Page 96 of Blood Code

The Ghost was cracking like hardened lava.

When she went limp, I loosened my hold. Which was all she needed.

She twisted her body and drove her elbow into my ribs, harder than I’d thought possible.

I clutched my side on instinct, and she slipped free.

I chuckled. She’d tricked me.

A smile spread across my face. Oh, how I enjoyed a clever woman. They were my favorite kind.

Within moments, she was an arm’s length away. I reached for her, but my fingertips only grazed the leather fabric of her tactical jacket. She glanced back, desperation haunting her face, her chin trembling. Then her powers returned, and she vanished.

“Find the Ghost,” I yelled. “We need to capture her.”

But she was already gone. But at least the blonde was safely in our motorcade, ready to be taken away from the compound.

At least one thing had gone to plan.

And I could hunt the Ghost later.

Chapter Twenty-Seven

Neeve Callahan

Age 30

Sometimes, I wanted to kill Xeniya Morozova. Not sure it would ever stick, though.

Because finding an invisible woman in the aftermath of a bloodbath was difficult.

Difficult was an understatement.

It had been four hours since she entered the compound to save the girl, and now bodies littered the ground. Some had been shot in the head; others stabbed. Still more were riddled with bullets from what looked like automatic weapons.

Xeniya hadn’t brought one.

So whatever had happened here wasn't normal.

I sighed, and I checked my tracker. According to the blinking dot, I was standing right on top of her. Either she'd lost the device, or she was invisible. And Xeniya only stayed invisible this long when shit went sideways.

I inhaled slowly. God only knew what I'd find.

After the first failed extraction, we'd insisted Xeniya wear a tracker on every mission. Otherwise, finding her in the aftermath was nearly impossible.

My red hair whipped around my face. I was standing just outside the compound. The wind was violent today. Considering I was trying to rescue Xeniya, it was fitting; the girl oozed violence. It was inserted into her veins like an IV.

Knowing her, she was probably unconscious against the building. It was her thing. She loved to pass out against a wall.

I scattered a handful of salt into the wind.

As it turned out, Furies shared certain weaknesses with the Fae and witches from storybooks. Salt revealed their spirit forms, and iron could trap them.

The crystals drifted down like snow, outlining a body. I scattered more over Xeniya, making her form visible enough to locate. Then I nudged her with my foot.

“Hey, want to come back into the land of the living?” I asked, giving her another gentle nudge.

She moaned but didn’t say anything.