Chapter 14
Lungs ready to burst, Selena was soaked to the bone by the time she got to the fourth cabin overlooking the bluff. She didn’t care if this one was locked like the other three had been, she couldn’t go any farther. She’d break a window if she had to.
As it turned out, the door was unlocked—yes!—and she let herself in. When she went to close it, a gust of wind tore it from her hands and the door slammed shut with a bang.
She twisted the deadbolt and collapsed to her knees, water pooling around her as she struggled to catch her breath. Although she couldn’t be sure, she had an overwhelming sense that Mateo was nearby, and the thought reassured her. She gripped the silver candlestick in her hand tighter. It was a wonder she still had it. She’d grabbed it as an afterthought as she’d sprinted through the sitting room. She may be new to this dangerous world of his, but she didn’t need to be helpless. If she got out of this alive, she’d take all the self-defense classes she could find. Learn to fight with a knife. Maybe even fire a gun.
Please, she thought, let Dad and Brenna be okay.
“Ah, Selena,” said a woman’s calm voice from behind her. “So glad you could join me.”
Her breath lodged in her throat like a splinter from a bone and she almost dropped the candlestick. She turned around slowly.
It was Marcella. And she had a mouthful of fangs.
* * *
He almost missed it. The scent of blood. One moment it was there and the next it was gone, carried off by the howling wind. But one thing he knew. It was Selena’s.
Weapons in both hands, fangs protruding, he sprinted toward the bluff and kicked in the door of Cabin #4. And there, in the musty darkness, his worst nightmare came true.
A Darkblood female was leaning over Selena’s prone body, blood dripping from her fangs.
Oh God, he was too late.
A murderous rage unlike anything he’d ever felt before spiraled up like a hurricane and consumed him. This vile creature had killed the woman he loved. The woman who’d loved him in spite of his flaws, who’d filled the hole in his heart, making him feel as if he were enough just the way he was. She’d forgiven him and he’d wanted to figure out a way to spend eternity with her…but now she was gone.
In a flash, he yanked the creature away from Selena’s body and flung her across the tiny room. Something crashed, but the Darkblood landed on her feet like a cat. He planned to cut her to shreds, throw her pieces into the ocean, but before he could throw one of his blades, a powerful blow hit him in the stomach. He staggered backward and fell to the ground, dazed at the female’s speed and strength. She’d no doubt been bolstered by Selena’s rare blood.
“The two of you recently fucked,” the female spat as she circled him. “I could taste you in her blood. But she’s mine. I found her first.”
“I...am no one’s property,” said a tiny voice to his left.
Selena? She was alive!
She flung an object—a candlestick?—that landed at the female’s feet.
Although it did no damage, it was enough to distract the Darkblood. Taking advantage of this, Mateo sprang up and drove his silver blade straight into the creature’s heart. “Mine!” he growled viciously.
He didn’t wait for the thing to charcoal. Spinning on his heel, he fell to his knees at Selena’s side, then hesitated. Blood was everywhere, her scent overwhelming in the small space. His dark nature reared up, a powerful force raging within him, and he ached to bury his fangs in her neck.
This had to be the embodiment of hell, he thought. To see the person you love survive an attack by your enemy, only to die by your hand.
“I love you, Mateo,” Selena said softly, reaching out to touch him. “You’re…strong enough, but I’m afraid I’m not.”
No. He wouldn’t let her die. He couldn’t. He loved this amazing woman with every fiber of his being. She was his, and he was hers. He shoved his dark nature aside, swept her into his arms, and rushed her back to Broadmoor.
