“You’re lying.” Gwyn accused, but some uncertainty played in her black eyes.
“Haha!” I laughed. “I did too good of a job since you don’t even believe me now.”
Gwyn searched my eyes for any sign of deceit, but all she found was honesty and boredom. I was heartless. I stood in front of the vampire I has been with for over a year, breaking her heart without a second thought; without a care.
“But I love you…” Gwyn admitted as single tear slid down her perfect face.
“Aww.” I replied, wiping away the tear and licking it off my finger. “That’s what made it so fun. But now, I’m bored of it.”
Before walking away, I planted a small kiss on Gwyn’s lips.
“Hm-mmm. You taste even better heartbroken.” And with that, I turned away laughing as Gwyn stood alone, figuring out how the hell did she let that happen.
***
Ana
Cassius stood in the doorway with his chest heaving up and down in rage. The thing that made it scarier was the fact that he didn’t even need to breathe. His red eyes held anger and power that couldn’t be denied. But deep within, I saw his sadness. His mother was just killed by his father, and I was trying to escape with my other mates. The guilt froze me in place, and I couldn’t make a sound. Cassius glanced at me, but his focus was truly only on Seb and Jace.
“Are these your other mates?” He asked in an eerily calm voice.
I was so thrown off by the question that I kept opening and closing my mouth like a fish.
“Yes, we are, and we’re leaving.” Jace replied in a surprisingly confident voice.
Seb was stoned-faced, but I knew him well enough to understand he was only calculating a plan of attack.
“Oh, yes. You are leaving, but not with my mate. And not alive.” Cassius sneered.
As soon as the words left his mouth, Jace launched a fire ball at him. Cassius ducked and the ball landed on his bed, setting it ablaze. Then suddenly, Jace fell to his knees, screaming and clutching his head. The veins in his forehead strained against the skin, almost bursting through it. The Prince must be using his ability on him. That’s when Seb made his move. At an impossible speed, Seb tackled Cassius to the ground. The two of them rolled on top of one another, landing hard punches nonstop.
This is insane! My mates were fighting, and all I did was stand here! I needed to help them, but I didn’t want to hurt Cassius even more than he already was. My mind spun as I continued to watch the scene unfold.
Cassius had gotten the upper hand and was punching Seb brutally in the face. Luckily, Jace’s mind had cleared, and he threw himself onto Cassius’ back. He succeeded at getting him off of Seb, but Jace was no match for Cassius in hand-to-hand combat. The vampire flipped the witch off before picking him up and throwing him across the room. Jace crashed to the wall, sliding down into a heap. Not a second later, Seb was back up, and he and Cassius tangled... Swing, hit, swing, and dodge. It went on and on. They both were great fighters, but sooner or later Cassius would win. We were still at the blood castle so there were probably guards on their way here now. The fight started barely five minutes ago, but it had gone on long enough. I couldn’t risk the lives of two mates for one. No matter how bad I felt, I had to save them.
Something shiny on the floor caught my eyes. Avoiding Cassius and Seb, I stepped closer to it. When I reached it, I realized it was a tiny syringe filled with thick liquid platinum. It hit me that it must have fallen out of Seb’s pocket. This was what he used on me when I tried to kill Kim in Nexus. And now, I know what I have to do with it.
Cautiously, I stepped behind the Prince. He had Seb against his dresser and was choking him viciously with both hands.
“I’m sorry.” I whispered, and then I drove the needle to the base of his neck. Cassius instantly dropped his hold on Seb. Slowly, he turned to face me, and the look of hurt in his eyes made my heart clench. Before I could step away, he grabbed me by the back of my head, and yanked me to him until our lips almost touched.
“I…will…find…you…” He promised, looking intently into my eyes. Not a second later, his body collapsed to the ground, unconscious.
I released a loud erratic breath. What did I just do? This wasn’t how its was supposed to happen.
But there was nothing I could do about it now.
