by Cynthia Eden
She tried to sit up, but couldn’t. She was so damn weak that her body just slumped sideways.
She saw the flash of lights in the distance. Cars, rushing toward them. What in the hell was happening?
“Duncan?” She tried to reach for him again, but he backed away from her. “Duncan, change back.”
The wolf stared at her.
Her heart beat faster, and she became aware of her other wounds then, especially the bullet wound. Elias had shot her.
And Pate.
And Shane.
But at least Elias had been a crappy shot. If his bullet had gone into her heart—and it had been a wooden bullet—her body would have instantly shut down.
All the better for him to come and take her head.
Her heartbeat shook her chest. “What happened to them? Why are we outside?” Her brother had been so still. She’d tried to help him, but Elias had shot her. Then the air had started to smell funny.
Gas.
Duncan was still backing away from her. Still staying in animal form.
Goosebumps rose on her arms. She could hear the sound of footsteps now. Pounding toward them. Who was coming? What was happening? She looked straight up and saw that the moon was almost to the zenith point. Oh, no. Oh, hell, no, that wasn’t good.
“Get away from the woman!” A hard voice shouted.
Her gaze jerked to the left. She recognized the faces of a few of the guards who’d just run toward them. Where had the guards been when all hell broke loose inside the facility? And were these guys on their side…or had they been working with Elias?
Duncan growled at them.
“Werewolf,” she heard one of the men say. Wait, that was Brent, one of the newer agents in the unit. She’d patched him up after a particularly bloody mission a few weeks ago. “Dr. Young, don’t move!” He shouted. “We’ll take him out!” Brent lifted his gun.
He was going to fire at Duncan. “No!” She stumbled toward Duncan and wrapped her arms around the wolf. Duncan’s muscles were hard beneath her hands.
“Get away from him!” Brent shouted. “I got the call at home from Elias…I know he’s gone rogue. He’s killing—and we won’t let him kill you!”
Is that what Elias had done? Set Duncan up for murder? Why?
“It’s not like that,” Holly yelled, refusing to budge. Duncan’s throat was vibrating with a growl. With rage. That moon was so close to the zenith. “Just lower your weapons, and I can explain!” There were half a dozen men there and…
“They’re dead inside!” A man shouted, running toward them. His voice broke. “All of them…the other agents and guards are all dead. They’ve been ripped open!”
No. No, that wasn’t possible.
But I smelled the blood.
Brent stepped toward them. He still had his gun up. “Get away from him, doctor.”
“It’s Duncan!”
“Not right now, it isn’t. It’s a werewolf. One with blood on his claws and blood staining his fangs.”
Because their flashlights were centered on her and Duncan. She knew they both had to look like walking nightmares.
“Dr. Young…” Brent’s voice had tightened. “Are those…fangs in your mouth?”
No, it was freaking candy. She snapped her teeth together. “Get back.” Then she stood fully, trying to shield Duncan with her body. “Drop your guns!”
They all lifted the weapons.
Duncan snarled.
Six weapons. All pointed at her.
All ready to fire. Why? Because she had pointy teeth? Or maybe because she had a werewolf at her side? A werewolf who would not be smart and just stay behind her.
“I can explain all of this,” she said, and the words were mostly true. She could explain some of this, if she had the chance.
“Don’t…fuckin’…aim at my…sister!”
Pate’s voice. Pate’s wonderful, angry voice. Her shoulders slumped. He was alive. Yes. Pate would make everything right again.
“Shoot the…wolf…” Pate continued as he shuffled forward. “Not…her…”
What? “No!”
But Duncan had leapt away from her. So I wouldn’t be a target. And gunfire was erupting. The wolf dodged the bullets and raced away from the men.
She screamed, but the wolf didn’t stop. She didn’t blame him. Not with bullets chasing him.
Then the men were running after him. And he—he was vanishing into the night.
She wanted to chase after him, too, but her body felt cold and numb and when her knees gave way, she sank to the ground.
“Help her!” Pate barked.
But there was no help for her. Her body was so cold, and Duncan was gone. He’d vanished, and the gunfire was quiet now.
At least he’d gotten away.
But what would happen to him?
“Holly?” She forced her eyes to stay open as she looked up at Pate. Blood covered him. How was he there? She’d seen the bullet wounds to his chest. She knew the damage they’d done. Humans would die from injuries like those.
They wouldn’t be walking around minutes later.
“How…long…” Holly whispered.
Brent was there. Lifting her into his arms. “Is she supposed to be this cold?”
“No, she’s going to need blood. A lot of it.” Pate put his hand on her cheek. “It’s okay. I’ve got you now. You know your kind can’t afford this much blood loss.”
No, they couldn’t. To kill a vampire, you had to either cut off the vamp’s head or drain all of the vampire’s blood away.
The easy trick for getting the vampire in the position that you could do those things? Paralyze the vamp with a wooden bullet.
But in order to paralyze the vampire, the bullet had to go straight into the heart.
Elias had missed her heart, but he’d sure nicked vital organs and made the blood gush from her. She’d tried to stay strong for as long as she could.
But she was too weak now.
“I’ll take care of you,” Pate whispered.
