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DAMN, I FUCKING HURT everywhere. Maria’s groggy mind took stock of her body. Her shoulders ached from the weight of her body pulling on them as she hung from the rope which also bit into her wrists. Her mouth was dry with an awful taste on the back of her tongue. Snarls and what sounded like someone snapping their jaw together rang out catching her attention, then a few males laughed but Maria kept her eyes closed.
“She should have woken up by now,” a guy said. His breath on her neck sending a shiver down her spine.
“Wake up, little Maria.” Another male’s voice called. This one she recognized as the Chief of Police, Hugo. The sick sound of flesh on flesh met her ears as pain surged across her face. Maria ground her teeth together while she opened her eyes to glare at the man in front of her. He wore a police uniform with Aaron on the name tag. He lurched forward, close enough that his nasty breath filled her nose. Rage rose in Maria and she pulled her knee up and hit the man in the balls.
Aaron slapped her again but Maria didn’t cry out. She wouldn’t give them the satisfaction of showing how much it hurt.
“Why am I here?” Maria asked through gritted teeth.
“The wolf lover speaks.” Aaron chuckled. Maria repeated her question when she turned to glare at the Chief.
“You’re here so we can finally start a war between the filthy creatures. They will kill each other off so we humans can take the world back.”
“What?” She blinked a few times trying to follow his stupid logic.
“Oh, little Maria, I know you’re the filthy alpha’s mate. Once he finds out a vampire killed you, he will wage war to avenge you,” Hugo said it like this was common knowledge.
“So, I’m your fucking sacrifice.” Maria spat toward Hugo.
“Such a waste. I thought you would be like your predecessor. You see, we were in search of the perfect sacrifice before I had to put him away.” The Chief shook his head. “Dumb ass couldn’t keep his addiction a secret.”
“You won’t get away with this. Your scent is all over this place. Derrick is smarter than you.”
“We already thought of that.” He waved toward barrels of fuel and the realization hit Maria. They were going to burn this place to the ground after she died. Wait, if they burn me will Derrick know who killed me or will he fall for their trick? She had no idea if Derrick’s wolf side would catch a scent through fire. Looks like it’s up to me. Fuck. Maria’s only hope was to pull on the limited knowledge of magic Alia had taught her the night before.
“I think we have talked enough.” The chief slid toward the back of the barn where two vampires were tied up. They were snapping at the men around them.
“You see how hungry they are? You will be irresistible to them,” Aaron whispered into Maria’s ear as he stood behind her. She slammed her head into his face, making the bastard cry out.
“Maybe you should have learned your lesson the first time you inbred hick.” Maria snarled as Aaron’s hand gripped her hair and pulled her to face him.
“I’ll enjoy watching them suck the life from you.” Aaron smirked, then shoved her head forward. Slowly they guided the vampire male on the right toward Maria. He snapped and thrashed while the cop pulled him by the silver chains wrapped around him.
The bonds made it possible for the vamp to be close, but not close enough to bite her. Yet! What the hell will I do? Maria closed her eyes and focused on her inner strength. The sound of the second vamp grew louder. A light tingling sensation filled her belly and her hands warmed up. The bonds burned away letting her fall to her knees. A commotion erupted as men everywhere yelled. Maria opened her eyes. Aaron struggled to handle the vamp which inched closer to Maria. She jumped to her feet then pushed the female vamp into Aaron. A scream rang out as the vamp latched onto Aaron’s neck. The chief grabbed Maria and yanked her back toward the male vamp still attached to the wall. Dread filled her. She grabbed onto the chief’s hands to pull him off. Her hands warmed again and Hugo let go as he cried out. Burn marks littered the fucker’s flesh.
“I will not be your sacrifice you son of a bitch!” Maria yelled as she swung her fist into his face. A howl sounded off in the distance and the men stood still. The only ones moving were the vamps. Aaron stopped screaming and lay motionless on the ground with the she-vamp still attached to him.
“Sounds like my mate is coming for me.” Maria smiled when horror crossed Hugo’s face. More howls rocked the barn along with screams of agony from outside. As the chief took a step toward Maria, a door banged open. Derrick stood tall in his human form, blood caked on his chest. His eyes scanned the scene. Someone grabbed Maria and yanked her toward the male vamp.
“Don't move mutt!” the man yelled next to her ears. The chief regained his composure and rushed over to stand next to her.
The she-vamp finally became more lucid and worked on releasing her bonds. Aaron lay dead at her feet as she struggled with the metal clasps around her body. No one seemed to realize she was almost free with the exception of Maria. The she-vamp met her gaze and Maria mouthed the words, please don’t kill me. She didn’t want to beg for her life, but at the same time she didn’t want to die. The memory of the last vamp biting her neck still stung.
The she-vamp shook her head and rose to her feet, standing just behind the chief in complete silence. Then she grabbed Hugo’s hair and yanked his head to the side to expose his neck. Her tongue flicked up his neck and he shook in the woman's grip.
“Derrick, I do owe you for the last time. Do you want the honors or may I have them?” The vamp’s musical voice caught Maria off guard as she tilted her head to the side while staring at the chief.
“You can have this one, Maggs,” Derrick growled. “Touch my mate though and all bets are off.”
“I’d never harm the strong little witch.” Maggs winked at Maria. “I can’t say the same for my mate though as he has been without blood for too long.” Maggs wrapped her hand around Hugo’s neck and lifted him off the ground. Maria watched in horror as she slowly brought the struggling chief toward her mate. With her free hand, she cut the chief’s wrist and handed it to the male vampire.
The chief cried out in pain and the male behind Maria let go of her and ran. She fumbled back away from the vampire pair and the bleeding human. Before he made it to the door, Derrick raced to get next to him.
“No one touches my mate without going unpunished,” Derrick growled in his ear before he ripped his head away from the body. Maria stood there in complete shock as Hugo shook and dropped to his knees, Maggs no longer holding him up as her mate bled him dry.
Derrick wrapped his arms around Maria and leaned down next to her ear. “Let’s get you home.” Maria nodded enthusiastically but the rest of her body didn’t want to freaking move. The only thing she prided herself on at the moment was not passing out from seeing all the blood.
Am I always going to be in danger because of Derrick? Is this really what I want for my life?