Page 54 of Bold Mercy

Chapter Twenty-Eight

Immediately there were half a dozen wolves surrounding her, low growls floating from their mouths. But Zach shoved his way between them and stood with Farrow, his blade in his hand. “Stand back,” he told them. “She’s not here to fight.”

“She’s here to die,” Remy muttered, holding Dolly, his favorite, bloodstained stake. He wanted to stake the vampire, but he would have to fight the wolves for that honor.

“Kill her,” Wyatt snarled.

They were seconds away from ripping each other to shreds when I interfered. “Stop,” I told Wyatt, who was shaking with his need to control his shift. I dropped to my knees beside the vampire girl. “Farrow. Why are you here?” I didn’t have time to talk, really, with Joe possibly dying in the alpha’s arms. Still, she wouldn’t have come if there hadn’t been an urgent reason for her to do so.

“Bastien sent me. We are under attack. Avis knows the property better than anyone, and she is ripping through the glamour shields and exposing us to the humans. She wants the humans to bring their pitchforks and torches to the clan, so they will die. So we will all die.” Her fangs were elongated—apparently she was too stressed to retract them. “Bastien sent me to you. You have to come, now.”

“She doesn’t have to do anything,” Wyatt snarled. “We will—”

“Wyatt,” Jared said, interrupting him. “Quiet. Carlos, Avery. You’ll drive Joe to Shadowfield, call Ben on your way. Kait, do you know his blood type?”

I stood and took Joe’s cold hand. “No. I don’t know it.”

Then Max was shoving through the big wolf bodies. “He’s O positive? And I’m going with him to Shadowfield.” He got a look at Joe’s face when Jared handed him over to one his wolves and he turned to me, his lips pressed into a tight line. His eyes were too wide, and I could see terror in his stare. He wasn’t afraid of the bodies on the ground or the wolves or the vampire Farrow. He was terrified for Joe. “Kait?” he whispered.

I gripped his shoulders. “Dr. Hayes will fix him up, Max. Go.”

“Kait,” Farrow said, her voice hard with impatience. “We have to get to Alexandria. Bastien needs your help.”

“We don’t help vampires. We kill them,” Wyatt said, unwilling to give an inch. He gestured at the ground. “As you can see.”

“We’ll go to Alexandria,” Jared told him, getting angrier by the second. “We’ll do whatever it takes to end the rogues. We will fight with the county master’s vampires tonight. Do you understand this?”

Wyatt nodded, but reluctantly. “We’ll fight.”

“I’ll be there,” Zach said.

The sudden paling of his face told me he didn’t want to go, but the determination in his eyes said he would anyway. I wished I could have forced him to stay behind.

“Want a ride?” Remy asked him. He patted his stake. “Dolly is still thirsty.”

“Thanks,” Zach said, and without another word, the two of them jogged away.

I wanted to speak with the mayor, and I wanted to check on Lucy and Ash. I also needed to give Lucy my demon blade. I would shift to fight Avis and her rogues and didn’t want to lose the blade. Also, I was slightly afraid that Avis might somehow end up with it again, and I was happy enough not to have to take that chance.

“Go,” I told Jared. “I’ll catch up.”

Then I turned and ran to the house, eager to get to Alexandria before Avis took off. Lucy, Rick, and the mayor were waiting at the door, and I noticed immediately that Rick grimaced when he moved. Ash rushed to me and shoved himself against my legs, and I leaned over to pet him as I spoke to the detective.

“You got hurt out there,” I said, unable to keep the accusation out of my voice. “You promised me you’d go inside with Louis.”

He shrugged. “I’m all right. I did some of what I needed to do.” He seemed angry that he hadn’t killed a couple of vampires in the process.

“Are you all right, Kait?” the mayor asked, and didn’t seem convinced when I nodded. “Let me know as soon as you can if you get that awful woman.”

“I will, Mayor.”

I handed Lucy my blade.

“I can take the blade,” Rick offered.

I shook my head. “I have a feeling you’re going to have your hands full without adding blade-sitting to the mix.”

“It’s safe with me,” Lucy said. “It’ll be waiting when you return.”