Release (The Protector Book 3) Read Free Page A

one who lost someone?” I asked. “We’ve all lost people to this.”
    Eric laughed and walked around the table towards me. “Please tell me the little boy whose stupidity put us in this situation isn’t comparing his loss to ours. Your ‘experience’ is the reason why all this happened. It’s the reason my hunters, their children, and your mother are dead.”
    Anger didn’t have time to rise; it just appeared. Fire exploded around my arms and I swung at Eric, but he jumped back and pulled out his blade.
    “Be smart, boy. You don’t want to go toe-to-toe with me.”
    “I won’t be going toe-to-toe with you. You’ll be flat on your back before we start.”
    Eric’s brows furrowed and he shook his head. “You’re an arrogant little shit, you know that? And I’ve had just about enough of you.”
    Blue flames covered both my arms, and as Eric lunged towards me, I cocked my fist back. Before either of us could finish what we’d started, Marcus’s power took over.
    My flames went out and Eric’s body stopped mid-lunge. Marcus’s air element pinned Eric to the wall and held me back. “That’s enough!” Marcus’s voice was loud, echoing off the concrete.
    “It’s true.” Eric struggled against Marcus’s magic. “If it wasn’t for him, they’d all still be alive. You can’t deny that.”
    “Riley had an objective. Sooner or later, he would’ve gotten what he wanted. If we choose to let the past control us, we’ll lose any opportunities we have for a future. We need to work together—all of us—and find a way to stop him.”
    Eric stopped fighting Marcus’s magic and the muscles in his jaw flexed. “I’m only saying this once, Marcus. Let me go. Now.”
    Marcus waited a moment, his gaze panning back and forth between Eric and me. After a long moment, his magic faded and released us.
    “Don’t you dare pull a stunt like that on me again. You don’t have the numbers to be pissing me off.”
    “You’re right,” Marcus said. “You bring a lot to the table, but I won’t have us fighting amongst ourselves. If that means losing your help, so be it.”
    “Well, you best keep these folks in check. I won’t give them the same courtesy I just awarded you.”
    The fire that had engulfed my arms was gone, but anger still boiled beneath the surface. With Marcus’s training the past few weeks, I was learning to control my emotions and my elements, but it was still a work in progress.
    I could feel Eric’s eyes burning through me, but I didn’t let it bother me. I took a long, deep breath, letting the water in my soul soothe the anger. My element washed the emotions away bit by bit, and I moved back to lean against the wall.
    “That’s right,” Eric said. “Walk away.”
    “Dammit, Eric, that’s enough!” Kate kicked her chair behind her. “I’m tired of your bullshit. Chase made a mistake, it happens. Gods know you’ve made your fair share. Rayna’s right, Chase has more experience with our adversaries than all of us in this room combined. So cut the crap and listen or get the hell out.”
    Everyone went still. Eric stared up at Kate with fury in his eyes but he didn’t respond. The tension in the air was so thick I felt that if I reached out my arm, I could touch it.
    After a long silence, Cody chuckled and slammed his fist on the table. “Hot diggity, that was intense! I thought we was getting some fireworks.”
    Nobody responded to the outburst, and Kate nodded, pulling her chair back underneath her. “Marcus, please carry on.”
    “As I was saying,” Marcus continued hesitantly, “Riley is at a level of power we can’t match. He’s turned Arian, a former werecat with the Hollowlights, into a multi-shifter. If he can readily hand out that kind of magic, there’s no telling what he is fully capable of.”
    “Then what do you suggest we do?” Cory asked.
    “We don’t need all of Ithreal’s soul pieces. If we can eliminate one, not only does that weaken him, but it also