Elena’s fingers trembled as she knelt by her father’s side and pressed them against his neck. She almost snatched them away when they fell upon his cooling flesh, but she refused to let anyone in this room see how much this unnerved and rattled her.
They would see it as a weakness and pounce, or at least his killers would, and she had no doubt his killer was standing nearby in the wreckage of her father’s office. Her dad had not gone down without a fight, but then she wouldn’t have expected anything less.
Blood streaked the top of his desk, the walls, and his bookcases. Artifacts had been scattered and broken across the tiled floor. Books littered the ground, as did papers. The pile of blood beneath her father had spread out from the wound in his chest until she nearly knelt in it.
Forcing herself to keep her fingers steady, she tried not to let the crushing grief choking her throat and squeezing her heart get the best of her. She had to keep her wits about her if she was going to get through this.
Not only was a hideous vampire standing nearby, but she wouldn’t be surprised if some of the hunters also saw her as a traitor for going against her father’s wishes. And now he was dead.
It didn’t matter that she’d left eight years ago or that they’d mostly healed the wounds her leaving created; she never should have left them behind.
But as she thought it, she knew it was never going to be an option. She couldn’t stay in the hunter compound without losing herself, and her father would never leave his people behind. But more than that, he never understood why she couldn’t simply follow her intended life and get married as he had, as her mother had, and as all their ancestors and friends had for thousands of years.
He’d seen her as selfish, and maybe she had been, and perhaps she still was for not returning, but that selfishness had kept her alive. If she’d stayed here, she would have died. Maybe not physically, but she would have died a gradual, inner death every day until her life ended.
When she first ran away, she hadn’t believed she would make it on her own. And there were many nights when she was certain she wouldn’t see the next day, but the sun always rose, and she always rose and carried on.
Whether it was stubborn pride, fear of being married off to someone if she returned to the compound, or her determination to prove she could survive on her own, she remained living on the streets even though she was lonely, terrified, and starving most days.
And her decision and determination cost her seven and a half years with her parents. She’d only reconnected with them less than a year ago, or at least with her dad after they moved their compound to Arizona, the state where she’d been living almost since the day she left.
She hadn’t talked to her father for all those years, but she did have contact with her mom.
And now, just as they were all starting to forgive and move on, he was gone. Elena almost shoved her fist into her mouth to hold back a sob, but she managed to keep it suppressed though her breath gave a little hitch she was sure didn’t go unnoticed by all those surrounding her.
Her father, the man who kissed her skinned knees, wiped her tears, and held her close while she cried, was dead. Things had been strained between them when they first reconnected, but they’d gotten better recently. He’d allowed her back onto the compound; they’d shared dinners, laughter, and drinks as they worked to move on from their pain and anger.
She’d been so sure one day they would be as close as they once were, but that day had never come, and now someone had torn it away from her.
She lifted her head, and her eyes clashed with the vampire standing across from her. When she glowered at him, he bowed his head before glancing at the hunter standing beside him.
Neither the vamp nor his hunter friend belonged here. She was aware of where they did belong as her father had told her they were coming. She’d informed him that she didn’t think it was a good idea, but he’d never listened to her before, and though they were repairing their relationship, she hadn’t expected that to change.
But her father had insisted the Alliance was a good idea and the only way they would bring down the Savage vampires. She had her doubts, but since her dad joined the Alliance after she left, she didn’t know much about it or the differences between a supposedly “good” vampire and a “bad” one.
It turned out it didn’t matter, as she’d been right. She was aware some of the compounds were now working with certain vampires, but to her, they would always be the hated monsters she had been raised her to believe they were. These two had proven her right by destroying her father, a man who had trusted them.
Logan felt the woman’s hatred as she glared at him. He tried to think of something to say, but “I’m sorry for your loss” seemed completely inadequate when anguish etched her face and shone from her black eyes.
The crisp scent of lemons she emitted intensified as tears filled her eyes before she blinked them away. Despite her obvious loathing of him, Logan had the inexplicable urge to wrap his arms around her and offer her comfort.
He’d probably be better off trying to hug a grizzly bear while skipping around with a couple of her cubs. He’d probably emerge less unscathed anyway.
