by Kim Faulks
Headlights splashed against the side of Alpha’s face.
“Alpha,” Marcus snarled.
Cars hurtled toward us, still we were gunning…racing toward our destiny.
Immortality filled my veins, sending a heavy thud through that black heart of mine. But the mortal beside me took no notice of his own fragility.
“Alpha!”
My brother’s voice filled the cabin.
I saw them through the oncoming headlights as two cars hurtled toward us. The gap wasn’t big enough…
“Alpha!”
The female driver gripped the wheel. Her mouth open in a silent scream as the Marine shifted gears, wrenched the handbrake, and spun the wheel left, and then right, whipping the ass of the Mustang around the first vehicle and out of her way.
“Jesus fucking Christ!” Marcus howled.
I tried to find my stomach as the Mustang hunkered down and surged forward. Gunny’s lights grew brighter as we left behind Davenport’s busy streets.
And in front of Gunny’s taillights, another set of rear lights glinted…like a victory flag.
One we’d set on fire.
My stomach tightened as I leaned forward. “Get that bitch, Alpha.”
“She’s not going anywhere,” the Marine growled, shifted gears and pushed his foot to the floor.
20
Eva
“Leave, Princess,” Gabriel murmured. “Save yourself.”
An ache flared deep in my chest as lightning severed the sky.
Two hulking shadows moved in the wake of the glare, widening the gap to surround us on both sides, leaving one way out…behind me.
“I’m not running, Gabriel. I’m not…”
…my brother.
I swallowed those bitter words, shoving them under the sting of betrayal. I’d not think about that now, not think about the sound of my brother’s fading steps, or the furious rage that welled in my belly. Rage that wasn’t for him, but for me.
Trust…such a fickle little thing…
I took a step to stand beside my first circle warrior. His spine straightened as he snapped to attention. He wasn’t just a soldier in this moment. He was the only thing standing between these two beasts and the survival of the entire Shadistin line.
White fangs glinted, and then disappeared as lightning faded, leaving neon white flashes in my eyes.
Black on black moved on my right. Silver bristles glinted at my left. Thunder sank from the clouds and rushed for me with long glistening fangs. Gabriel lunged, not for the wolves, but for me, slamming his palm into my chest and shoved.
I flew backwards, windmilling my arms before my ass hit the ground. I rolled, clamored, boots slid on slick rocks as the guttural roar filled the air. Steel shone as it sliced the night and stopped, buried deep into fur and flesh.
A whimper tore from the beast as it hit the ground. But the other wolf never slowed, rushing headlong with ears smashed flat. Steel clanged as it hit the ground, Gabriel’s fingers sank into fur as he grabbed the beast.
The gnash of teeth was sickening. I glanced to the sword and lunged, driving my boots into the mud. Raindrops slid into my eyes blurring the struggle. But panic never left me, biting deep as I skimmed the ground, my fingers closing around the hilt.
The injured wolf struggled to its feet, shaking the pain from flesh and bones to glance toward the others.
“No you don’t,” I snapped and gripped the heavy sword, swinging high.
The brutal thud of fists on fur filled the air like a heartbeat, one that sped. A grunt from Gabriel stole my gaze. He punched, blocking powerful rear legs and razored claws. I swung back to the enemy, taking a step to block its path. “You want him?”
Silver eyes glinted as the beast lowered its head. Black lips curled before a gnash of ivory teeth.
I straightened my spine and worked my shoulders before readying my stance. “Then, you’ll have to go through me.”
A whimper came from behind me, but it wasn’t the wolf. Fear whispered against my ear with an icy breath, but I didn’t turn…I couldn’t. I was rooted to the spot while instinct screamed to run.
A howl from the wolf drew a surge of courage. The beast in front limped forward, favoring its front leg, and it was that leg I focused on as I swung the sword high and brought the blade down. The beast leapt, scurrying out of the way, curling around me toward the Tree of Death. The wolf slipped in the hollow base, its paws tangled in the gnarled roots. I stilled at the sight, drawn to the cold, packed earth. “Get off him.” I dragged my gaze high. “Get the fuck off him!”
