Page 14 of Undying
Instead of challenging me, they step back.
I only relax a little, not sure I trust the assholes to keep their distance if I let down my guard.
The volatile emotions make me hesitate. I hate feeling out of control—that way usually leads to madness and death. The last time it happened, my wolf took control, and we ran wild for three months, slaughtering anyone who came close.
One whiff of her sharp citrus scent steadies me, keeping me from devolving, which shouldn’t be possible. I tighten my grip, treasuring the rare anomaly and coveting the peace her nearness brings.
The need to protect her is a compulsion I can’t ignore.
One I don’t want to ignore.
And I can’t protect her in this fucking house of horrors.
I crouch, then leap straight up, launching through the jagged hole in the ceiling. I land lightly, barely making a sound, then hurry down the hallway, worried someone might try to stop me and claim my prize.
Senses on high alert, I scan each room we pass, but the mansion is as still as a tomb. The lack of vampires isn’t as reassuring as it should be. The opposite, in fact. I pick up my pace, absurdly protective of the girl huddled so trustingly against me.
The empty rooms echo with an unnatural silence that says something unspeakable happened within the four walls, echoes of the horror that happened to them lingering even after death, like the souls of the lost are forever stuck in their torment.
My wolf crouches low, a vicious growl rumbling in my chest, as if he can sense the dead. The once pristine rooms are awash in a spray of blood, even dripping from the ceilings. Nearly every single piece of furniture has been demolished, like a giant toddler went on a rampage…or one deranged master vampire in a rage at being thwarted.
Tobias follows closely on my heels, as if unable to take his sight off the girl for even a second. I’m so on edge that I swear I can feel Tobias’ warm breath on the back of my neck. I tighten my hold on my precious cargo, barely biting back my snarl, unable to get over the impression that he would snatch her from my arms if given even the slightest opportunity.
“What the hell happened here?” Tobias presses closer, his beast riding him so hard that his teeth and claws are on full display. “What could take down a full house of vampires without any casualties?”
Stanton launches himself out of the pit in a single bound, landing lightly on his feet, his brown eyes bleeding black when he glances at me…or the woman in my arms, to be more precise.
Something about the hard glint in the black orbs raises my hackles.
Milo lands next to him just a second later, the kid pale, even for a vampire, but the hardness in his eyes gives him away. He witnessed similar horrors—lived through them, in fact—when he was turned against his will by a sadistic group of feral vampires that thrived on blood and pain.
Instead of being shaken, he looks determined.
“The entire house has been decimated.” Stanton’s accent is heavy—a sure sign of his unease. He picks up his pace, hustling Milo toward the entrance. “We need to leave and come back with a full team. The other vampire houses need to be warned and placed on alert.”
Our gazes clash, then he taps his thumb twice against the hilt of his machete, and my blood goes cold.
We’re not alone.
Urgency pounds through my veins, and a growl rumbles from deep in my throat. Claws slice through the tips of my fingers, and the need to destroy anything that threatens the girl nearly overwhelms me. I reluctantly turn toward Milo, then shove the woman into his arms. “Take her.”
Even though he sputters, I don’t give him a choice.
I lean over the girl, push her snarled hair away from her face, then brush my cheek along her face, scent marking her.
Claiming her.
A warning to others not to touch what is mine.
Pulling away, I reach behind Milo and shove him hard between his shoulder blades to get him moving. “Go.”
When Tobias would’ve protested, I grab him by the back of his neck, drag him close, and bark at him in my alpha voice. “Keep them safe.”
While he might be a prince, an alpha in his own right, I’m still older than him by five hundred years, give or take a decade. It gives me a slight edge over him, which annoys the little princeling to no end.
He snarls, his fangs flashing, his blue eyes taking on a glow that says his wolf is in control. But instead of fighting my command, he nods in understanding and thumps his chest with his fist. “With my life.”
As the trio hurries toward the door, I grab my axe and cover their retreat. I flex my hands at the comforting weight, crack my neck, then swivel to search for the threat. When all remains silent, I turn toward Stanton. “What do you sense?”
