To her left, Mal came to an abrupt halt, and as she was turning to see what caught his attention, she saw someone step out from behind a tree. She had only enough time to yank Dylan back before she crashed into the man. She released a startled cry, and Dylan’s hand was torn away from her as she hit the ground.
Charlie became aware of the figure looming over her, but she didn’t give them a chance to pounce before she yanked a knife free and leapt to her feet. She was about to let the knife fly when she met the royal blue eyes gazing warily back at her.
Recognition flashed through her mind as she recalled those eyes from her dream. She realized she’d been given the vision so she would recognize Mike when she encountered him and not try to kill him.
“Mike,” she blurted.
His eyebrows shot up, and his eyes raked over her. “Do I know you?”
“No,” she said. “But I’ve seen you before.”
He couldn’t have looked more confused if she told him that, from now on all humans would be born with two heads. And who could blame him? A strange woman had literally run in to him and blurted his name before babbling nonsense at him.
“You have?” he asked.
“I was with Jack on the cliff when you escaped.”
Hope lit his eyes. “Is he alive?”
Charlie was glad his concern for Jack stopped him from questioning her further. Yes, she’d seen him from the cliff, but she hadn’t been close enough to have recognized him without her dream. “Yes.” Charlie held her hand out to Dylan, and when he clasped it, she drew him against her side. “But we have to get out of here.”
“We’re not leaving here without Jack,” another man with black hair and green eyes said.
Liam. She didn’t know how she knew it, but she was sure he was Jack’s friend, Liam.
Charlie had been so stunned about running into the wall of Mike that she hadn’t realized there were more vamps in the woods. Though she knew they were here to rescue Jack, uneasiness crept through Charlie as she noticed there were eleven of them and she didn’t know any of them. The fact they all looked prepared to tear off someone’s head did not help her uneasiness.
They were spread out through the woods and the reason Mal abruptly halted. Her gaze traveled over the vamps once more; she would bet some of them were Liam’s children and their mates, but she still didn’t relax.
Chapter Thirty-Eight
“Jack’s coming,” Charlie said.
Mike’s eyes went to her neck. “Shit! You’re his mate.”
“What?” a beautiful woman with chocolate brown hair and gold streaks asked. The woman’s violet eyes looked about to pop out of her head as she gawked at Charlie. “Jack found his mate?”
“It seems so,” Mike murmured.
“Poor woman,” Liam said, and the others chuckled.
“Mom, what’s a mate?” Dylan asked.
“I’ll explain later,” she assured him.
“Who are you?” Liam asked.
“I’m Charlie. This is my son, Dylan, that’s Mal, and those are our friends. Now, as much as I would love to stand here and exchange life stories, or perhaps discuss the weather, I’d much prefer not to burn to death. We have to go.”
They all stared at her with a mixture of amusement and astonishment. Then, Liam and Mike started chuckling.
“You’re perfect for Jack,” Mike said, and the others laughed.
“Great,” she said.
“Where’s Jack?” Mike asked.
“He’s coming,” Charlie told him and glanced behind her as longing speared her heart. “Or he was coming. He told us to run and to… to—” Her voice broke before she steadied herself. “—to keep going.”
“Are you okay, Mom?” Dylan asked.
She tore her attention away from the trees and forced a smile for her son. “I’m fine,” she assured him before looking to Mike again. “We can’t stay here. The fire is spreading.”
“Then let’s get you out of here,” Liam said.
“Can we trust them, Mal?” Darlene asked in a low whisper every vampire heard.
Mal hesitated before replying, “Some of them smell a little off.”
“Then maybe we shouldn’t go with them,” Darlene murmured.
Charlie glanced nervously at the spreading fire; they were wasting time here. Jack trusted these vamps with his life, and they had come back for him, which was more than enough for her, but she understood the hesitance of the others. They didn’t know these vamps.
Mal was the one who protected them and kept them alive all these years, and if he didn’t trust them, they wouldn’t either. She hated the idea of splitting up from Mal and the others, but she would do anything to get Dylan off the island.
