Primal Heat 05 - Darkness Reborn

death. So much loss. I can't.
    You can. Suddenly, she felt a thrust of power from Kane, a rush of electricity so fierce she screamed from the pain. He forced his strength into her, and suddenly there was a flash of black light and a crack so loud it sounded like the cave itself had shattered. Then Kane's flail appeared in her hand, the twin spiked balls spinning wildly. He'd made her call his weapon into her hand!
    She had no time to think, no time to react, as Kane forced his will through her, until she could almost feel his hands closing around hers, his intentions so powerful that she had no chance to resist them, no chance to second guess. She simply grasped the weapon and swung it as hard as she could.
    It slammed into his chest, flinging him off her. She had a split second to see relief in his dark eyes, and then he landed in a slumped pile against the wall of the cave. Horror reeled through her, and she flung the flail aside as she stumbled to her feet, nausea churning in her belly as the blood streamed down his chest. "Kane?" Dear God. Her hands started to shake, and her legs gave out. The rocky floor dug into her knees as she fell to the ground, staring in agony at him. Her neck was burning from the pain of his attack, and it hurt to swallow, the truth of his attack undeniable.
    Tears burned in her eyes. Kane had failed. He'd succumbed like the others. There was no way to trust him. To trust anyone. And now she'd killed him.
    "You're his sheva? " Ryland was on his feet now, staring at her, his face aghast with horror. "That's impossible. You're an angel. It would destroy you to be linked with one of us."
    Sarah couldn't even look at him. She just couldn't take her eyes off Kane. Breathe, please, breathe.
    "Damn, woman, that was a slick move." Thano was on his feet now, striding across the cave to check on Kane. "Youactivated the transference stage of the sheva bond to use the weapon against your own mate. That's a good one. I gotta admit, I like the irony of that."
    "I didn't call it," she whispered. "He made me." She suddenly realized the significance of that statement. Kane had forced her to call his weapon. He'd been clear enough in his mind not to let the evil take him. He'd stopped himself by making her strike first.
    He had been strong enough.
    "Kane!" She scrambled to her feet and stumbled across the floor. She fell into him, grabbing his shoulders.
    To her disbelief, Kane groaned and grabbed her, shifting her to the side. "Not on the broken ribs, sweetheart. Give me at least a minute to heal."
    "You're okay?" She couldn't believe it. "You're serious?"
    His eyes flickered open, and she saw the pain in them, but also the smug triumph. "Of course I'm okay. I'm immortal, remember?" He raised his brows. "Are you still going to doubt my ability to resist the bogeyman?" Then his gaze went to her throat, and his amusement vanished. "Jesus, Sarah." His voice was raw with fury and pain. "I did that?" He set his hand on her neck, and she couldn't help but flinch.
    "Fuck!" He lurched to his feet, his hands clasped on his head, his face almost ashen. "I hurt you. Son of a bitch. I hurt you. "
    "Kane, no, it wasn't like that." She leapt up and grabbed his arm. "You stopped it. Don't you understand? I felt the poison inside you, all that violence and despair, and it took me, too. I had no defenses against it, and I'm an angel! But somehow, you were able to summon the strength to make me call your weapon. Don't you get it? You are strong enough."
    "No." He pulled free, backing away from her, self-loathing and disgust still etched on his features. "Look at your throat. You're bruised. Because of me."
    "Dude," Thano's hand came down hard on his shoulder. "Give yourself a break. You were seriously fucked up there for a minute, but all you did was give her a few red marks on her skin? Shit, that's practically a love bite." The humor left his voice, and he turned Kane toward him. "Do you realize how easily you could have snapped her neck? And yet you didn't. In the five seconds it took for Sarah to call your weapon, you could have killed her a thousand times, but you didn't." Thano held out his hand, revealing a blackened palm. "That's what I got from touching you, big guy. That's how much shit was going through you, and yet you didn't hurt her."
    Kane pressed his hands to his forehead and paced away from them. His shoulders were trembling, and Sarah felt the waves of fear rippling over him. True fear. The kind of fear