“Are you still with me?” he asked Elyse.
“Always,” she said and meant it.
Once this was over, she had no intention of ever leaving this big, beautiful man. But would it ever be over?
With a sinking heart, she realized it was probably never going to end. Saxon would be battling Savages for the rest of his life until, one day, his life ended. Tears burned her eyes at the possibility of losing him.
She couldn’t handle losing him; yet, she couldn’t protect her heart by walking away from him, because it was impossible to protect a heart that already belonged to him.
Somehow, with his sexy smile, protective nature, tender caresses, and willingness to risk his life for hers, he’d stolen her heart without her knowing. He hadn’t turned against her when he learned what she’d done to his friends. He’d accepted her for who she was and hadn’t tried to use her ability for his gain, which was something she’d never experienced.
Her fingers dug deeper into his thick muscles as he ran into the woods behind Lucien and Logan. One day, he might go out to fight these monsters and never return to her, but until then, she planned to enjoy every second of her life with this man.
If they ever got out of this mess.
Lucien pulled out his phone as they ran and dialed someone. “We exited the backside of the hospital, and we’re heading through the woods. I’m sure there has to be a road somewhere. I’ll be in touch.” He hung up and pocketed his phone.
Saxon didn’t see or hear the Savage coming at them, but he scented it seconds before the creature charged out of the trees at them. He skidded to a halt and darted to the side. It was so focused on him that it nearly hit a tree when Saxon dodged out of its way.
Able to stand the sunlight more than its other twisted brethren, this thing wouldn’t be as strong as some of the other Savages, but it was hungry as it came back at him with gleaming red eyes and extended fangs. Saxon set Elyse down and braced his legs apart as he prepared for its attack, but with his shoulder lowered, Lucien ran into the creature.
Lifted off its feet, the Savage soared through the air before hitting a tree with a bone-cracking thud. Closest to it, Logan pulled out a stake and plunged it through the Savage’s heart. The creature grunted as it clawed at the weapon, but its life was already over when Logan ripped the stake free and wiped it in the snow.
Saxon drew Elyse closer when he spotted three shadows slinking through the trees. “There’s more coming,” Saxon said as more shadows crept toward them. He could see at least six.
“Of course there are,” Lucien muttered.
Saxon removed the stakes from his jacket and handed one of them to Elyse. “I don’t plan on letting any of them get near you, but just in case.”
“I know exactly where to stab them,” she assured him, and as she gripped the stake, she realized how much she’d like to kill them all.
She’d planned to hide away after becoming a vampire so she could never be a threat to anyone again, but she’d love to fight and kill these things. She wanted revenge for everything they’d put her and her family through.
“Unless they come at you, stay out of the way,” Saxon said. “I don’t want you getting injured in the chaos.”
“I will.” She’d prefer to fight and kill, but she couldn’t be a distraction, and she wasn’t going to be much good with one arm. As much as she hated the idea of being a bystander, she couldn’t be involved in this. “I’ll stay out of the way,” she promised.
Seven Savages burst from the woods, and though Elyse was prepared to start stabbing, she realized Saxon meant what he said about chaos. He grabbed one of the vamps and slammed it into the snow before kicking another in the chest. When the Savage staggered backward, Lucien stabbed it through the heart before tossing it aside.
Logan punched one in the face and darted out of the way of the next one. He spun toward a third, but his foot slipped in the snow. Before he could recover, the third Savage pounced on him and shoved him into the snow.
The Savage Saxon threw into the snow recovered and came back at him as another Savage attacked Logan. The hunter was buried so far in the snow that Saxon couldn’t see him anymore, but he smelled blood.
“Shit,” he hissed.
He caught the Savage coming at him, lifted him off the ground, and propelled him toward a tree and onto one of the branches. The Savage grunted as the limb plunged through his heart before bursting out of his chest. Saxon glanced back at Elyse to find her standing where he’d left her, holding the stake like she was ready to stab anything that came near her.
“Stay there,” he called to her as he sprinted for Logan and Lucien while they dispatched another Savage.
Arriving at Logan’s side, he saw the vamp on top of the pile had Logan’s wrist in its mouth and was sucking greedily on it. Unable to stand the sound of the Savage’s slurping for one second more, Saxon plunged the stake into the thing’s back before tossing its body aside.
The second Savage lay across Logan’s chest. Saxon lifted the Savage away and rolled it into the snow to reveal the stake through its heart. Turning his attention to Logan, he bit back a groan when he saw the knife in the hunter’s belly. It had initially entered his flesh at his belly button but had sliced up to below his rib cage.
“Fuck,” Lucien said as he arrived at Saxon’s side. “Is he alive?”