“You’re a purebred?” Liam asked Mal.
“Yes,” Mal said.
“I can assure you we’re all fine, but some of us have killed to protect ourselves,” Liam said. “I’m Liam, and these are my children, Ethan, Isabelle, Abby, Aiden, and Ian. They’re all purebreds too.” He pointed to each of them as he said their names. “These are their mates, Stefan, Brian, Maggie, and Paige. These are my friends Mike and David. David’s mate, Mia, stayed with the boats. Mike told us what’s going on here, so I understand your hesitance to come with us, but we’re here to help if you’ll let us.”
“Can we trust them?” Maggie asked.
“We don’t have a choice,” Ian said. “She’s Jack’s mate, and if we’re going to save him, then we have to save her too. Besides, none of them smell off.”
“We’re survivors,” Charlie said.
“We’ll take you to the boats,” Mike said, “and get you off the island.”
Mal studied Liam before looking at Mike. “You’re the one who escaped the other day?”
“Yes,” Mike responded.
“We’ll come with you then,” Mal said, and Charlie heaved a sigh of relief.
“Get them out of here,” Brian ordered. “I’ll find Jack and meet you at the boats.”
“I’m coming with you,” Abby said.
“So am I,” Stefan seconded.
Isabelle clasped Stefan’s hand. “Me too.”
“So am I,” Liam said. “The rest of you help Mike get everyone to safety. We’ll find Jack and meet you at the boats. Abby and Isabelle, go with them.”
Both of the women got a stubborn set to their jaws as they shook their heads no.
“I agree with your father,” Brian said.
“I don’t care,” Abby said. “I’m coming with you.”
“So am I,” Isabelle added.
“We should all go,” Ethan said.
“We can’t all go,” David reasoned. “We have to get everyone to safety.”
“We came here for Jack,” Aiden said.
“And Jack would want his mate to be somewhere safe,” Mike countered. “We have to take them out of here.”
Charlie glanced at Dylan before turning to stare at the woods. Jack was back there somewhere. She could feel he was okay, but she desperately wanted to see him.
“He should be here soon,” she murmured as she rested her hand against her chest. “I know he’s still alive. I can feel him, but he should have been here by now. I should go…” Her voice trailed off as the feel of Dylan’s hand stopped her from offering to go with them. She couldn’t leave Dylan with this group. Jack trusted them with his life—he’d never doubted they would come back for him—but she didn’t know them.
Understanding and sympathy radiated in Mike’s eyes when she hugged Dylan closer. “Brian will find Jack,” he assured her.
She recalled Jack saying his friends might have someone with them who could find him; it must be Brian. “Yes,” she murmured, “he will.”
“Be careful,” Liam said to his children before embracing each of them.
“Always,” Ethan replied and clapped him on the back before they separated.
Liam, Brian, Stefan, Abby, and Isabelle waved to them before breaking away. Charlie watched the
m until they vanished into the woods. Bring him back to me soon.
“We should go,” Mike said to Charlie. “The boats are this way.”
Taking a deep breath to steel herself to continue without Jack, she followed Jack’s family into the woods with Mal and the others.
“What started the fire?” Mike asked as they jogged through the trees, careful to stay slow enough so the humans could keep up.
“The Savages set traps around the mansion, and some humans triggered one of them. Clifford, a friend of ours, set off another, and the two fires from the bombs combined. Jack and I were there with Kirha and Clifford when the bombs went off,” she said. “You were at the mansion before you escaped.”
Mike glanced at her over his shoulder. “Yes.”
“Whatever you did there caused most of the Savages to gather at the mansion. Hopefully, the fire overtook them before they could run away.”
She was sure some escaped, but the blaze had to trap some of them.
“The humans who set off the first bomb, were they part of your group too?”
“No, we didn’t know them.”
Mike glanced over his shoulder at Dylan. “I don’t remember seeing a child in the cages.”