“Come on,” Seb said, grabbing my hand. “He won’t be out long”
I shook off my guilt, putting my head in the moment. Seb was right. It was past time to go. Jace stirred on the floor, waking up from his hard encounter with the wall. Both Seb and I helped him to his feet.
“Is he dead?” Jace asked, noticing Cassius’ unmoving body. I shook my head no at the same time that a group of guards poured into the room.
Crap!
The three of us backed up until our bodies were hit the window. The guards took in Cassius’ body and the burning bed. Then they charged us. Acting quickly, I placed my palm against the window. Blue bolts shot out, shattering the entire window into bits
“JUMP!” I yelled. My mates didn’t question me, and the three of us leapt out into the darkness of the night.
No one screamed.
The sound of the wind whipping around us was all I could hear. The night was eerily quiet and the ocean was surprisingly still. The serene fall was like a respite from the chaos inside the castle. The fall was almost graceful; as if it were happening in slow motion. I watched as the glass from the window reflected the light from the moon. The shards illuminated something in the water, but it was too obscured to be seen clearly.
When we finally plummeted into the dark ocean, the coldness of it was astonishing. I instantly worried for Jace’s and Seb’s bodies being able to handle the shock of the fall combined with the freezing temperatures.
The water was so dark, I could barely see anything even with my enhanced vision. A sense of danger overcame me, sending a chill down my spine. The darkness didn’t help me shake it off. Summoning my ability to my aide, I used the bright blots to my advantage. They flowed through my body and into my hands where they oscillated around my fingers in beautiful spirals, painting the black waters electric blue. The light helped me find Seb who was only a few feet away. Seb motioned for us to start swimming up. I nodded in agreement but continued to spin around searching for Jace. It was not long before I foundnd him. Somehow, he had gotten separated from us, and judging from the thrashing of his body, he was panicking. I began to swim towards him, and that was when I saw it. It was the obscured figure that I noticed earlier.
It was a great white shark. Nothing on the Discovery Channel could have prepared me for how huge and intimidating these creatures were in real life. Jace was unaware of the danger that was coming from behind him. I opened my mouth to scream a warning, but the water drowned the sound. Not having any other option, I swam faster than I could even imagine towards him. My only hope was I was fast enough. The gray shark must have the same idea because it was also approaching Jace at an impossible speed. Luckily, I reached him first and did the only thing I could think to do. I latched on to his legs, and with all my might, I fling him up through the water. The currents in the ocean made it difficult, but my vampire strength propelled him through the water and into the air. A feeling of relief washed over me knowing that I could deal with the shark while Jace was safely out of reach.
That feeling was short lived as the shark changed its direction and started pursuing Jace towards the surface. My feeling of relief was changed to horror as I was forced to watch helplessly as the shark flew into the air shortly after Jace did. I was trying to save him, and I inadvertently put him in more danger. The shark opened its mouth wide, desperate to have its meal. Fortunately, it wasn’t close enough. The shark snapped its jaws an inch shy of Jace’s body, barely missing him. As it made its way back to the water, its black eyes landed on me. Something in the depths of them told me I had majorly pissed it off. I didn’t have time to prepare for what happened next.
As soon as the s
hark dived back into the water it, attacked. Its enormous mouth nearly consumed me. Thousands of teeth pierced through my side as the beast drove me fast and hard into the deep ocean waters. My shock caused me to lose my grip on my ability, and once again, I was engulfed in darkness. I tried to free myself, but it was useless. The monster had me with no intentions of letting go. This couldn’t happen. I didn’t risk everything to only die at the hands of a shark. It may be a predator, but so was I, and it was past time I showed this shark exactly what it was dealing with. I stopped thrashing and stared deep into the beast’s black eye. Even deep down in the ocean, I could see my now glowing red eyes through the eyes of the shark. I opened my mouth, flashing my fangs in a ferocious display of domination. It had the desired effect because the stunned shark instantly let go of me. The wounds it caused closed up.
