Blood's Fury (Deadly Beauties 1)

Their screaming yelps ring like music to my ears, proving the intoxicating dark power is starting to take me deeper into its clutches. I can't pull back though. We'll never survive if I do.

The fire blazes from the earth to join the next set of silver streaking beauties, and the screams heard are delighting my sadistic side as my roaring inferno grabs more lives of the dark.

Gage is suddenly beside me, slinging me to the ground before a night stalker's surprise attack can succeed, and then he jumps up to resume his attacks. Just as the high takes me over, a scream surges through my lips.

I feel the fangs bared, crunching against the curve of my neck, as the fire of the bite brings me to tears. Gage flings his blue orbs, but a lycan sideswipes him and sends him barreling across the forest.

More glowing blue eyes and new lycans join the party, making death a reality. Then something happens that I wasn't prepared to see.

The new deadly beauties leap into the fight, but they're not attacking us, they're attacking Isolis's men.

I look up just as Isolis is about to take another bite out of me, but he's thrown back as one of the newest night stalkers grabs him up and launches him back. I c

ry out in pain when my dark hero lifts me up, but relief isn't anywhere inside me.

The red hair I'm wearing stains with an even darker red as my blood flows freely. The face of my newest captor is hidden beneath a black mask just like Gage's. His gray hoodie covers his head, and his glowing blues check me over.

I'm starting to worry we've just stepped into a turf war, but then I realize the other numbers dwindling. The night stalker holding me feels so familiar to the touch, as if I know him. His scent is gone, just like mine. Apparently, everyone decided to be incognito tonight. Not that a scent really matters to me. I can't identify a scent or track it.

The night stalker holding me nods to the lycans of his group, and then one of his other night stalker friends whistles twice to signal some sort of attack formation. With grace and effortless poise, the two lycans jump into the circle, and they shred several of the night stalkers attacking our few men.

Isolis is gone - nowhere at all to be seen. Now one Devil has left, handing the keys to the gates of hell to another.

Gage runs over, but he stops as he stares eye-to-eye with the night stalker holding me. He pulls free a blue orb, poised to strike, but the night stalker gently places me on the ground at his feet.

Gage kneels, his eyes never leaving the foe playing friend, until suddenly they're all gone as quickly as they came.

"What the fuck just happened?" one of Gage's friends asks.

"Your guess is as good as mine. Don't question good fortune. Let's get the hell out of here for now. Grab Jesse. He'll need a proper burial."

I cringe as I glance in the direction of their fallen comrade. His dark hair shades his lifeless eyes. I didn't know him, but I'm sure Gage and he were close enough for his death to sting the dark user.

"Are you okay?" I ask softly.

"Me? I'm immortal. You... Alyssa, I'm so sorry. I swear to you nothing like this has ever happened before."

He had no idea I meant emotionally okay. He just lost a member of his group.

"You-"

"Shit. You're losing a lot of blood. I need to get you back to my place and get you cleaned up."

Before I can argue, I feel the wind against me. Either he forgot he drove, or the fanged demon left one hell of a mark behind which has prompted a hasty retreat.

Though the pain is excruciating, I grit through it. It's not like I haven't felt it before. Within a few deep breaths, we're back at his house. I look down to see the blood has covered my arm.

Damn it.

Dizziness is always a reminder as to why I shouldn't let him vaporize me, but right now I've got to focus on the more important things.

"My blood, it'll leave a trail."

"Every drop that fell was soaked up by the earth. Care to explain how that happened? While you're at it, how about telling me how a mortal holds energy in the palm of her hand, when some century-old beings can't even do such a thing."

I was really hoping to avoid this conversation.

"Are you saying you're over a century old? You used energy as well."