Charlie squeezed Dylan’s hand. “We weren’t in the barn with you. We’ve been on this island for three years.”
Mike almost smacked into a tree when his head twisted around and he gaped at her. He turned back in time to dodge the tree in front of him.
“How is that possible?” he asked.
“Mal saved us,” Dylan said.
They all came to a halt when a loud cracking noise erupted from the forest, followed by a thundering beat Charlie couldn’t place as it came steadily closer. When the ground started shaking beneath her feet, she pushed Dylan behind her and pulled a knife free as she braced herself to destroy whatever emerged from the woods.
The vibrations in the ground traveled from her feet to her calves and up into her thighs. Charlie’s mouth went dry as the image of a group of Savages racing toward them with saliva dripping from their fangs filled her mind. The thunderous beat grew louder until it drowned out the crackling of the fire.
Then, a herd of deer burst out of the woods and, in great leaping bounds, came straight at them. Once she saw the deer, Charlie realized she should have known what was happening, but she was unprepared for the beautiful animals barreling toward them. Spinning, she grabbed Dylan and pulled him protectively against her as the deer split to funnel around them.
“Look out!” Darlene cried as one of the deer crashed into Miguel and threw him ten feet backward.
Charlie bent more protectively over Dylan as someone else let out a shout of pain. A hoof kissed her temple, slicing her skin and spilling blood as the blow shoved her forward. Her arms tightened around Dylan when he cried out.
Behind the deer, foxes, mice, squirrels, and other forest creatures raced through the trees toward them. The animals weren’t at all deterred by the group standing in the woods as they fled the fire in search of somewhere safer. Charlie didn’t think the poor creatures would find it as she watched the smoke weaving insidiously through the trees toward them.
“The fire’s getting closer,” she said when the last animal vanished.
She turned to search for Jack, but he was still nowhere to be seen.
Chapter Thirty-Nine
Jack threw the door to the root cellar open and raced out. As he closed the door, he paused to take in the woods. Nothing stirred in the forest, and though he could see smoke rising over the trees, he didn’t see any fire. If the Savages hadn’t gotten the flames under control, it was only a matter of time before the fire took over the island.
He kept his attention focused on his connection to Charlie as he ran through the woods. He sensed she was frightened, but she was safe. However, an incessant urgency filled him. She wasn’t alone out here, and she could handle herself, but he had to be there to protect her and Dylan.
Leaping over a fallen log, he almost crashed into a deer. He stumbled back when more of the animals bounded past him, followed by some of the slower forest creatures. Jack ran through the animals, who were so intent on fleeing the fire, they didn’t acknowledge his presence.
He was so focused on catching up to Charlie that he didn’t realize there was a hunter in the trees until a bullet struck him in the shoulder. The impact of the shot knocked him back, and with a startled cry, he nearly hit the ground. Somehow, he managed to catch his balance before he fell on his ass.
Another bullet cracked through the air, and he threw himself down as it struck the ground inches in front of him. Dirt and pine needles sprayed his face before he rolled. The boom of the gun indicated more shots were firing.
Before he could get behind the rocks another bullet grazed his arm, tearing his shirt and spilling blood. His fangs lengthened, and he ground his teeth together to keep from screaming in frustration. He should have been paying more attention; he wouldn’t be any good to Charlie if he were dead.
The silence following the last bullet alerted him to move. The hunter was most likely trying to circle behind him to get a better shot. Jack spun away from the rocks and dodged the next bullet as he darted behind a tree. Bark shattered, and the hunter released a muffled curse.
Jack poked his head out, but he couldn’t see the hunter. Jack flattened himself against the tree as he listened to the woods. The animals created more noise in the trees than usual as they fled the flames. The acrid scent of the smoke buried all other smells.
All the chaos made listening for the hunter more difficult. Crouching down, Jack swung out from behind the tree and ran for the next one. A bullet crashed into the ground behind him, but it was a couple of seconds too late. He’d taken the hunter by surprise, and he suspected he wouldn’t do it again.
