Angel in Chains (The Fallen 3)

He didn’t look back, and he didn’t see Mateo’s slow smile.

Jade sucked in deep gulps of air and stared after Az. Really? He wanted her to just . . . stay there?

It sucked being human. Or, half human—or whatever the hell she was these days. Dammit, she—

Tanner took off toward the left, running as fast as he could. Jade blinked. The left? Now why would he run that way?

I got his stench. Those had been Tanner’s words, and Tanner had sent Az running into the opposite direction.

Why?

Because Tanner wants to be the one to take out his brother.

Oh, hell. She raced to the left and followed him. Tanner was overmatched in this fight. He couldn’t defeat Brandt, not when the guy had the strength of an angel on his side.

The graves whipped by her. Or rather, she whipped by them. Thick and white, the tombs seemed to reek of the dead. A few candles flickered near the ground, silent offerings to the spirits, promises to a long-gone voodoo queen.

“You son of a bitch!”

Jade rushed toward that yell. A turn to the left. To the right. The graveyard was a twisted maze and—

And Tanner had Brandt pinned against a tomb.

“It ends tonight,” Tanner growled at him. “You don’t get to hurt anyone else.”

But Brandt just laughed. And he drove his claws into Tanner’s stomach. “You never could stop me.”

“Tanner!” The horrified cry burst from her.

“W-watch me . . .” Tanner managed and he sliced his own claws right across Brandt’s throat. Brandt’s blood flew out, soaking him, and Brandt didn’t even have a chance to scream.

Brandt’s gaze turned to her. His eyes widened. He smiled.

Tanner yanked away from him, and Brandt’s claws slid from his chest with a wet slosh of sound.

Brandt fell face-first onto the ground.

Jade stared down at him, stunned, as her breath heaved out.

Slowly, Tanner turned toward her. “I d-did . . . i-it . . .” His shirt was soaked with blood. His skin ashen. His whole body was shaking.

Jade rushed to him. She grabbed Tanner as his knees buckled and eased him to the ground. “You have to shift,” she told him, voice desperate. Her gaze flew over his wounds. They were bad. Brandt had ripped right through him. Ripped things out of him. “Shift now.” Jade forced steel into her order.

His lips were paler than the moon. A ripple shook his body and fur burst out on his arms, only to vanish a moment later.

She realized that Tanner wasn’t strong enough to shift. And if he wasn’t strong enough, he’d die in her arms.

She ignored the scent of flowers. The scent was deepening around her. The scent . . . it wasn’t from an Angel of Death. Just flowers from the graves. Nothing more.

Nothing . . .

Tanner’s claws retracted.

“You don’t get to die like this!” She snapped and slammed her palm into his chest. “You don’t get to—”

Hands grabbed her from behind. Strong hands. Hands that knew too well how to hurt.

Brandt wasn’t done yet. Or maybe the devil just hadn’t wanted him. “Tanner never was as strong as me,” he whispered into her ear.

Her breath choked out as horror and fear swamped her.

“No.” Az’s voice. Cool and lethal and cutting right through the night. Cutting through her fear and giving her hope. “But I am,” Az promised.

Jade’s head whipped up. Az stood before them, just inside the gateway of tombs.

Damn that man looked sexy. Strong. Determined. Pissed. He lifted his gun. “Let her go.”

Brimstone bullets, ass**le. Choke on them. If she hadn’t been trapped against said ass**le, she would have smiled.

“You’re not going to shoot her.” Brandt was mocking now. Something wet slipped down her shoulder, and she was pretty sure that it was his blood.

Jade twisted and turned to look at Brandt. Only the thinnest cut remained from the torn hole that had been his throat. Damn—that was some fast healing. But his clothes were soaked red and now so were hers.

Brandt met her gaze. His eyes were glowing with his rage. “You did this,” he told her. “You should’ve just been happy with me.”

“And you should have left my parents alone, you sick freak.” Her head whipped forward. She stared right at Az. “Shoot.”

Brandt laughed. “He won’t—”

“This is the best chance we have, Az. Shoot!” She yelled.

But Az wasn’t firing. She could see the struggle on his face. He didn’t want to hurt her, but she was all for taking a bullet or two if it meant they could get Brandt out of commission. “Kill him, just kill—”

Snap.

She didn’t feel any pain, but, suddenly, Jade’s body was falling. She slammed into the earth. She didn’t feel that either. She couldn’t get her fingers to move. Her legs were numb and her heart . . .

Thunder rumbled. Once. Twice. Someone was screaming. Yelling.

Wait, that wasn’t thunder. Gunshots. Az had fired. He’d fired—and Brandt’s body crashed onto the ground beside her. His face was inches away. Blood trickled from his mouth. Brandt’s eyes were wide open—and empty.

Dead.

Jade wanted to turn away from that empty stare, but she couldn’t move. And why was she so cold?

“Jade!” Her name was a roar. But panthers roared, not angels, and that was Az’s voice, wasn’t it? “Don’t do this!”

Do what? She’d just fallen. She’d be fine in a few minutes. Brandt was dead. They’d all be fine now. Better than fine. She could live again.

“Do n’t!”

Strange. That word had been choked and so full of pain. She didn’t want Az in pain. Had he been hurt? Had Brandt managed to attack him before Az fired his gun?

She tried once more to turn her head and look at him, but couldn’t move. Everything was getting dark. Perhaps the moon had gone behind some rain clouds.

The light would come back soon. She’d figure out what was happening in a few moments.

Her heartbeat seemed so weak in her ears.

The light would come back soon.

But then the whole world vanished.

The bastard had broken Jade’s neck. One hard snap of his hands, and Brandt had taken her life away.

Brandt’s chest was full of brimstone, and he lay dead on the ground, but he’d taken her away.

Bones snapped and popped behind him. Tanner. Az didn’t glance at the shifter. He couldn’t.

He bent his head toward Jade’s. Her eyes were open. “Sweetheart, it’s going to be—”