Page 44 of Another Damned Storm

“Is there somewhere Hook and I can go to talk privately?” I asked Matt.

He pursed his lips, but a crack of thunder drowned out his response. We all looked to the sky.

“Again?” I asked. The clouds were building right above us, and fast. I’d seen something similar in the last few weeks in the Nassa, but we’d always had time to get back to the ship and batten everything down.

“Everybody inside, now!” Matt bellowed. People down the street ran for cover, but I didn’t move.

“You go,” I insisted. “I want to see what the hell is going on here.”

He grabbed me by the shoulders. “I just got you back, Never. You’re not dying on my watch.”

It took some internal wrestling, but I managed to pull Hook’s magic to the surface. The amber glow of my own irisesshone bright in the reflection from my brother’s wide eyes. “I’ll be fine. But you and the others should find a safe place to hunker down.”

When I shot a glance at Hook, his attention was on the park. Deep growls and snarls carried on the building wind.

I shrugged out of his grip. “Go, Matty. Really. I’ll be fine.”

Uncertainty swam in his eyes, but he gave me a firm nod. Then he was running, yelling orders. I had a feeling with the attack earlier, the only reason they’d stayed outside the compound walls to fight was because of me.

They’d thought I was the one who was in danger.

Boom.

Blinding light exploded all around us, the lightning striking a half-second before the air and ground shook with thunder. Another strike followed, then another, like a barrage of mortars assaulting the park. That was when I smelled it: sulfur and smoke.

“Shit,” I said under my breath.

Where the fuck is the rain when a girl needs it?

I’d just spotted yellow flames licking the darkening sky in the middle of the park when another bolt of lightning struck the fence in front of us. We were standing too close, and the force of the blast threw us both backward.

I scrambled to my feet. “You okay?” I asked, looking Hook over.

“I’m fine. You?”

I shook out my arms. “Good.”

At least until I realized the flimsy chain link standing between us and the park was now a melted mass of indeterminate metal.

And what did wild things do when their habitat caught fire?

Demons streamed out of the trees, at least a dozen of them,in all shapes and sizes. I glanced down at the dagger in my hand. It wasn’t much, but it was still better than nothing.

“Stay behind me,” Hook ordered.

“Not a chance.”

Frustration bled through our connection as he shifted his stance. “Do you recall how long it took me to heal after the explosion at that dead witch’s lair.”

I did. Several excruciating hours that I would rather not relive. “You’re not helping your case here, pirate.”

It didn’t matter anyway. The first of the demons charged through the opening. We slashed and fought, working together to take them down one at a time. When one caught my thigh, tearing it open with three wide gashes, I couldn’t help but scream.

Hook was right there, making the bastard pay for hurting me.

Much to my surprise—and relief—the wounds healed themselves quickly. The only downfall was that the repair drained my energy noticeably.

So, not quite invincible.