Somebody say.....Oh Shit.
CallaTerror flooded through me as Blake turned those glowing red-and-gold eyes in my direction. The mixture of vampire crimson and werewolf amber swirled together like flames that belonged in nightmares, not in the face of the man I'd once called husband."Come here, Calla," he said, his voice carrying new depths of authority that made my skin crawl. "It's time to come home."Every instinct screamed at me to run, but there was nowhere to go. Vampire and werewolf armies surrounded us on all sides, and Blake stood between me and any possible escape route.Axel's growl cut through the evening air like a blade. My mate stepped forward, his gray eyes blazing with protective fury that I'd seen him turn on anyone who threatened his pack."Stay away from her," Axel snarled, his hands already shifting into claws.Blake didn't even turn to look at him. His strange dual-colored eyes simply glowed a little brighter.Axel stopped mid-step like he'd hit an invisible wall. His hands flew to his hea
CallaVirex stared at Blake's twitching form with obvious disgust, his face twisted into an expression of pure contempt. Blood still dripped from his fangs as he spoke, his voice carrying centuries of arrogance."Pathetic hybrid," he said, taking a step toward Blake. "Did you really think your crude transformation could challenge true power?"Blake struggled to push himself upright, his movements jerky and unnatural. Every twitch of his muscles looked painful, like his body was fighting against itself. But when he lifted his head to meet Virex's gaze, he was smiling.That smile made my blood run cold.Virex moved faster than my eyes could follow, his fist connecting with Blake's jaw in a blur of motion. The impact sent Blake flying backward across the rocky ground, his body rolling several times before coming to rest near the smoking ruins of the facility.Virex stood over his fallen opponent, brushing imaginary dust from his perfect clothes. "Such disappointment. I expected more from
CallaVirex's words hung in the evening air like a challenge that nobody dared answer. I stared at him in complete shock, my mind struggling to process what he'd just said.This was the vampire everyone whispered about in terror? The ancient creature who commanded armies and made even other supernaturals tremble? He looked like he could be in a magazine, not leading some centuries-old vampire empire.But the way everyone around us had gone dead silent told me everything I needed to know. Even the werewolf packs that had been howling moments before were now watching with the kind of careful attention you gave to apex predators.Virex smiled at the silence, clearly enjoying the effect his presence had on everyone. Then he started walking in a slow circle around me, his movements graceful and controlled. I found myself trembling with exhaustion and fear, but also something else - a weird fascination with how completely at ease he seemed.Despite his relaxed posture, I could feel the dang
CallaMy eyes opened slowly, blinking against the evening light that seemed too bright after the harsh laboratory fluorescents. Everything hurt, but I was breathing. The air smelled like smoke and distant rain instead of chemicals and death.Why wasn't I dead?The countdown had reached zero. The facility had exploded around us while I was chained to that bed. But instead of pain and darkness, I found myself being carried through the rocky terrain like I weighed nothing at all.Strong arms held me steady against a solid chest. When I tilted my head up, I saw a face that made me forget how to breathe properly.He looked young, maybe twenty-six at most, with sharp features that belonged on magazine covers. Pale skin that seemed to glow in the fading light. Silver hair that caught the breeze. But his eyes held depths that spoke of centuries, like looking into ancient wells that had seen the rise and fall of empires."Who are you?" I whispered, my voice hoarse from smoke and screaming.The
AxelThe van hit another bump, and I gripped the door handle harder as Jace cursed under his breath. "Can't you drive any faster?" The words came out harsher than I meant, but I couldn't help it. Every second felt like an eternity when Calla was out there with that monster."I'm already doing eighty on a dirt road," Jace shot back, his knuckles white on the steering wheel. "You want me to flip us into a ditch?"In the back of the van, the rest of my pack was geared up and ready for war. Malachai checked his shotgun for the third time, his massive frame tense with barely controlled anticipation. Rikka sat beside her medical kit and guns, her face set in hard lines. Even Zara looked deadly serious, her usual radiant atmosphere replaced by something fiercer.Eden held onto the seat as we hit another pothole. "How much further?""Ten minutes," I said, squinting through the windshield at the landscape flying by. The sun was already setting, painting everything in shades of red and orange.
CallaBlake stared at the spreading puddle of ruined chemicals, his face twisted with horror. For several seconds, he stood frozen, watching months of research dissolve into toxic steam.Then he smiled.The expression sent ice through my veins. This wasn't the desperate panic I expected from someone who'd just lost everything. This was the look of a man who still had cards to play.Blake reached behind him and pulled out two vials from a hidden compartment. One glowed with the same blue-green light as the destroyed compounds. The other was filled with dark red liquid that I recognized with growing dread.My blood. The samples he'd taken earlier."Did you really think I kept all my research in one place?" Blake asked, his voice carrying that political smugness I remembered from our marriage. "I'm not that stupid."Dante tried to push himself upright from where he lay beside Raven's corpse, but his body was failing him. Blood continued to pour from his nose, and his skin had taken on a