Shameful by May Dawson
60
Legacy
Tobias slammedto the ground under my body. He immediately rolled us both to one side, trying to get out from underneath me. I aimed a punch at his face, which he managed to block by grabbing my wrist.
He was inhumanly strong. Stronger than any vamp should be, because I was fighting someone with the alpha’s borrowed strength.
I managed to get a hand on his throat and dug my fingers into his artery, trying to blood choke him. I growled, “I’m not your fucking revenge, Tobias. I’ll destroy Cyrus and Lucas myself, but you don’t get to use me to dothat.”
His fingers crunched into the fine bones of my wrists, sending pain radiating up my arms. I lashed out with my feet and connected with his stomach, and he fell back. I jumped to myfeet.
He scrambled to his feet, his eyes wild. “You want to destroy Cyrus? He’s your alpha. You wolves don’t dothat.”
“Maybe you don’t know wolves as well as you think just because you take our blood.” There was something about the way he was looking at me that made me think I might have a chance of getting through to him. “I’m going to kill Cyrus. You and I could work together.”
He seemed to be considering it. Should I worry if I could reason with unreasonable psychopaths? What did that say aboutme?
Maybe Tobias could be reasonedwith.
The next second, I scented something unfamiliar, somethingdark.
I whirled a second too late to face three vampires flashing toward me, impossiblyfast.
Fuck, three vampires?As I had the thought, I ran to meet them, jumping into the air to slam my feet into the chest of the first. He flew backwards into the second vampire, and I landed on my feet just in time for the third to plow intome.
She slammed into me, knocking me down. I was already rolling, trying to escape her, but she caught me with long, dangerous fingernails against my throat and held me there. I struggled to get up, horrified to find that she had that super strengthtoo.
Even when my guys arrived, we might not be able to take these four superpowered vampires. I hated a fair fight.
“Well hello there, wolfie,” she crooned. “Tobias, usually shifters taste disgusting but this one smells delicious.”
Tobias stalked toward us both. “She’s not for eating. She’s for draining.”
“You’ve been getting transfusions of shifter blood,” I managed. “How’d you get somuch?”
Tobias leaned down. “We’ve got two new donors from yourpack.”
My heart sank. No, not more victims from my own innocentpack.
“They kept my friends here busy, that’s why it took me so long to come find you. But now you can all be reunited.” Tobias nodded at the girl vampire. “Get herup.”
As soon as her grip loosened, I threw an elbow into her jaw. I shot to my feet, but the other vampires moved in a speedy blur, pinning me in. One of them punched me in the face, over and over again, until my vision went red. When I tumbled to the ground, the three of them took turns kicking me viciously, and I rolled into a ball, trying to protect my head and organs as they kicked me in the back, the legs, thehead.
“All right,” Tobias said impatiently. Two of them grabbed my arms and dragged me to my feet, and I let out a ragged gasp; my muscles felt torn and ragged from the beating.
They dragged me further into the warehouse. There were two figures suspended from a metal beam in front of us, both unconscious, their arms tied above their heads and their feet dangling.
A cry ripped from my throat.
Courage and Tania.
“They were looking to rescue you.” The girl vamp grabbed my face with her hand, her fingernails sinking into my skin hard enough to draw blood. She stuck her grinning face in mine. “You’re the reason they’re dead. How do you feel aboutthat?”
They weredead?
How could Courage have been so stupid? I went willingly to Reject Island because I wanted to protect him. And Tania… she knew I’d want most of all to protect my little brother, and her. She’d always been the best, most loyal friend, and now she was gone because of it. My knees went weak, and her fingernails dug deep into myskin.
Tobias clucked his tongue. “Why are you antagonizing the poor girl, Carrie? Isn’t she about to go through enough?”
The cracks I’d seen in his cruel plan had disappeared now. I’d thought maybe I could reason with him, convince him we were on the same side, but he would never weaken surrounded by other vamps.
I lashed out at vampire girl. Any day now, Killian.
She moved quick as a flash, blocking me with one arm, slapping me with the other. I ducked behind my arm, which she hit instead but with far too much power, a supernatural amount. I stumbledback.
The other two vampires flashed to grabme.
Suddenly, Killian, West and Rhett came flying across the roomtoo.
“Oh shit,” the female vampiresaid.
“Indeed.” I slammed my fist into her gut in her moment of distraction, and the two of us closed up for a brief fight.
Killian and one of the vampires grappled, and Killian quickly got the better of him, snapping his neck and dropping him to the ground. Killian moved with smooth, lethal power, like the ultimate predator.
“Are you all right?” he demanded when he reached my side. He grabbed me, his eyes intense and worried, as if he hadn’t been able to stand having me in danger, and something in me gave a little.
“I’m actually happy to see you,” I told Killian.
“So she’s not okay,” Rhett called from where he was still struggling with one vamp. “Likely head injury.”
“What’s wrong with you?” Killian demanded.
Together, the four of us made short work of the vamps. Soon their bodies lay broken on the floor. Tania and Courage dangled in the distance, making me sick, and I had no mercy for the vamps.
Well, we had the bodies of three of the vamps.
“Where’s Tobias?” I demanded, looking around.
The asshole had disappeared yet again.