by Laura Hysell
“I love you,” I whispered. “Only you. You know that, right?”
“I do know that.” He turned and looked at me. “You know that I’m not really worried about Jared, right? I trust you, and I know you. You are my other half. Sometimes, though, there is this little doubt that likes to creep in. Especially when I’m scared.”
“You, scared?”
“Ha ha, yes,” he replied, his voice barely a whisper. “But don’t let that little tidbit of info get out.”
I snuggled my head against his chest, listening to his heart beat. “Our little secret.”
“Tomorrow, be careful and keep close. Don’t go anywhere alone,” he added.
“You too,” I replied as sleep began to pull me under.
“Love you,” he murmured softly.
* * *
The sun beat down on us as we hiked toward the meeting location. The last few days had been mild, but already the day was shaping up to be a scorcher. We were loaded with supplies, sweating as we walked through the heat of midday. The forest provided much-needed shelter from the burning sun, and we kept to the trees where we could. Most of us hiked in human form, planning to enter on foot and shift on demand. I wasn’t as sure in my wolf form, and I planned to shift only if I had to. Still, I was dressed for ease of shifting in a simple blue cotton dress over my pieced together armor. My legs would be vulnerable, but they were the least of my concern.
I pulled at the armor, wishing I could remove it, but it wouldn’t fit into the pack on my back. Everyone planning on spending time in human form wore a bag of some type filled with guns, bullets, holy water, and other weapons, as well as drinking water and a few snacks. John, I knew, carried grenades and explosives. I watched him warily ahead of me. He was dressed in head to toe black leather, military style black boots, and fully armed. Like Mark, he also wore a bullet proof vest and didn’t seem to be breaking a sweat.
I reached a rise in the hill covered by thick, sheltering trees, where everyone had seemed to stop. Thinking we were taking a break, I lowered my bag to the ground and took a drink of water. My eyes took in the scene around me. Mark and Jed crouched behind a large tree near the peak of the hill, looking at something below. A gray wolf lay on the ground beside them, and a rush of magic seemed to fill the air. Jed was communicating with the wolf. The wolf stood up and shook out her fur, turning and loping back down the hill. Vanessa, I realized, as I watched her move away with easy strides.
Aidan stepped up beside me, lowering his bag to the ground next to mine. The three magicians followed on his heels, visibly sweating. Aidan cast them a look that spoke of his irritation, but he said nothing as he turned his back on them and faced me. “Humans,” Aidan said simply, nodding toward the location Vanessa had gone. “Jared was telling us that there’s a big group camped out down there.”
“Great, just what we need,” I muttered. “How big of a group?”
Aidan shrugged and took a drink of water. He wore a green shirt that said “Kiss me, I’m Irish” on it, along with his knives and a pair of jeans. I stared at his shirt, trying to suppress the grin on my face. He lowered his water bottle and capped it, raising his eyebrow at me. “What?”
“Nice shirt,” I said.
He looked down and grinned. “Mark found it for me,” he replied.
“Of course he did.”
“What better shirt to wear into battle?” he said.
“Eh, Aidan,” Killian said, stepping up behind us. He grinned widely as he and Aidan clasped hands in some odd handshake. “What’s the hold up?”
“Humans.”
Killian raised his eyebrows. “Can we go around them?”
Aidan shrugged in reply. I looked at the two men, thinking how similar they were. They were both covered in tattoos, although Killian’s were mostly recognizable where Aidan’s were strange symbols. Both men were Irish, but several centuries apart. Killian’s accent was mild compared to Aidan’s, and he was a good foot shorter. Still, I wasn’t surprised these two seemed to immediately hit it off.
I sensed Mark before I saw him walking toward me. He was smiling as he stopped and kissed me briefly. “Good news,” he said.
“Oh?”
“There’s a group of humans down there, ready and waiting to fight alongside us. They got the first batches of vaccine your brother sent out. There are a couple from the Texas Pack with them.”