I strangled the hilt and swung again. But it was my threat my hands were around, and it was my breath that stilled. I tried to inhale, tried to focus on the sickening snap of bones behind me and the grunt of pain.
“Run,” Gabriel whimpered. “Eva, run…”
But there was no more running. All roads led back here, to that night—to that horror.
Show me, you cruel bitch, Acheron demanded. Show me what you did with my son!
I stumbled under the weight of his rage as the wolf hunkered down on its rear legs and rushed me. I couldn’t swing, couldn’t fight…butterflies were trapped in my belly. Secrets surging to the surface, ready to take flight.
A guttural roar boomed behind me. Black and white flew through the air. Beast hit beast, melting into midnight fur. But my nemesis didn’t stay down for long, crawling out from under the savage snarl of the other to move toward me.
A grunt of pain tore through the night.
“Save yourself…” Gabriel whimpered. “If not for yourself, then for me.”
I couldn’t turn as the wolf readied itself and lunged. White fangs came for my throat. I wrenched my hands to my face, fingers splayed wide and sank my nails into thick fur.
The feral scent hit me. Blood and sex, guttural and raw. The shifter drove me backwards. I stumbled under the weight, falling, hitting the ground with a two hundred pound beast.
Long claws sliced my arms, my belly. Hot breath hit my face as the beast ravaged the air. Blood and saliva hit my face as the wolf kicked, driving powerful legs into my stomach.
“No!”
Movement melted into the night. Fangs came for me as the beast crumpled my elbows. The blow to my face was brutal. Stars exploded. My grip slipped. The sound of tearing cloth resurrected memories buried with the bundle at the base of the tree.
I dug my fingers deep, pushing into flesh, searching for bone. Slick bristles rolled under my grip, a shudder from the beast stole my need. The hard rocks at my back slipped away as we rolled. Claws tore into my belly, tearing into flesh.
I’m here, the darkness whispered inside my head.
A tree root found my shoulder, pain flared, driving talons into my spine. Fire lashed my scalp tearing strands of hair free as I spun. The beast was a mountain, filling my lungs with the thick feral scent, crushing me, just like the dirt and the cavern. But there was no Dragon to protect me, and for a second I felt the loss.
I’m here. Darkness crept closer, spearing out into my mind.
The violation was soft, sensual, teasing as my hand around the wolf slipped. It was dark and knowing, it was an icy touch, colder than the undead…colder than me.
I’m here…give in to me, Death whispered as Gabriel cried out in pain.
Let me show you. Power swept through me, stealing my breath, my mind.
Death was a chasm and I stood on the ledge and stared into nothing…for nothing was what waited.
The brutal thud of fists softened behind me…the warrior all but still.
A shiver raced through my soul as the chasm waited. There was no forcing this, no yielding of will. This was not Acheron…this was something truly terrifying.
And more real than anything I’d ever felt.
Beautiful.
Deadly.
Death.
21
Lucas
Gunny’s taillights were the first target. The Marine gunned the engine and the
speedometer climbed. The Mustang was a beast as it hugged tight corners and sweeping shoulders as we climbed the slow rise and left Davonport behind.
In the silence, the blood splattered room returned to me. There had been no body. Just as the bitch said. Nothing but mist and spray…nothing but lingering screams inside the Marine’s head.
I glanced at the gears, then his lap, working my way to his hands and then his face. Haunted eyes shone like obsidian, bathed in the wake of oncoming lights. His jaw bulged, lips flattened.
Are you okay, brother?
The words stuck in the back of my throat and for a second I understood their weight. This man wasn’t blood of my blood…but he felt like kin. This mortal…this man had somehow slipped into my life and found a place at our table as though he’d been there the entire time.
And now he was hurting, and he wanted blood. The Archer inhaled, filling my ears with the rush. I saw myself in this mortal…I saw myself in those gaunt fucking eyes.
