Page 88 of Hunted

My mother studied the others. “Killing Hayden and Ellie won’t stop the ALDD project. And killing you won’t assure Rossi a path to taking control of the Tracers.”

“It’s never been about Hayden or Ellie. And it’s more complicated than just him wanting to take control of the Tracers, but I don’t have time to explain right now.”

My mother gripped my arm, forcing me to look at her. Her cold silver eyes didn’t waver. “Good hunting.”

An alarm sounded from Cal’s phone. “That’s ten minutes.”

Right on cue, a dark-haired vampire with neck tattoos materialized at the edge of the parking lot.

Rowan hissed, looking more vampire than I’d ever seen her. Vlad shot a hateful glare at their brother.

“I swear, we had nothing to do with this,” Cristof snapped. “But thank you for the show of support.”

“Someone want to translate their little family reunion?” Brody said under his breath.

“Felix is part of my mother’s elite guard,” Rowan answered on a growl. “She’s been working with Rossi this entire time.”

“Felix got Ellie out a week ago when the lab was attacked,” Vlad countered mildly. “Why save her then only to turn her over to Rossi now?”

“Vlad’s right,” I said grimly, seeing the dead look in the vampire’s eyes I’d seen in so many of Rossi’s other drones. Sometime in the past five days, Matteo Rossi had infiltrated Zara’s house and taken control of her guard.

“You trust Rossi to control the vampire jumping you back to the damn through a projection?” Brody said sharply. “Sounds like a good way to end up at the bottom of Lake Austin.”

Felix stood motionless at the edge of the parking lot. No doubt if he came any closer, Rossi would lose his grip on his mind.

“I agree,” Vlad said. “Let me take you in.”

“I’m with Vlad,” Fallon said. “While we’re at it, I have half a mind to jab Felix with a dose of Solar Flare, drag him out of here and see if he can be deprogrammed. He may not be entirely lost.”

“Mom?” I said.

At her nod, I turned to Vlad. “Let’s go.”

“Good hunting, wolf,” he said quietly, before sending us hurtling through the dark.

The jump lasted no more than half a second before Vlad deposited me on a corroded metal bridgeway above the Colorado River. The sound of the water roaring through the five open floodgates was deafening, the walkway vibrating beneath my feet as I made my way towards where a group of people were clustered over the fourth floodgate from the eastern shore. A cold mist sprayed my face. The water smelled like river silt and rotten fish.

Matteo Rossi stood in the center of the walkway, dressed in military fatigues. In his hand was a plastic radio detonator. “That’s close enough,” he said once I was five yards away. “We have a problem. I gave you very clear instructions that you were to come alone.”

“That wasn’t my call.”

“I think we’re both past playing games.”

“The vampire you were holding was part of Zara’s personal guard. He was arrested for treason by Vampire Nation operatives the moment he materialized in the parking lot.” I shrugged. “And as you can see, I’m alone.”

Rossi bared his teeth. “Put your hands on top of your head.”

I did as I was told. A vampire materialized behind me. I didn’t resist while he searched me for weapons, which I hadn’t brought, not wanting to be shot in the head with my own gun upon arrival, then cuffed my hands behind my back with silver shackles so I wouldn’t be able to shift.

“Move,” he snapped, shoving me forward.

The silver seared up my wrists, dampening my power and quieting the voices in my head like I had cotton jammed in my ears. That effect was negligible. The real problem was going to be the silver’s insidious ability to eat away at my mental shields.

The vampire shoved me to my knees before Rossi, who pistol whipped me with the butt of his gun.

Pain exploded behind my left temple. Distantly, I heard Ellie screaming for me. The moonlight drenched walkway swam before my eyes. The hot, coppery scent of blood flooded my nostrils. Warmth trickled down my neck. When I was able to blink the world back into focus, Rossi’s henchman had dragged Hayden and Jori to their feet, guns pressed to their temples.

“You will learn that I call all the shots here. You have five seconds to choose which one I kill, your mate’s sister, or her bodyguard.”