I thought the worst was over until I saw Seb. He must have seen the shark drag me deeper and came to help. The problem with that was the shark also spotted him and wasted no time changing tactics and was now charging after Seb. Here we go again. I pursued the shark as it pursued Seb. Seb, noticing it coming, pushed towards the surface. He wasn’t moving as fast as I wanted him to, and the shark was gaining. It must be the lack of oxygen slowing him down, but, luckily for me, I didn’t need air. I illuminated my hands again to better help me gauge the distance between the shark and Seb. It was dangerously close. But so was I to the shark. I reached my hand out and grabbed hold of its tailfin just inches before it reached Seb’s retreating foot. To distract it even more, I dug my nails through its thick skin, drawing blood.
The good thing was the shark lost interest in Seb. The bad thing was it regained its interest in me. It spun around, baring its teeth. The predator vs predator truce we previously established was over. I had interrupted its feeding one too many times, and now it wanted me to pay for it. No worries. It was time for Bruce to die anyways. I called him Bruce because it reminded me of the shark from Finding Nemo; only in looks, not personality.
We both waded in the water, sizing each other up. And then I took off, diving deeper into the unfamiliar depths of the ocean. Just as expected, Bruce chased me which meant Seb was safe for now. As for me, I had a plan. I just hoped it wouldn’t drain me of all my energy after I executed it. Bruce was so close, I could feel his sharp teeth nipping at my heels. I let my kinetic energy flow through me until it felt strong and secure. Then I made my move. I quickly spun around and slammed my hands against the side of its head. Bruce’s enormous jaws opened wide directly in front of my face. As soon as my palms touched it, I released the energy I’d been gathering. The bolts ran through the shark’s body, and the creature began to shake uncontrollably. I didn’t let go of it immediately. Instead, I pushed more bolts through it. The ocean was vibrantly illuminated from all the power I was using. Finally, the shark’s body exploded into bits, and more light flooded the water. After the beast was dead, my ability cut off too. The only bit I had left was sparks of lightning in my hands. I began to swim back and noticed several more sharks around me. But to my surprise, they only glanced at me before swimming off to another direction.
Even a predator was smart enough to know a losing battle when they saw one.
Chapter 45
Howl
Simon
I was nervous, but I didn’t want to show it. Marie, on the other hand, looked fearless. She stared down Talon with a bravery I didn’t expect. Still, I worried for both our safety. With everyone else gone, we had next to no chance taking out the vampires alone.
“Why don’t you just walk away, Talon, while you still can. And take your pet too.” Marie bit out. Talon folded his arms, and a sly grin covered his face. The smile was unnerving. Kim, however, hadn’t spoken a word. Since they popped up, she didn’t really even pay them any attention. Instead, she continued to stare at the palm of her hand as if something were there.
“I’ll go little girl if I take you with me.” Talon replied with a wink.
Marie balled her fist.
“Over my dead body.” I shot out before I could think about who I was talking to. It didn’t matter because there was no way Marie was leaving my side.
“That can be arranged.” Talon snipped. The vampire looked around curiously before stepping closer.
“Missing some of the bunch, are you?” He asked, already knowing the answer.
Marie glanced down at her bag again, and this time, I understood why. There was a gun inside; a gun filled with platinum bullets. It was a gun they desperately needed.
Suddenly, something in the ocean sprung out into the air. I watched as the large fish flailed in the night sky.
“What the…” I began, but stopped short when I realized the fish wasn’t a fish at all. The arms and legs flying through the air were very human-like. Unknowingly, I slowly stepped towards the water. That was when a huge shark broke through the surface, hell bent on capturing the person.
“Holy crap!” I blurted, shocked by the scene taking place.
Talon and Kim turned around to see what the commotion was about, giving Marie the second she needed to discreetly take the gun from her bag and stuff it behind her back.
“It’s Jace.” Kim whispered.
