A half smile, half grimace met him. "No. But I'm pretty good with my fists. Against humans."
"Too bad these aren't humans." He handed her one of the short swords anyway. "I want you out of the way when the fighting starts. But you have a weapon in case you need it."
"You're pretty sure they're going to get in."
"I'm positive they'll get in. This house was never built to defend against Feral Warriors." When they were back in the foyer, he kissed her again, a quick peck this time, and released her at the base of the stairs. "Wait here."
He returned to the peephole just as Polaris put his head down and ran at the door, slamming into it shoulder first. The entire front of the house rattled with the force of the blow. The steel-reinforced door held. For the moment. He needed to get the women in one of the cars, but that meant leaving through the back door. With their superior hearing, the new Ferals would be on them long before they could reach the cars to make a clean getaway.
Polaris made another run at the door, rattling the windows and sending the chandelier into an awkward sway.
Olivia returned from the dining room, pain creasing her features. "Is that Polaris?"
"Yes. Any sign of others?"
"No, none. Why are they here instead of fighting the other Ferals? To kill you?"
"They're not here for me. Certainly not just me." Hawke's jaw clenched. "They're Ferals. There's only one thing they absolutely need to survive."
Olivia grimaced. "Radiance. Kara."
Hawke nodded. "That's not to say they don't also want to kill me and steal Feral House. But, yes. They're going to need Kara. Sooner or later, they're going to break in, and the draden will follow. We've got to get out."
Xavier strode into the hallway. "Dude. Are we under attack or something?"
Hawke nodded before catching himself. The kid couldn't see a nod. "We are. I need you and Pink to hide. She'll know where. Now, Xavier. Quickly." The two would be safe from the draden. Pink was, for all practical purposes, always in her animal. And Xavier was human. Neither attracted the draden, and both should be safe enough from the new Ferals. Hawke's jaw clenched. He and Kara were likely the only targets, if for different reasons. Remove Kara from the equation, and even if they overpowered him or sent him shifting and flying away, the attackers wouldn't stay long.
"I don't see anyone," Delaney said, returning.
"Me, either." Kara started down the stairs.
Hawke peered out the peephole just as Polaris disappeared beyond sight of the door. Lynks battled-rammed the door in his place, barely making the door rattle. Polaris was going to be the problem, not the lynx. "Polaris is heading around back." Hawke grabbed the keys to Vhyper's Porsche, pressed them into Olivia's hand, and caught all four women in his gaze. "Stay to the side of the door until I give you the sign." His gaze focused on Olivia. "Then get them out of here."
Olivia shook her head. "We're not leaving you to face them alone."
"Yes you are. Lyon gave you direct orders to protect the Radiant. She's your only concern."
"Hawke . . ." Faith touched his arm. "You need me here."
It was all he could do not to pull her against him again. "You won't survive a draden swarm, Smiley. Go with Olivia."
Her jaw tightened, and while she didn't reply, a stubborn, determined light lit her eyes.
"I mean it, Faith. I can still shift. I won't die from draden bites."
Her mouth thinned, but she nodded and looked away.
Good.
The shattering of glass in the dining room ended the discussion. His heart began to thud with the certain knowledge that he had to keep it together, he had to make this work, or goddess only knew what would happen. If he lost it and shifted, leaving the women to fight it out on their own, would Polaris and Lynks kill them? The Ewan they'd known would never have, not in a million years. But something had happened to the new Ferals. Something that reeked of dark magic. And Hawke wasn't about to risk it.
As the four women pressed back against the wall beside the door, he peered out the peephole. Any moment, Polaris would be racing into the hall behind him from the dining room. Come on, Lynks, he thought to himself. If his timing was off on this, they were in trouble. But as he'd counted on, Lynks was gearing up for another battle ram. Hawke silently pulled back the well-oiled locks and curled his hand around the latch. As Lynks once again threw his entire weight against the door, Hawke wrenched it open and grabbed the man, using his own momentum against him to throw him against the far wall. By the time Hawke turned around, the women were racing out the door, Delaney taking up the rear, her gun drawn.
