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I WASN’T USED TO BEING carried around like a sack of potatoes, but I didn’t complain. Freya was far stronger and faster than I was. She sped along the road that would take us to the top of the dam, leaping over a gate that barred our way. No one was allowed to visit the dam at night, but that didn’t stop Killion or us.
Freya didn’t need the watch to tell her where Killion was now. His scent wafted to us, along with the scents of fifteen other vampires. My mate came to a stop behind a small building and put me down.
“Killion has either killed another master to take over their fledglings, or he somehow rescued his nest that we captured,” I murmured. The noise of rushing water almost drowned out my voice, but she heard me and nodded. Our zombies had transported some of Killion’s goons away during the battle when they’d tried to kidnap Alex. The rest had fled with their master when they’d realized my sister was gone and that it had been pointless to stick around.
Uncle Philip had shot a few of them in the head, but Killion had been unscathed. He would no doubt still sport a faint scar on his forehead from when Syd had blasted him the first time we’d rescued Alex from him.
We cautiously peered around the corner of the building to tried to pinpoint where the nest was. I could hear the low murmur of voices and one of them was Killion’s. He would no doubt have guards stationed to keep watch. It was a mystery what they were doing at the dam.
Freya went on the move and I followed in her wake as she flitted over to a low wall. We moved in a crouch towards the voices, alert for the guards. A red dot momentarily appeared on the back of my mate’s head and I sucked in an alarmed breath. “It’s an ambush!” I said and gave her a hard shove.
The bullet that would have shattered her head hit the concrete instead. Freya muttered something in her native language, then went on the attack. Guards had been hiding behind the nearby structures and equipment. Killion laughed in delight when I vaulted over the wall with my Colt in my hand. He moved with shocking speed to avoid my bullets, while Freya sliced his lackeys with her machete.
Drawing a gun from beneath his immaculate black jacket, the master vampire didn’t aim at me. Instead, he shot my mate in the back. She hissed in pain and I smelled the silver bullet that he’d wounded her with. Finishing off two of her opponents, she turned to face him.
Another red dot appeared, this time aiming directly for her heart. I shouted in warning, but was grabbed by two leeches. My weapons were removed from me and they marched me over to the dam wall.
“I’ve never seen your face before, but I recognize your scent,” Killion said to my mate in his cultured Austrian accent. His cheeks were hollow and his face was too gaunt. His black eyes glittered with malice. They made a stark contrast to his ash blond hair. Although he was lean, he was far stronger than he looked. Just as I’d predicted, I could faintly make out a bullet scar on his forehead.
“You murdered my fledglings and now I’m going to kill you,” Freya said grimly.
“If you even blink, my sharpshooter will blow your heart to pieces,” he retorted in a gloating tone. She spied the red light coming from the sniper who was perched up high somewhere and went absolutely still. Vampires were fast, but not even she was sure she could outrun a sniper bullet.
“Where is the rest of your squad, Mr. Levine-Garrett?” Killion asked. “My spies can’t see them lurking in the shadows.” That implied he had even more minions nearby.
“I came alone,” I replied. His men couldn’t kill me directly, but they’d lifted me up onto the edge of the dam wall. One wrong move would send me to my doom.
“Really?” Killion said in exaggerated surprise, then gestured at Freya with his gun. “Is she an apparition, then?”
“We both want you dead,” Freya said flatly. “We joined forces to put you down like the filthy animal you are.”
He put a hand on his unbeating heart and affected a hurt expression. “Such unkind words coming from such a lovely lady,” he said mockingly. “You’ve come a long way to kill me. It’s a pity you won’t survive this night.”
Snickers sounded from his lackeys and my heart began to beat faster in dread. The bullet worked its way out of Freya’s back and dropped to the ground. Silver was in her bloodstream and it would take days for it to dissipate. It would slow her down and leave her vulnerable, even though she was a powerful master vampire.
“You should have been more careful when you were searching for me,” Killion chided us. “My scouts picked up your scents, which allowed me to set this trap for you.” He strolled closer to Freya and came to a stop a few yards away. “How did you find me?”
“With the aid of a witch,” she replied with a sneer.
“Witches,” he muttered in distaste. “If I could rid the world of them, I’d eradicate the entire lot.”
“If that’s how you feel about them, why did you team up with Irene Dawson?” I asked.
“For power, of course,” he replied. “But you already know that, Liam.”
“I’m Nick, not Liam,” I corrected him.
He looked surprised, then disappointed. “Your faces and scents are so closely matched that I didn’t realize I’d caught the younger, less useful brother,” he said sourly.
I’d been second to my brother since birth. I’d managed to hide my resentment that I would always be less important because I loved him so much. For the first time in my life, I was glad I was the younger twin. There was no way I was getting out of this ambush alive, but at least my big brother’s life would be spared.
At Killion’s nod, his goons moved me backwards until my heels were hanging over the edge of the wall. I was balanced on the balls of my feet and it wouldn’t take much to make me topple over.
Freya’s eyes met mine and I saw anguish in their blue depths. I dredged up a smile for her as the lackeys released me and leaped down from the wall. “I love you, Freya,” I said, then a gust of wind hit me.
I had a split second to see the alarm in Freya’s eyes, then she moved so quickly that she surpassed even Yasmine’s speed. She leaped onto the wall and grabbed hold of me before I could fall. We stared into each other’s eyes as we wrapped our arms around each other.
“Shoot her!” Killion shouted and it was my turn to react so quickly that I was just a blur. I spun us around to shield her with my body as a shot rang out. The sniper’s bullet punched through my back and passed through me into Freya. It burst out through her back, tearing directly through both of our hearts. The force of the blast sent us flying out over the wall towards the water far below.
Black blood trickled from my mate’s mouth as we tumbled uncontrollably together. Even dying, she spun us around at the last moment so she would hit the water first. I let out a strangled shout of pain when we landed and most of my bones were shattered. We began to sink, mortally wounded and unable to swim.
Epsilon squirmed out of my pocket and grabbed hold of my hair. He swam towards the riverbank, dragging us behind him. Blood filled my lungs and I couldn’t breathe. Freya’s grasp on me was weakening, but she didn’t let go. Epsilon pulled us up onto the bank, then leaped onto my shoulder and wrung his paws together in distress. He waited for me to give him the order to take us home, but I knew there was nothing anyone could do. No shifter could survive a silver bullet directly through their heart, unless they were immortal.