Normally, he would leave to let the family mourn alone, but this was a murder, and it needed to be solved as the killer lived amongst them. Not only that, but the killer was a traitor and had committed the heinous crime of killing their leader.
He was still trying to figure out what to do when a murmur ran through the crowd gathered outside the room. It spread until those within the room lifted their heads and turned toward the whispers.
Unlike some of the other hunters, he’d spent most of his formative years focused on training. Schooling was never a strong point for him; he’d spent as much time skipping his classes as he had in them.
Which meant his foreign language skills weren’t the best. He’d learned some Spanish words from his previous visit with Declan, but he was far from fluent. To be fair, they weren’t allowed to be at the compound for extended periods, and Alejandro and his men always spoke English when around them.
He’d tried getting a book and one of those apps that taught how to speak another language, but he’d never caught on to it and grew frustrated after a few days. Books and school had never been his thing; that wasn’t going to change anytime soon.
He glanced at Asher, whose Spanish was slightly better than his, but his friend looked as confused as him. Logan didn’t know if Asher’s confusion was because he didn’t understand what they were saying or if he did understand and was still lost.
“What is it?” Logan whispered to him.
“Mateo is coming.” Asher’s eyebrows knit together over the bridge of his nose. The flecks of gold in his troubled brown eyes stood out sharply in the lamplight filling the room. His eyes flew to Logan as his forehead cleared. “We should get out of here.”
Logan didn’t get a chance to reply before the hunters closest to them turned to look at them. The hair on his nape rose, and he almost took an involuntary step back from the sudden wrath clouding their faces. He couldn’t understand them, but he now heard the ire in their words.
They had decided who the killers were, and they were wrong. However, that wouldn’t save their asses from an entire compound of pissed-off hunters who believed them to be murderers. Their bodies would already be in pieces before they maybe realized they’d killed the wrong people, and they might never realize that.
With no son to take over control of the hunters now that Alejandro was gone, his second-in-command, Mateo, had assumed leadership. And that leadership wanted them dead or imprisoned, or whatever came first.
Most likely death.
When one of the hunters lunged at him, Logan darted to the side to avoid the smaller man. He’d prefer not to harm anyone, but he didn’t think they were going to give him a choice. He searched for a way out of the office. There was only one doorway, and dozens of hunters were blocking it.
The drapes concealed the windows in the wall to his left. He didn’t know what lay beyond them. Every time he’d entered this room, those drapes were always closed, but when he looked to Asher again, he could tell his friend was thinking the same thing.
Those windows were their only option.
“Easy,” Asher said as he danced back from the enclosing hunters. He held up his hands in a pacifying gesture. It did nothing to calm the crowd. “We didn’t do this. We’re not your enemy.”
“Lies!” Elena spat. “Vampires have always been our enemies.”
“I’m not a vampire. And he”—Asher pointed a finger at Logan— “is a hunter too.”
Elena’s eyes widened at this revelation, and her gaze shot back to the vampire. It unnerved her to discover his attention on her.
“I’m as much a hunter as I am a vampire,” he told her.
Mateo may be the new leader of the compound, but this was Alejandro’s daughter. If they could sway her to their side, they might have a chance of escaping with their heads still attached to their bodies.
He hadn’t known Alejandro had a daughter, but he wasn’t surprised by that. Most of the women were kept away from them when they came to the compound. However, Alejandro talked of his wife often, and they’d met Rosa a few times. He found it odd Alejandro hadn’t spoken of his daughter.
“They’re traitors,” someone hissed from the hallway. “They killed Alejandro.”
When Elena’s chin went up, Logan knew he’d lost any chance he might have had to convince her they weren’t the bad guys.
“Shit,” Logan said. “Asher…”
He didn’t have to finish what he’d been about to say. The two of them had trained together since they could walk. Asher was his best friend; they knew each other well and often anticipated each other’s moves. Right now, that anticipation had to get them out of this.
Closest to the door, Asher was the first to move as someone shouted something from the hallway. Logan wasn’t expecting it when a scuffle broke out in the hall. He was annoyed with himself for not paying better attention in Spanish class and while here.
Instead of waiting to find out what was happening and if it would benefit them, Logan moved with Asher. The two of them sprinted across the floor but didn’t get far before gunshots rang out.
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