The sick feeling in Raff’s gut wouldn’t let go. Shepherd hadn’t looked the least bit hurt as he’d dropped the news he was going away. Who had he left with? Raff rubbed his chest. Everything was fucked up. Goddamn it. It wasn’t that he didn’t want his mate. He did. Everything inside him pulled him toward Shepherd. Things weren’t that cut and dry. He knew he couldn’t fight fate forever. Neither could he claim Goddess Celeste hadn’t chosen him a strong mate. It was beyond obvious Shepherd had a spine of steel and didn’t need him. On paper, Shepherd was perfect. But Raff’s heart also belonged to Dante.

Raff didn’t know how to love one person and give his soul to another. There was no option that was fair to anyone. As his fated mate, Raff could never claim Shepherd and then disrespect him with Dante. As the love of his life, Raff could never set Dante aside for someone else.

Another wave of panic washed over him. He didn’t know what was wrong, but something was just off. It was possible the knowledge alone that Shepherd didn’t intend to return was enough to unbalance him. He wouldn’t know. Obviously, Raff had never had a mate. Would he feel this way forever if Shepherd stayed gone?

The door to the bar flew open. Dante’s emerald gaze swept the room. Raff went on high alert as Dante closed the distance between them. “He’s gone.”

Raff nodded. “I know. Shepherd stopped by on his way out of town to tell me he was leaving.”

“And you let him go?” Dante roared. “Was he alone?”

Raff blinked. He was unaccustomed to Dante’s fury, but that was all he got anymore. “Yes, I let him go. He’s an adult. I’m not his prison guard. No, he wasn’t alone.” Even Raff heard the growl to his voice at the admission.

“Who was he with? Did you see him?”

Raff shrugged. “No. He got in an outrageously expensive car and left.”

Dante spent a moment visibly trying to kill Raff with his stare. “You are the biggest goddamn dumbass I’ve ever met in my life and I’ve lived a long fucking time.” Dante growled every word, sounding on the verge of murder. “He left with the demon, you stupid motherfucker. I can’t fucking believe you. He’s probably already dead, or wishing he was.”

There was no air. Raff had been so busy trying to let everything work itself out and trying to pretend he wasn’t eaten alive with jealousy that he hadn’t once considered his off feeling might be that Shepherd was in trouble. Dante walked away before Raff’s mind caught up. He went after him.

“Wait. What the fuck is going on? You never said anything about a demon. You just said he was trying to make a deal to help us. I thought you meant with Jonathan. After all, that’s where he went. If you knew a demon had his scent, you should’ve fucking said something.”

Dante spun and went nose to nose with Raff. His fury could be felt like a tangible thing. “I came to your house specifically to tell you about the demon, and you didn’t fucking care, Raff. Don’t put this on me. Shepherd isn’t my mate. He’s yours. Yet I was the one trying to keep him safe while you covered your eyes and pretended this wasn’t happening. If Shepherd knew a human with an expensive car, why in the hell would he have stayed here?” he screamed, pointing at the ground. “It sure as hell wasn’t for your dick, since you’ve damned well made sure he knew he wasn’t wanted, so why, Raff?”

There wasn’t a soul in the entire building that wasn’t hanging on to their every word. Raff snarled and cast a hard look at the room. “Mind your goddamn business.”

Still, no one moved. A direct order from their alpha should’ve sent the room scurrying, but everyone was obviously invested.

Dante moved even closer, refusing to back down. “Why should they, Raff? This is your pack. Shepherd is your mate. What happens to him happens to them and you’ve done nothing but embarrass him by refusing to claim him. It’s your duty to keep him safe above all others. Yet you’ve shoved him aside. Tell them why they should listen,” Dante demanded. “If you won’t protect Shepherd, how are they supposed to trust that you’ll protect them? You can stay here and forget him. That’s fine. You’ve proven your point. But I’m going to find Shepherd, or whatever is left of him, and I’ll do my best to put him back together. Don’t bother to come sniffing around either of us again. You’ve proven yourself unworthy.”

