Once they saw all there was to see, theysignaled to each other and backed away from the gate. They returnedto the vehicles to wait for the help Declan and Nathan calledin.
Kyle studied his black sneakers as he triedto keep the demon at bay. He’d argued against stopping, but his mominsisted he and Lucy needed clean clothes and shoes. She ran intothe store to get supplies for them while they waited in one of theSUVs. It felt weird to be wearing clothes again, but he was gladfor the protection the sneakers provided his feet.
The color on Kyle’s skin was deepening, andevery beat of his heart felt like it was a hammer pounding againsthis temple. Never before had he felt so in touch with the demonpart of his nature, but it was like a living, breathing monsterinside him salivating to break free.
And soon, he would allow it to reign. He hadto remain calm until then, but once their backup arrived, he wouldlet the monster free, and he would do everything he could to get toher.
An hour later, twenty members of theAlliance, both hunters and vampires, pulled up in four black SUVs.They climbed out, and all gathered around to decide on the best wayto break into the compound.
In the end, they agreed the best way in wasthe same way he got out. Though his parents argued against it, Kylewould lead the charge at the gate. He refused to let anyone else doit, and he also would not let anyone else in the vehicle withhim.
The first vehicle to approach the gate wouldreceive the brunt of the attack from the guards. He wouldn’t letanyone else be the center of their attention.
They all retreated to their vehicles, butbefore he could start the SUV, his dad tried to climb in with him.Kyle locked the door. His dad jerked on the handle, and Kyle shookhis head. Resting his hand on Liam’s arm, Mike pulled him away fromthe vehicle.
Kyle watched in the rearview mirror as hisadopted uncle navigated his dad toward the vehicle behind them.Mike pulled open the back door, and they both climbed inside. Ethansat behind the wheel, and Ian was beside him; Julian, Declan, andWillow were also in the vehicle.
Abby remained standing beside one of theSUVs; she’d reluctantly agreed to stay behind. With a pale face andher hand rested on her growing belly, she watched the others. Amember of the Alliance stayed with her; Kyle knew Brian wanted tostay with her, but he never said it. They needed him in there.
Kyle started the vehicle and studied the redand black color encompassing his hands as he flexed them on thewheel. Beneath his skin, the demon shifted and seethed as itthrummed like an ever-present electrical current through hisveins.
It was angry and vengeful, and he was eagerto let it have its way. He would not become a Savage. He would notsave her only to become one of the things she hated, but he wouldmake them pay for hurting her.
He shifted into drive and pulled onto theroad. He kept his speed slow as he started toward the gate. In thewoods, the newly arrived members of the Alliance approached thefence on foot. The people in the facility would never have any ideahow many were bearing down on them until it was too late.
Once Kyle crashed into the gate, the Alliancewould rush from the woods and enter the facility as the rest of thevehicles entered behind him. They hoped the distraction caused bythe Alliance members would be enough to keep the guards focused onthem while they went for the stairs closest to the woods andentered the facility that way.
He hoped their numbers would be enough tooverwhelm their enemy.
When he topped a hill in the road, the gatecame into view. His fangs lengthened, and the color in his handsdeepened as saliva filled his mouth.
He pushed down on the accelerator, and thevehicle shot forward. The guards behind the gate lifted their gunsand started firing. Bullets zinged off the front of the SUV, hitthe windshield, and sent a spiderweb of broken glass across hisvision.
Beside him, a puff of yellow stuffing shotinto the air as one of the bullets broke through the glass andpummeled the passenger seat. Another sliced across his shoulder.The engine hummed as he pressed the accelerator to the floor.
He was only twenty feet away from the gatewhen the SUV behind him swerved to the side. Ethan raced up besidehim. For a second, he met his older brother’s gaze before the gatedrew their attention. This was not what he wanted, but he shouldhave known his family wouldn’t let him take the brunt of thisalone.
The impact of the vehicle hitting the gatejarred his arms and raced up them and into his shoulders. Theairbag didn’t go off this time, but glass shattered, and thousandsof pieces rained over him and the seat.
The guards shouted, and bullets peppered thevehicle. They tore apart the seats and embedded in the metal as hekept his foot on the gas. The twisted metal of the gate screechedas it dug into the vehicle and tore off the driver’s sidemirror.
Ethan went through the gate at the same timeas him. With his foot still on the accelerator, Kyle drove at thefacility. He didn’t try to avoid the guards. They either got out ofhis way, or he killed them. It was as simple as that, and theyunderstood as they scattered to avoid him. More bullets sprayed theside of the vehicle and shattered the back windshield.
One of the bullets slammed into his shoulder.He gritted his teeth and jerked the wheel to avoid plowing into themain building. Dirt and lawn flew up from the tires. It pepperedthe side of the vehicle and shot through the broken window to sprayhis face.
Ethan’s vehicle skidded to a halt only inchesfrom his as they barely avoided colliding. Ethan shifted intoreverse, jerked the wheel, and hit the gas again.
Kyle glanced in the rearview mirror as theother vehicles entered the facility at a high rate of speed. Alongwith those vehicles, the members of the Alliance also pouredthrough the gate.
They drew the guards' attention away from thevehicles enough that the barrage of bullets stopped, and screamsfilled the air. Kyle didn’t know if those screams were coming fromthe Alliance members or the guards, and he didn’t stop to findout.
More guards would arrive soon, and they hadto get into the facility before that happened. Heavily trained, theAlliance members could take care of themselves.
When he drove around the building's side,Ethan and the others followed, and the bullets hitting the vehiclestopped. Once around the back of the building, he headed toward thewoods and the stairs hidden within.
He stopped the vehicle at the edge of thetrees, threw it into park, and jumped out. “Is everyone okay?” hedemanded as doors opened and closed around him.
“We’re all good,” Stefan replied.
