Avenger (A Halflings Novel) - By Heather Burch Page 0,3

he got, the worse it was. Finally, he’d moved to the other side of the plane and spotted the open cargo door. He got Nikki to safety while Raven — his rival and brother-in-arms — followed the plane. Will had contacted the other Halflings, who’d met the plane when it landed outside of St. Louis. Sorry, Vessler, no titanium wingcuffs for you.

Nikki’s voice drew him out of the memory. “I really didn’t think I’d make it out alive. Vessler actually told me to leap to safety at one point. Like I have wings.”

“You’ll have wings, Nikki. You’ve tapped into your angelic power, so it’s just a matter of time now.”

He could see she didn’t believe it. “At least the titanium was intercepted. And thanks to you, Vessler was so wounded he’ll be out of commission for a while.”

When her body posture changed, he knew she’d gone back there in her mind as well. Tiny frowns appeared and disappeared on her face, each attached to a fact she’d not yet been able to accept. She’d shot Damon Vessler. Twice.

“You could have died, Nikki.”

“I don’t know what I was thinking, going after Vessler alone.” Ever since getting her back, Mace had watched closely, trying unsuccessfully to understand her actions. Her darker side had been shocking, and the confusion over what she’d briefly become was taking a toll on Nikki as well.

He tilted back to look at her. “I know I asked you this before, but do you think Vessler may have been putting something in your drinks?”

She stiffened. “Mace, I know you want to believe that. And I do too — more than you can imagine. But I’d been away from Vessler and his influence — potentially spiked beverages included — when I decided to go after him.”

“But Nikki —” Her fingers rose and rested against his lips.

She leaned in and placed her head against his heart. “I remember wondering if there might be something wrong with the water. He’d always fill my bottles for me. And once when I was finishing a cup of coffee, there was this little bubble of something in the bottom. I figured it had been dirty, but when I handed it to the housekeeper, she got really nervous.”

Against his chest, he felt Nikki squeeze her eyes shut. “I don’t know what he was doing to me. What I do know is, I have to be responsible for my actions. And I almost murdered Damon without a second thought.”

“It wasn’t you, Nikki. It had to be a product of whatever he was giving you. Your mood would change almost instantly. Remember when I found you at the beach house?”

She nodded, but he felt an unsettling distance between them, an invisible wall she raised whenever this subject came up. But that wouldn’t stop him this time.

“It was like a veil came over you. Like you weren’t in control anymore. And I think that’s why you went after Vessler.”

“And I think that’s what you need to believe.” She laced her fingers together at his back and held on to him, but he pushed from her.

“What are you saying?”

The gold in her eyes lost its shimmer. “Exactly what I said. You need to believe I was just a robot under someone else’s control. If you don’t, you have to consider the possibility that I have become the monster Vessler worked so hard to create.”

“Nikki, that’s crazy. You’re not a monster.”

“Aren’t I? I shot him — twice — and I wanted to do a lot more.” She shook her head. “I’m sorry. I’m not who I used to be. And I’ll never be that carefree, innocent girl again.”

Mace chose to hold her close rather than argue, despite the cold feeling that swept through him. Fact was, Nikki had changed. They’d all changed. And he wasn’t sure how to navigate that new mountain before them.

He looked over her head to the door facing the courtyard. “Based on how Vine’s fight is going, I don’t know if we’ll be welcome here much longer. We can only beat up our host so many times.” Nikki gave a small laugh. “Come on, let’s get the others and head back to Viennesse.” Their ancestral home in Germany and across the Rhine Valley from Deux’s compound. These days, Viennesse felt like the only safe place. And even that surety was slipping.

It was a short trip from the ruins to Viennesse, but Raven couldn’t get there fast enough. Nikki was in more danger than he’d ever imagined, and