Before Raff could do anything to stop him, Dante dissipated. A very wolf-like growl rent the air. His anger and fear over Shepherd’s whereabouts combined to make a volatile mix. He turned, ready to take charge. A room full of eyes stared back at him. He searched out someone he trusted to be quick. His gaze landed on the red-haired girl who worked the bar three nights a week. “Ashka, find Shepherd’s brother and send him to Jonathan. He might have some thoughts about where Shepherd would go.” He headed for the door, intent on jumping on his motorcycle. Jonathan appeared before he made it three steps. The king’s eyes swirled. His anger and worry were tangible. Everyone made a wide berth while several bowed. Most wolves never encountered someone as powerful as Jonathan. Raff had never been happier to see him.

“Jonathan.” In one word, Raff’s hurt showed itself.

“Let’s go,” Jonathan said, reaching for him. The room disappeared. The king’s home came into view. The living room was filled with familiar faces. He didn’t have time to catalog each one. Everyone wore similar concerned stares. Dante wouldn’t even look his way.

He didn’t get a chance to mull it over. “Tell me what you feel,” Jonathan demanded.

Raff was too scared to think straight. “How do you mean?”

Jonathan looked ready to explode. “Concentrate on Shepherd and tell me how you feel.”

Raff closed his eyes and took a breath. He focused on his other half. All he felt was the same empty void he’d been experiencing all day. Raff growled in his frustration. “Nothing. It’s just like there’s a hole where he should be.”

Jonathan sat. “That’s what I was afraid you’d say.”

Panic left Raff with nothing but a ramble of questions. “What do you mean that’s what you were afraid of? Is he dead? Are you telling me he’s dead? Because I can’t hear that, Jonathan.” He couldn’t. Raff couldn’t live with that outcome.

“If Shepherd was dead, I would know. Celeste would tell me, but I can’t see him. There’s only one place I can’t see.”

Before Raff had time to experience any relief over the knowledge Shepherd was alive, someone gasped. Raff’s gaze followed the sound. It was a small blond who was trying to make himself smaller against Riskel’s chest.

Jonathan spoke up as if trying to pull attention away from the man. “I’m sorry, Raff. I don’t know how to help this time.”

Frustration was beginning to bring out his bad side. “I thought you were all-powerful, Jonathan. If it was one of your mates, my pack would come to your aid. In fact, we have.”

“It’s not that I don’t want to help,” Jonathan argued. “The only place I can’t see is Hell.”

Raff stopped breathing. “What? Are you saying my mate is in Hell? You said he isn’t dead. How do we get him out? We have to get him out.”

One of Jonathan’s mates, Niall, leaned over the back of the couch and set his hands on Jonathan’s shoulders, taking over. “It’s not that simple. Even if we knew how to get there, which we don’t, Jonathan couldn’t go. He’s too powerful. It would put the entire world at risk should he be taken.”

“That’s fine. Shepherd is mine. Let’s find the place and I’ll go in after him.” There was nothing Raff wouldn’t do.

“It’s not enough to know where it is; you need a key,” Niall argued. “Demons, even those possessing humans, can enter and leave freely. The rest of us need to be let in, and then every badass upper level evil would come running.”

Raff wasn’t understanding the holdup. “You have two demons right here.” He pointed at Lire and Kallus. “One and two. Surely they know how to get there and won’t set off any alarms.”

Kallus shook his head. “First off, we’re traitors to the Underworld crown. We cannot freely enter Hell. Secondly, the entrance moves. The location is something inside each demon. For obvious reasons, we’re no longer privy to that information.”

“So let’s find a demon and beat the location out of him. I’m not above torturing someone.”

“I’ll go,” the tiny blond said, speaking up. Every head turned his way, and the man tried scrambling away again.

“The hell you say,” Risk growled.

Raff ignored Risk and tried making himself look meek, hoping not to scare off the blond. “I’m sorry. We haven’t met. I’m Raff.”

“Tamil,” the sweet one said back in a small voice.

“Tamil is my blood mate,” Risk said, explaining the man’s presence. “You’re not sending him into Hell because you’ve been careless with your mate.”

“It’s nice to meet you,” Raff said, keeping his gaze locked on Tamil and continuing to ignore Risk. This was too important to fuck up by losing his temper. “If you think you can get in, I’ll be forever grateful. I can’t leave my mate there.”

Tamil twisted a poppet between his hands, looking a mess of fear and nerves. “If it was Risk in danger, I’d hope you would help me. If I go, it won’t set off any alarms.”

Risk rubbed Tamil’s back. “Baby, you can’t do this. I can’t watch you do this.”

