"The idiot," I grunt. "He's going to call everyone to us."
But Cassandra's smiling, waving back at him. "Ren!" she calls out, and there's emotion in her voice as she looks around. She's looking for something. For someone.
It crushes my heart when I notice she's looking for Donatello. The fucker. Rage makes me nauseous to know she still has feelings for him even after what he did. Killing him is on my bucket list now, and I won't rest before I have this vengeance.
I've never been a guy for revenge, but it looks like meeting my mate changed everything.
My instincts scream inside me, and I turn to see a projectile coming our way. They wouldn't want to hurt her, then what the fuck is this? Gas bomb? Some long-distance spell to keep us in place? All I know is that I don't want to find out what it is. I pull Cassandra to my chest, and turn away, hoping the impact will only hit my back. My wings burst free, stretching out behind us as extra protection. They're super sensitive and whatever this impact is, it'll definitely hurt. At least she won't be wounded.
The sound of the impact explodes in my ears, but there's no pain or pressure pushing me to the ground. I look over my shoulder to find Tristan bending over us, protecting both Cassandra and I. Smoke rises from his back.
My spine steels. "Did you just take the hit?"
He straightens, totally unaffected. "I have hard skin." And he smiles at Cassandra. Possessiveness boils inside me, and I have to grind my teeth to stay in the moment. This is not the time to argue about this.
The dog in his arm shows its face, previously hidden in the crook of Tristan's arm. I grip Cassandra's hand in mine and take off again.
"Who are these people, anyway?" I say out loud, and Cassandra's eyes capture mine.
"They were in the Collector too." Her lips tilt downward. "Many were. I only managed to bring them both."
The look on her face is colored in frustration. She must hate herself for escaping, leaving others behind. Cassandra is by no means a hero, and she would never want to be, but she's fair and that's more than I can say for most of the people I know.
I drape an arm over her shoulders and bring her to my side. The smell of her hits me like a drug, and I suddenly feel like everything's going to be alright. "We'll use what I have on him, and what you have on him now. Don't worry. We'll catch him."
The way her eyes sparkle with hope makes my stomach somersault. My wings twitch on my back, a reaction to her smile, to the way she makes me feel. My dragon would purr in delight if he wasn't so focused on keeping us safe.
"You think?" she asks, cocking her head. "You've been trying to catch him for years. What changed?"
I hold her tight against me. "You. Now I have you."
And it comes out vulnerable and open. Cassandra changed everything from the moment she walked into my life. Not only my mate but the first Shadow Mage in forever, for good or for bad. The legends around Shadow Mages aren't good, but I'm sticking by her side to see the end of it.
The air changes. My ears pop as if the atmospheric pressure had diminished, and I swallow, feeling the magic trickling along my skin. My dragon rises in alarm, and Cassandra halts. When I turn to look at her, to ask her why she stopped, her round eyes meet mine, despair filling her irises.
A woman holds a knife to Cassandra's neck. The same woman from the other time. Recognition washes over me like lava, burning away every other worry.
"You didn't think it would be this easy, did you?"
I whirl around and the Collector steps out of a portal. Every hair on my body stands on end, and my dragon roars, ready to attack, ready to pounce, but not if Cassandra's in danger.
And from the smile on the Collector’s face, he knows it. He knows he's way ahead of all of us.
CHAPTER 16
CASSANDRA
This is ridiculous. Can't this girl have a freaking break? For a beautiful, foolish moment I believed we were about to escape. Ren was there, standing by a car, ready to leave. Apollo had me by the hand, and I could barely believe he still wanted anything to do with me after that look he gave me the last time we saw each other.
And now I have a knife to my neck. Again. Great.
"You see," the Collector smiles, a row of perfectly white teeth that makes me want to punch him. "I have a long history of being a man of commerce, and I have sold amazingly interesting creatures." He cups his chin, stroking it in thought, his eyes looking into the distance as if we're pals recollecting events from the past over a couple of beers. "Once I got this gorgon. Do you remember, Lailah?"
The guard behind me shifts. "Yes, sir. Gave us quite the trouble."
The Collector laughs. "She did! She definitely did. I lost many good soldiers those days. But she was worth it." He looks at me, a glint in his eyes. "The buyer paid handsomely. And you see, I don't deal with money only. Oh no, cash is boring. And there are other, more interesting ways to pay someone in my world."
Apollo bristles next to me, the black wings on his back folding and unfolding. He bares his teeth and looks between me, the knife, the Collector, and Tristan. Tristan's eyes are huge on his face, and it looks like he's fighting with himself on making a move.