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They were on the floor. Julian sat with his back against the foot of the bed, breathing heavily, his chin tilted up. Dried blood streaked one side of his face, and fresh puncture wounds were visible on his neck. Nathaniel sat beside him, holding a small knife with the tip resting against Julian’s throat.

“Vincent, I thought it was probably you upstairs. I’m afraid you’ve interrupted us. We were getting to know each other better. But now that you’re here, perhaps you’d like to join us?” Nathaniel said, a wicked smile on his face. “I’ve only had a mouthful, but he’s delicious.”

My lips peeled back from my teeth, but I stayed still.

“Come on in. We can reminisce. It could be like old times again.”

“Let him go. Let him go, and we can discuss anything you’d like.”

“No. I believe this is better. I wouldn’t want you to do anything rash. Or should I say, even more rash? I see you already lost control upstairs,” he said, nodding at my bloodstained clothes and hands. All the time, his knife stayed steady. “Where’s Anna? Did you kill her, too?”

“I’m fully in control of myself. You should keep that in mind,” I said. “And no, I did not kill your mate.”

“She was never really my mate. You know that. There was only ever one person for me,” Nathaniel said bitterly. “Anna knew that, too.”

I studied him, letting him speak while I waited for an opening.

“And how is it that you’re still sane, exactly? You’re half-starved,” Nathaniel continued. “I can see the hollowness in your face and how thin you’ve become. You haven’t been around your own kind in months. How are you not already a wild, mad thing?”

“You wouldn’t understand. It was never about any of those things.”

“You’re delusional. Is that it?” Nathaniel asked, unsteady himself.

“No. It’s all becoming clear now. Thanks, in part, to you,” I said.

“Me?”

“Yes. I wasn’t sure how I’d cope with giving in to this part of my nature. I was afraid. But as it turns out, it doesn’t affect me the way I thought it would. I’m not sure it ever did. I was hungry, searching, but not in the way you might think.” I paused, looking at Julian. “It was him. I was searching for him and for the connection we’ve built, the purpose he brought to my life.”

Nathaniel leaned forward. “Him? This human?” He tapped the knife against Julian’s skin, making Julian jerk his head up higher. “What on earth does he have that I don’t? How could you get so wrapped up in this thing when I wasn’t enough for you?” His voice grew louder, and he pressed the knife more firmly into Julian’s skin. A thin trickle of blood coursed down Julian’s neck and into the collar of his shirt.

“That’s just it. He’s what keeps me anchored here. My purpose is to love him and keep him safe,” I said calmly. “He embodies everything we aren’t and never will be again.”

I was still gazing at Julian when Nathaniel thrust the knife toward me, preparing to unleash his angry response. He never got the chance. As soon as the knife left Julian’s flesh, I sprang forward, locking my hand around Nathaniel’s wrist and pinning him against the bed.

“Julian, go! Get out!” I roared as Nathaniel thrashed beneath me.

Julian scrambled to his feet, and his retreating footsteps echoed up the stairs as he left. I took a breath and refocused on the struggle. I gripped Nathaniel’s wrist tightly. He released the knife, and I repositioned my grip to gain better control. My hands were still slick with Rich’s blood, though, and Nathaniel slipped out from under me.

Jumping to my feet, I positioned myself between Nathaniel and the door. I couldn’t let him go after Julian or escape.

I might have lost my resolve. I might have tried to reason with my former friend. I might have been moved by our shared past. Yet, as I looked into Nathaniel’s eyes, all I saw was rage and death. This had to end here, or I could never be sure of Julian’s safety. Determination was etched on the face of my former lover, my best and oldest friend. If Nathaniel got away, he would kill Julian.

I lunged at Nathaniel. We fell together, and I attacked with my teeth, trying to reach his throat. Nathaniel pushed me back, pressing his forearm against my chest to keep my fangs from his face. As Nathaniel’s strength began to wane, I inched closer. My teeth grazed his skin, prompting him to buck backward. At the same time, with his other arm, he punched directly into the wound in my stomach.

The pain was incandescent. His punch threw me back, giving Nathaniel the upper hand. He seized me from behind, one arm wrapped around my neck and the other locked around my waist, pinning my arm and pressing into my wound. I struggled against the vise clamped around my body, but the pain drained away my strength.

Nathaniel tightened his grip on my neck, and I realized he was about to tear my head from my body. I struggled more furiously, but his grip was too strong, and I was too worn out. Then I noticed movement by the doorway. Nathaniel saw it, too, and we both looked up. Julian stood, feet apart, holding the rifle I’d brought. He pointed the barrel directly at us, aiming down the sight.

Julian locked eyes with me, and I managed a slight nod. The gun went off, sounding like a thunderclap in the confined space. Instantly, the tension in my body eased, and Nathaniel crumpled to the floor at my feet. I stepped aside and looked down. Nathaniel’s face stared up at me, a perfect hole in the center of his forehead.

I stood, staring at Julian, my hand pressed against my abdomen. The blood was already slowing, the wound healing from the inside out. However, I couldn’t summon the strength to move just yet.

Julian closed the distance between us. He looked nearly as bad as I felt. The cut on his head had crusted over, but dried blood still clung to his hair and face. One eye was beginning to swell, and the punctures in his neck were still open and bleeding.

I withdrew my hand from my wound and reached forward, brushing my fingers against the side of Julian’s neck to stop the bleeding. I lifted my other hand and pulled him closer, pressing a kiss to his mouth. Julian wrapped his arms around me, and we stood there, holding each other up.

“Vincent, are you okay?”