Apparently, her vampire vision allowed her the ability to make who the person was. Simon dove in the ocean just as the shark missed Jace’s body. Gravity began to pull Jace back down the water. Jace skidded across the surface like a rock before finally halting and sinking below. I felt awful leaving Marie, but at the moment, Jace was in more immediate danger. I swam as hard as I could, pushing away thoughts of how cold the water was and how it felt like thousands of needles was piercing my body. Luckily, the momentum caused Jace to land much closer to the shore. I reached my friend in record speed, for me, and slowly guided him back to the beach. Once we made it back safely, Jace immediately began throwing up the salty water. Aside from some cuts and bruises, he seemed to be okay. I bent to help him and ask the whereabouts of the others but realized that during my swim, the tables had turned. Marie was now being held by the neck against Talon’s chest, and Kim had the gun. I didn’t know how it happened but it was bad.
“Ah! You found one! Just another for me kill.” Talon taunted. “You smell so good.” He added, sniffing Marie’s hair.
It was disgusting, and it boiled my blood.
“Let her go!” I ordered.
Talon only laughed.
I looked to my witch friend for help, but Jace was still puking and was completely dazed from his recent traumatic event. At this point, I didn’t know what to do. They were alone, unarmed and practically outnumbered.
I would be happy to see Lily and Bobby right now if only to even the playing field. Although knowing those two, they’d probably cause more trouble than give any kind of help.
“If I can’t kill Ana then I’ll just kill her best friend. Say bye, bye, loser.” Kim spoke, pointing the gun in my direction.
I turned to Marie and held her gaze.
There was so much I wanted to say but would never be able to.
And then Kim pulled the trigger.
***
Ana
Seb and I finally reached the shore little ways from where we originally arrived at. There was no need for talking as we both ran full speed towards our friends while we checked the coastline for Jace’s body.
Oh gosh! I hope he was alright.
Throwing him may not have been the best idea, but when a huge shark was closing in, it made it pretty hard to think straight.
We rounded the big boulder and stopped suddenly. A few yards ahead, Talon had Marie, and Kim was pointing a gun at Simon. Jace was there too, but his body lay on the ground unmoving. Lily and Bobby were missing. Overall, my friends were in serious trouble.
Just like what happened earlier, I didn’t have time to assess the situation long for the best solution. Seb and I gave each other one look, and then took off towards them. I was running so fast, everything was a blur, yet I could read Kim’s l
ips.
“Bye bye loser,” she said. Those were her words, and I knew I had less than a second before she killed my best friend. Not a chance is that happening. I didn’t come this far and battle a freaking shark to only watch my best friend die at the hands of my sister.
At the last second, I heard the gunshot ring through the air. Instead of attacking Kim, I dove in front of Simon and tackled him to the ground. Seb did the same thing to Talon, causing them all to fall as well. I wanted to make sure Simon was okay and that the bullet missed him, but time wasn’t on my side. So, I flew to my feet with lightning speed, going right for my sister. The shocked look on Kim’s face was priceless. Someone clearly wasn’t expecting to see me. That would make this beat-down even better. Before she could even open her mouth, I punched her in the face. She flew to the ground with an oomph. I towered over her, expecting her to fight, but she surprised me. Kim hopped to her feet and then ran away into the darkness of the night in vampire speed.
That was strange. I’d never known Kim to run from me. A part of me was tempted to chase her down and snap her neck, but my friends need me more. Seb and Talon were still fighting, but they had somehow maneuvered away from group, almost out of sight. I wanted to help him, but this was Seb’s fight.
For years, all he wanted was to kill Talon for destroying his family. Judging from what I could see, Seb was getting his long-awaited revenge.
Simon and Marie were kneeling next to Jace, and I quickly joined them.
“Jace?” I said softly, moving his wet hair from his face.
He didn’t respond or open his eyes, causing my worry to increase. Something else, however, did happen. A tiny green ball spiraled in the center of Jace’s hand. We all watched as it floated in the air, adding light to the dark before disappearing into Jace’s open mouth. His face lit up briefly, and slowly, the eyes that mesmerized me for years were staring at me again.
Pure: A Paranormal Romance Page 49
