Nathaniel turned. “I should have…I should have done more. I let her get out of control, but he wouldn’t have hurt her. I know this.”
Luke’s pale eyes snapped fire. “Are you serious? Do I need to remind you of what he did to Micah?”
Nathaniel stared at the splotch of blood far too high on the wall for Lily to reach. “You don’t need to remind me, Luke.” His eyes scanned the room. “Where Julian would have attacked any of us, he would not do so with Lily.”
“Damn you!” Luke exploded, full of rage and exasperation. “She will end up just like Anna! Is that what it will take? Look at this! There was clearly a fight here. There is blood, part of her goddamned clothes is in my hand!”
Michael’s eyes fell to the cloth Luke clenched. His stomach seized. “We need to find Lily. Now!”
Nathaniel faced both Nephilim. For the first time, Michael saw him exhibit some sort of emotion. Always calm and serene, Michael hadn’t thought Nathaniel felt anything. He couldn’t have been more wrong. Anger, waves and waves of it, radiated off him. A near unholy light filled his eyes, and he suddenly looked very dangerous.
“Call Danyal and every Nephilim available. Tear this city apart if you need to.”
“This is on you, Nathaniel.” Luke gritted out, backing away. “You could have stopped this at any time, but you didn’t. This is on you. Just like what happened with Anna is on you!”
Nathaniel briefly closed his eyes. “This I know.”
Rage—pure unbridled hatred—flickered over Luke’s face a second before he charged Nathaniel. Instinct kicked in, propelling Michael to place himself between the two. “Stop this!” he ordered. “What the fuck is this going to solve? Who gives a fuck about who’s to blame right now? This isn’t important!”
Luke shoved himself away, his hands clenched at his side. There was a moment when Michael thought Luke wouldn’t back down. The hatred that rolled off him was too potent to walk away from, but somehow he pulled it in. “This is over,” said Luke, tone eerily final.
“Luke…” Nathaniel stared at him, his eyes widening slightly. “No…”
He shook his head before turning, then disappeared out the balcony doors. Michael followed his movements, stunned. “What does he mean? What is he talking about?”
“We need to go back to the Sanctuary.” Nathaniel was already walking toward the door.
“What? We need to find Lily!”
Nathaniel turned on him. “We will, but first we need to go back to the Sanctuary. This isn’t up for discussion, Michael. I don’t expect you to understand, but I need you to listen to me and do exactly as I tell you.”
There was something in his tone that gave Michael pause. “What’s…going on?”
“Do you have the keys to the Porsche?” asked Nathaniel, walking out the door.
“Yes.” Michael followed him. He was missing something huge. He knew it.
Nathaniel nodded. “I need you to get us back to the Sanctuary as quickly as possible.”
Together they raced down the stairs and, once inside the Cayenne, Nathaniel pulled out his cell. Like Luke had done before, he tried reaching Lily—to no avail.
Michael gripped the steering wheel. “What is going on?”
Nathaniel held up his finger while he pressed another number on the phone. “Adrian, meet me back at the Sanctuary. We have a…problem.” He hung up the phone, his hand clenching the slim model. “Michael, when we get back to the Sanctuary, I need you to check Lily’s room. She may have gone back there.”
He switched lanes, narrowly avoiding a taxi as he sped through the streets. “Are you going to tell me what’s going on?”
“It’s about Anna,” said Nathaniel as if it made perfect sense. “It’s always been about Anna.”
Once they arrived at the Sanctuary, Nathaniel left him with orders to check Lily’s room, before disappearing with Adrian, and strict orders to not leave the building.
Michael had never been more frustrated in his life. Lily was out there somewhere, possibly hurt or worse, and he was expected to just chill. When he entered Lily’s room, he quickly discovered why no one had been able to reach her. Her cell phone lay next to her keys, the message light blinking rapidly. Sighing, he grabbed the phone and slipped it into the pocket of his pants.
There was no fucking way he was going to stand around. Whenever he closed his eyes, he saw Micah, and then Lily replaced Micah. Bloodied and beaten, lying dead somewhere out in the city. Screw this.
Nathaniel’s orders be damned.
His mind made up, he left Lily’s room. His first stop was the weapons’ room. He quickly grabbed two vicious blades and leg straps and hooked them to his thighs. As he straightened, he noticed a large rack mounted to the wall. Various keys hung there, labeled with what they belonged to. He approached the rack, brows raised as he read some of the labels. It was like a bike enthusiast’s wet dream—Michael’s wet dream. They had everything: Hondas, Harleys, Indians, and various crotch rockets, but it was the Hayabusa GSX that caught his eye.
“Holy shit,” he murmured.
It was one of the fastest bikes, accelerating to unimaginable speeds. The bike was made for all the adrenaline junkies in the world.
He didn’t think twice about grabbing those keys before heading to the parking garage in the back where they kept the fleet of vehicles. It had to be the only logical place where the bikes were kept.
He was right. On the bottom level, behind a steel cage, were several dozen bikes under lock and key. Staring at the key for a moment, he then grabbed one of the knives. It cut through the mesh wire like nothing, and he could only imagine what it did to flesh as he kicked open the gate. The platinum motorcycle was like a beacon. There was a moment of appreciation as he approached the bike, knowing he would probably never have the luxury of riding this thing again.