Sunset to Sunrise (Alexa O'Brien, Huntress #7.5)

I walked away, leaving her there in the dirt. She didn’t sling a parting barb at me though I could feel her bristling with growing ire. I didn’t think it would take long for Phillip to hear about my attack. I had lived far too long to waste time plotting. I preferred to leap in swinging.

So I headed back to The Wicked Kiss to finish what I’d started. The excitement for the fight ran hot in my veins when I turned into the parking lot with a squeal of tires. I was counting on Phillip to still be there. He should be just getting started. The night was young.

I found him enjoying the party. Couldn’t blame him for having a pretty thing on her knees already. Too bad he wasn’t going to get a chance to finish.

Jerking the woman up by the arm, I shoved her away. “Go. Now.” She started to protest, then thought better of it and with a shrug, disappeared into the throng.

“What the fuck are you doing?” Phillip hastily put himself back together. Anger flashed in his eyes.

“Settling a score you haven’t had a chance to really begin yet. I promise to make it quick though, which is more gracious than Arys would be.” I followed up with a punch that snapped Phillip’s head back. I got in a few more good ones before he came back at me with a few of his own.

“Motherfucker,” Phillip spat. “I knew you couldn’t be trusted. All that crap about loving the wolf. It sounded like bullshit.”

I smiled, a tight grimace of a grin. “Nope, that was true.”

We danced, Phillip and I, a thrilling back and forth of blows, each deadlier than the last. His power paled greatly in comparison to mine, leaving him heavily reliant on physical strength.

I was aware of the vampires that drew closer, ready to jump in. Phillip’s guys. Being powerful didn’t mean I could withstand a group attack. Of course, I would go down fighting.

“What the hell is your problem, man?” Phillip grunted as I jabbed my elbow into his face. “It would benefit all of us. Especially you if your bullshit story is real.”

“That’s just it, my friend,” I replied with another elbow followed by a punch that sent him stumbling into a table, which overturned beneath him. I stood over Phillip, waiting for him to get up. “I can’t allow you to take this demented plan any further because I love her too much to allow anything to happen that might hurt her.”

Phillip stared up at me, uncertainty in his hard gaze. He seemed reluctant to get up, suspecting me of a potential cheap shot. I motioned with both hands for him to stand. I was a fair man. Usually.

His gaze darted from me to his waiting companions. “Coward,” he uttered, the word a command.

He rolled to his feet, coming up before me in the same moment his friends rushed in. Our small scuffle grew by half a dozen. Fists flew along with the occasional burst of power, all of it directed at me.

Producing the stake from my jacket, I moved quickly, lashing out at my attackers. The stake hit its mark, plunging into the heart of one who dared to get too close. A flash of power threw another, causing an uproar on the dance floor as he struck several other patrons.

I tasted blood as the fists kept coming. A chuckle made them hesitate but only for a second. My lack of fear made them fight harder, determined to beat me into submission. It took much more than a group beating to frighten me.

Grabbing the arm of one coming from behind me, I whirled to smash my fist into his face. I was surprised to find Willow there, plucking vampires away like they were helpless children.

Not many knew Willow and even fewer knew what he was. With great amusement I watched a few of them find out. He threw punches like a man who would never tire of taking his inner rage out on someone else. There was fire in his green eyes as he beat a vampire’s face to a bloody pulp.

I was distracted long enough by Willow’s sudden angry zeal that Phillip succeeded in smashing a chair over my head. I staggered forward, momentarily stunned. It didn’t last long enough for him to get in another blow.

I caught the broken chunk of chair leg before he could shove the jagged end into my chest. Slamming a burst of power deep inside him, I watched with a growing smile as his mouth dropped open and he fell to his knees.

There was a bright, blinding light as Willow set one of them on fire. The sensation of his immortal power was heavy and overwhelming, disrupting my concentration. It freed Phillip from my attack, and he fled for the door.

His remaining companions tried to follow, but they didn’t make it very far. Their dust and ash soon joined that of their friends. Phillip wouldn’t get far. His followers were down to almost nothing.

The patrons who had stopped to gawk and shriek at the fight wasted little time resuming their illicit activity. They didn’t spare any extra attention for either Willow or me. Humans. Such strange creatures.

“Thanks for having my back.” I offered a hand to Willow. He shook it with a nod and a smile.