She didn’t believe him. And, staring at him then, she didn’t trust him, either. She’d risked her life for Pate, died for him, and now, she could only ask, “How long…have you been a-a vampire?”
Because she could see the edge of his fangs.
All emotion drained away from his face. The man she’d known was gone. He stared down at her as a stranger. “Long enough.”
She realized that the world she’d known was a total lie.
Then she was being carried away. She couldn’t fight. Could barely even lift her hand. Behind her, she heard a wolf howl. But the howl was so far away.
***
Holly paced her living room. Again and again. As soon as she’d gotten an infusion of blood—okay, four infusions—she’d run away from Pate.
He’d let her go.
Probably because he knew there was no place she could escape to that he couldn’t follow.
Pate…a vampire? How had she not known about him? Why hadn’t he told her? Had he been a vampire that night, when she’d been so desperate to save him? By that time, had he already been changed? No wonder he was so keen for her to find a cure. The guy must have been using her karahydrelene, too.
Her hand lifted and smoothed over the wound on her chest. Well, not really a wound any longer. It had healed as she ingested the blood.
The Para Unit’s containment facility in the woods was being shut down. The order had come from above. The place had been deemed too unsecure and dangerous.
Only one prisoner was still alive in that building—and Connor was due to be immediately transferred to Purgatory. The other wolves—even Saul—had all died from silver poisoning. Their collars had been cranked up to full power.
And as for Duncan…
He was a wanted man. Werewolf.
Pate was searching the city for him, and Duncan was assumed to be a deadly threat.
When the power went out, six more guards had been killed in the containment facil
ity. So many lives…lost. And all six of those men had been killed by a werewolf’s claws.
Only the werewolves had been killed, too. Except for Connor. But it seemed Connor had never made it out of his cell, so he couldn’t be responsible for all of those deaths.
Every sign pointed to the fact that Elias had been the one to hijack the system and take control of the collars, but he wasn’t a werewolf. He couldn’t have killed the humans in the facility.
So who had?
She knew Pate thought it was Duncan. She’d told her brother, again and again, that Duncan had been in his cell.
But he didn’t believe her. He seemed to think that Duncan had escaped and gone on a rampage. He had no trust in Duncan.
And she wasn’t exactly big on trusting her brother any longer.
When did you change, Pate? When?
Shane couldn’t back her up. Because he was dead. Too much blood loss. So said Pate.
Another lie? Could a vampire as old as Shane die that easily, that quickly? At this point, Holly wasn’t sure if Pate even knew how to tell the truth any longer.
Holly paced toward her window. It had been fixed, probably by one of Pate’s men, and she stared down at the street below.
Would Duncan run? Get out of the city?
She heard the faint rustle of a footstep behind her.
Holly’s eyes squeezed shut.
He wouldn’t run.
“You shouldn’t be here,” she said without turning around. Her eyes opened. “You know he’ll be watching my house.” Her breath rasped out. “Pate thinks you killed the humans at the facility. He’s hunting you.” Her hands clenched into fists. “Leave now, before he comes.”
The floor creaked.
“Please,” she whispered. “I don’t even know what’s going on. Pate isn’t the man I thought.”
No one was who she thought these days.
The floor creaked again. She could feel him coming closer to her. Feel the warmth of his body seeming to reach out for her. And she could smell him. The rich, slightly wild, masculine scent that was pure Duncan.
She remembered the first time she’d seen him. He’d come into her lab. Looked so intense. Dangerous.
His fingers brushed over her arm. Fingers.Not paws. He’d shifted back into the form of a man.
“Holly…”
He said her name with such need.
She whirled toward him.
And saw that the wolf wasn’t completely gone. His eyes still shined with the beast’s power. His face seemed sharper than before. His cheeks more hollow. His lips a bit more cruel. And his fangs were out.
Hers weren’t.
“Duncan?”
His hand rose. His fingers brushed over her cheek, and an expression of confusion flickered over his face.
“You need to leave,” she told him, voice husky.
He gave a hard, negative shake of his head. “Need…you.”
Then his head was bending toward her neck. Holly held herself perfectly still, not afraid of him, but afraid of what was happening between them.
Their relationship was dangerous. The world around them was spinning out of control. He should be cutting town and not looking back.
Instead, he’d come for her.
His breath blew lightly over her skin. Her hands rose to his shoulders and her fingers curled around him. “Duncan, you have to—”
His mouth closed over her, right there where her neck met the curve of her shoulder. She tensed, expecting pain, a bite, but he licked her flesh.
A wave of heat rose inside her.
“Need…” Duncan muttered again. “You.”
And she needed him.
The sharp edge of his teeth raked over her skin, but he didn’t hurt her. Had he ever?
Then his hands were on her shirt. He yanked, and the fabric tore. He tossed the material away. Shoved down her pants.
He lifted her into his arms. “Can’t think of anything…else…only you.”
Right then, he was all that mattered to her. “I was afraid I wouldn’t see you again.” Her confession.
“I’ll never leave you.” The promise was a man’s, not a beast’s.