Saxon ignored the blood cleaving Logan’s shirt to his flesh as he knelt at his side. He pressed his fingers to Logan’s neck while he watched for the rise and fall of his chest and listened for a heartbeat.
A faint pulse pushed against his fingers as Logan’s eyes flew open, and a strangled cry erupted from him. Blood spurted from his mouth and sprayed his lips as his hands clawed at the knife.
“Don’t.” Saxon clasped Logan’s hands and pulled them away. “Leave it in.” He didn’t know how much difference it would make, considering he had a six-inch gash in his stomach. “We’re going to get you out of here.”
“I’ll carry him,” Lucien said.
He knelt at Logan’s side and carefully lifted him from the snow. The look he sent Saxon only confirmed what Saxon knew; Logan was not going to make it, but they never left one of their own behind.
• • •
They were running parallel to the road for a few minutes before a white cargo van screeched to a halt beside them. Saxon’s fangs extended as he prepared for another fight. The back door slid open to reveal Asher in the doorway.
“What happened?” Asher demanded.
“Let me get him inside,” Lucien said gruffly and nudged Asher out of the way as he hunched over to climb into the van.
When Elyse hesitated to climb into the back with them, Saxon opened the passenger door and helped her inside. “You’ll be away from the blood up here. Can I have your jacket?” he asked Declan.
Declan shrugged out of it and handed it over to him. Saxon draped it around her quaking shoulders, tucked her hair into it, and pulled up the collar before pulling down the visor above her. “Put your seat belt on and keep your face averted from oncoming traffic.”
“Take these.” Declan handed his sunglasses over to Elyse, and she slipped them on. They were too big and swallowed most of the upper part of her face, but they helped conceal her further. “You should probably drive,” he said to Saxon. “They’re not looking for you.”
Saxon kissed Elyse’s cheek before closing the door. He searched the quiet road as he ran around the front of the van and climbed into the seat Declan vacated. When he pulled away from the roadside, he resisted stomping on the gas and driving as far from the hospital as possible, but getting pulled over right now was not an option.
“What do we do?” Asher demanded from the back. “There’s so much blood.”
He didn’t have to tell them that, the smell of it permeated the air and caused Saxon’s fangs to tingle. The fight to get away from the hospital had taken more from him than he’d realized, and hunger burned through his veins.
Elyse turned in her seat to watch as the three of them cut Logan’s bloody shirt away. She winced when she saw the extent of the damage done to his body. There was no way anyone survived that kind of an injury. When Saxon reached across the aisle for her, she took his hand with her good one.
“Can you give him some of your blood to help him heal faster?” Asher asked.
Declan and Lucien exchanged a look before focusing on the hunter again.
“He’s too far gone,” Declan said, “and this wound is too grievous.”
“Maybe we can find a doctor,” Elyse suggested.
Lucien shook his head. “He won’t make it there.”
She lifted her hand to her mouth and struggled not to cry as those words sank in. Another person lost because of her.
“Turn him,” Asher said.
“What?” Lucien inquired.
“Turn him. We need every fighter we can get, and Logan’s a fighter.”
“He might not want to be a vampire,” Declan said.
Asher leaned over Logan’s unmoving form and clasped his face. He turned his friend’s head toward him. “Logan!” he shouted. “Logan!”
Elyse held her breath as the tension in the van ratcheted up. She wasn’t a vampire, but she smelled the blood as a growing pool of it spread beneath Logan. How did they withstand the temptation it offered?
She glanced at Saxon to find his shoulders hunched up, and his eyes narrowed. She squeezed his hand to give him some reassurance, but she didn’t know if it did any good.
“Logan!” Asher shouted.
A small grunt made her turn back as Logan’s eyelids fluttered. She couldn’t be sure from her position, but she believed they opened.
“If they don’t turn you, you’re going to die,” Asher said as he leaned over his friend. He rested his hand on Logan’s cheek. “Do you understand me?”
Logan did something that caused Asher to release a deep breath before asking. “Do you want them to change you?”
No one breathed as they waited for Logan’s response, and then Elyse saw the almost imperceptible nod of his head. Asher’s breath exploded from him, but Elyse still couldn’t breathe as he sat back and looked between the two vamps.
“I’ve never shared my blood before,” Lucien said.
“Neither have I,” Declan said.
They stared at each other before Declan bit into his wrist. On his knees, he scooted through the blood to get closer to Logan. “Remember, the change is far more painful and takes longer for hunters than humans.” He leaned over Logan and rested his wrist against the man’s mouth. “This is only the beginning of your misery.”
“We’re hunters,” Asher said. “All we’ve known is death and misery.”