Tia smiled grimly as Quillan grabbed his leg and tried to claw the bullet out.
The murdering, ancient bloodsucker wouldn’t be going anywhere now. The silver would stop him.
Nelo kicked the gun out of her hand before she could squeeze off another shot. He was about to slam his boot down and break every bone in her hand when a large white wolf exploded into the room.
The wolf slashed at Nelo with its razor sharp claws and stood over Tia.
Tia glimpsed the wolf’s hazel eyes before its eyes turned fully golden and feral.
“Caine...” She managed a quick smile and whispered fiercely, “Sarah! Go get Sarah! I’ll deal with Nelo, you stop Quillan. Kill that fucker!”
CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE
Caine turned and saw his daughter in Quillan’s clutches. The little girl wasn’t crying. She wasn’t even moving. She just lay limply on Quillan’s shoulder, dazed and frozen with shock and fear.
Caine lunged at Quillan, but the vampire held Sarah up and pressed his fangs to her soft neck. “I’ll rip out her little throat,” Quillan hissed with an ugly smile.
Two shots rang out behind him. Caine pivoted to see Tia firing another shot at Nelo, but the vampire was too fast. Nelo dodged her shots and Caine saw the vampire’s blood red eyes fix on Tia.
Caine growled a warning as Nelo came at Tia. The vampire moved so fast he was just a blur. Tia fired and missed.
Nelo had his hands around Tia’s neck. Caine flew at the vampire, but his jaws clamped down on empty air.
Nelo was gone. He had teleported away with Tia.
Caine heard Quillan’s mocking laughter. “Go, werewolf. Go after the human female. She is your mate, your one and only, isn’t she? Go get her.” Quillan made a shooing motion. “Leave the phoenix. This young phoenix isn’t yours. She isn’t any of your concern. Go and save your mate. Forget about the phoenix.”
Caine stared at Sarah lying completely still in Quillan’s arms. Quillan had guessed correctly that Tia was his mate, but his wolf hadn’t claimed and marked Tia as his. The mate bond between them had not yet been established.
It wasn’t Tia who had called to him and led him here. It was Sarah, his daughter, his pup.
The bond between a wolf and its pup was unbreakable, and his wolf would track Sarah to the ends of the earth. Sarah wasn’t a wolf, but she was his pup. The moment he adopted her, his heart had claimed the little girl as his daughter and his wolf had bonded instantly with the child.
Sarah was his daughter. He had heard her cry and felt her distress.
Caine had just finished a very enjoyable dinner with his mother at her favorite restaurant when he heard a soft cry in his head. His daughter was crying out for him. He could hear the fear and pain in her cry, and Caine had almost upended the table as he rushed out of the restaurant.
He had driven his mother to a neighbor’s house and asked the neighbors not to let Amanda out of their sight. “Stay here, don’t go home,” he’d ordered his mother.
The moment he ran into the empty house, he knew that both Tia and Sarah were gone. He let his furious wolf rise to the surface, and his wolf led him straight to the old museum building at the fringe of the city.
Caine snarled at Quillan. The vampire was wrong.
He wasn’t going to forget about the phoenix. The phoenix was his. Sarah was his daughter. His baby girl. He had tracked her down and he knew he would find Tia here as well.
Tia would never leave Sarah. She would protect the little girl with her life.
Caine’s heart was tearing into two. He wanted to go save Tia, but he couldn’t leave Sarah. Caine had faith in his brave, strong mate. Tia was a fighter. She wasn’t weak and defenseless.
But Sarah couldn’t fight back. She was a phoenix, but she was still just a baby.
Caine leaped at Quillan and his claws raked down the vampire’s thin leg. Quillan’s reflexes weren’t as fast as Nelo’s. The silver bullet in his leg was weakening him, draining him of his energy and powers.
Quillan held Sarah up as a shield as Caine slashed at him with his claws. Caine pulled his claws back just in time. He’d almost ripped his daughter in half!
Quillan snarled and bit into the baby’s arm. The vampire groaned in ecstasy as Sarah’s blood oozed into his mouth.
