The Brightest Night (Origin #3) - Jennifer L. Armentrout Page 0,205

be a bad idea.”

“What’s a bad idea is you not having me there. You all are badass, but we really have no idea what’s going to happen. What if they have a Trojan there?” I said, heart thudding as I lowered my voice. “What about Nate’s sister?”

“We’ll get her and we’ll deal with whatever is there, Trojan or not.”

I stepped back. “You’re not going to fight my battles without me.”

“Evie—”

“No,” I repeated. “I don’t need you to protect me. I don’t need you to stand in front of me. I need you to stand beside me.”

His eyes flared wide and several moments passed before he reclaimed the distance, cupping my cheeks with both hands this time. “If something happened to you—”

“You’d feel the same way I would if something happened to you,” I finished for him. “You’d be destroyed. I’d be destroyed. Together, we’ll make sure that doesn’t happen.”

“Together,” he repeated, closing his eyes. “I hate this. Every fiber of my being hates the idea of you getting anywhere close to these people. That you’ve already been close and anything could’ve happened. I hate this, Evie.”

“I know.” I gripped his wrists. “So do I.”

“No hesitation, Peaches. You’re going to kill more tonight, and if things get out of control, if there is a Trojan, take them down,” he said. “Use everything you have, and I’ll take care of the rest—I’ll take care of you after.”

“I know,” I repeated.

Luc leaned down, kissing me. It was far too quick, but it was just as powerful as any of the other kisses. Then he stepped back. So did I, and together we joined Grayson as he stood with Nate. One look at Grayson’s expression told me he agreed with Luc. He didn’t want me here, and I got that. I really did. They were here for me.

And it was me they’d get.

We walked down the corridor, past the broken men who lay scattered about.

“Cleanup is going to be a bitch,” Grayson muttered. “I am not going to be on that team.”

I shot him a look but said nothing as we reached a dark department store. Luc cut the light show, not wanting Morton and whoever else to see our approach. I walked into the darkness without hesitation. It wasn’t like I wasn’t afraid. I was scared. My heart was pounding, my fear feeding the Source and making my senses acutely aware. It would be foolish, deadly so, to not be afraid. I’d taken down one Trojan before, but Sarah hadn’t been trained like I had been, like the others. I could fail. A lot of things could happen. I just couldn’t think of them as we navigated the turned-over racks and fallen mannequins. This was my fight, and if I couldn’t hold my own here, I wouldn’t be able to out there.

We reached the doors and then, after warning Nate to remain quiet, we stepped out into the fresh air that did nothing to remove the lingering scent of mold. Luc led us to the right and we walked down the street, keeping close to the tower and out of the moonlight. I made out the cluster of trees we’d passed before and the space hidden within. There was an opening—

My skin erupted in goose bumps. My vision seemed to constrict and expand as instinct roared to life, taking over.

I moved fast—faster than Luc could’ve anticipated, shooting out in front of them. It was almost like when I’d seen Sarah. The Source seized control, but I was still there, and this time I was in the driver’s seat; it’s just that the Source was guiding my movements. My ears prickled, picking up a repetitive clicking.

Throwing out my hand, the word stop formed in my mind. It poured into the Source and then into the air.

They came to a stop inches from us. Over a dozen tiny cylindrical objects containing a bluish electrical charge in the center remained there, frozen all around us.

Nate gasped.

Stepping forward, Luc plucked one out of the space. His lip curled. “They’re the same kind of bullets April’s handler shot me with.”

Which meant they weren’t looking to kill any of us. They wanted us wounded, and that was actually worse.

“True story.” Luc picked up on my thoughts, signaling to me that this time was different from before. He hadn’t been able to hear my thoughts when I’d gone after Sarah. His fingers closed over the bullet as the Source swelled around his hand. He swept his arm through the air,