His hand was slightly cool. Not as hot as the—the werewolf’s had been.
“Do you trust me?” Heath pushed.
She nodded. “I do.” As soon as he’d realized what a freak of nature she truly was, Heath could have turned her over to the cops. To the government. But he hadn’t. He’d said others would hurt her. That they had to find a way to protect her.
Hiding in plain sight had been that way.
He smiled. “Good. Now slam your foot down on that gas. You can’t ever let that werewolf take you. Not ever, do you hear me, Jane? He’s too dangerous.”
She put her foot down on the gas.
“His name is Alerac O’Neill.”
Yes, he’d told her that.
“He’s a killer, and his prey of choice? The prey he takes down the most?” Heath swallowed. She heard the small click of sound easily in the truck’s interior. “According to the stories I’ve heard, the guy always hunts vampires.”
Like he was hunting her.
The truck lunged forward. But before she could make the next turn up ahead, two big SUVs shot out, and they blocked her path.
“They’re here. Hell, yes,” Heath muttered, sounding incredibly relieved.
She didn’t exactly feel the same relief. “Who is ‘they’? Tell me, now.”
Alerac had told her that others were coming. He’d said that she needed to run from them.
“These guys can help you,” Heath told her as he reached for his door. “I told them to meet us back there at the old bar. But he got there first.”
Men were climbing out of those SUVs. She counted at least eight of them. They were big, tough-looking. All wore black. All also had fierce, hard expressions on their faces.
A shiver slid over her.
No weapons. They don’t have weapons.
But one man was holding a duffel bag.
Before she could stop him, Heath jumped from the truck. He rushed toward those men. “She’s here.” He pointed back toward Jane as she sat, motionless, behind the staring wheel.
She forced herself to climb from the truck. Jane stared at those men as her stomach twisted. Were they human? It was strange that she should even have that question. Before that night, she’d thought that she was the only paranormal out there.
Before a werewolf came to her and changed the world around her.
“We have to hurry,” Heath said as he glanced nervously around the area. “The alpha wolf is on her trail already.”
Alpha wolf?
Two of the men shared a hard share and a nod. Then, as if the others had been waiting for that small signal, they all pulled out weapons—guns.
Jane grabbed tightly to the truck’s driver-side door. It was open, and it was a shield for her body, in case those men decided to shoot her.
“Come on, Jane!” Heath was already climbing into the SUV on the right. He’d snatched up the duffel bag.
What was in that bag?
“Why are you pointing your guns at me?” Jane shouted to the men, not about to “come” any place then without an explanation. “What’s happening here?”
The men didn’t speak. They also didn’t lower their weapons.
But…
“They aren’t pointing them at you. At least not yet.”
His voice. The werewolf.
Then she felt his hand on her shoulder. A warm weight. She’d never even heard Alerac walking up behind her.
“They’re aiming at me right now.”
The breath left her body in a hard exhale. Yeah, vampires still breathed. At least, she did. She breathed. Her heart beat. And she feared—fear seemed to be consuming her.
“Get away from the woman!” This shout came from the man in black who’d just hurried forward. A man who spoke with a clipped British accent.
A man who’d just flashed fangs.
“Now you know that’s not happening,” Alerac shouted back. The werewolf’s arms wrapped tightly around her. He’d been stabbed in the heart moments before. How was he with her now? How was he just walking around? “But if you and your little gang of bloodsuckers don’t get out of here, you’ll all be dead in the next minute.”
He pushed her behind his back.
Protecting her?
No, surely he wasn’t.
Yet it seemed he was.
“She’s mine, and I’m not letting her go.” His strong voice carried easily in the night. “So run to your hole and tell Lorcan to back the f**k off.”
“We do not run!” The man yelled.
“Fine.” Alerac shrugged. “Then you can die. Because my pack has you surrounded right now.”
And, as if on perfect cue, a series of howls filled the night. Bloodcurdling, fierce, terrifying.
The men—vampires—began to edge back toward the waiting SUVs.
“Want to see who wins in this fight?” Alerac asked, the words a dark taunt. “Because I’m betting my wolves can take out you and your new bloods in less than five minutes.”
She peered around Alerac. The, ah, new bloods, were definitely backing up. Some had already jumped into the SUVs.
But that one man—the guy who seemed to be the leader—he hadn’t moved. He was still standing there, aiming his gun at Alerac.
“I’m not supposed to return without her.” She could see more of his face now. Hard edges, but a weak jaw. His hair was thick, pushed back from his high forehead. His gaze—it looked as dark as the night—turned to her. He stared at her, then said, “Attack.”
The word was low, and it took her a few seconds to realize that the British guy—the guy who Heath had said was there to help—had actually just given the order for his men to attack her.
Lucky for her, only half of the men attacked. Half ran. The running half jumped into the SUV, the one already occupied by Heath, and they tore out of there.
Alerac spun toward her. He wrapped his arms around her and shielded her with his body. The bullets started flying. Jane could smell his blood. Could hear the impact as the bullets hit him. Sank into him.
“Wooden,” he muttered. “SOBs were plannin’ to use wooden bullets on you.”
And she also heard growls. Howls. The fast thud of—of—
Alerac released her as men screamed.
She looked over and saw that the vampires were under attack. Wolves, giant, hulking wolves, had gone after the vampires.
Even as his blood dripped onto the ground, Alerac headed into that fray. “You’re dying, vampire.”
As she watched, Alerac fell to the ground. But when his hands hit the pavement, they weren’t hands any longer.