Then they were in her bedroom. The lights were off. Like her wolf needed light to see. The mattress dipped beneath them. She expected wild, hot sex. He was coming off the full moon rush. Everyone had said this would be him at his most dangerous but…
But he was so careful with her now. As if he were afraid she couldn’t handle him. Silly werewolf. Was he forgetting what she really was?
His fingers pushed down her panties. Tugged away her bra. Then he was licking her. Licking her nipples. Sucking the tight peaks. Driving her out of her mind.
Her nails clawed down his back as she tried to force him to go faster. She didn’t need this slow build-up. She needed him. All of him. Holly didn’t know how much time they had.
But he wouldn’t hurry. He parted her legs. Put one hand on each thigh.
Then he put his mouth on her.
The first orgasm caught her by surprise. Holly hadn’t expected it to come so fast, but he licked her, stroked her with his tongue right on her clit, then pulled back, only to repeat that sensuous pattern and the release hit her, slamming into her.
But he didn’t stop. He kept tasting her. Stroking. Learning every inch of her body. When she tried to lunge up and grab him, he just caught her hands in one of his and pushed her back on the bed.
There was no stopping him. No controlling him. He was set on exploring every inch of her body.
Claiming every inch?
Her breath panted out and she took the pleasure that he gave her.
Her sex was aching, so eager to feel the surge of his cock within her. But he wasn’t coming close enough to her. Damn him. “Duncan!”
His head lifted. He licked his lips, as if still tasting her. His eyes locked on hers. “Only…you.” His dark growl.
Then he flipped her over on the bed. Lifted her onto her knees. Her hands were free, and they grabbed for the bedding, clenching around the sheets.
He was behind her. Covering her. He moved back her hair, and put his mouth on the curve of her shoulder once more. “No going back,” he said again, the words darker, sending a shiver over her.
She arched back against him just as his teeth sank into her skin. Shocked, she cried out even as he thrust inside of her. The pain from his bite faded almost instantly as he licked over the wound, and then he was thrusting, withdrawing, driving in deeper and harder—finally—and the lust and need spiraled inside of her.
But…
I know what he did.
She knew what his bite meant. It hadn’t been like a vampire’s bite.
When a werewolf bit in that spot, the mark was a claiming.
The bed creaked beneath them. Her fingers tightened on the bedding. The way he was thrusting into her, his cock slid right against the most sensitive part of her body, and, oh, it felt so good. He felt good. Right.
Incredible.
This time, the climax built in a fast and furious rush. Her whole body tightened because that pleasure was there, just out of her reach. She drove back against him, slamming down because she wanted all of him.
He gave her all.
His hands were on her waist now. Holding her tight. Moving her so that she had to take him in even deeper. That was just what she wanted.
Her fangs were coming out. An instinctive response that didn’t embarrass her. Why would it? Her lover had fangs of his own.
I want a bite. He’d claimed her. It seemed only fair that she get her turn?
“Duncan, I need…”
“What? Anything. I’ll give…anything.” A promise.
Her right hand rose. Grabbed his wrist, yanked his fingers away from her waist. She had to bite him. It wasn’t something that she could control. Not anymore. The urge was too dark. Too consuming. Holly lifted his wrist to her mouth.
She sank her teeth into his vein.
“
Yes…” His hiss.
His thrusts became even harder. She loved it. She drank from him as she came, exploding on a release so powerful that her heart seemed to stop for a moment. Her eyes squeezed shut, and the pleasure swamped her.
Duncan was there with her. Coming hard because she felt the jet of his release. Holding her, curving his body around hers. His heart didn’t stop. The thunder of his heartbeat seemed to surround her. He was all that she knew in that instant.
All that she wanted.
The rest of the world could just fade away then. She had Duncan.
She had everything.
His heartbeat was thundering…thundering…
And sirens were wailing.
Her eyes widened. His wrist wasn’t at her mouth any longer. She didn’t even know when she’d let him go. She could still taste the rich flavor of his blood. Within her, Duncan was hard again, already, but the sirens seemed so loud.
Were they coming for Duncan?
He’d tensed behind her. She looked over her shoulder. Saw the lust and need and…growing fury in his gaze.
Then he started to thrust again. The breath caught in Holly’s lungs. Because now the intensity was different. So dark and focused. Consuming.
The sirens were wailing, growing ever closer, and she was staring into Duncan’s eyes as he thrust deep into her.
But it wasn’t enough. Not for her.
She tried to twist against him, wanting to face him fully. Needing to.
His hands locked around her. Held her tight.
He thrust harder.
She shook her head, “I want—”
Everything.
Then they were rolling across the bed. She ignored the screams of the sirens. This moment, it was too tense, too sharp.
She was on her back. He was between her legs. Plunging into her. Possessing her. Every stroke seemed like a brand on her. And she wanted another bite.
Wanted his blood in her. Wanted to bind them. Link them.
I want to claim him, too.
Then his neck was near her mouth. Her lips feathered over his skin.
“Bite.” His sharp snarl.
And she did. Because she wasn’t a human anymore, and the vampire that she was wanted his blood as much as she wanted his body.
The rush she got then was incredible. A climax that shattered her even as the lights from the swarming vehicles lit her home.