by Kim Faulks
His brown eyes widened, but I had my hand around his neck. I heaved, dragging him into the roof space with me without a sound. A choked hiss escaped his lips. I leaned in close, making sure the last thing he saw was my face before I clenched. The sickening sound of shattering bones filled my ears. One of his team turned and scanned the empty space. I could see his tension rise as I gripped the detective close. The mortal kicked and bucked. The thunder of this pulse slowed, his struggle eased as I draped him over the metal bar and moved lower.
A growl slipped from my lips, yet he never looked up, never saw me coming. A sweet rush of air filled my ears as Angelique charged. Her battle cry swallowed my own sounds as I dropped from the ceiling to the concrete floor. I was still too far from Nova. One sound, one wrong move and I’d give myself away.
I glanced at the doorway behind me. Tiny screens were lit, green lights on solid. The walkway was fitted with explosives. They didn’t just expect me to charge in—by the sheer size of the strapped bombs, they counted on it.
The warehouse erupted in front of me. Orange muzzle flashes lit the space like fireworks. The scent of gunpowder singed the air. I dragged the acrid scent into my lungs and slipped into the shadows. My undead heart pulsed, squeezing the stale, congealed blood through my veins.
My heart pulsed for Nova—but it would bleed for her just the same.
A bullet whipped past and hit the wall. I stilled. Senses fired. A scream tore free—a woman’s scream.
I desperately scanned the bodies littering the floor on both sides. Angelique charged forward and lunged for Isaiah.
A blast tore from the shadows on my left. The front of her shirt bloomed bright red. She stumbled mid stride as the young-faced detective stepped from the shadows, pistol raised high and fired once more.
Angelique slowed, stumbled, and then fell.
“No!” My muffled shout was swallowed by the sound of gunfire as the rest of her team open-fired.
I raced forward, still I moved too slow. Too fucking slow.
I reached the first soldier and wrapped my hand around his throat. He let out a cry and stumbled backwards, firing a shot as he fell. I caught surprise in his eyes before I opened my mouth and struck.
Fangs pierced flesh with a sickening pop and sank deep. I savaged his throat and dropped his body to the ground. Blood filled my mouth and coursed down the back of my throat—I wanted more.
The bare-chested vampire lifted Nova from the ground with his hand around her throat. I caught the flash of panic in her eyes and then in a second it was gone. No.
The other stepped forward, eyes bright with excitement. He spread his arms wide, daring me to come closer. “So here is the mighty Kol. It’s about time you turned up. I thought I we were going to enjoy Nova here without an audience.”
I skirted the shadows, desperate for Nova to turn her head. Why won’t she look at me? “Here I am. I’m all yours, you can let her go.”
An ache spread from the base of my skull. The pressure deepened and eased, like the swell of a tide.
“I don’t think we can do that, not yet at least. We’re having far too much fun, aren’t we, Nathaniel?” He looked at the one who looked just like Devlin Holland.
Nova wheezed. I turned as the sonofabitch gripped her neck. There was no doubt who he was. He stared at me with the same cold, emotionless eyes as Devlin Holland. Hate speared through the blinding pain inside my head.
I lifted a finger and pointed. “I’m going to kill you last.”
The corners of his mouth curled. He tightened his grip, smiling as the choked sound slipped from her lips.
Fight, Nova.
The ache flared, blazing like a hot metal shard inside my head. My vision wavered, Nova blended into two. I raised my hand to the side of my head as a warning clenched my stomach. Mind control. That’s why Nova won’t move. They have her chained inside her own head.
“Stop it,” I warned. “Stop hurting her.”
“Then leave. Turn around and walk away. We’ll even let you live. Nova doesn’t belong to you anymore—by vampire decree she belongs to us.”
“No.” I shook my head as the tension inside my head grew.
Leave… leave…
My legs shook. I glanced over my shoulder at the explosives that lined the doorway.
Leave her now and we’ll let you live. Their voices filled my head.
