His face was ashen, and his eyelids grew heavy.
Enough.
I sat up, nauseous and filled with his emotions. I couldn’t drink him dry—my stomach couldn’t tolerate it. But I’d weakened him enough to the point of unconsciousness. The fireworks were louder than before since my hearing had sharpened with his blood.
I quickly stood and collected the sword off the ground. Knowing his sins made the task a piece of cake, and his darkness coursed through my veins like poison. I knelt down, raised the sword, and severed his head.
When I stood and looked at the first Vampire, I couldn’t bring myself to deliver the same fate. Did I want to drink his blood just to have an excuse to kill him?
Fuck it.Hunter and Kira were safe by now, so what did it matter? It wouldn’t take a genius to figure out that Keystone was behind the rescue.
I dropped the sword, tempted to vomit up the blood. It felt like worms crawling through me. But I needed his strength in case I encountered more Vampires on my way out.
As I emerged from the garage, I glanced up at the plane flying over Keystone. The snow had stopped falling. Colorful pastel smoke painted the sky as the fireworks drew to an epic conclusion. I expected the banner to say something about a happy wedding or bon voyage, but as it flew toward the east, I couldn’t take my eyes off the message that read:Marry Me, Precious.
Despite the Vampire blood, my knees weakened.
Just a diversion.
When the plane made a sharp turn, my eyes swung over to the mansion. I looked like a drop of blood in virgin snow in my dress, and I knew that was how Sparrow had noticed me. He stood before a tall window on the third floor, not moving an inch. I wouldn’t have recognized him had the window not been open and his long hair flowing out. Now that we had Hunter in our possession, nothing would stop us from taking back our home.
* * *
After the fireworks began,Shepherd couldn’t sit in the Jeep a minute longer. Wyatt had to stay on his computer to keep in communication with his friend, so he remained in the car.
Shepherd paced, his stomach knotting as he watched the bursts of light showering the sky in the distance. It should have been him leading the rescue mission—not Gem. He cracked his knuckles while flattening a path in the patchy snow. The explosions spooked the birds from the trees, and squirrels ran for their lives.
Viktor leaned inside the Jeep. “How much time?”
“After the finale ends, that’s all she wrote,” Wyatt answered. “What’s your plan if they don’t come back?”
“I go get them,” Shepherd answered, inviting no argument. “You guys can take off, but I don’t leave without my son.”
Wyatt snorted. “Good luck fighting off an army of Vampires with a few chopsticks. That reminds me, did I ever tell you the story about the Vampire who was staked in a restaurant with one of those kebob skewers? Apparently the owner didn’t realize the ones his supplier was selling him weren’t bamboo but made from beechwood or something. Can you believe that? It was a Mage-run business,” he said on a chuckle. “They got shut down by the higher authority for serving food on impalement wood.”
Shepherd scooped snow in his hand. The cold barely registered. Wyatt had a story for everything, and he was tempted to hurl a snowball through the open window but knew it was just Wyatt’s way of providing a distraction.
Explosions stopped his heart. They were followed by what sounded like rapid gunfire as the lights in the distance grew more intense. And then a moment later… it stopped, the silence deafening.
Shepherd’s heart hammered against his chest. He branched away from the driveway into the open field, trying to see if anyone was coming.
“That’s all she wrote,” Wyatt announced. “The plane will keep circling for another fifteen minutes.”
None of them had heard the plane throughout the fireworks, but now Shepherd could hear the engine in the distance even though he couldn’t see a damn thing.
When he spotted Gem, he took off running.
“Are they following you?” he shouted.
“I don’t know!” she called back.
Gem had Hunter in her arms and looked like she was struggling. He had on tan pants and a white shirt, no jacket. His dark hair was messy and lacking a hat to keep him warm.
Gem slowed to a stop. Out of breath, she let go of Hunter and dropped to her knees. When the boy turned to face him, Shepherd tensed. Would he resent him? Would he understand? This moment was far worse than when he walked away from Keystone, leaving his son behind.
Hunter walked toward Shepherd and abruptly stopped short. Shepherd knelt down and met eyes with him. Was he angry? Terrified? His blue eyes seemed duller than usual, not as full of life and joy. Hunter put his cold hands on Shepherd’s cheeks and they touched foreheads. They both felt each other’s emotions in that quiet moment—relief. Shepherd took him into his arms and stood, placing a kiss on his neck. When the boy quietly sobbed, it nearly wrecked him.
“It’s okay, little man,” he said, rocking him back and forth. “I got you. Nothing’s gonna happen as long as I’m here.” Shepherd pushed his emotions so Hunter could feel his sincerity and protectiveness.
