My hand finds Vessa’s knee, instantly grabbing her attention. "We need to pull over for a second. Someone down there is injured."
Her face pales. “Shouldn't we call enforcers?"
I pull off the gravel road, shaking my head in refusal. "By the time they get here, whatever attacked will be long gone."
“What do you mean,whatever attacked?”
I park behind the steel road barrier. Reaching into the center console, I hastily load a magazine with eight rounds and cram it into my pistol. I flick the safety latch and check the smaller piece next. Luckily, that one’s already loaded. Once secured, we exit the car and descend the dirt road. Daylight recedes as we slip into the forest where I zero in on the scent, filtering out all others that might derail me from the source of the bloodshed. While my sister’s scouts comb through the area routinely, there isn’t any recent trace of lycans afoot.
Flutters of activity jerk my head in all directions. Crows call out to each other from distant treetops. Rabbits make themselves scarce, kicking up twigs and gravel beneath their feet.
Reaching behind my back, I pull the lightweight revolver out from my waistband and offer it to her. My pistol remains in my firm grip, its long barrel pointed forward. "Know how to use one of these?"
She grips the gun between her thumb and index finger. “Yes.”
“That wrangler there is loaded with six silver bullets. If anything jumps at you, you empty it.”
I raise my weapon to my line of sight, scanning the area just as the ground beneath starts to level out. "Lift the leg of my jeans and unstrap my knife, will you?"
She does as she's told, dropping to her knees and carefully pulling out the seven-inch blade from its holster. My only other backup. "Are you always armed to the teeth?" she asks, keeping her voice down.
Just as Vessa comes back to standing, the corpses come into view. Two hundred meters out, the broken bodies of a middle-aged man and his dog lie beneath the canopy of a crookedbalsam. Their throats are soaked in fresh blood. Clearly, a blitz attack, timed just before sunset.
Sensing she might scream, I pull Vessa to my chest and speak softly into her ear. "Shh. Whatever did this is still in the area. I won't shift, but I need you to stay close."
Vessa bites her lower lip to swallow her shriek. Her eyes drop to the hunting knife which gleams with the reflection of bloody snow. Carefully, we make our approach. I make quick work of pulling out the man’s wallet to learn his identity. A professor named Walter, who resides in a small town three miles away from the lake. Next, I examine the wounds. Walter's neck has multiple bite lacerations, as does his yellow mutt. The fang indentations are too small for a mountain lion, or wolf, but just the right size for a humanlike predator. A demon I know all too well.
Closing my eyes for the moment, I inhale deeply to initiate my augment. The scene plays out in less than ten seconds, confirming the blood percolating through my senses was indeed spilled by a vampire. One that struck so fast poor Walter didn’t have a clue what was happening.
A flicker of anguish surfaces from the girl beside me, whose face is solemn as she strokes the dead mutt's fur. I place my hand over her gloved one. "It was over very quickly for her," I whisper.
Vessa nods, peeling her eyes away. A hiss breaks the stillness, turning our heads. That's when it hits me—this wasn't a spontaneous attack. These two were bait.
Fifty yards out, a silver-haired woman faces us, mouth and neck caked in blood. A centuries-old vampire from the smell of her. With her brown trench coat, she blends in seamlessly with the landscape. Lifeless yellow eyes widen as she inhales the smell of my companion.
Vessa’s breath snags, the revolver shaking in her hand as we come face to face with her greatest predator. A warning growlerupts from my chest. My mind races. If circumstances were different, I would take my wolf form and hunt the vampire down, chasing her across the entire province if I had to. But I can't risk the distraction of being separated from my mate.
The vampire launches herself into the trees above us. Vessa lets out a curse, stunned by the demon’s agility.
"Whatever happens, stay behind me," I tell her.
Peering down at the human like a vulture, the demon licks her lips. “Sweet flower,” she croons. “It’s about time.”
"Cover your ears," I growl, lining up the shot.
Vessa jolts when I pull the trigger. A silver bullet shreds through the vampire's shoulder and then I fire two more times, hitting her square in the chest. Her icy shrill fills the air as she flings herself onto a taller tree. I fire again as she sticks her landing, the bullet grazing the side of her foot. The vampire moves again, a white blur as she leaps to another tree, branches rustling as she climbs her way up. Behind me, Vessa's breathing is sporadic as we close in on her from below.
I need to shift.Now.
"I’m going after her."
"No!" she protests. "Let's go before she regains her strength."
I shake my head profusely. I’m not programmed to retreat. “Trust me, she’s just getting warmed up.”
The smaller semi-automatic Vessa clutches is practically useless at long range. Prying the wrangler from her fingers, I exchange it for the larger gun. Careful to avoid placing her hands on the piping hot barrel, I wrap Vessa’s fingers securely around the butt. Her breathing is ragged, heart pumping with dread.
“Fine,” she croaks. "Go."