I could leave. I could turn away. They wouldn’t hurt her. They might even be better for her than I am. The words felt foul inside my head. I searched Nova’s vacant gaze. A flicker of life echoed in her brown eyes.
The past reared like shadow. I’d left her once before. I was damned if I’d leave her now.
Nathaniel’s grip around her neck tightened. The heavy thud of her heart slowed.
No.
My feeble heart boomed inside my chest. I’d never leave her—never again. “Get the fuck out of my head, and get your damned hands off my woman.”
“If you won’t leave, then prepare to die. Kneel and let us honor our brother with your death.” Isaiah growled and took a tentative step forward.
The pressure in my head increased. Agony pierced my head like rusted spikes as I forced one step closer. My mind was murky, thoughts so important before seemed to slip from my grasp.
You can’t beat us, Kol. You can’t save her.
A boom ripped through my chest, tearing their taloned voices from my mind. My heart throbbed, the heavy beat echoed like a call. Nova. I lifted my head, fighting their hold. She never moved. She only stared off into the distance with a glassy gaze.
Another blast rocked the center of my chest.
My feet skimmed the floor. My muscles trembled. Their voices smothered my mind like a sodden blanket, weighing me down. Isaiah Holland stepped toward me, all icy smiles and smug satisfaction. I clenched a fist and met his gaze.
Bend the knee Kol. Our brother awaits you in the final death.
Their hold on my mind spread through my body to grip my heart. The undead muscle pulsed in their grasp. My body trembled, my knee shuddered. Without the echo of our love I had nothing… I was nothing.
Stronger vampires than you have fallen Kol. We are undeniable. Bend the knee. There’s nothing for you left in this world.
Angelique’s guttural screams tore through the building.
All I saw was the end.
My knee shuddered. There was nowhere but down.
I lifted my gaze as my feeble heart stuttered to find her faraway gaze.
I had to try. I sent a call… no more than a whisper and hoped it found her. Nova, please hear me.
I hit the filthy concrete floor as Isaiah took a step. His fangs lengthened. His eyes burned bright. I forced myself back to her—to the only one who mattered.
I love you.
Her gaze narrowed, life brightened the amber in her eyes. She turned her head. Her unfocused gaze sharpened, then dulled.
Never doubt my love.
Isaiah never noticed. The corners of his lips curled. Adam’s grip around her throat eased as he stepped to the side. They all wanted a better view.
I would die a thousand deaths to be with you.
The amber burned in her gaze, smoldering like embers from a fire. She turned and our gaze connected. Their voices dulled, and the ache around my heart eased. Colors sharpened and my world narrowed in. All I saw was her.
Instinct reared as Isaiah came closer. The scuff of his shoe filled my ears, followed with the thunder of Nova’s heart. Movement blurred as she turned. Her skin caught soft light, the pink of her bra blending into her skin. She dragged her fist through the air. Her focus consumed by the vampire in front of me.
Her war cry pierced the air as Nova lunged. Isaiah spun with the sound and they collided. Her blows were ferocious slamming into the back of Isaiah’s head. Desperation burned in her gaze. My muscles trembled as I drove my body upwards. My knee lifted from the floor as the force inside my head slammed me to the ground.
You cannot e
scape Kol. Not this time.
Their hold slipped. I took this chance—it was all I had left. Isaiah’s focus left me as he swung at Nova. The thud was brutal. Nova flew through the air to land on the ground. Rage was a razor sharp blade, slicing through their mind control.
Blood welled in the corner of Nova’s mouth. Her sweet scent filled me, carving away their power. I charged, using everything I had left and drove my body into Isaiah Holland.
The collision chattered my teeth. He stumbled backwards as the remaining brothers howled. Isaiah’s eyes widened as I reached for him, wrenching him against my body with my left hand as I drew my right hand backward through the air.
I could smell Nova on his clothes. I could sense her on his mind.