Caine roared in fury. Sarah whimpered and struggled weakly as Quillan drank more of her blood.
The vampire’s eyes blazed and he reached out and swiped his long nails down Caine’s side. Caine attacked viciously, but Quillan had grown stronger and faster. Sarah’s blood had revived him, and the vampire was now a deadly, formidable foe. All his powers were coming back to him, and Quillan held the baby up in one hand like a trophy.
“Rebirth,” he laughed. “So this is what rebirth feels like. Once I finish all her blood, I will finish you off. Run while you can, werewolf,” he taunted. He bared his fangs in a bloody smile and whispered, “Run.”
CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX
Tia snapped her eyes open, and fought down her giddiness and nausea. God, she fucking hated teleporting! It felt like all her molecules had been scrambled and hurriedly put back together in the wrong order.
She blinked quickly to focus and saw that she was on a quiet street behind the old museum. Nelo had teleported her out of the building, away from Caine. The vampire’s hand was still around her neck and she felt him loosen his grip momentarily. Without hesitation, Tia spun round and jammed the barrel of her gun up against his chin.
She squeezed the trigger but there was only a dull click.
“Shit!” Tia cursed. She had run out of bullets.
Nelo let out a nasty laugh and yanked her into an alleyway. He slammed her against the wall and grabbed a fistful of her hair.
The vampire pulled her head forcefully to the side to expose her neck and Tia felt the tips of his sharp fangs against her flesh.
“No, no!” she screamed, trying her best to headbutt him.
Nelo backhanded her and Tia tasted blood in her mouth. She swallowed quickly and clamped her teeth down on his hand when he tried to hit her across the face again.
She bit down, hard. Nelo roared and smashed the back of her head against the wall. Tia saw stars and bright flashes in front of her eyes, and the shadows in the alley seemed to slither towards her. The shadows began to close in on her, threatening to drag her under.
Tia grunted and forced the darkness away. She shook her head hoping to clear it. Her movement sent a shock of pain from her skull straight down her spine.
Nelo grabbed her by the collar and hauled her up. “I should kill you now, but human blood tastes so much sweeter when the heart is still pumping,” Nelo said.
Tia tried to scream but he covered her mouth with his hand and plunged his fangs into her neck.
Tia almost passed out from the excruciating pain. The vampire began to drink from her, and she felt her blood pumping thickly into his mouth.
No, no, no!
Tia kept kicking and punching, but she was growing weaker. She was losing too much blood. Nelo fed greedily from her, determined to drain every drop of blood from her body.
He was going to kill her.
Tia started shivering, suddenly feeling very cold. Her vision was blurring and she was drifting away.
She was dying.
No! She refused to die. Not like this.
Tia croaked out Caine’s name, and turned painfully to stare towards the narrow mouth of the alley.
There was no one on the street.
No one would save her.
She thought of her sister and niece, and their beautiful, smiling faces swam before her eyes. “Take good care of them, Nathan,” she whispered.
She thought of Caine, Sarah and Amanda, and she smiled as her eyes began to close.
She had grown to love this family and she hated leaving them. She loved being a part of their lives, and she wished they could be in her future.
But what future was there for her?
Her last thought was of
Caine.
I love you.
She regretted not saying these three words to him earlier.
CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN
Caine kept attacking Quillan, trying to stop that evil vampire from drinking his daughter’s blood. Sarah had gone very still and quiet. Her romper was stained with blood, and her tiny fingers twitched as if trying to grasp something.
Caine bellowed in fury as Quillan ran his tongue down Sarah’s bleeding arm. The old vampire had regained most of his powers and he moved with superhuman speed, dodging Caine’s blows with ease. He was unable to teleport due to the silver bullet in his leg, but he could move and strike with deadly force and accuracy.
Caine stared at his daughter and knew that he was running out of time. Quillan had bitten Sarah on the arm and taken her blood. The bite wasn’t too deep but the little girl was losing blood fast.