Hawke slammed the front door closed behind them and stepped in front of it as the polar bear raced down the hall, a quarter ton of angry, charging beast.
The red haze threatened, creeping around Hawke's vision as if it knew his defense against it was about to leave in Vhyper's Porsche. As if it knew that this time it would win. He drew fangs, gripping his swords in clawed hands. And prayed this wasn't his final battle. Not when the love of his life was finally his to claim.
The moment Delaney closed the front door, Faith stopped. "I'm staying."
Delaney stared at her. "You can't. You must know what the draden will do to you."
"It doesn't matter. Hawke needs me."
Olivia tossed the keys to Delaney. "You drive."
Delaney looked at Faith worriedly. "She's staying."
Olivia nodded. "I know. If he were the man I loved, I'd do the same. No matter the cost. So would you."
With a press of her lips, but understanding in her eyes, Delaney turned and took off at a run for the car.
Olivia pointed to the distance. "The draden will be coming from that direction. If you see them, get yourself into one of the cars ASAP. They're all unlocked and all warded against them. You're no good to Hawke dead." She turned, then swung back. "Don't die, Faith. We need you." Without another word, she raced back to the low-slung sports car. As she reached it, Delaney started the engine. Olivia dove into the front seat, and Delaney took off.
Suddenly alone, Faith pressed her back against the brick, listening to the crashing and growling coming from inside the house. If only she could help Hawke for real. If only she could fight beside him. But as long as she heard the sound of battle, she knew he was okay. And, hopefully, she was helping him. Hopefully, the hawk knew she was here. Regardless, it was worth the risk.
Something caught her eye. A dark cloud blowing in over the trees. No, not a cloud.
Draden.
Hawke shifted his swords, one in each hand. He didn't want to kill Polaris. The new Feral was a friend to Olivia and almost certainly enchanted. But Hawke would do whatever he had to in order to give the women a fighting chance to escape. Lynks rose from the floor slowly, one ruddy cheek streaked with blood, but Hawke focused on the charging polar bear. Waiting . . . waiting . . .
He swung his swords as he dove out of the way at the last minute, slicing one blade deep across the bear's shoulder, the other across his face, catching one of his eyes.
The bear crashed into the door, roaring in pain, blood blooming red on the snow-white fur.
As Hawke rolled to his feet, Lynks lunged at him with his own blades. One tore through Hawke's thigh, sending him into a lurch. But Hawke easily dislodged Lynks's other blade, taking off his hand in a quick, upward stroke. Lynks screamed with pain as his severed hand went flying. The man was clearly no fighter. Polaris was another matter. As Hawke swung back, the polar bear charged again. This time Hawke didn't have time to dodge. As he swept his blade at the bear's throat, a huge claw ripped through the muscle of Hawke's shoulder. For a few precious seconds, he lost control of his hand, and the blade slipped from his fingers to clatter on the tiled floor.
Before Hawke recovered, the polar bear opened his jaws and clamped down on Hawke's thigh as if he meant to take off the leg. Like hell. If Hawke didn't suspect Mage magic behind this attack, if he really thought Polaris his enemy, he'd hack off the animal's head, killing him. Instead, he drove his remaining blade through the bear's snout, feeling the prick of it in his own leg. But the strike had the desired effect. The polar bear released him and reared back with a furious growl.
Through the noise, Hawke heard the sound of the Porsche engine. The women had gotten away. Thank the . . . no. His hawk was too calm, too damned pleased. Faith was still nearby, still helping him. The stubborn woman hadn't left with the others as he'd told her to!
Polaris shifted in a spray of sparkling lights, turning back into a naked and bleeding man. Hawke shoved to his feet, gripping his blade. But the Feral didn't attack him as he expected. Instead, Polaris lunged for the front door.
Faith.
Hawke tried to leap after him, but that last attack had torn away too much muscle, muscle that would take time to heal. Fifteen, twenty seconds, at least, which might be fifteen or twenty seconds more than Faith had. He struggled forward, lurching awkwardly on one solid leg and one that didn't want to hold him, willing his body to heal faster. Lynks ran to cut him off, blocking him from the door. Hawke swung, catching the shifter in the shoulder.
