“Ryon? Ryon!”
Daria stood immobile, unable to comprehend for a moment what had just happened. Bubbles rose from the depths, along with a bright stain of blood. So much of it that the entire area where he’d gone under ran completely red. Her stomach clenched, and she fought back the sickness, clamping a hand over her mouth.
“Nooo.” A sob welled in her chest, then another.
Ryon was gone. He’d suffered a horrendous death, and it was her fault for insisting they stop here. For keeping after him until he agreed to help her save Ben—her ex-lover. The man, the creature, who’d murdered him.
My mate. Tears streamed down her face.
Shoulders shaking, she stared out over the water. She didn’t care if Ben came back and ate her as well. Not now. Then, abruptly, the water swirled and Ryon exploded to the surface, choking.
Numb with fear, she ran to meet him as he swam to where he could stand. He staggered toward her, limping badly. She waded out to him, draping one of his arms around her neck and grabbing him around the waist.
Ryon made it to the bank before his knees buckled. She sat beside him, patting his back as he knelt on all fours, coughing and gagging. Ironic, but she’d never beheld a more welcome sight than her mate hacking up his lungs.
“I was scared to death,” she murmured, wiping at her tears. They wouldn’t seem to stop. “I thought you were dead.”
“Me, too,” he rasped. “But I think you would’ve known for sure if I was gone, because our bond would’ve been severed.”
Pausing, she realized the golden thread was still there, humming with life, energy. Letting out a sigh of relief, she nodded. “You’re right. I wasn’t thinking straight or I would’ve felt that it was still intact.”
“I lost my knife during that round.”
“All that blood in the water,” she said, shuddering.
“Most of it was his, but I think he still got away. Or he came to himself enough that he let me go.”
“What do you mean, most of the blood was his?”
His strength spent, Ryon slumped to the ground. Daria rolled him to his back, and he grimaced in pain, closing his eyes. His head listed to the side and his body went slack. He’d passed out.
Daria brushed his sunlit hair out of his face, and love welled in her heart. Ryon had placed himself on the line for her again, and this time, his bravery had nearly killed him. The truth she had already accepted and voiced to Ryon seeped to every corner of her soul; she loved this man and would not accept life without him.
She dressed quickly, then began a thorough inspection, making certain all of his limbs were intact. Then she spotted the holes in his fatigues, high on his right thigh. Dread consumed her, and she bent close. Blood darkened this area of his wet pants, and wicked bite marks were visible through the tears in the fabric.
She scooted to kneel by his shoulders, and shook him gently. “Honey, wake up. Come on, big guy.” After several more tries, his lashes fluttered open, much to her profound relief. Which was short-lived.
“What . . . happened?” His eyes were dazed.
Daria’s fear escalated. She prayed that his wolf could fight off the creature’s venom and that he wasn’t going into shock, because she’d never tended to anyone severely injured. “You duked it out with Ben’s creature. Remember?” She took one of his large hands and rubbed it between hers.
“Yeah. God, that shit burns.” He gazed at her through half-closed lids. She let a thread of steel creep into her tone.
“I know it does, but you cannot check out on me. It’s going to be dark in a few hours, and we need to finish what we came here to do so we can get the hell out of here and head home.” She pulled at his arm. “Get your ass up! I need to get you somewhere so I can see about that leg.”
To her amazement, he rose, pushed to his feet. “My pack. And the rifle.” His voice was breathless, heavy with exertion.
Her mate’s wolf must have the strength of ten men. And the heart of a lion. Her admiration grew exponentially as she retrieved both, and assisted him in shrugging the pack onto his back. “I’ll get the rifle,” she offered. He surrendered the weapon without a fuss, and her concern mounted.
They set out, but Ryon managed only a few miles before coming to a halt. He stood swaying, then braced an arm against a tree for support. With a wave of his hand, he indicated a temporary place to stop.
“Over there.”
Daria led him to the spot, hidden well off the trail. He looked dangerously close to passing out again, but gritted his teeth and carried on. She spread the blanket on the ground, then ordered him to take off his pants.
Under normal circumstances, the Ryon she’d come to know would’ve given her a disarming grin and made good use of their privacy. But he merely complied, his face gray. That scared her more than anything.
Leaning against her for support, he eased the fatigues past his hips, and off. Daria sucked in a sharp breath. “Lie down.”
Ryon settled down on his back, eyes fixed on the trees. He hadn’t looked at the wound and Daria didn’t blame him. Lord have mercy, how was he going to be able to walk? At best, they had a day left to travel before their job was complete and they reached the team.
“How bad is it?”
She touched his shoulder, dreading what she had to say. “Let’s put it this way. Your part in this op is over. Starting now.”
Ryon propped himself up on his elbow and squinted at the wound. A vicious oath sprang to his lips, but he suppressed it. Two rows of bloody punctures marched horizontally across his right thigh. The creature had attacked from the side, clamped down on the leg, and pulled him to the bottom of the lagoon. Their struggle had been brief, but vicious.
Daria’s brows furrowed, her eyes soft with worry. “Bend your knee. I want to see underneath.” He did, hissing between his teeth. “Easy. Oh, boy. You have a matching set on the back of your thigh.”
“Terrific,” he muttered, lying on his back again. “A human pincushion.”
“Hey, you’re darned lucky he didn’t crush the bone, or worse, hit an artery. As it is, keeping your leg from getting infected before we can reach your team will take a miracle.”
Ryon shrugged. “We’re only losing a couple of days total by doubling back to get the evidence on August. I’ll keep.” In truth, the acidic poison from the creature’s bite was a slow burn in his tissue, seeping toward the bone, making him sweat.
She gaped at him. “Didn’t you hear what I said? You’re done. I’m taking you to meet the guys, and you’re going to let them get you to a hospital.”
“I’m the one who knows where August’s computer room is located. Without me, you’re done, too.”
Daria frowned. “What do you mean? What computer room? Is there another— Oh, no. I’m not going to like this, am I?”
“I got a message from Nick a few minutes ago that he received some intel on August’s estate. The office and the computer you were trying to hack is supposedly a decoy. August keeps the real computer setup in a secret room underneath the house. It’s made of solid concrete walls, and the entry door has a keypad. You have to know the code to gain access.”
“Please tell me Nick was able to get the code.”
“He passed along what he thinks might be the code,” he muttered. “Let’s hope it works.”
“Plan B if it doesn’t?” She knew the answer before he said it.
“There is no Plan B. If it fails, we’re going to die together.”
“I won’t accept that. I’ll take one of the Pack with me to finish the job.”
Another man. One of his friends, taking care of his mate while she went into danger. Stupid as it was, a hot spurt of jealousy stabbed his gut. “No.”