Her tummy dipped at his flat tone. Hastily, she strapped herself in. He stepped on the gas and sent the car flying down the empty street.
And the past came flashing back—her parents’ car swerving and colliding into another, the ripping of metal, the shattering of glass. Flames leaping—flesh burning—
“Slow down!”she yelled, her heart crashing against her ribs. He glanced at her, his jaw tight. But he eased up on the gas and detoured through a quiet thoroughfare.
By the time Eve snapped out of her panic attack, Reynner had pulled into a deserted alley in a really rundown part of town and switched off the engine. Night enfolded them. There were no streetlights, just the looming buildings, and slashes of moonlight. Her uneasiness grew. “Why—”
“Stay in the car,” he cut her short. “Don’t leave, no matter what you see.” He opened the door. The interior light came on to reveal his profile hewn in granite. She grabbed his sleeve. “Wait—wait. You can’t go out there. This place is dangerous.”
Reynner turned. His face, his sensual lips mere inches from hers. But the utter coldness of his expression worried her.
“Stay here,” he repeated. The door slammed shut and he headed into the alley. Several figures emerged from the shadows and circled him. Fear took hold, anxiety clawing her stomach. Was this some kind of gang fight?
Then Reynner moved, unbelievably fast, right into a sea of black figures. She could barely keep track of him, glimpsing just flashes of his pale hair. A flare of fiery-red light zapping out from one of the thugs startled her.
Oh, God. They had weapons—laser guns? Reynner was unarmed, alone.
She scrambled for her phone in her bag to call 911.
A thunder-like roar resonated throughout the alley. Her mouth dropped open, her call forgotten, her gaze pinned to the dark figures crashing to the ground like falling dominoes.
Reynner grabbed one of the fallen by the hair. Steel gleamed. He slit the pale, exposed throat. Blood sprayed. Then he plunged his dagger into the man’s chest.
Chapter 5
Oh, God—oh, God!He…he… Reynner killed a man!
Run. Get out of here!But Eve’s legs refused to obey.
Terror turned to dread when she saw clear in the moonlight that it wasn’t blood that flowed from the man’s neck, but something like…thick, black goo?
Reynner dropped the man—thing, whatever it was—to the ground. He catapulted into the air and tackled another racing for the car. They crashed on the Porsche’s hood like a boulder dropped from the sky. Eve clutched her seat, fingers digging into the leather.
The man-thing pushed up, his eerie red eyes glowing like neon moons in the dark. Reynner seized him by the hair, ruthlessly ran the blade through his heart, and tossed him aside. The fallen man convulsed on the pitted asphalt. Within seconds, he deflated like a balloon and disappeared from sight.
A sickening realization dawned. No, they couldn’t be. Things like this only happened in horror movies.
Jesus, what did she walk into?
Another red streak of light hissed through the air, slamming into Reynner and sending him staggering back. The remaining monsters attacked.
Oh, no! They were going to kill him! Eve grabbed her pepper spray from her bag, opened the car door, and stepped out, her heart clocking like a racehorse.
Breathe, Eve, breathe. You can do this.
“Eve, get inside the godsdamn car!” Reynner’s roar reverberated through the alley.
She swallowed but didn’t back down. She didn’t think he’d been keeping an eye on her. One of those things turned, grinned, and in the next instant appeared in front of her.
Her heart pounding, adrenaline spiking, she sprayed him good in the face. The fiend yelled and cursed in a terrifying, raucous voice, rubbing his eyes. Reynner suddenly appeared like some avenging angel in front of her. A faint glow appeared in his hand and a six-foot-long sword took shape.
Where the hell did that come from?
Then she forgot her question as he swung that sword. Her jaw dropped.
She’d known Reynner was dangerous. His stone-cold features and tough body told her so. Kat had called him a badass, but Eve had never seen anyone cause so much carnage like he did. His sword arched, a deadly gleam of silver decapitating heads. The bodies fell to the ground and disintegrated, not even the clothes remained.
Now she was alone with this ruthless man who wielded an enormous blade like it was an extension of his arm. His eyes glowed a fiery blue in the night. Strands of his pale hair escaped their tie and streamed to his shoulders. Beautiful, menacing, he strode to her.