“Humans? They’re going to get themselves killed,” I said, frowning.
Mark shook his head. “They’re aware of the risk. Most of them have military training, and they come heavily armed.” He grinned, practically bouncing on his feet. “They have tanks!”
“Tanks? So much for sneaking in.”
He said, “The tanks can’t get into the tunnel because it’s too narrow, but they can stay behind and guard our backs. There are about three hundred men down there, itching to get some vampire payback. You know what it’s like as much as I do. They’ll pair up with us and go in while it’s still daylight so we can take out as many sleeping vamps as possible. The rest of their men will stay behind and guard the entrance with the armored vehicles.”
“Three hundred? Wow,” I murmured, eyebrows raised.
“Your brother pulled through with that vaccine, Izzy. It’s working!” Mark said, grasping my arms. His excitement was palpable, and I couldn’t help smiling in response.
“You’re sure these humans aren’t under Petrivian’s influence?”
“Positive.”
“How? This is great news, but you know how hard it is to tell.” Mark swallowed and darted a look around, as though suddenly seeking help elsewhere. I knew that look. “Mark, what aren’t you telling me?”
He stopped moving and looked at me, and I felt the tension in his arms and through the bond we shared. I could get the info out of him, if I really tried, but I preferred he just tell me. He must have come to the same conclusion, because he finally sighed loudly in defeat. “Your brother is down there with them.”
“He’s what? I thought he went somewhere safe!”
“That was the plan, but after the first group of these men got the vaccine, they kept in touch with the Texas Pack. They’ve been helping distribute the vaccine, mostly to military, police, and hospital staff. They knew something was going down, and when they told the Texans they wanted in on the fight, Justin decided to join them too. He’s been working on weaponizing his vaccine and now he has a chance to try it out.” Mark ran a hand across my cheek tenderly. “He has as much as right to fight as the rest of us do,” he added softly.
“He doesn’t know the first thing about fighting,” I retorted, picking up my bag and slinging it over my shoulders. “He will get himself killed.”
“You can’t make him stay behind.”
“Oh, yes, I can!”
“It’s too late, Iz. If he leaves now, he’ll be alone and vulnerable. We can’t spare anyone to get him away from here safely.”
Everyone else had started hiking back down the hill, toward the human encampment. Aidan waited beside me, which meant Declan, Ivan, and Brody also waited. “We can put some protections on the humans,” Declan said. “Brody will stay with them.”
I nodded and turned to follow the others. My brother was worse than I was at making stupid mistakes. Why had he come here? He was supposed to be safe, far away, making batches of his vaccine as fast as possible. Instead, he’d been working on weapons.
“Your brother has a lot to atone for,” Mark whispered as he took my hand. “He’ll keep going until he feels he has made things right. He’s a lot like you, actually.”
“Stubborn like me, you mean,” I muttered.
“Maybe.”
I sighed but didn’t say anything else as I followed the group down the hill. The human camp was large, filled with a wide variety of old military tents. Tanks and various armored vehicles sat parked around the perimeter. Most of the werewolves skirted around the edge of the camp, following Jed’s lead, but Mark knew I’d want to se
e my brother. We headed straight in, with Aidan, Killian, and Brody tagging along. The humans were organizing their men, who were dressed in clothes from every branch of the military and police force alike. They eyed us as we walked past, but didn’t say anything as they lined up in ranks.
Justin was easy to spot; he was the only one wearing a lab coat. He had his back to us, looking down at something on a table and talking animatedly to a tall man in Army fatigues. The other man looked up at us, glancing quickly from me to Justin and back. My brother and I looked alike, both with blond hair and blue eyes, and it took the man no time to notice the similarities. He held out his hand when we approached, which Mark took and shook.
“Izzy,” Justin breathed, his eyes widening as he looked at me. He took two steps and enveloped me in a hug. “I’m so happy to see you.”