Hate spilled from the edges as I unleashed and speared my hand through the air, fingers pointed like a stake. My nails carved vampire flesh. Bones shattered with the force of the blow. I reached for that lifeless muscle—the one that’s never known love—not like I had—and tore it from his shell.
His blackened heart leaked. Blood ran through my fingers as I stepped away. The two remaining Holland brother’s screamed inside my head—the sound swallowing me like a violent summers squall.
I lifted my gaze. Their faces were a blur. My body moved on its own, dropping until my knees hit the filthy floor. From the edge of my vision someone moved. Angelique, her long dark hair swaying as she forced herself to stand. She reached behind her back. Steel glinted as she drew the sword free.
Adam moved to drag Nova from the ground. I could see the end reflected in her gaze. She was my only hope—my last chance as Nathaniel lowered his head to her throat and with one quick jerk of his head opened her throat. Blood gushed from the wound—my knees trembled at the sight. His bloodied lips glistened as he growled. “She doesn’t belong to you anymore.”
I was transfixed by her blood. Some animal part of me was excited, ready to feed. My fangs ached for salty liquid—I lifted my head—but it wasn’t hers I wanted.
Blood gushed from Nova’s neck and slid down her breasts. I opened my arms, ready to meet her in another life as Angelique wrenched the sword across her body and swung.
Bombs detonated behind me. I was thrown to the ground and peppered with rock.
Pain flared deep inside my mind. Gunfire and grunts filled the air. The boom cast the agony from my head. I scrambled to my hands and knees, finding bodies in a thick cloud of white dust. Arms came away in my hand, attached to nothing. Someone grasped my shoulder. I screamed, spun with fists raised high, ready to fight.
My maker’s dark eyes loomed through the thick dust. His deep growl pierced my head. “Kol!”
He was a ghost, nothing more than a ghost. I stared at the ruined floor, shards of brick covered the floor. He wasn’t real… wasn’t real.
Rurik’s hands gripped me, wrenching me to my feet as shadows descend from behind us to swarm the warehouse. “Kol, look at me. Kol! Look at me.”
I grasped his arms, pulling him close. “Rurik, are you really here?”
His sorrow-filled smile was fast as he stared into my eyes. He searched my face, then my body. “Yes, I’m really here. Are you hit? Are you hurt?”
I shook my head as the ache lifted from my head. “Nova!”
I tore from my maker’s hold and dropped to my knees. Broken bricks were piled high around me. I tore at them, finding her thin pale arm at my feet.
Please be alive… please be alive. I grasped her arm and pulled her free. Blood spilled from the wide gash in her throat. My stomach lurched sickeningly. “Nova!”
She lay limply in my arms. I probed her neck, my fingers slipping against blood-slick skin as I felt for a pulse. Her veins twitched as her feeble thud slowed. One tortured hiss slipped from her parted lips.
“Make the choice, my son.”
Rurik’s voice pierced the void. I pulled Nova onto my lap. Her beautiful face was slack. Her perfect eyes held no life.
“Make the choice.”
Let her go… or turn her.
The debris in front of us scattered. Nathaniel Holland rose like a god coated in brick dust and grime. Rurik moved faster than I could track. My maker had a thousand years on any vampire here. He grasped the sonofabitch around his neck and lifted him free.
I managed one hoarse command. “Don’t kill him. He’s mine.”
But first, there was something I had to do.
I raised my wrist to my mouth and bit. My fangs carved through dead flesh to find the blood in my veins. The drip was slow and thick. I cradled her head and pressed my arm to her mouth. My body trembled with fear.
What have I done?
Her body quaked, shuddering with the invasion of my blood. I held her close, dropping my head to whisper.
“Never again… never again will you kneel to any man, or to any vampire. Open your eyes, Nova. Open your eyes and look upon your sire. Touch my fingers, hold my hand, walk with me underneath the sun and the moon for eternity. I love you. I love you for your innocence, as I know you will love me for my sins.”
