Darkness Torn Asunder by Alexis Morgan Page B

coming from an alley behind the building down the street.
    As he took off at a lope, he shouted into the phone, “Trahern, I’m headed for the alley down the street from the bar. Tell me those crazy bastards couldn’t have made it this far.”
    This time Trahern’s voice came through the phone cold and clear. His answer was terrifying in its simplicity. “We’re on the way.”
    •  •  •
    Emmett shoved the phone in his pocket and ran. Right now he’d give anything for a gun or even a two-by-four. Hell, any kind of weapon would do. He’d kill with his bare hands if that’s what it took to save Jana.
    Charging in without a plan could get them both killed, but every instinct he had wanted him to do exactly that. It took every bit of resolve he could muster to pause at the corner of the brick building to peek around the corner. Three men dressed all in black had Jana cornered against the wall. Shit, he recognized them from the descriptions Bane and Trahern had used when they talked about the aliens they called Others. At least their swords were still in their scabbards. For the moment, they seemed content to taunt Jana like predators toying with their intended prey. Emmett couldn’t understand what they were saying from this distance, but he didn’t need to know specifics. Their intent was clear.
    Emmett spotted a piece of rusty rebar lying in the dirt and picked it up along with a fist-sized piece of broken concrete. Primitive but better than nothing. The three Others hadn’t yet realized they were no longer alone in the alley. Emmett moved slowly to avoid startling the enemy into rash action. When Jana spotted him coming, her eyes widened, but she didn’t call out. God, he loved the way the woman kept her head in a crisis. In fact, loved her, period, even if now wasn’t the time to get all tangled up in the gentler emotions. Better to embrace the cold, murderous fury boiling up inside him.
    Emmett eased forward another step and then another. As the distance between him and the enemy closed, he finally understood the strange sensation he’d been experiencing for weeks. Like Trahern and Bane, nature had hardwired him for this one moment when these Others dared to threaten the centerpiece of his world.
    The only question was why they continued to hover at the same distance from her. He got his answer when one of them charged at her, and Jana squirted him in the eyes with pepper spray. The Other snarled as he swiped at his eyes with the sleeve of his strange-looking shirt. One of the remaining two must have been feeling lucky, because he made a grab for her arm. With her back to the wall, she had little room to maneuver, but still she managed to slide just out of his reach. He and his friends followed her step for step.
    Time was running out. Emmett gave up on stealth and threw the fragment of concrete at the back of the closest Other’s head hard enough to knock the bastard to the ground. Score one for Emmett’s best fastball. Holding the rebar like a club, he pounded down the alley, ignoring the smells and the trash, focusing only on the battle ahead. “Get the hell away from her!”
    He shoved his way between the remaining two men, to plant himself between them and Jana. They immediately drew their swords, their pale eyes alight with murderous intentions. As soon as he had their attention, Emmett yelled, “Run, Jana! Don’t stop.”
    He knew his woman’s heart. She wouldn’t want to abandon him, but he prayed she would. Death was coming to this alley, most likely his own, and he didn’t want her to be part of it. He risked a quick glance back at her, to make sure she was capable of moving. Their gazes met for the briefest of heartbeats, the connection real and tangible. Then she did as he asked and took off running. He prayed like hell that she would make it to safety. That was all that mattered.
    •  •  •
    By the time Jana made it to the end of the alley, she was out of breath and choking