Break the Day - Lara Adrian Page 0,68
get away from him, away from this place. She couldn’t think when her heart was cracking open in her breast.
“Get out of my way, Rafe.”
He didn’t so much as flinch. “Talk to me, please.”
“We have nothing left to say.”
“Not true,” he said, giving a tight shake of his head. “I’ve got plenty to say. And I’ll start by saying that I love you.”
God, why was he determined to see her fall apart? Hadn’t he already wounded her enough?
She felt his sincerity. She even felt his love, too. But it didn’t ease the pain of his betrayal.
A sob hitched in her throat. “Please move, Rafe.”
“I can’t do that.”
He wasn’t going to let her go. He reached out for her, and instead of flying into his arms the way she wanted to do so desperately, she put her hands out in front of her. She pressed her palms to the solid warmth of his chest and held them there.
She saw the moment he realized what she was doing. His gaze went wide, but it was too late. She had already established the connection.
A cry wrenched from her throat as she put everything she had into her touch. In a burst of fury, she siphoned away his power . . . and all his strength.
With a stunned groan, he sagged to his knees on the thick rug.
She let go then, her hands shaking and her heart shattering.
He gasped her name as unconsciousness took him under.
Devony fumbled for the door’s latch, barely holding herself together as she fled into the gathering light of daybreak.
CHAPTER 24
When Rafe opened his eyes, it felt like someone stabbed heated daggers into them.
He shut his lids fast and let out a groan. Damn. Had someone strapped a vise around his rib cage while he was out cold? His throat tasted like ashes too.
He hurt everywhere. His limbs, his torso.
Fuck, even his hair hurt.
But he was alive.
He knew he was, because for all his bodily pain, it was his heart that ached the worst. And holy hell, that was saying something.
He lifted his eyelids again, battling through the agony of the light hitting his retinas. A large, blurry shadow in front of him slowly took shape.
“Have a good nap?” Nathan loomed over him, peering down at him from the side of an infirmary bed where Rafe lay. “How are you enjoying that full-body migraine? The real fun doesn’t start until you try to sit up.”
“Shit.” Rafe attempted to raise his head and wave of nausea slammed into him.
Nathan’s mouth twisted. “Yeah, there it is.”
Rafe groaned as he dropped back onto the pillow. “Devony . . .”
“She’s gone.” As amused as his team captain seemed to be about Rafe’s physical discomfort, his tone now was almost gentle. “She left the mansion right after she drained your power and dropped you in the foyer.”
“How long?” The question scraped out of him, not only because his lungs felt constricted by the aftereffects of Devony’s powerful punch. “How long since she left?”
“Couple of hours.”
Ah, Christ. Two hours in the city by herself while Opus’s kill squad could be out looking for her? The very idea sent a flood of cold fear slicing through his veins. He knew Devony was strong and smart. Tough as hell. She was a Breed female, for fuck’s sake. He knew she was capable of fending for herself. After all, she’d plowed through him easily enough and he was a combat-tested warrior and twice her size.
She didn’t need him to look after her, but he hated the idea that she was alone. She was also hurting and upset—all because of him.
If his careless actions had driven her into harm’s way, he’d never be able to live with that.
Rafe heaved himself up from the thin mattress, pushing past the pain. “Need to go after her. I have to . . . find her.”
“You’re not in any shape to do that yet,” Nathan said.
And damn it, he was right. The bed spun beneath him from just that small movement. The room wobbled in front of his face like a funhouse mirror.
“That female of yours packs a hell of a punch. Unfortunately, I speak from experience.”
Rafe leaned into the agony, pushing himself up to a sitting position. His limbs felt like jelly, far from functional. “How long does it last?”
Nathan grunted. “It took about three hours before I could feel my feet under me again. Jordana recovered more quickly, so apparently the bigger the target, the harder we fall. She’s not pissed at