“Willow,” Vicky breathed from beside him.
Declan grabbed her arm when she stepped forward and held her in place. The Savages didn’t know they were here yet, but that would change soon. Until then, they needed to figure out the best way to handle this.
He studied the Savages surrounding Willow and the waterfall at her back. Before they arrived, her only option was to go over the falls. Torn in places, her filthy clothes hung limply off her slender frame. Dirt and sap stuck to her skin, and a pine needle clung to her forehead.
She’d been through a lot these past three days, but she clutched her stake and glared at the Savages like she was begging them to attack. Though she looked ready for battle, her terror slithered beneath his skin, crept into his bones, and pounded through his veins until her emotions became a part of him.
Until she became a part of him. This was one of those times when his ability took on a life of its own, but instead of fighting the loss of control over his body, he welcomed the way it invigorated him.
He’d kill every one of them if that was what it took to get her away from here.
The hair on his nape rose as he sensed a new presence in the woods. When Willow’s eyes darted past him and her mouth parted, he realized more Savages were coming up behind them.
Willow’s heart sank when more shadowy figures emerged from the woods behind Declan and the others. There were only five more of them, but twenty-eight against six weren’t the best odds. Still, they were better than the odds she’d faced only minutes ago. And she didn’t care what it took; she would make sure Vicky returned to her son. She might strangle her first, but Wyatt would get his mom back.
When she looked to Declan again, a surge of hope shot through her when she saw the fiery determination in his reddened eyes. The chances of them finding her in this forest were slim to none, but here they were, so that had to mean they would make it out of here alive. She’d never really considered fate much before, but she was now, and she hoped it was on their side.
Willow smiled when Declan gave her a brief nod, and then she sprinted away from the cliff. She swung her stake out, not intending to kill something, but to use it as a distraction.
It worked as the Savage ducked. She lifted her knee and drove it into the vamp’s face. Before she could take satisfaction in its scream, she pushed it away to take on the next Savage coming at her.
The Savage charged at her from a hunched-over position like he was going to tackle her around the waist. Lifting her arms over her head, she prepared to drive her stake through its back, but before she could, a hand seized her wrist and yanked it down.
She didn’t hesitate before driving the heel of her palm into the Savage’s nose. As it released her and staggered back, Willow grasped a handful of the woman’s hair and yanked it to the side as the other Savage tackled her. Dragging the woman to the ground with her, Willow buried her stake into the neck of the vamp who tackled her and yanked it out.
The hot blood spraying out of the creature caused her mouth to water as her fangs pricked. She was so famished, this thing’s putrid blood looked good, but she restrained herself from drinking it as she locked her legs around its waist. Releasing the woman’s hair, she flipped the bloody Savage over.
Its fingers scrabbled at her while it tried to stifle the flow of its blood. She settled herself on its chest, lifted the stake over her head, and plunged the weapon through its heart as something hit her from behind.
Unwilling to waste time on the Savages behind him, Declan charged through the trees and toward the Savages going after Willow. They remained unaware of his presence until he grasped the jacket of a vamp and yanked it backward.
Before the Savage could react, Declan twisted its head to the side and tore it off. Palming the skull, he threw it at another Savage. The head hit the vamp so hard in the chest it knocked him back a few feet before he staggered to the side and went over the cliff.
The screams of the falling Savage alerted some of the others to his presence. They turned toward him as Asher and Vicky joined the fight. From behind him, grunts sounded as Logan and Saber worked to take out the other Savages.
“Willow!” Vicky screamed when three Savages leapt onto her sister.
Willow’s arms swung up, and her hand beat against the face of a Savage who held her in a headlock. She choked and wheezed before it cut off her air supply and no further sound emerged. She clawed at its flesh, hoping to tear out an eye or grasp an ear, but as the burning in her lungs increased, she couldn’t find anything to grab.
Then her fingers slid over its open mouth. When Willow’s fingers slid into its mouth, it bit down, but its fangs didn’t pierce her flesh. Its jaw dislocated when she pulled it over her head and loosened its grip enough that she could inhale.
Slamming the monster into the ground, she punched it in the chest and broke through its ribcage until her fingers enclosed on its heart, and she yanked it free. She was about to shove the still-beating organ down the thing’s throat when hands grasped her arms and jerked them back.
Declan shoved Savages out of his way but didn’t avoid the punch one launched to the side of his face. Stars danced before his eyes as Willow turned over, planted her feet on the ground, and thrust up with her hips to dislodge the Savage on top of her. Before more could capture her, she scrambled away from them.
When the Savage that hit him swung at him again, Declan caught its fist and shoved the monster back. He didn’t have time to kill the thing as Willow staggered to her feet. When her eyes met his again, an overwhelming need to get to her, touch her, and make sure she was okay rushed through him.
Willow only had seconds to take in Declan charging toward her before another Savage was trying to drag her down. Somewhere along the way, she lost her stake and didn’t have the time to retrieve another.
The Savage sank its fingers into her hair and yanked her head back. Willow spun toward it, and lowering her shoulder, she rammed into his breastplate. She realized too late the Savage had attacked her from the waterfall side, and they were only inches away from the cliff.
No, she was only inches from it; the Savage was already out of ground and still holding her hair.
A chunk of hair tore from her scalp when Willow yanked her head back to free herself of the Savage’s hold, but it was already too late. Even as its hand slipped from her hair, she was falling forward. She tried to throw herself backward, but open air was already battering her body as she plunged over the side.