With both Nathaniel and Richard sitting on Damian, Anita wraps her arms around his throat again, curling her body around his neck to provide extra weight to control his head. Without the others there, Damian could simply have sat up and taken her with him, but three against one was finally enough to give them some control.

"What do you mean, I've damaged the bond?" she asks Jean-Claude aloud, earning her a quizzical look from Nathaniel.

You are shielding against him, Jean-Claude replies in her head. Why is that?

"He woke up in the sunlight, and it terrified him. Nathaniel and I could both feel it, and it was choking us."