Sam hissed and swung her around, tearing her free.
She cried out and buried her face in his chest. Then he was moving. Wind whistled through her hair, touching her nape, and within a minute, they were back at their cabin.
He set her in the doorframe, which hadn’t been fixed completely. “Don’t look.”
She looked and then bit back a scream. Her jeans were shredded, and several different-sized bite marks marred her flesh. She bled freely, and her toes had gone numb. “Sam.”
“Hold on.” He ripped open a vein in his wrist and pressed it to her mouth. “Drink. Now.” His face was a hard mask of fury.
She drank, letting his sizzling blood trickle down her throat to her stomach and then spread warmth through her freezing cold body. Her wounds slowly mended. She went limp, tears still flowing down her face. “If you hadn’t been there, I would’ve been pulled all the way in.”
He brushed the tears off her face. “Guys? We need a minute.”
Honor looked beyond them to see both Bear and Flynn, their faces set in anger and their eyes dark. “I’m okay.”
“Not for long,” Flynn said. “Nobody can create a web to fight that kind of power for long. I can only ward off the fire. You have to get this under control. Now.”
“Minute. Now,” Sam barked, his gaze remaining on her.
The brothers turned and disappeared back into the forest.
Sam lifted her, stepped up into the cabin, and strode to the fireplace, where he lit the logs while still holding her. Then he turned and sat on the sofa, cradling her. Warming her and making her feel safe. “Take several deep breaths, calm yourself, and then we’ll talk. No hurry and no pressure on you. Let my blood ease you.” His voice was soft and gentle, but tension rode each syllable. Hard.
She snuggled right into his chest, doing as he said. Her limbs felt lethargic and her mind buzzed from the rush of pain and then his blood. Finally, she started playing with the neckline of his tee. “I’m better.” She kissed his neck.
“Good.” He shifted her until she could look up and meet his green gaze. “It’s time for you to dig into my head like you did Garrett’s.” His grimace was kind of cute. “I don’t like the idea, but we have to figure out why the mating mark hasn’t appeared, when all I want to do is mate you.”
She had her own fears and insecurities about that. What if Fate had a different mate for him? What if she was just filler? “Okay, but I can’t be completely objective with you.”
“That’s a good thing.” He leaned down and kissed her nose.
She freaking loved it when he did that. He was so deadly, and she’d seen him kill faster than a thought, but with her, he was gentle. As far as she could tell, that side of him only came out with her and his family. Maybe Nessa, but she was pregnant with triplets. “We both have to accept what we find, Sam.”
“I know.” He settled his shoulders as if he was going into battle. “What now?”
She nuzzled her face against his warm neck. “Now you just relax and let me in.”
He swallowed, and while his hold remained firm and solid, his big body relaxed against her. A large exhale moved her. “Okay.”
Curiosity rode her, and she went in gentle with just a glide against his mind. Solid rock. She pressed her lips together to keep from chuckling. Then she tickled his mind.
“Hey,” he murmured. “That’s weird.”
“I know.” She kept it up until even his brain relaxed and then she glided right in. “Okay. I’m there. Tell me about the marking.”
“Demons or hybrids have a marking, first letter of their last name, that shows on the hand. Usually right when they meet their mate, but sometimes later, and sometimes when it’s forced there in the case of an arranged mating.” Now he sounded slightly drugged.
The male really trusted her. She placed her hand over his heart and dug for images. Ah. The Kyllwood marking…on his brother. Logan? Yeah. She sensed Logan. Then another marking, this one of a Z. Zane? Oh. His first name because he was the king. Then another K and an S…images. Not real. Nightmares. She drew in his scent and settled herself. “Tell me about Zane.”
“My older brother. He tried to protect us as best he could from our uncle. Always there.” Sam’s voice softened. “I’d die for him.”
“You’ve spent your entire life trying to live for him,” she murmured. “Helping and protecting both of your brothers. It’s not easy in the middle, is it, Sam?”
He shrugged. “I’m good at it.”
She slid deeper. “You are. But you’re afraid.”
“I’m not.” His warrior ego flared hot for a second.
She kept her probing gentle. “Sure you are. Anybody who loves has fear. That’s natural.”
“Honor, I’m not afraid I’ll get twin S’s on my hands resulting from Zane’s death,” he muttered.
“Sure you are. You’re also a control freak, and the only way to make one hundred percent sure that doesn’t happen is to not have a mating mark on your hand.” Like, duh. But she didn’t say that. “However, whatever your mark may be, that doesn’t change Zane’s destiny, does it?”
Sam sighed. “No.”
There you go. She delved deeper. “Hey. What’s this about me in there?”
“You?” He kissed her head.
“Yeah.” Right there, with the marking, along with his really strong thoughts or feelings about Zane and being the king of the demon nation.
Her brain tingled. He explored the area inside himself with shocking accuracy. Better than anybody she’d worked with so far. Figured. She tilted her head to watch his face.
“Huh.” He leaned back. “All right. Guess there’s a fear that if we fully mate, I’ll hurt you worse than I already have.” He opened his eyes. “I gave you this problem with fire and dimensional pain. What if I give you more of it when we mate?”
“What if we cure ourselves?” she murmured. For the first time in her life, she went on instinct. Sam had drawn her out of her safe little world, where she protected herself and stayed alone, and now she had to take the final step. “If we remain like this and don’t take the risk, aren’t things going to just get to the point where one or both of us are dragged into some freezing cold, biting world?”
He lifted his chin. “Probably.” He looked right at her. “Do you want to mate?”
Was that an offer? She hitched, suddenly nervous, and withdrew from his thoughts. She’d been thinking about this and could spend the next several decades still weighing pros and cons. Sometimes a girl just had to go for it.