AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“Put your seat restraints on. This is going to be fucking nuts.” Cooper reaches across me and grabs the restraints, blindly trying to hook them around me. I don’t like the idea of being strapped in, in case I need to rush out, but he’s not going to let me deny him.
“Keep watch on the road. I need you to brace yourself when we get closer. We’re going to smash into as many security guards as possible.” Cooper stomps the throttle again, speeding forward. Dozens of vampires line the street, watching the madness unfold.
The first guy doesn’t even pay attention to the headlights flashing over him before we ram into him. He falls forward and the car jolts as we run over his body. He won’t die, but he’s going to be pissed the fuck off. In a lot of pain. Probably unable to walk.
Bullets spray across the windshield, pinging against the bulletproof glass. It’ll take vampire strength to break through, but the sound stings my ears and sends my stomach rising to my throat. I’ve never truly been afraid of guns, because no one would ever purposefully shoot a donor. They consider us less than and easier to control. Guns can kill our fragile bodies. And a dead donor is no good to anyone who survives on human blood.
The screen on the dashboard flickers on, and I spot a familiar face come interview. Narcisa intercepts our system. “I demand you stop your vehicle immediately. This will be your one and only chance. The other leaders do not know about your dhampir nature, Hayley. They believe you have been transformed into a vampire. If you want to ensure the safety of your blood sources, you will listen to me very carefully.”
Listen to her? Why the fuck would I listen to a woman who would cage me for eternity? I can see it in her eyes. She wants nothing more than to kidnap me and keep me for herself. I’ve seen the same expression cross her face before when she confronted Alexander and he told her.
“Get your security to back the fuck off then. Now!” Cooper grinds his teeth, speaking for me even though Narcisa addresses me and not him.
“They will if you stop your vehicle. I’ll ensure your safety, but you have to surrender.” Narcisa bares her fangs with her words. “Don’t be stupid. You know that no one will get out of this alive if you continue.”
She’s wrong about that. We will make it through. I’ll kill every fucking one of them. And that’s what I plan to do. If this is how she wants to handle things, forcing me to surrender, then I will use it to my advantage.
I slam my hand on the screen, cutting her off, and Cooper turns the car around to circle the block.
“What do you want to do, Hayley? She’s giving us an opportunity.” Cooper skids around another corner. “Obviously we’re not going to surrender. But I don’t want to make it easy either. What do you think the others would want?”
“You know they would want us to get the fuck out of here and let them handle it. I have a different plan. It’s riskier, but I know that Narcisa doesn’t want to kill me. She wants me. I think Alexander got into her head, and she’s planning to do something against him just for the chance to have me. I’ve seen people like her. She is no different than Alexander. Or Lawrence. They’re going to manipulate me with either abuse or acts of kindness and then turn against me. She thinks I’m stupid, but I’m not. So what I want to do is to get within their circle like we had planned. We don’t need a leadership position. We just need to be in the same room. I can take them.” I know I can. I can feel it deep in my bones that I’m strong enough. Something in me has shifted. Either it’s the pregnancy or the venom of being bitten by Lawrence. Whatever it is, I need to take advantage of it while I feel the most powerful.
“Hayley...” Cooper’s voice trails off as he jerks the wheel again and rams into another Strip dweller. “What if I can’t protect you?”
“I’m more worried about you, Cooper. You are so important to me. I know I shouldn’t put you in this position.” I unfasten my seat restraints. “It’s not fair to force you into this, but I’m doing it. I won’t allow them to trap me, and I’m asking you to stand by my side to help me fight. To make sure the others get out safe.”
“I’m here for you. Forever. I’ll find the strength to do whatever is necessary. I’ll prove that I am worthy of you.” Cooper tightens his jaw as we hit the main road, heading back toward the old mall and leadership tower.
“You don’t have to prove anything. I already know it. Now, I need a favor. I need you to bite me with venom. Not a lot, but just enough to ignite my dhampir nature. Lawrence used it to increase my power, but I think he was excessive. Just enough shouldn’t knock me out.” At least, I hope. I was knocked out before because of the pain of the venom coursing through me. I was in pain because of the bite itself. But Cooper will always be gentle with me.
“And if you’re wrong?” Cooper asks, hitting the throttle and picking up speed, flashing the headlights over dozens of vampires who run out of the way.
“Then you can get me out of here. I have faith that it’s going to work. Just a little bite.” I hold out my wrist to him, inhaling and exhaling slowly, trying to keep my nerves in control.
Cooper nods his head in silence and extends his fangs farther than I have seen them. I tighten my hand into a fist, my muscles aching with my stiff posture. I know that it’s going to hurt. But it can’t hurt worse than the pain I’ve already been through in my life. The pain that will come if anything happens to the Bella Crew and our plan for a future together.
“You’ve got this, Hayley. You’re strong enough. You’ve handled it before.” Cooper brings my arm to his lips. “Be brave, my showgirl.”
“For you, I’ll be anything.” I squeeze my eyes shut as Cooper pokes his fangs gently into my arm, injecting me with his venom.
The edges of my vision shadow and I bob my head, my body shuddering through the burning sensation coursing through me.
“Hayley? Hayley, are you okay? Shit.” Cooper pinches my chin, getting me to look at him.
Another round of gunfire sprays across the windshield, and someone slams into the side door, startling me. I flutter my eyes open and hiss, the sudden threat kicking on my dhampir nature and pushing away the pain and agony that my human side goes through.
“I’m fine,” I say, heaving a breath. “The dizziness is over. The pain is gone. Let’s do this.”
Cooper releases a holler and picks up speed, zooming toward the crowded area in front of the mall. That’s when I see them. The Bella Crew blurs in a fight, keeping the security away from them. I don’t see any signs of the leadership. They’re probably too scared to even face them, knowing that they aren’t the most powerful. We are.
I’m about to prove it.
“Hold on tight, Hayley. We’re going to take out the bulk of them. I want to get close enough to the Bella Crew. If we’re going to the leadership, we’re going together.” Cooper swings his arm across me, locking me in place.
I brace myself, holding onto the grab handle and pushing my feet against the floor to force myself as hard as I can into my seat, so I don’t have to restrain myself in. I need a quick escape.
“Five seconds.” Cooper drives straight, his headlights flashing over the crowd.