The Marine down shifted as we climbed. Red lights flared in front, splashing across the dashboard just like the room we left behind. I found the ass of Gunny’s Jeep. Headlights were blinding as they swung around the bend, and we followed, climbing, racing, as Alpha pulled the Mustang out into the oncoming lane and we surged ahead.
Horns blared. White lights blinded. I caught sight of Gunny’s face as we passed and damn if it wasn’t a mirror image to us all. Hard. Determined. Out for fucking blood.
The hill crested and then fell away. In the distance a lonely set of taillights glinted. Hate surged, rising to the surface. It was a cruel hate, a wanting hate and a beast of its own.
She took my dignity, took my strength. The memory of Zadoc's words haunted me. I’m nothing more than what she made me.
I am nothing…
Nothing…
My pulse sped as a truck pulled out onto the road ahead, but the Marine was already changing gears, calculating the distance. Neon lights spilled across asphalt as the oncoming traffic filled the space.
The headlights were blinding behind us, bouncing off the side mirror as Gunny rode our tail. The backend of the truck swallowed the Huntress’s rear lights. I didn’t like this…I didn’t like this at all.
Cars flew past us in the opposite direction. I glanced at the Marine as we pulled out for a second, only to swing back hard. The blast of a horn was gone in a second. The Marine geared down and the speedometer needle fell…hard.
My fucking heart was a drum inside my chest…boom…boom…boom.
The bitch was getting away.
Lights of a town glinted in the distance. We were too far north to be Flinders, and Nyx was still a ways off. I glanced at the darkened gas station… Miles passed by in a blur. Warden? Was this Warden?
The pines were growing, surging up between the towns. This was Warden, I was sure of it. The truck’s rear lights flared, dragging a growl from the Marine. He gunned the engine, pulling out once more. Headlights shone in the distance, too fucking close for us to get around. But then we were pulling into the opposite lane and surging forward.
I gripped the armrest and pressed my foot to the floor. But I wasn’t in control of this machine. I had nothing but a fucking prayer and the surge of terror. Marcus…
The white glare was blinding, filling the car with the glow as we came head to head with the semitrailer.
Shadows splashed across the dashboard.
“Come on,” Alpha urged. His hands gripped the wheel, white knuckled from the strain.
Boom…boom…boom…the thunder of my heart echoed.
The screech of tires filled the car.
The Mustang’s engine howled.
X growled in the backseat, and we all knew. We all fucking knew.
Three of us would walk away.
Only one wouldn’t.
And through the glare of headlights the logging truck loomed.
Alpha spun the wheel, but it wasn’t fast enough…it wasn’t anywhere near fast enough.
The truck’s horn was deafening, blaring at me…get out of the fucking way!
I slammed my hands and leaned forward, ready to take the impact and shield Alpha as much as I could.
Burning rubber stung my nose as the car whipped sideways. Chrome…that was all I saw. Fucking Chrome. Peterbilt. The truck’s logo blurred, and we were surging forward. Gunny slipped behind us. We laid everything on the line here…nothing else mattered.
The Explorer’s rear lights sparkled and then disappeared. But this time we had her.
We fucking had her.
A shuddered breath came from the Marine. He glanced in the rearview, and I followed, leaning to the side to catch the round lights of the Wrangler. The Mustang consumed the miles until the rear lights of the Explorer shone bright.
A gas station whipped past. Dark, quiet, while another sparkled in the distance, beckoning with bright lights as the small city of Warden neared.
Plumes of white smoke billowed from the Explorer’s exhaust. The bitch drove the car harder, gaining one more mile, as though the quiet streets of this city would somehow save her.
Nothing could save her.
There was no city, no town…no damn country.
We’d never stop hunting, not until we found the cancer…and cut the bitch out.