“What are you doing here?” I asked as soon as he stepped back. “You’re supposed to be off somewhere safe, far away from the vampires, not right outside their nest.”
He shrugged at me and pointed at the table. “I wanted to help.”
“You are helping. That vaccine has obviously worked great,” I said, waving my arm at the men around us.
“Others know how to make the vaccines, Izzy. We’re mass producing the stuff, for humans and werewolves.” He picked up what looked like a grenade. “I started working on a weapon that will hurt only the vampires, but leave the humans and werewolves safe! This is a game-changer!”
“Justin…”
“I’m not leaving,” Justin said firmly, cutting me off. “I know what you’re going to say, and it won’t work. I’m here until the end. I know I’m not a fighter, but there are things I can do to help. We have tanks. I can keep working; keep making weapons. Until the end.”
I stared into his eyes that were so much like my own. Never had I seen him so determined, and almost happy. It was strange, seeing this joyfulness in him despite the coming battle. He had found his place, and he was right. I couldn’t take that from him. “Don’t let any vamps bite you,” I said.
He grinned and nodded before pulling me into another hug. “Same goes for you, sis. I love you.”
“Love you too.”
“Justin,” Mark began, clearing his throat. Justin pulled away from me and frowned up at Mark. Heat that had nothing to do with the beating sun seemed to fill my cheeks. My heart thudded in my chest. Mark glanced at me, then back to Justin. “I’d like to ask your permission for Isabella’s hand in marriage.”
Justin stared at him silently before turning to look at me. A smile touched his lips, widening with each passing second. He turned back to Mark and nodded. “Of course, not that you need it. You just make sure you take good care of her,” he added.
“Always,” Mark replied, clasping Justin in a hug.
“When’s the wedding?” Justin asked, quickly looking at my hand. I had taken my ring off, in case I had to shift, and had looped it onto my dagger with a strand of leather.
“We haven’t set a date yet,” Mark replied, glancing at me. “But it will be somewhere warm, with the sun shining down on us.”
“Like today,” Justin laughed as he shielded his eyes and glanced toward the sun.
“I can think of nicer places,” I replied.
Justin pulled me into another hug and kissed my cheek. “I’m happy for you. Stay safe, please.”
“You too,” I said, taking Mark’s hand.
“Time to get going,” Mark said. “Go on with the others. I’ll catch up.”
I opened my mouth to respond, then thought better of it. Mark was acting Alpha and had a lot on his shoulders. Plus, we now had an army of humans to add to the mix. I said my goodbyes, then hurried to catch up to the others. Brody and Killian stayed with Mark, but Aidan fell into step beside me.
“You ready for this?” Aidan asked after we were back in sight of the rest of the Pack. We slowed back to a walk at the tail end of the group.
“As ready as I can be,” I replied, touching the hilt of my blade reassuringly.
“You just remember what you’ve learned. I may not be in your head anymore, but we shared pieces of ourselves with each other. I know things about this world that I shouldn’t know, like driving that vehicle. You left some of yourself with me, and I guarantee I left some of myself with you.”
“Hopefully you left some mad fighting skills with me,” I replied, smiling.
Aidan laughed heartily with me, and we walked on for several minutes in silence. “Use the magic,” he finally said. “Just like I showed you before, so you can feel the vamps. With time, you’ll be able to distinguish them.”
“Time is not something I have.”
“No, but certain vamps have more distinct vibes. You were around Henri a long time. You’ll be able to sense him. And when you do, I want you to go the opposite direction,” he said firmly.
“What?” I asked, stopping. Coming from Aidan, who was the most impulsive fighter I’d ever known, this was an odd thing to say. “You want me to run away from Henri? Why on earth would I do that?”
“So he doesn’t kill you!” Aidan yelled, throwing up his hands. “You can die, Izzy. The knife won’t save you.”
“What are you talking about?”
