except for when it’s you.” He chuckled, but his humor was short-lived.

Loren’s attention jumped back to Darien. He was still staring at her, still breathing so heavily it was as if he’d run clear across the city to get to her. Knowing him, it was something he’d do.

“You’re fine?” he bit out, his deep voice husky with concern. If her nerves weren’t so fried, she might have melted beneath that voice. And thatstare.The way he was looking at her…gods, she couldn’t describe it.

“I’m fine,” she said softly. To her surprise, a few of the lights flickered back on to a lower setting. She wrapped her shaking fingers around his forearm, the muscles hard as rock, and tugged gently. “Let go, Darien. Let go. Please.”

Her touch melted the tension right out of him, his clenched hands slowly opening, as if made of ice that was thawing under sunlight.

He released Malakai without so much as looking at him. The Reaper’s boots thumped as they hit the ground, and he shovedhis way through the group with a scowl on his face—goingaroundher and Darien instead of between.

Jewels—Malakai was choosing not to fight because of Jewels.

This could have been so much worse, had they fought each other at full power and without restraint. Loren wouldn’t have been surprised if they’d demolished the entire hospital.

As the seconds wore on and Darien cooled off, the shadows retreated. The lights flickered awake, the machines that were scattered throughout the wing beeping as they came back on all at once.

Several moments of quiet passed before the others deemed it safe to start talking. And although Loren heard everything they said, she kept her focus on Darien, who watched her too, as if he couldn’t believe his eyes. Loren couldn’t believe hers either, and she found that she didn’t want to blink in case he disappeared. When she looked at him, everything just felt right. He looked and felt like home.

“Darien?” Travis’s shocked question bounced down the hallway as he came out of Jewels’s room. He must have decided to stay with her while the power was out, in case she needed him. A brief pause, and then he squeezed out, walking faster now, “Roman? Holy shit, you guys are alive.”

“What’s going on here?” Roman demanded, as if their location and what it could mean suddenly dawned on him. He looked Travis over, checking for injury. “Did someone get hurt?” His face and full-body armor were as filthy as Darien’s. Where had all that blood come from?

Loren swallowed a surge of nausea. It was probably better if she didn’t know.

“My sister,” Malakai responded, crossing his arms and leaning against the wall by the vending machine. “She went into cardiac arrest.”

Roman’s eyes flared. “Shit, really? She okay?”

“She is now,” Travis said. “She was dead for four minutes. That power outage scared the hell outta me.”

Jack indicated to Darien with a jab of his thumb.

Travis cocked his head, not getting the memo.

“Is Tanner not with you guys?” Lace asked, still clutching the cell phone she hadn’t let go of in hours.