The black paintwork shone as we neared. Alpha pushed the Mustang harder, gaining inch after inch until I could see the inside of the interior. Cars whipped past heading north, leaving small gaps. The Marine pulled out, pushing the Mustang forward, past the Explorer’s rear wheel…then the back door until I caught sight of blonde hair and the woman behind the wheel.
The Huntress turned her head. Our gazes met. Never in my life had I wanted to punch through glass and tear someone apart. Alpha never turned, only focused on the road as we pulled to the side, inching the Explorer off the asphalt and onto the shoulder.
Dust swallowed the Ford and the Mustang. But the bitch corrected, found traction and pulled out ahead, forcing us to drop back. Seven-foot chain link fences crowded out pine trees as we flew through the Industrial end of Warden and headed for the city.
Streetlights glowed green, giving us a free reign on these city streets as our lane split into two.
“Find a red light, brother,” I snarled, staring at the Explorer. “Three seconds, that’s all I need.”
I worked my neck, testing the strength in my shoulders.
I’m ready, the Archer echoed. My spine itched, ready for skin to split, ready for blood and screams…oh yeah…I clenched my fist. I was so ready for the fucking screams.
Up ahead, the light flicked to amber.
I leaned forward and gripped the handle. My muscles trembled, pumped full of adrenaline. My fingers tingled, nails ached, ready for claws. The beast was waiting…and he’d waited a long damn time.
Amber turned to red.
Alpha tapped the brakes, gaze hard on the road ahead, but the bitch wasn’t slowing.
I caught the blur in the middle of the road.
A little girl appeared from nowhere, skipping across our lane.
“Jesus!” Alpha screamed and slammed on the brakes, pitching me forward.
The seatbelt snapped taut, air left my lungs, and agony took its place as the Mustang spun, coming to a stop in the middle of the street.
The Explorer was gone, as was the girl. I scanned the street, searching for a damn body and found nothing.
“It’s her,” Marcus gasped from the backseat. He leaned forward and reached for his throat. “It’s the fucking witch.”
“Goddammit!” rage spilled as Alpha punched the wheel. Then the Marine was reaching for the gears, and spinning the wheel.
The Mustang responded, hungry now, out for blood—just like the rest of us.
We turned left and found nothing but empty streets. Still we surged ahead, scanning the side streets until I spotted the faint red glow.
“Where the fuck is this bitch going?” Alpha snapped. “What the fuck is down here tha
t she needs?”
There were no answers, because I’d been wondering just the same. The Mustang bounced hard on fat tires, grinding the belly as we cut across side streets, until we caught sight of Gunny’s four-by-four taillights speeding back toward the main city street.
“The fuck you do,” Alpha growled and punched the accelerator, filling the night air with the Mustang’s throaty growl.
We spun back onto the streets. This time there was no spell, no mirage that could stop us as we left the city streets behind. The streetlights seemed to crowd in, swallowed up on either side by pines and fir trees. The residential estates sprawled east of the city, leaving nothing but a clear run out of Warden and back to the highway.
Flinders lay about three hours to my right, right now we were closer to Nyx…and getting closer every second. The thought stilled my breath as the Explorer’s lights surged ahead. “I know where she’s going,” I whispered. “I know where this bitch is going.”
“Nyx,” Marcus added. “The bitch is going for the child.”
Alpha turned his head, dark eyes shone with fear. “Like Hell she is.”
Panic replaced hunger as we left Warden behind. It wasn’t just about revenge now. It was about stopping her—at any damn cost.
My stomach tightened as the silence descended. I stared at the Wrangler and knew in my gut Zadoc would’ve figured it out. He’d know where she was headed…maybe deep down he’d known all along.
The road swept left, and we followed. Every second was a countdown now, seconds…miles…they were both the same.
The bitch and the kid are next…
Leather moaned under my grip as I strangled the door handle. Protect them, my Dragon urged. All roads led back to the Princess, and that sonofabitch in the cavern. She told me about the Vampire blood, and the Huntress. My body still ached, but not more than my damn pride. He wanted her…and the harder he fought to take her, the more she resisted.
