By nearly decapitating him. “Five years, and you couldn’t do it, asshole.” A small trickle of blood ran down Janie’s pale throat, and Jase bit back a growl, angling to the side. “Where is Suri, anyway?”
“He had personal business.” Malco shrugged. “Figured I could handle you.”
“You never could before,” Jase murmured. The bastard held Janie tight—no way to throw an elbow or a punch. He glanced down at Brenna’s back, which moved as she breathed. Thank God.
An odd electric blue glow filtered along her arm. He frowned, squinting, and the glimmer disappeared. The damn solstice would occur in minutes, and he had to get her conscious and ready to block the power, if possible. But under the circumstances, maybe blocking would be impossible. If so, he had to figure out a way to help her, maybe by taking some of the power himself. As her mate, he should be able to siphon from her.
His grip relaxed on the knife handle. “How about you stop hiding behind the little human and face me? It’s about time we did this, don’t you think?”
“Soon enough.” Malco lowered his nose to Janie’s hair and took a deep breath. “The human smells like life.” Then he smiled. “Caeca invidia est.”
Jase’s head jerked back. His body went still. Panic flushed through his lungs. He couldn’t move.
Malco laughed. “I figured you hadn’t found that trigger. The others, sure. But we made sure one was buried deep enough even Kane couldn’t find it.”
Jase bit his tongue, trying to move his arms. They remained at his sides.
Malco flashed sharp incisors. “Kill the witch, Kayrs.”
The knife wavered in his hand, but Jase’s body pivoted and moved toward Brenna. Dropping to his haunches, he grabbed her shoulder and flipped her over. A dark purple bruise cascaded along her right cheekbone. His hand trembled as he traced the wound with his fingers.
“Put the knife to her breast,” Malco said softly.
Jase fought his body, but his arm lifted until the edge of the knife pressed above Brenna’s heart.
Damn it. He had to control this. Sweat broke out on his brow, and his shoulders shook. How the hell had Kane missed this trigger? Now he couldn’t even command his own body. There had to be away.
“Uncle Jase, don’t—” Janie’s voice stopped with a gasp of pain.
Jase turned his head to see Malco’s knife set a millimeter in Janie’s skin. Her eyes filled with tears. God, if Malco dug any deeper, he’d cut her jugular.
“Back to the witch.” Malco nodded toward Brenna.
Jase’s body obediently turned back to the task at hand. Brenna’s eyelids flew open. Her pretty brown eyes focused and then widened. “Jase?”
He loved her. He needed to tell her. But when he opened his mouth, no sound emerged.
She glanced down at the knife that had torn through her shirt. “Um, Jase?”
“Kill her, Kayrs,” Malco said.
Panic filtered across Brenna’s face, followed by calmness. She looked him right in the eye. “Don’t even think of following that asshat’s orders.”
Jase’s head jerked back. Asshat?
Brenna’s hand slid along Jase’s arm to reach the hand holding the knife handle. “You control your body, and you control your life. Let go of the knife.”
He tried to unfurl his fingers, but his entire body remained still.
Brenna smiled. “I love you, Jase. Always have and always will, no matter what happens.”
Love. He felt it, too. Alive, mysterious, and somewhere deeper than his body. A growl rumbled up from his gut. He had to let go of the knife before he shoved it through her breastbone.
“This is touching.” Malco sighed loudly. “Kill the bitch. Now.”
Wrong words to say. Brenna was as far from a bitch as possible. Jase fought his body, his instincts, his own muscles, and yanked away. Gasping for breath, he glared at the weapon still in his hand. They didn’t own him—they never had.
With a battle cry, he stood and threw the knife across the room. Keeping his muscles tense, he reached deep into his own mind and shattered a wall.
Blinding pain cascaded across his skull along with the sound of breaking glass.
Jumping up, he swirled around to face his enemy. “Trigger gone.”
Malco snarled. “Pity. Guess I’ll have to kill you all.” Lifting his chin, he sent out a brutal wave of agony and images to slam into their brains.
Brenna cried out behind Jase.
Jase drew in the pain, forming a shield around the images. “That all you got?”
“No.” Malco yanked the knife across Janie’s throat.
Chapter 30
Jase froze, the world narrowing to that second in time. His niece’s head dropped back as her jugular sprayed blood. Way too much blood.
Malco tossed her across the room and lunged.
Jase registered the sound of Janie hitting the far wall before Malco plowed into his stomach, throwing them both against the rock. Shards ripped down, cutting into his face and neck. Rage he had no intention of controlling roared through him, tightening his hands into fists. The first punch shot into Malco’s solar plexus, and Jase aimed for the stone behind him.
Malco exhaled, slapping both hands against Jase’s ears.
Brenna yelled Janie’s name and scrambled to the prone woman.
It was too late. Everything in Jase knew it was way too late for Janie. His heart hurt. How was he going to tell Talen his daughter was dead? And Cara?
The demon grabbed Jase’s still ringing ears, pressing in while leaning down and keeping his gaze. The black eyes swirled to purple, and the demon chanted in Latin. Words Jase had never heard before.
Pressure compounded behind Jase’s eyes. His arms went slack. Nails poked holes in his brain, and a sucking sound filled his ears. Lights flashed, and his stomach revolted. Then blackness covered his vision.
The room tilted, and he dropped to his knees. Blind and helpless.
Brenna’s anguished cry filtered through the pain. “Janie,” Brenna yelled. “God, wake up.”
There was no waking up for Janie Belle Kayrs. Jase stopped fighting the pain and blindness. He’d trained for this moment, and if it was his last, he’d go out swinging. There was no way on earth he’d allow Janie’s killer to breathe for one more day.
Losing himself, losing any humanity he’d tried to keep, he allowed the pain to turn him into the creature they’d wanted. His eyes flashed open, and the nails in his mind slid away.
Malco’s eyes widened.
Jase smiled and punched straight up into the demon’s groin. Malco released him, leaning over with a pained oof. Jase sprang into the air to clamp his thighs around the demon’s head and twist. Vertebra popped, and they plunged to the hard ground.
Straddling his enemy, Jase punched both fists into Malco’s face. His breath centered, his mind cleared, and he battered bones and flesh almost rhythmically. Blood flew into his cheeks, burning like cigarette ashes. Malco tried to punch back, and Jase himself levered up, bringing his knees down on the demon’s biceps with a force that broke bones.
Malco cried out in pain, his skull shattering.
Jase grunted, panting with the effort, his torso straining as each punch landed harder. He’d been training for five years for this moment, and yet he felt nothing. The demon’s skull crushed into bits beneath his hands, the man losing consciousness.
“Damn it, Jase,” Brenna yelled.
He kept hitting, the sound of flesh hitting wet flesh surrounding him.
“Jase?” She yelled louder.
He slowly turned his head, not halting his motions. His witch held her hands over Janie’s throat, blood coating them.