Blood dripped from my hair to splatter her cheek in a crimson tear. “Come home with me and let us spend a generation in each other’s arms. And when our thirst for each other has been sated, we will venture into this world with new eyes—we were created to rule, you and me and all of the undead things of this world.”
Her heart struggled to beat, and my own echoed the silence.
The sluggish sick sound of our hearts filled my ears.
My mortal love was dying.
My hands trembled. Tears slid down my cheek. I’d forced her into a life she might regret—a life she might hate me for. I’d made a choice only she should make. I closed my eyes and pulled her soft body close.
“I’m so sorry, Nova… please forgive me. But I need you to live.”
Seconds felt like hours as her heart stilled. I relived my own terror as blood rushed through my veins, hardening, shedding the mortal for the undead.
Human cries filled the warehouse. I lifted my head to stare at Angelique as she swiped the blood from her mouth and smiled. “Don’t worry, I left her some.”
A growl rumbled from the woman in my lap. I stared at Nova’s face, not daring to hope. Her lashes twitched, blue veins, thick with old blood spidered underneath her transparent skin and then faded.
Her eyes opened. Fangs glistened whitely as she opened her mouth and whispered my name
“Kol.”
I clasped her to my heart. “My love. Welcome back.”
Afterword
I hope you enjoyed this story. If you have the time a review would mean the world. I couldn’t write these stories without your support, so thank you for all the kind words and all the recommendations.
About the Author
I’m an Aussie girl who grew up in the bush and one day found a book in the library… a book that changed my world,
Bram Stokers, Dracula.
And I’ve been searching for that magic ever since.
Find out more at my website and join my mail list click on the link below to take you to Haunting Fiction and grab a copy of my dark werewolf romance story—Savage.
Connect with me here
@AuthorKimFaulks
AuthorKimFaulks
www.hauntingfiction.com/
[email protected]
Also by Kim Faulks
Turn over for a preview of Aquarius - Guardian of the Stars
Victor Kane followed his brother into battle against the Echo pack, but it wasn't his brother who brought him back. It was the one they called the lone wolf, the seer, the strange one—Odessa.
Victor's the second of twelve Guardians. Dragon-born in the sign of Aquarius, he carries all the traits of his sign—the good and the bad. He's the guarded one, the one with a cool head, the one his family turns to when all hell breaks loose—and his family needs him more than ever. His brother is missing. His family is torn. But his world is consumed by the wolf, Odessa. Why would she r
isk her life to save him? Why would she care?
Odessa is damaged from a demon's blade meant for Victor. Although he’s safe, her demons still consume her. The evil she's done has come back to haunt her, and Odessa will not only have to fight to survive, she must also protect the one she loves. Her dragon—Victor.
Family. Honor. Love.
What happens when those three collide?
Who will be left standing?
Who will be left heartbroken?
Victor
Odessa wasn’t dead…not yet at least.
Pine needles rustled overhead. A sudden gust of wind whipped strands of her long blonde hair to lash the back of my hand. Clumped ends painted a picture with thick bloody strokes that left a mark on more than my skin. Odessa whimpered and turned her head, widening the gash across her cheek.
I stared at the rise and fall of her chest, and then lifted my gaze to her face. The tips of white molars peeked through the torn mess. I traced the split across her pointed nose to where the gash disappeared under her hair.
My fingers shook as I brushed the blonde strands from her face.
Her face. Her poor, beautiful face.
“Victor, did you hear me? Are you going to say anything at all?”
My sister’s snarl tried to pierce the roar in my head.
But there was no room—no room for anything but the wolf in my arms.
Dark clouds moved in and the sun’s warm rays faded. I had no use for warmth—not anymore. Something smacked the ground near my foot. I tilted my face, meeting the rain. The heavy drops hit my nose and ran down my cheek.
And that dull roar inside my head took flight.
Wash it all away. Wash it all away.
“Is anyone going to say anything?” Xael screamed.
Rage brewed inside like the birth of a storm. A deep peal of thunder ripped through the sky. The trees shook, the ground followed suit.