Caine could see the old vampire’s gnawing hunger and greed. He was growing impatient. He was eager to drink the little phoenix dry and become the unstoppable, fearsome creature that he once was.
Caine forced himself to take a step back. Quillan was just a few feet in front of him, watching him with those cold, glittering eyes.
“You seem to care greatly for this young phoenix,” Quillan said. “You are willing to die for her even though she isn’t yours. Fascinating...” the vampire mused. “And foolish.”
Caine let out a very low growl and turned away slowly. He could feel Quillan’s eyes on him but he forced himself not to look back. Caine moved steadily towards the door at the other end of the room and tensed. Then he broke into a limping run.
He wanted Quillan to think that he was running away. Quillan was a predator and Caine knew that bloodthirsty predators loved to toy with frightened, wounded prey.
He had to pretend that he was too scared to fight. That he had given up.
Caine sensed the vampire behind him and ran faster down the dusty corridors. He skidded into the last hall at the back of the building as spun round. Quillan was right behind him, his red eyes glowing with the thrill of the hunt.
Caine watched the vampire come closer, and forced himself not to make a move. Yet.
The vampire was fast, too fast for Caine to chase. So he had to make Quillan chase him.
And now he had him right where he wanted him.
Caine snapped his jaws around the vampire’s leg and bit right down to the bone. Quillan roared and tried to fling him away, but Caine twisted viciously and brought the vampire down.
As Quillan fell, Caine ripped into the vampire’s torso. Quillan screeched and released Sarah. Caine moved in a flash and his daughter landed on his back. He slid the girl off his back and pushed her quickly out of the way.
Then he tore into the cruel, sadistic vampire with a vengeance. Quillan fought back but now he didn’t have the baby as a shield. Caine had held back before, as he was afraid of hurting his little girl. Quillan had used the baby to block his blows, and Caine couldn’t attack with the full force of his fury.
But now there was nothing to stop him. He ripped into the vampire, shredding his skin off his body and tearing half his face off. Quillan flew at him and tried to plunge his fangs into Caine’s neck. But Caine anticipated his move and twisted away. He turned round and saw Quillan rushing towards Sarah.
Caine moved with equal speed. He wasn’t going to let Quillan get his hands and fangs on his daughter.
His claws glinted as they sliced through the air. Quillan was just a fraction of an inch from Sarah. The old vampire’s red eyes blazed with blood lust as he opened his mouth wide to rip into the baby’s body.
Caine slashed down with raw rage and fury. This monster had hurt his baby and his mate!
There was a spray of black blood as Caine separated Quillan’s head cleanly from his body.
CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT
The body slumped to the ground and Caine immediately kicked the head far away from Sarah.
He shifted to human form and picked his daughter up. Sarah’s breathing was shallow and ragged, and she made a tiny sound of distress. She didn’t open her eyes even when he called her name.
Caine hugged her tightly to his chest and ran out of the building.
“Tia...”
She was near. The scent of blood and fear tugged him towards a small street behind the building.
She was in the alley.
Caine exploded into the dark alley and saw Quillan’s minion bending over Tia. The vampire was feeding from her, sucking noisily at her neck.
Tia was too weak to move but she fought desperately to stay conscious. She struggled to keep her eyes open, and her unfocused gaze landed on Caine as he charged into the alley.
She smiled at him. It was a heartbreakingly beautiful smile, full of love and regret.
Then her eyes closed.
Caine roared as he grabbed the vampire. The vampire was much younger than Quillan and less powerful. His mouth was smeared with Tia’s blood, and Caine made a terrible sound of anguish. He went straight for the vamp’s throat, fighting with just one arm as he held Sarah tightly in his other arm.
The vampire moved sluggishly, drunk on Tia’s blood. He tried to fight Caine but he couldn’t even land a blow. Caine kicked the vampire to his knees and twisted his head back until he snapped his neck. Caine dropped the dead vampire to the ground and rushed to Tia’s side.
“Tia, Tia! Wake up! Please...”
Caine knelt in the narrow alley, hugging his daughter and mate to him. Tia’s heart beat weakly in her chest, and she released a slow, rattling breath.
