Before someone dies, their blood races, pounding through their veins, filled with everything that makes them human—adrenaline, fear, the desire to live. It’s a sound like no other, a sound I used to listen for eagerly, in anticipation of the kill. But the pounding that echoed in my ears now wasn’t caused by a human heart. It lacked that frantic sensation that made blood so irresistible. It was mine … and my brother’s.
We had both been at the very edge of death, again, and were now fleeing back to London.
The London I’d seen was a city of deceit and destruction, where innocent lives were lost, and blood ran through the streets like water. And now, Damon and I were headed there to stop it. I only hoped the price wouldn’t be too high.
Mere hours earlier, I had been attacked and left for dead by Samuel, a truly cunning and vindictive vampire. Damon had saved me. It had seemed like a miracle when my brother burst into the cottage and dragged me to safety just before the entire structure burst into flames.
But I stopped believing in miracles a long time ago. What it had been was luck. And now I needed luck on my side more than ever. Relying on instinct wasn’t enough. My instincts had failed me countless times, always leading to someone’s death. And if they failed me again, I knew that the ensuing death would be my own. All I could do was throw myself into the battle against evil and hope that my luck hadn’t run out.