Tamil moved into Risk’s hold, as if seeking sanctuary. He was so visibly close to losing his shit, Raff felt hope slip away. Finally, Tamil’s gaze moved to Risk and stayed. Raff felt the panic bleed from the man as he stared at his mate as if Risk leached it from him. “I’m the only one who can do this. If it were you, I’d do anything.” He swallowed.

Pain stabbed Raff in the chest at the sight of his fear. Risk was right. This child could not do this.

Dante stepped in. “Just tell me where. I’ll go in alone. Raff has a pack depending on him, and everyone else here has a mate who needs them. No one will miss me if I don’t make it back.”

Raff wanted to scream that he would. He would miss Dante every day for the rest of eternity, but he no longer had that right.

Tamil ignored everyone. Never once looking away from his mate, he cupped Risk’s face and held the man’s stare. “I love you. Without you, I’m nothing. I can’t leave someone to suffer the way I did.”

Risk’s eyes fell closed, and he pressed his forehead to Tamil’s. “I love you, sweets. You can’t ask this of me.”

Lire stepped forward. “I’ll go with Tam. My life is his. No harm will come to your mate in my care.”

The pain etched in Risk’s features was killing Raff. He swore in that moment he would claim Shepherd the moment he got him back. He would do whatever Goddess Celeste expected of him. Raff recognized his mistakes and would pay any penance. He’d never meant for anyone to get hurt or risk their lives all because he’d wanted Shepherd to want to be with him.

Risk pressed a hard kiss to Tamil’s lips. “You come back to me,” he growled. “In and out. Understood?”

Tamil nodded. With one last lingering look for his mate, Tamil held a hand out to Lire. As Raff looked on, Lire linked fingers with Tamil before casting a glance his mates’ way. He tapped his chest. Faolan and Dougal nodded at whatever silent conversation passed between them. Raff couldn’t look away from Tamil’s and Lire’s joined hands. Tamil held a demon’s hand with no visible repercussions. That wasn’t possible, but he was seeing it. As Raff looked on, Tamil moved to an antique-looking mirror that hung nearby. He touched the glass. It shimmered—like a silver pond. Tamil looked Risk’s way and held the man’s stare as he stepped through the mirror, pulling Lire along with him.

Raff’s nerves took hold, using his tongue against him. “The entrance to Hell is in your house.”

No one spoke.

Raff tore his gaze away from the mirror that was completely normal now. Jonathan stared at him as if waiting for Raff’s attention. “The door to Hell is wherever Tamil wants it to be. As a shapeshifter, he takes many forms, including the key to Hell.” Raff floundered. He didn’t know how to react. Before he found his words, Jonathan continued. “I hope you understand, whenever this over, I’ll have to wipe that knowledge from you or you’ll never be safe. Tamil will never be safe. I can’t allow that.”

Raff went back to staring at the mirror. “Once my mate is back under my protection, you can do whatever you want to me. I don’t care about anything else right now.” The mirror shimmered again, and Raff went on high alert. His heart jumped into his throat as Tamil reappeared followed closely by Lire. There was no sign of Shepherd. Raff couldn’t breathe.

Tamil looked pinched and ready to break. “He’s not there.”

“You’re sure?” Raff barked, hearing the desperation in his voice and incapable of stopping it.

Tamil kept his head down, but Raff saw him nod. He walked into Risk’s open arms and collapsed. The pair dissipated before he could demand answers.

Lire’s odd mismatched eyes focused on Raff, as if trying to keep him calm. “Your man isn’t there. If he was, Tamil would’ve found him immediately.”

“Where did Tamil go? What did he see?”

Lire held his hand up. “Leave the boy be. You have no idea the price he paid for you tonight, but I hope when you find Shepherd, you stop being an idiot. If you understood what you just put Tamil through, you’d never be able to live with the shame.”

Raff dragged his fingers through his hair, ready to scream. They all could lecture him later. Right now, he needed answers. “I’ll find a way to repay my debt. For now, I need to find my mate. I need help.”

Lire looked toward his mates. He chewed his lip, toying with his piercing. No one said a word, as if everyone was equally stumped. With every passing second, Raff’s desperation grew. Lire’s gaze moved between his mates and Jonathan and back again. “I have a thought.” He moved for Faolan. Once he took the amethyst-eyed man’s hand, he headed for the door. “Give us five minutes, Jonathan, and then search Faolan out with your mind. I have an idea of how this demon might have Shepherd hidden. Let’s test my theory.”