Out of the corner of his eye, he saw smoke barreling down the hallway. No, not smoke. Draden. And not a few. Hundreds. A thick black cloud of living death burrowed through the hallways of Feral House like bees through a tunnel. But as the first one bit him, a second cloud flew in through the front door. The little fiends weren't big, about the size of his fist, their bodies little more than floating gas beneath heads that resembled hideously misshapen human faces. But their teeth were razor-sharp, and they could, and would, drain the life out of a Therian, even a Feral Warrior, given half a chance.
And Faith was out there in the middle of them.
He swung back toward Lynks, prepared to take off the idiot's head if he had to in order to get past him, but Lynks saw the cloud of deadly little beasts and began to shift . . . with his opponent far too close. A mistake no Feral made more than once.
Swinging with a timing born of long experience, Hawke cut off the lynx's two hind legs just as he fully formed. As the cat screeched in pain, Hawke lunged through the open front door, his leg and shoulder nearly healed at last. Pushing into the night, he fought through the deadly, biting cloud, desperate to find Faith.
The draden descended on him, latching on to his bare flesh with their sharp little teeth - his arms, his neck, his scalp, his face - sucking at his life force. At this rate, he'd be dead in five minutes.
He tossed his sword aside and yanked their hearts out with his free hand, but more just took their place. He could hardly see through the mass of them.
He had to reach Faith!
A flash of white caught his eye - big, lumbering white racing into the woods on the other side of the drive. Polaris.
"Faith!"
"Hawke." Her voice was muffled, the pain in it cutting him worse than the ripping, tearing teeth of the draden.
Goddess, they were both going to be dead in minutes if he didn't get them to safety. He dropped his second sword and ripped at the draden blocking his vision, and finally saw her huddled in a ball on the grass. He ran to her, scooped her up along with her blanket of draden, and ran for his Yukon.
Moments later, they were in the big SUV, along with several dozen draden. No more could breach the warded glass, but a single draden could kill given enough time, never mind dozens. While Faith struggled to remove the deadly little fiends from her face, he tore them off her scalp and arms, digging his hands into their gaseous bodies, curling his fingers around their pulsing hearts and ripping them out.
As he pulled them off her, she began to get the hang of it. But instead of removing her own attackers, she reached for his, her small hands moving with a quick grace he could only admire even as he wanted to argue with her to save herself first. But the effort seemed too great. He was already tiring and was glad he was sitting, afraid he might not be able to stand. His hands began to move slower and slower. Faith's movements, too, began to slow.
The draden were winning, sucking their lives away.
"Stay with me, Faith. Stay with me. We're almost there." He had them off her head and neck and hands, but they'd dug in through her clothes and still clung to her back and hips and legs.
He plucked and pulled, yanking the draden off her, turning them to smoke one after another until he could hardly see, until his hands were bleeding and so heavy he could hardly move them. He picked them off her even after she collapsed, unconscious, and his heart began to bleed with fear that she might not awaken again. He tore the draden from her until he could find no more on her anywhere.
Not dead. She couldn't be dead. No. He could still feel her keeping the fury at bay. "Stay with me, Smiley. Stay with me, Faith." Now that the draden were gone, she'd recover. He'd saved her.
But he couldn't say the same for himself. His energy was gone, and he was still covered in the biting, killing beasts. He was out of time.
Chapter Ten
"Hawke. Hawke!" Faith's sweet voice came at him from a distance. Hands pulled at him, the knifelike draden slowly releasing him from their deadly hold. "Hawke, don't you dare die on me. Don't you dare!"
Faith. He smelled her sweet scent, felt the brush of her hair along his cheek.
"Fight, dammit!"
She yanked him forward, plucking at the creatures at his back and hips. "Are you sitting on any? Of course you are." She shoved him toward the window. "Lift up!"
He barely heard her and wasn't certain he was doing anything at all, but he was trying. Goddess, he was trying. The red haze slunk away as blackness came for him.