“No!” Caine screamed. “No! Don’t die, don’t fucking die! I love you, Tia! I love you! Don’t leave me, please...don’t leave us! We need you...” He rocked to and fro, cradling both the baby and Tia in his arms. This was his family. They belonged together. He had to keep his family intact…
Caine raised his head and his golden eyes blazed in the dark. His canines pushed out and he snarled as his wolf rose.
Wolf venom dripped from his fangs.
An alpha wolf could turn humans, but it was a very risky, dangerous and potentially deadly procedure. Injecting a human with wolf venom changed the genetic makeup and cell structure of the human. The body would undergo a great deal of trauma and stress as the wolf venom entered the bloodstream. When the venom reached the heart, the heart would stop. And there was no guarantee that it would start back up again.
But Caine was out of options. He had to do this. It was the only thing he could do for Tia.
Turn her, or kill her.
He lifted Tia and kissed her on the mouth. Glaring into the swirling darkness, Caine pushed his fangs into the other side of Tia’s neck and bit down.
Tia’s body jerked and convulsed as the venom surged through her veins.
She began to lose heat fast, and her body became colder and colder. Caine didn’t stop. He gave her as much as she could take, and clasped her cooling body to him.
Caine held her until her heart stopped.
CHAPTER TWENTY-NINE
Caine looked up when his mother stepped quietly into his room. She was carrying Sarah in her arms, and the baby squealed and cooed happily when she saw her daddy.
Caine stood up immediately and held out his arms for his daughter. He hugged the little girl tightly and put one arm around Amanda’s shoulder as she stood at the bedside.
“How is she?” Amanda asked softly.
“Her heart rate and temperature has returned to normal. But she hasn’t woken up...” Caine answered.
Amanda sat at the edge of the bed and took Tia’s hand. “She’s a fighter. She’ll make it. I know she will,” Amanda said fiercely.
Caine nodded and turned to his daughter. Sarah smiled and patted his cheek with her tiny hand. Her injuries had all disappeared and she looked fine.
“My little phoenix,” Caine whispered. “You’re so tough and brave.”
Sarah had healed herself by shifting. She shifted to phoenix form and burned away all her wo
unds and injuries. His baby girl was a survivor, a fighter, a true phoenix. She grew stronger after emerging from the fire.
Caine had carried both Sarah and Tia to his car, which he had parked just one street behind the old museum, and sped them home. Tia’s heart had started beating again just a few seconds after it stopped. It beat hard and fast, pumping the wolf venom through her veins. Tia was young, strong and tenacious. Her will to live was strong. Caine had faith in her, but still the fear and worry gnawed at him.
They were all in his house now. Caine forbade his mother from going back to her house until he had done a sweep of the entire house and installed new locks on every door and window. Amanda tried to object when he told her that he would be getting her house fitted with the most state-of-the-art security system. But she knew that this was an argument she couldn’t win.
Caine’s eyes flicked back to Tia. “It’s been two hours...”
Amanda patted his arm. “Give her a little more time. It can take a few hours, or a few days. It depends on the individual. That’s what your father told me.”
Caine scrubbed a hand down his face. “I can’t lose her,” he said hoarsely.
Amanda smiled and said, “You won’t. Tia loves you. I can see it in her eyes. She’ll fight for you. The girl is strong and proud, and...she reminds me of me in my younger days,” his mother finished with a chuckle.
“Come here,” Amanda said to her granddaughter. “You must be hungry, sweetheart. How does a nice, warm bottle of milk sound? I’ll tuck you in after that. Nana will sleep with you in your room tonight.”
After his mother and daughter left the room, Caine sat down on the bed and stroked Tia’s face tenderly. She let out a soft sigh at his touch and her eyelids fluttered.
“Tia,” he called out, grabbing her hand. “Tia!”
He searched her face anxiously and felt her forehead. “Open your eyes, please. Wake up, Tia. Tia!”
The Wolf's Mate: Billionaire Shifter Paranormal Romance (Hearts on Fire Book 4) Page 8