Jonathan nodded. “Go. I’m timing you.”

The pair disappeared, and Raff paced. Several times, he looked Dante’s way, but the vampire kept his head down, as if staring at his shoes or praying. Even Raff didn’t know why he looked to Dante. Maybe he sought comfort, or perhaps he sought absolution. Either way, he found neither.

“I can’t see Faol,” Jonathan said, bringing Raff’s focus his way. “There’s no void where he should be or anything. He’s just gone. What do you feel, Dougal? He’s your mate. Can you feel him?”

A line appeared between Dougal’s eyes. A smile touched his lips. “Nay, but I know where he is.”

Faolan reappeared, smiling. “That’s how the bastard is doing it.”

Raff looked around the room. He hated being in the dark while they discussed something that directly affected his mate. “What am I missing?”

Smoke surrounded Faolan, separating from his body before solidifying into Lire. He looked triumphant. “Your mate isn’t dead, Raff. He’s possessed. Jonathan can’t see him because he’s not Shepherd right now. He’s the demon.”

It hit Raff. “He smelled different. When he came to tell me he was leaving, he didn’t smell like him. I thought it was odd because I hadn’t sensed him coming before he stepped through the door. Holy shit. He was possessed when I saw him earlier.”

While Raff tried wrapping his mind around the news, Dante stepped in. “Does that information help you, Jonathan? Can you find specific demons?”

Jonathan nodded and shrugged at the same time. “As long as he’s not in Hell, I can find him, but I need to know who I’m looking for. There are a lot of demons roaming the earth.”

A growl sounded from Dante. “I don’t know how to fix this. This whole damn thing has me fucking helpless. If I’d stayed with him after taking him to Risk’s, none of this would’ve happened. Now I don’t know where to start, but I can’t stand around and do nothing.”

Jonathan stood and circled the couch. He looked tired. Raff wondered if this was his day every day, dealing with one emergency after the other. Cin and Niall pressed Jonathan between them, as if lending him strength. Jonathan’s wings expanded as he wrapped an arm around each man’s waist, as if he took a deep breath to soak up their comfort.

With his head bowed, Jonathan spoke to Dante. “You saw the demon, right?”

“Yes. Briefly. I’m not even sure I could describe him. I was too panicked.”

Jonathan nodded. “If you want to help, take a walk. Clear your head. It’s possible, once you’re steadier, you’ll remember something important or I’ll see your thoughts clearer. All we can do is try.”

Dante tilted his chin to the ceiling and took a deep breath before heading for the French doors that led to the backyard. Raff ate Dante alive with his gaze as he walked away. At his darkest moment, he wanted to hold the man who’d held his heart for half a century. He hated himself in that moment because he didn’t know how to be the person he needed to be. He didn’t know how to let Dante go and be with someone new, but he would. If Goddess Celeste would grant him release from this hell and bring Shepherd home safe, Raff would set Dante free for good.

Dante sucked the night air into his lungs. For Shepherd’s sake, he needed to find a place of peace inside his head. It was hard with Raff there. Dante had lived long enough he understood things would change. That was the only certainty in life. No matter the outcome of all this, one day it would be a blurry memory. But right now, he couldn’t see past the emotions caving in on him.

The wind whipped through his hair. It carried low voices. Dante turned his head and searched the grounds with his gaze. The long, billowing branches of a willow tree in the distance shifted just right, revealing the couple hiding beneath the tree. His perfect night vision allowed him to see more than he should. Risk and Tamil held each other. Whispered words of love and comfort passed between them. Dante dropped to the ground, sitting to stare like the worst of voyeurs. Tamil was a mystery to Dante. He’d walked into Hell, holding the hand of a demon, and walked out unscathed. While Dante had so many questions, he felt zero desire to ask a single one. The man’s secrets were his own. Everyone had them and everyone had the right to keep them. Still, Dante couldn’t find the strength to look away from the couple beneath the tree. He’d once had what they did, but then again, he hadn’t. He’d found love but not his mate. Perhaps it wasn’t the same. Sometimes, it seemed he’d never know. After all, he’d lived half a millennia and never found that piece of his soul. For the past fifty years, that hadn’t mattered. He’d been content. Now there was nothing but years and years of solitary existence ahead of him. The idea of it exhausted him.

