Avenging Angel (The Fallen 4)

Just before the flames would have licked over his skin—like it would be the first time he felt that agony—Marna’s head turned and her eyes—dazed, wild—found his.

The fire died away, vanishing in mere seconds and leaving behind only wisps of smoke that drifted into the air.

“T-Tanner?”

The humans had hauled ass, so, luckily, no one was left to see his angel just extinguish those flames with a stray thought. No one was—

His nostrils flared as he pulled in the scents. The fire had been so strong that he hadn’t even noticed . . .

Jonathan.

His partner lay on the ground near Marna’s feet. Not moving.

Tanner rushed forward. “What did you do?”

She shook her head. Glanced down. Her hands lowered and a loose handcuff banged against her wrist. “He was trying to make me leave with him.”

The sirens were coming closer.

“I wasn’t going to let him hurt me.” A different note had entered her voice now. Harder. Colder. “No one’s going to hurt me again.”

Tanner crouched next to Jonathan. He rolled his partner over and sucked in a breath at the guy’s ashen features.

“He’s still alive,” Marna said. Did she sound disappointed?

His angel?

What was going on?

“Yeah, he’s still alive.” Tanner grabbed Jonathan and tossed the guy over his shoulder. He wasn’t leaving him. Not when he had so many questions for the man. “And we all need to go, now.”

“You’re helping him?” Marna backed up a step. “He—he wanted to hurt me. He tried to take me away.”

“And we’ll find out what the hell he was thinking once we get away from here.” Once they’d gotten out of sight and didn’t have trucks full of firefighters racing toward them.

She drew in a ragged breath. “He wants me dead.”

Not gonna happen.

Tanner stared down at her, willing Marna to trust him. They all needed to leave, but he had to make sure she wasn’t about to unleash hell on them all again.

As he stared at her, Marna’s eyes seemed to darken. The blue deepened. Seemed to almost flash . . . black?

What?

The sirens screamed.

“He said—he said someone was waiting for me.”

Tanner had Jonathan flung over his shoulder. With his other hand, he caught Marna’s hand. Locked his with hers. “Then we’re gonna find that someone.” The same SOB who’d set him up? Who’d set her up?

Time to end this nightmare.

Marna nodded, and her gaze flickered back to blue. He felt the punch in his gut. Angels weren’t supposed to have eyes that looked like a demon’s, were they?

But he didn’t have time to worry about her eyes then. They rushed away from the smoke-filled area. Rounded the corner. Marna climbed into his SUV. Tanner dumped Jonathan into the back.

When he leapt into the front seat, Tanner spared Marna one more glance. Her hands were fisted in front of her. She wasn’t looking at him.

He gunned the engine.

“Something’s wrong.” He almost didn’t catch her whisper. Even with his shifter hearing, it had been hard to hear her. She breathed the words more than said them. “Something’s wrong with me.”

“Nothing’s wrong.” Her eyes had been black. “Everything’s fine.” They’d find the demon who was setting them both up, and Tanner would end that bastard.

The tires squealed as he raced down the narrow streets.

“I like it too much.”

Another confession that was little more than a breath.

“I’m not supposed to like the fire,” she said softly.

His hands clenched around the wheel.

“I’m not supposed to lust, not supposed to want so badly.”

His gaze cut to her and found her stare on him.

“I’m not supposed to want so badly,” she said again, louder now, “the way I want you.” She swallowed. “The things I want, the things I want to do . . . this isn’t me.”

No, it wasn’t who she’d been, but Tanner realized that Marna was becoming someone else.

Someone stronger.

Someone . . . someone who could be very, very dangerous.

“Tanner, what happens . . .” Now she looked away, staring out at the blur of buildings, and finished. “. . . when an angel goes bad?”

Hell came calling. Tanner knew because he’d seen it happen before. He didn’t want to face that nightmare again.

Tanner dropped his partner in an old chair, then bent to quickly cuff the guy. Tanner made sure that Jonathan was locked up tight in the cuffs, and then he gave the man a good, hard slap.

Jonathan groaned, and his eyes slowly opened. He focused first on Tanner, then on Marna, then his gaze swept around him—and Tanner knew his partner took in every aspect of the old, abandoned warehouse with that sweeping glance.

If you needed a private place to torture or dump a body, Tanner knew this was a perfect spot. No one was around for miles. That meant there was no one to hear the screams.

Not that he expected Jonathan to scream. At least, not right away.

Jonathan jerked at his cuffs. “You really think these are necessary, partner?”

“Was it necessary to cuff me?” Marna demanded, stepping forward.

Tanner wrapped his arm around her shoulders. “Easy.” Who would have thought that he’d be the one playing good cop?

Jonathan’s gaze slid over them both. Lingered on the hand Tanner had around Marna. “I thought it would be . . . like that.”

“Watch it,” Tanner advised, voice still mild.

“I mean, why risk everything? Why put your job on the line? Why lie to me? Unless . . . unless you were screwing her.”

Tanner kicked out, sending the wooden chair slamming to the ground. It hit on the side, and Jonathan groaned when his arm rammed into the cement.

“Told you,” Tanner said, “to watch it.” That jerk wasn’t going to slam Marna.

Jonathan looked up at him and his lips tightened. “You think you can keep her? You think there aren’t a dozen paranormals in this town desperate for a chance to get at her?”

“Is that why you were trying to get her?” Tanner demanded as the fury rose inside him. “Were you planning to sell her off to the highest bidder?” Over my cold and dead body.

Marna’s hands pressed against Tanner’s side. “I told you, he said there was someone waiting for me.”

Jonathan shrugged and tried to lever himself off the ground. “What can I say? Angels are in demand.”