He turned toward Brokk as his brotherdispatched the other vamp. Brokk turned toward the lycan he’d flunginto the tree. He took a step toward him as the tip of a sworderupted out the front of Brokk’s chest. His brother’s eyes widenedas they fell to the blade piercing his heart.
“NO!” Cole bellowed as he released thelycan’s head and shoved its body out of his way.
He didn’t understand what happened untilBrokk twisted to the side. The movement revealed the dark fae whoslipped away had returned and snuck up behind his brother whileBrokk was fighting.
Brokk was reaching for the sword when the faegrinned and ripped the blade free. The rays of the moon shone offthe silver blade with its intricate markings. Dismay filled Colewhen he realized what the sword was made of…
Fae metal!
The only metal that could kill a fae, and thecoward had rammed the blade through Brokk’s heart. It was a lethalwound for a fae.
I’ll rip off his head and shove it down histhroat!
But as the thought ran through his mind,Brokk went to his knees.
No! No! No!
He’d lost too many brothers to this war; hewouldnotlose another. He caught Brokk before he fellface-first onto the ground. When the fae lifted the blade to bringit down against Brokk’s back, Cole grasped the sword and held itwhile supporting his brother.
Brokk’s hot blood soaked his shirt as thesword bit into his flesh and sliced through his muscle until theblade scoured his bone. The fae tried to rip it away, but Colerefused to relinquish the sword as he yanked it forward.
Not expecting the motion, the fae staggeredforward with the sword. Cole grabbed the fae by his throat. Hisclaws dug into the creature’s flesh as he tore out his throat andthrew it aside.
The fae’s hands flew to what little remainedof his throat as his blood drenched Cole and Brokk. Cole lifted hishand and delivered a staggering backhand that knocked the fae’shead to the side and broke his neck.
Paralyzed by the blow, the fae hit the groundas Cole rose with Brokk in his arms. Cole shifted his hold on hisbrother to pull the sword free of his palm, and twisting the blade,he grasped the hilt and plunged it through the fae’s back and intohis heart. Pinned to the ground, the fae’s fingers clawed at thedirt for a few seconds before he went limp.
Cole turned his attention to where he’d lastseen the remaining lycan, but the beast was gone. He didn’t havethe time to hunt it as Brokk’s body became completely limp againsthim.
Lifting Brokk into his arms, Cole fled intothe night.
•••
The incessant pounding on the door rebounded throughthe hallway until it became a never-ending crescendo that causedLexi to bolt awake and propelled her out of bed before she realizedshe was moving. Flustered, she spun as she tried to get herbearings.
What was going on? Had the war startedagain?
No, that made no sense. Why would the war bebanging on her door? It never had before.
Realizing she wasn’t making any sense toherself, she struggled to rid herself of her sleep and confusion asthe banging continued.
Who was trying to bang down her door andwhy?
She started to run from her room but skiddedto a halt when an image of Malakai entered her mind. The idea ofhim seeing her in her old T-shirt and nothing else propelled hertoward her closet. Their door was about to come off its hinges, butif it was him, then he couldn’t see her like this.
She yanked open her closet doors and pulledout her robe. She tugged it on and cinched the belt around herwaist before running from her room. From a few doors down anddiagonally across the hall, Sahira was exiting her room.
Their eyes met before Lexi ran for thestairs.
“Elexiandra!” Sahira called sharply afterher.
When she arrived at the bottom of the stairs,Lexi glanced at her aunt over her shoulder.
“You don’t know who’s on the other side!”Sahira called as she descended the stairs after Lexi.
No, she didn’t, but they were banging sorelentlessly that the thick wood door rattled in its frame. Therewas something desperate in that knock, something that propelled herforward even as dread slid down her spine.
The banging reverberated in her head as herhand fell on the knob and her throat went dry.