A large black wolf appeared from the shadows and plopped down beside him. Dante ran his fingers through Evan’s fur. He’d always had a soft spot for the boy. Evan was untainted innocence in a world filled with sin. Something about him always filled Dante with hope. He needed that now.

Evan transformed into a man. His gaze stayed locked on the same spot as Dante. “They’re beautiful, aren’t they? They spend a lot of time out here and I’m always staring.”

Dante nodded. “The sight of them together is refreshing when everything else looks so bleak. I know I shouldn’t spy on them, but I can’t stop.”

Evan took his hand and held it. “Sometimes you have to take your comfort where you can.”

Dante sucked in a breath, trying to inhale the peace of Evan’s presence.

Evan kept talking as if he recognized it was what Dante needed. “Saber and Landry are here. Landry is showing a tiger’s mate level of rage over Raff losing his brother. I’m pretty sure, if this wasn’t the king’s home, Landry would’ve ripped his throat out by now. Who do you think would win in that fight? I mean, Raff is old and an alpha, but tigers are strong and quick. It’s possible Saber would step in and just be like—no one fucks with my mate and ka-bow,” Evan said, swiping his arm through the air in a lightning-fast motion. “And tear his heart out. Not that I’d want to see that happen. Just speculating.”

Dante’s throat swelled. Guilt weighed heavily on his shoulders. “They shouldn’t be angry with Raff. Raff didn’t lose Shepherd. I did. When I took him to Risk’s, I wanted to stay, but it hurt too much to be near him. I left him there alone, knowing he was hurting too. It’s my fault.”

Evan transformed from overexcited to serious in an instant. “No. No one lost Shepherd. Someone found him and understood his pain at just the right time. Maybe that someone is a no-count demon, or maybe he isn’t. The thing is, we don’t know. Look at Lire and Kallus. They’re both amazing and not necessarily the exception. A lot of demons are just trying to live the lives handed to them. So don’t let your head go to the worst place.” Evan shook his head as he held Dante’s stare. “I can’t imagine how Shepherd must feel. Not only did he just find out that everything he believed to be true isn’t, he’s being told to hand his life over to someone he doesn’t know all that well. I wouldn’t like finding out that I suddenly don’t belong to myself anymore. That all my choices have been stripped away. Someone offered him a chance to decide for himself, while everyone else has been telling him to deal with the life Celeste handed him, and he didn’t even know Celeste existed before a few weeks ago.” Evan shrugged. “I don’t know that I wouldn’t have made the same choice in his shoes.”

He knew everything Evan said was true. Dante had needed someone to remind him of all those things. He squeezed Evan’s hand. “Thank you.”

After squeezing him back, Evan released him. “I have to get back to patrol. I just wanted to check on you.”

Before Dante could thank him again, Evan turned back into a wolf. Dante didn’t watch him leave. A pain bloomed behind his eyes. Dante rubbed his temples. His hair brushed over his shoulder and strong fingers dug into his shoulders and neck. Lips brushed his nape. Dante didn’t have the strength to fight anymore tonight. It didn’t help that Raff knew exactly how to touch him.

“Do you remember why we worked so well?” Raff asked against his skin. Before Dante could dredge up a passable response, Raff answered his own question. “It’s because we always talked to each other. We talked about everything all the time. Nothing was off-limits between us. We openly discussed everything without anger or judgment. That all ended the day Shepherd marked me. You just walked away. I don’t understand that because you can still talk to me.”

Dante knew it was true. The moment Shepherd marked Raff’s skin, Dante had erected a wall between them. It had to stay there for sanity’s sake. “There’s nothing to say.” That wasn’t true. There was too much to say. Dante broke. “I wanted more time.” The confession fell before Dante could call it back. “We knew this day was coming, but I wasn’t ready. I’ll never feel like I had enough time with you and it’s killing me. Nothing I’m feeling changes anything. You’re no longer mine, and you never will be again.” Dante met the amber gaze he loved more than life. “I’m still figuring out how to deal with that. You have to help me let you go by letting me go.”

Raff opened his mouth. Before any sound fell from his lips, Raff went still. His nose hit the air. He scanned the grounds with his gaze. “Something’s happened.”

Dante came to his feet as Raff did. A black wolf alongside a silver wolf burst from the tree line, racing toward the house. Evan and Bleidd didn’t slow as they passed. Dante and Raff followed in their tracks. A half step before hitting the door, the pair transformed, becoming men.

