“Um, honey, it’s a little unimportant right now.”
Salem sported a lopsided grin. “You called me an endearment.”
“Salem!” I screeched as the first furry body burst from between the trees and headed right in our direction.
My vampire jumped onto the creature’s back once it was within range and raked long sharp nails down its back as the Lycan howled in pain. I glimpsed what appeared to be claws on Salem’s hands and my eyes widened. He was certainly full of surprises. More noises came from behind and I turned in time to catch the next two werewolves as they snarled and rushed forward. My survival instincts kicked in and I closed my eyes, reaching out with my strange new ability and trying to locate Archer and his brethren.
I felt their close presence, but it would take several more minutes before they arrived.
“Piper!” Salem yelled as he twisted the neck of the closest beast and tossed the body to the ground. “Duck down!”
I obeyed immediately and flattened my stomach on the concrete seconds before Salem hurled his body over mine and barreled right into the two Lycan. Their bodies clashed as Salem lashed out with his claws and deftly avoided the razor-sharp teeth of the werewolves. Their jaws snapped at his limbs, but none were able to bite down. Salem was incredibly fast. Some of his movements were only a blur as I tried to pinpoint his location. I couldn’t see every strike he made, but I knew he had defeated them when the two creatures ended up on the ground at his feet with their snouts broken open and hanging limply by only a few thin shreds of flesh.
“Salem!” I called out, noticing the gash across his abdomen.
“It’s alright, my darling. I will heal quickly.” Even as he spoke, the flesh was knitting itself back together as if by magic.
A weird buzzing sound could be heard as it echoed in every direction and I cringed, the noise like nails screeching down the length of a blackboard. What on earth was that? Something seemed to pop in the distance while a mechanical whirring and rattling echoed from close by. Within seconds, the air seemed to go completely still. I turned my head in every direction until I saw some kind of electrical barrier erected around us.
In total and complete horror, I realized that we’d just been closed inside a metallic cage.
Archer and the other ghouls arrived along with dozens of massive black dogs, but they were unable to touch or pass through the magical barrier. The hounds were accompanied by a strange ebony shadow the pulsed along their dark short-haired bodies. A few attempted to breach the barrier and were thrown back, jolting on the ground as high-pitched whines escaped their muzzles.
“They won’t be able to help us,” Salem confirmed as he snarled, his claws dripping with blood. “This is intentional.”
“It’s a slaughter,” I whispered, gulping loudly. “We’re going to die right in front of them.”
“No,” he contradicted as our eyes met. “We’re going to fight like hell and kill every last enemy until none remains. We work together, back-to-back, and protect one another. Alright?”
“How am I supposed to do that?”
Salem rushed forward and yanked on the silver chains, pulling the metal through the hoops where it was connected and busting the links apart. My jaw dropped as I saw the extent of the injuries on his hands. Blackened flesh fell to the concrete and surrounding grass as he groaned but held his ground, fully alert. Blood dripped from the wounds as well as layers of skin as it melted away.
I rushed to his side, but he spun around and snarled. “Protect yourself, Piper!”
The Lycan seemed to suddenly multiply, closing in fast.
I lost count of the number of creatures that attacked us in the monstrous cage. Bodies fell at our feet as the carnage grew. Salem was an incredible fighter. He was possessed with rage and never stopped tearing apart the beasts that came in endless waves as I stood at his back. Totally helpless, I knew why he suggested this arrangement.
Salem could protect me best if I wasn’t a distraction or vulnerable.
He stood with his chest heaving as the last one fell and then turned, pulling me into his embrace. The fierceness of his expression left my knees weakened, and I swear the entire world shifted beneath the devotion I saw in his amber tinted eyes. Before he could speak, a single shadow appeared to our left. Slender arms lifted as a woman’s hands clapped slowly but deliberately in obvious entertainment and sardonic praise.
“Salem, how lovely. You do put on such a wondrous entertainment. It’s been far too long.”
Something inside snapped the second I realized Piper was in mortal danger.
I found a strength I didn’t know I could possess. Bodies fell at my feet as I fought with renewed vigor. Every Lycan that died only increased my efforts to keep Piper safe and unharmed. My mate would not die this night. Our eyes met briefly, and I nodded in encouragement, hoping to convey my determination. She was so lovely. So beautiful, even as she stood as frightened and vulnerable as a young doe.
When every enemy had fallen and no longer posed a threat, I sank to my knees, pulling Piper close as I assured myself that she was out of danger, at least for the moment. Her frantic breath was unnerving, but I knew it was adrenaline that made her body quiver.
I stared down into those hauntingly beautiful eyes and was totally and completely entranced. Powerful emotion swept through my chest and conjured up an intoxicating cocktail of infatuation and possession. I’d felt this before today, but the imminent threat on her life deepened the level of emotion. Potent lust coursed through every cell and organ in my body.
Sudden clarity enabled my vision to clear in ways I had never seen before, crisp and colorful, like refracted beams of slivered glass. My ability to hear the sounds around me heightened further. My palm lay over her heart and as my eyes closed, I felt each and every perfect beat as it thrummed a consistent rhythm. My own heart stuttered and then effortlessly matched the pace of the young female in my arms.
Piper was my true vampire mate. My halran. A term rarely used but held in the highest regard by my kind.
She was perfection from head to toe and I couldn’t get enough as my fingers drifted across her face and into her hair, enjoying the way the silky strands filtered through the gaps. My mind became focused on only my female – her delicious scent, the powerful feeling of connection, the need to feel her pressed against my body. The luxurious and creamy luster of her skin as it beckoned for my lips. The urge to breed her was overwhelming.
My cock twitched. All I wanted was to lay her down and claim her, driving between those silken thighs over and over again until she screamed my name in pleasure. My pants tented with the extent of my arousal, the material pressed to the limit as my dirty thoughts pushed my erection to full and rigid completion. Groaning with an ache that was almost foreign, I snarled as I heard the snap of twigs on the ground. No one would take my female.
Mine. Mine.
A blood-filled haze tore all rational thought from my mind. The lust cooled instantly as I assessed the threat and my fangs brushed against my bottom lip. The need to dominate and conquer, to protect my female, was all-consuming. My rage drove my need to possess her higher, but also perfectly focused my attention.
Broken down to basic survival instincts, I realized the bond and connection had grown between us again and deepened further, anchoring my dark and forgotten soul with her sweet and innocent spirit. She was mine to protect. Mine to cherish. Always.