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Cyaan ran to a far corner that was cloaked in shadow and it was then that he saw his friend.
A standing cage was suspended from the ceiling by a thick chain. Another, thinner chain led from
its roof on the inside to a pair of manacles attached to Jace s wrists. His head sagged back in
unconsciousness and his feet barely touched the base. More bruises and open wounds covered his
body, and what Jamie assumed was the spiked ball gag forced his mouth wide.
Black rage unlike any Jamie had ever seen contorted Cyaan s face, but it was with a steady
hand that he unhooked the latch on the door and reached in to wake Jace. The smaller man jolted
as soon as he felt the touch on his neck. His eyes stretched wide in fear and his whimpers were
cut off as he swallowed convulsively.
Shhh, it s okay love, Cyaan crooned. I won t hurt you. I would never hurt you. You re
safe now. We re going to get you out of here, but I need you to be still. Can you do that?
The cage rattled with the force of Jace s trembling and he flinched when his face was
cradled by two gentle hands, but Cyaan never let up. Look at me. I am not him. I am your mate.
You will calm yourself for me. I m going to remove this gag so you can breathe, but do not move.
I don t want you injured further.
After the sick dominance Mikel had forced onto Jace over the past week, Jamie didn t think
more domination was the best approach. He wriggled out of burly man s arms and walked over to
them, ready to offer what support he could. By the time he got to them, however, it wasn t
necessary. They had locked gazes and whatever passed between them seemed to pull Jace out of
his panic attack.
As soon as Jace nodded, Cyaan unbuckled the strap wrapped around his head. Blood
trickled from the corners of his mouth before he clamped it shut and swallowed repeatedly. Jamie
took the last few steps to them and laid his fingers on Cyaan s arm. Energy swirled inside him
and he channelled it into the man until Jace s cuffs broke apart in Cyaan s grip. Swiftly, he stood
back as Cyaan lifted Jace before his body collapsed to the floor.
All right. Jamie, let Chris take you again. We re not far from the back exit but we still
have three flights of stairs to go down. Once we get there, I want you and Jace to stay in the car
Loland is waiting inside until Seth and I come back for you. No matter what happens, you are to
stay put.
The stern look to enforce his words was not needed. As soon as he heard that Loland was
waiting for him outside, Jaime leapt into Burly Man s arms and nodded excitedly. He didn t like
the idea of sitting by while Seth and the others endangered themselves, but he knew he was far
too weak to help. Besides, he didn t want to leave Jace alone just yet.
The third Keeper stripped off his shirt and handed it to Cyaan who, with his help, managed
to pull it over Jace s naked form without letting him go. It amazed Jamie to see his friend cling to
Cyaan with such trust. As far as he knew, Jace had become almost as much of a recluse as Jamie
since the death of his mate.
Mate. Cyaan s earlier words finally registered and his jaw dropped. Was it possible that
Cyaan was Jace s mate? Did Keepers get another chance at a mate?
They were running back the way they had come before Jamie could ask any of his
questions. The only opposing Keepers they came across were either lying unconscious on the
floor or too injured to attack. Until they got outside.
The bright, morning sun blinded him and he landed hard on packed earth in a heap of
tangled limbs. The Keeper who d struck Chris charged without hesitation. Jaime was shoved
away just in time to avoid being trapped between the two and he blinked his eyes rapidly to help
them adjust. Fortunately, the Keeper was far more interested in taking down Chris than he was in
him. Unfortunately, a watery glance showed him that their small rescue party was severely
outnumbered.
Cyaan suffered a sharp punch to the ribs while he was setting Jace on the ground. Four men
swarmed him but he launched into his defence and drove them away as soon as he turned around.
The fluidity and grace with which he fought was captivating, but his split attention gave the
others an advantage. Jamie quickly saw that the four were merely a decoy. A fifth was closing in
on Jace, but collapsed under Cyaan s fist. That earned him another slam to his back.
Jamie, take Jace and run! Cyaan shouted.
Jamie stood and dodged several attempts at him until he reached his friend. Can you
move? Jace nodded and rose to his feet with his help. He knew they had to get around to the
front of the building but they were boxed in on both sides by men fighting. In front of them lay a
vast expanse of desert interspersed with scraggly bushes, cacti, and still more men fighting.
He pulled one of Jace s arms over his shoulders and headed towards a dried riverbed that
looked like it offered a little cover, but the going was slow. It was hard to distinguish who was
friend or foe so they avoided everyone. He tried desperately to find Seth among the mass of
combatants but he was nowhere to be seen.
Just as they reached the edge, Jace was yanked away from behind while a steel grip fell on
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