Jack glanced up at the tall pine against his back and then the woods around him. He could try bolting straight ahead, keeping the tree behind him and fleeing the hunter, but this vamp might anticipate that move. When he got his hands on this vamp, he would shove the rifle so far down its throat it would use the barrel as a breathing tube.
The softest of steps to his right alerted Jack to the hunter’s approach. He ducked, and the bullet struck the tree where his heart had been. “Son of a bitch,” he snarled as he scrambled behind the boulders.
More deer erupted from the woods and bounded toward him. They split to go around the rocks as they flowed into the forest. Jack used the distraction to slide around to the back of another tree. From his new position, he spotted the Savage ten feet away and ducked down to avoid being hit by one of the animals.
Jack sprinted out from behind the tree and toward the hunter. The vamp saw him coming at the last second and swung the barrel toward Jack’s chest. Before the vamp could fire, Jack seized the barrel and shoved it up as the Savage pulled the trigger. The blast vibrated Jack’s hand as the bullet traveled down the barrel and erupted into the air.
Shoving the gun backward, Jack hammered the butt of the rifle into the vamp’s face. The Savage’s nose exploded like an overcooked egg in the microwave. The vamp howled but didn’t release the weapon as it fired another shot and then another. Jack yanked the gun back, ripping it away from the Savage and spinning it around.
“No!” the vamp cried.
He threw up his hands as Jack pulled the trigger and the bullet tore through his heart. Those eyes remained on Jack’s before they rolled up in the vamp’s head and it slumped forward.
Jack checked the remaining bullets in the gun before the sound of more Savages had him lifting the rifle to his shoulder and spinning to take out the threat. His finger was squeezing the trigger when his mind registered what he was seeing. He pulled back just in time to prevent firing at his family.
Brian shoved Abby behind him as Stefan stepped in front of Issy. Ethan and Liam threw up their hands. “Easy,” Liam said.
Jack almost threw the gun away when he realized how close he’d come to nearly killin
g one of them, but the weapon could be useful. “Shit.” He wiped the sweat from his forehead with the back of his arm. “I’m sorry.” He slung the gun over his shoulder. “It’s good to see you.”
Abby and Issy poked their heads out from behind their mates and smiled at him.
“I bet it is,” Liam said. “And it’s time to get you home.”
Jack was walking toward them when Abby and Isabelle broke away and ran toward him. Knowing they wouldn’t slow, he braced himself before they crashed into him and threw their arms around him. Despite being prepared for them, they still knocked him back a step at impact.
“Jack!” they cried, and he hugged them close.
“We’re so glad you’re okay,” Abby gushed.
“It’s good to see you,” he said, releasing them.
“You’ve been shot,” Abby said and gently touched the bullet hole in his shoulder before inspecting the gash on his arm.
“I’ll be fine,” he assured her before turning his attention to the others. “I have to find my mate; she’s on this island too.”
“We came across her while looking for you,” Liam said. “She’s with Mike and the others. They’re taking her and her friends to the boats.”
Jack sighed in relief. Charlie wasn’t out of danger yet, but she had more protection now. “Who came with you?” Jack asked.
“Mike, David, Aiden, and Maggie are with Charlie and Mia is with the boats. Sera, Cassidy, Kyle, and Emma stayed home with the younger children. Willow and Julian insisted on coming to Canada with us, but I wouldn’t let them make this trip. They’re still on the mainland,” Liam said.
“We should get out of here,” Brian said. “That fire is spreading fast.”
“It is,” Jack agreed before looking to Liam. “Is it true about Doug? Is he dead?”
“How did you know about Doug?” Liam asked.
Jack’s shoulders slumped; he hadn’t doubted Charlie’s dream, but he didn’t realize he’d still held out hope she saw something wrong, or she was wrong and it was a future event they could prevent, until Liam’s question.
“I’ll explain later. I just had to confirm it.”
Unforeseen: The Vampire Awakenings, Book 9 Page 23