Page 79 of Shadow Hunter

“At first your brother was a normal vampire— under my direction, of course, seeing as I’m his sire. But, well...a little experiment backfired on us. As Caius may have told you, other than the master I lost, science is the one love of my life. When the new vampire movement asked me to create a serum that would allow us to walk by day without weakening, I decided to use your brother as a test subject.”

He paused to break her stake in two as if it were nothing more than a twig. “Turns out because it’s been tampered with, the DNA of the hunters of the Execution Underground doesn’t mix well with my serum, and, well, you know the virus that resulted.”

Tiffany stared up at her older brother. Mark hissed and spat like an animal, fighting to be freed. If he hadn’t been restrained, he would have torn into her flesh without hesitation.

“With the help of your brother, we were able to spread the virus and create a new strain of vampires by letting the newly turned feed on the humans he devoured.”

Tiffany’s stomach churned. If she’d had anything else there, she would have been sick again.

“Now I’ve combined the Execution Underground serum and my anti-sun serum into a single shot, and one injection can turn a new vampire into a flesh-eating monster. But for one special dose—” he pulled a syringe from his jacket pocket and held it up for Tiffany to see “—I’ve reversed the effect. Injected into the arm of an Execution Underground hunter, this will turn him into a ravenous flesh-hungry monster in minutes.” A smirked crossed his face. “And guess which hunter I’ve saved it for.”

Her eyes widened. Adrenaline raced through her body. Tears poured down her face.

No, not Damon. She couldn’t lose him, too.

“When the hunters storm in here any minute, your hunter will come straight here, looking for you. One injection.” He grinned and raised the syringe into the light. “Or I can crush it now, and you won’t have to go through the horror of seeing the man you love murdered, like I did. I’ll give you a chance to save him—if you agree to sacrifice yourself.”

Tiffany lay on the cold concrete of the warehouse floor, her whole-body trembling. All the warmth drained from her face. “Only if you get rid of the injection first.” She fixed him with a hard stare. Nothing was more important to her than Damon and his safety. She couldn’t take risks.

Lucas placed the syringe on the ground and positioned his foot overtop it.

Then she nodded. She would do anything to save Damon. Anything.

“What do you want from me?”

He crouched and prepared to lunge for her. “Don’t hold back.” He met her eyes. “I like it when my victims put up a fight.”

Happy to oblige, she pulled her Smith & Wesson from her lower back, aimed and fired.

The soundof a shot from somewhere inside the building rang in Damon’s ears. His heart stopped. “Go!” he yelled into his radio. He and the Sergeant lunged from the van, hitting the pavement at full speed.

The hunters rushed from their positions and burst into the warehouse. Shots fired, the sounds echoing off the metal walls, followed by the clatter of ricocheting bullets. Damon unsheathed his sword and launched himself through the main entry. Hedidn’t think twice. He swung the heavy weight of the silver hilt in front of him, slicing the head of the vampire in front of him clean off. Damn, a man could get used to this.

The vampire exploded in a burst of blood. Shrieks and cries of pain filled the room, but a steady constant buzz filled Damon’s ears.

Tiffany.

Nothing would stop him from getting to her.

Brandishing his weapon, he cut savagely into vampire after vampire, destroying any and all of the monsters standing in his path. A male leech rushed him from behind. Spinning, Damon brought down his sword and chopped through the monster’s skull. Blood splattered his face.

He drew his sword back, only to have the weapon wrenched from his grasp as something huge tackled him from behind.

Spinning to face his attacker, Damon snatched his stake from his side and plunged the sharpened weapon downward. Huge hands caught his wrist, and he locked eyes with his opponent. His breath caught in his throat as he stood nose to nose with the shell of what had once been his best friend.

“Mark,” he breathed.

A blazing red pulsed in Mark’s eyes. He hissed and twisted Damon’s arm, trying to get him to release the stake, but Damon gritted his teeth and pushed forward. He wouldnotallow the pain constricting his chest to deter him. He would kill Mark, releasing his friend from the fate he’d always dreaded.

The two men met each other punch for punch and kick for kick. It was just like sparring class, where they’d always partnered to fight against each other. Being older and stronger, Damon had always won. He intended to win this time, too.

Mark stepped closer, and his fist collided with Damon’s gut. It was the one move Damon always caught him on. It was almost as if…Mark was handing him the fight. Damon stepped into him,clutching Mark’s arm and using the weight of his body against him.

With the help of his hip, he dropped Mark onto his back, but Mark quickly shifted to his knees.

Damon brought the stake down with all his might. Mark grabbed Damon’s wrist, but he was at a clear disadvantage, on his knees with Damon standing over him. A loud yell ripped from Damon’s throat, releasing a fresh wave of adrenaline. He channeled all his energy into his biceps, struggling until he positioned the stake directly in front of Mark’s heart.

The vampire bared his teeth, battling with all his strength, but Damon held firm. One small shove and he could end this. He would keep his promise to his best friend, his fellow hunter. His whole body shook as he tried to force himself to do what he needed to.

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