“What’s wrong?” Dante asked, hearing the panic in his voice.

Evan waved for them to follow. “Bleidd knows who we’re dealing with. Come on.”

Raff picked up his step, proving his concern for his mate trumped everything, as it should. Dante hated that it still hurt.

When they burst into the living room, everyone turned their way. Jonathan came to his feet. His features were tight with concern. Dante’s mind latched on to the fact that Saber and Landry were missing. “What happened to Landry? Shouldn’t he be here for this?”

“They went to search places Shepherd might go,” Jonathan answered absently. His stare was for Evan alone. “Tell me.”

Evan practically bounced in place in his excitement. “We were at the edge of the property, dealing with that odd deer shifter who keeps coming too close to the alarms, setting them off. Anyhow, Bleidd caught Shepherd’s scent as well as a hint of something else.” He beamed up at his mate—like he’d never been prouder of anyone. “You know Bleidd has been around since the beginning of time, so he knows all the ancients. It’s Stryph.”

The round of cursing that tore through the room didn’t fill Dante with confidence. “Is he considered an evil demon?” That was honestly all Dante cared about. He couldn’t picture Shepherd in the hands of someone harming him. No matter the personal cost, Shepherd was a good man. A kind man. He deserved to be treated as such.

As one of the oldest beings in the room and a god, everyone looked to Eirik for answers. Evan’s twin, in every way but blood, scrubbed his hand across his forehead, as if unsure where to start. “He isn’t a demon at all.”

“Then what is he?” Raff asked, sounding every bit as desperate and confused as Dante felt.

“He’s strife,” Eirik said, clearing up nothing. “Like, literally,” Eirik added. “When Satan was cast down, the heavens shook, and one-third of the angels fell. Everyone knows that, but what most people don’t realize is that several of the gods’ weapons were cast down to live among the humans as well. We’re talking about beings who were here long before there was a here. Stryph is older than the planet you’re standing on. In itself, strife isn’t necessarily a bad thing. It can bring about healthy competition and crusades that can change the course of history in a positive way. The problem is, Stryph is capable of altering reality until no one can tell what’s real. He could be anywhere, and he could’ve been right here among us for a lot longer than we realize. Who knows what we’ve experienced lately that was influenced by his interference.”

“I don’t understand,” Raff said, continuing to voice Dante’s every thought. “If he didn’t come to deal, and he doesn’t need to possess Shepherd, what’s his end game? Why take Shepherd at all?”

Eirik shrugged. “I can only speculate as to his purpose. It could be exactly what you’re seeing. All of us are standing here, looking in one direction, while anything else could be happening in another. I mean, look how many of us are here, trying desperately to find one person while doing things that keep us trapped by our emotions. Tamil made a trip to Hell, the place that mentally damages him the most.” Eirik motioned Dante and Raff’s way. “A couple who’ve been together for years has been destroyed. A mate is missing. Jonathan is torn in a thousand directions to the point of weariness. It’s just general mayhem and discord around here. Meanwhile, anything could be happening elsewhere. Demons could be plotting an uprising. Fairies might have already taken New York, or whatever crazy thing they do with their time these days. We wouldn’t know because we’ve been here, staring at this.”

“I’m sorry,” Dante said, speaking up. “I hate to keep revisiting the same points, but what is he?”

“An instrument of power,” Bleidd said, answering for Eirik, as if he thought he might do a better job of explaining. “But like all weapons, he’s neither good nor bad, merely a tool that can be used for either. He doesn’t answer to the heavens or the underworld. Stryph serves no purpose but his own. He just keeps life in balance by any means necessary. Stryph can’t be reined in or destroyed. Every being, mortal and immortal, lives at the mercy of his whims. It seems, currently, Shepherd serves his motives. Whatever they may be.”

“The hell you say,” Raff barked, sounding enraged. His blazing gaze stayed locked on Jonathan. “Now that you know who you’re dealing with, can you find him? I’ll go after the bastard.”

A line appeared between Jonathan’s brows. His chest expanded. It was as if he turned inward, searching. His face went pale. A gasp tore from Niall’s throat and he shot to his feet in just enough time to catch Jonathan as he collapsed. All Dante could do was watch in horror as the room exploded into action, doing everything possible to save an obviously fading Jonathan. The gravity of the situation fell on Dante, suffocating him. Without Jonathan, all hope was lost.