Aidan closed his eyes and touched the hilt of the knives, where they rested together. After a few slow breaths, he opened his eyes and stared at me. His eyes were gray, like a storm. “I cannot die,” he said, his accent thick as though he were choking back emotions. “Unless these blades pierce my heart, cursing me for a second time, I cannot die. Although that isn’t really a life. I thought it was the same for you, but it’s not. You’re not linked like I am, not really.”
“I don’t understand.”
“Blood magic,” he replied. “Those ancient Draoi used human sacrifice when they cursed me and those other men, all those years ago. The spell remains intact.”
“You really can’t die… ever?”
He shook his head, then shrugged and placed a smile on his face. “I feel bad for urging you into some overly dangerous situations before,” he said. “You should be more cautious. You can get hurt. You can die.”
“Aidan, you’re reckless and I love that about you, but don’t think you’re to blame for any rash decisions on my part.”
“Still, I think it best you stay away from Henri. Even that blood-sucker warned you,” he added.
Thomas had warned me, which in itself was something to heed. I couldn’t promise I would stay away though. There was a part of me that wanted to see Henri again. Images of his hands on my body came unbidden to mind. I shook off the memories with disgust. “I promise I’ll be careful,” I hedged.
Aidan stared at me, and I think he knew I was purposely avoiding answering him. He finally nodded, giving in. “My mother always said, ‘An Irishman is never at peace, except when he’s fighting.’ I think you must have a bit of Irish in you as well.”
Maybe, I did.
CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE
Three hours until sunset the first groups entered Petrivian’s tunnels. Our scout units had cornered the vampire’s human workers, hauling trucks full of supplies into the tunnels at the base of the mountain. Supplies, in vampire terms, were humans. Women and children huddled, crying, in the backs of trucks like lambs to the slaughter. These humans weren’t under Petrivian’s control. These humans were slaves- used for their blood and bodies. I’d spent enough time with vampires to understand them. They liked the hunt. They liked their prey to squirm and squeal and try to get away. It would be a game to them. I shuddered as I watched the trucks drive away, thinking how close those people had been to death. The whole ordeal only solidified my desire to be a part of this battle.
It wouldn’t be long now before shadows would race across the ground as the sun lowered toward the tree line. Over 400 werewolves and men entered the tunnels with the first wave. I stood back nervously, watching and waiting as they took to the first paths. These men would be going directly to the nests indicated on th
e map. The more vamps we were able to take out before sunset, the better. John and Lucas were among this heavily armed group, along with Declan and Ivan.
Mark had ordered me to wait until the final wave. I didn’t like it, since he was going in with the second wave, but I had agreed to listen to his advice. Aidan was also going in with the second wave. He stood near Mark close to the entrance, flipping his knives nervously. Mark raised his hand, flashed me a quick glance, then lowered his hand. The second wave moved into the tunnels. I closed my eyes, reaching out my senses. Mark moved into the tunnels quickly and steadily. After a few minutes, he veered to the right. The knife pulsed on my thigh. I stretched out my senses, feeling Aidan. He was excited, racing off the opposite direction as Mark.
I opened my eyes and stared at the entrance, watching men and wolves race into the tunnels. The third wave moved into position. This group was comprised entirely of wolves. My eyes searched over the wolves. There, near the front, were Vanessa, Jared, and Beth. My heart beat faster as I watched them move toward the entrance. The sun had dipped lower, shading the tunnel entrance. If any vampires were awake now, they’d have protection from the sunshine. Spots of sun still filtered between the trees, and I made sure I stood in one of those few spots.
My knife pulsed again. Vampires were moving, in great numbers. The third wave entered the tunnel, and I stepped forward. Jed stood at the edge of the tunnel, his eyes searching the forest around us. The burning on my thigh increased, and I tried doing as Aidan had taught me to sense the vampires. There were too many to distinguish, but they were coming from all directions. I reached Jed and turned, looking back at the forest as well as the sun dipped lower.
“The vampires are coming,” I said softly. “From south and west.”