Rayce stiffened just as they reached the front door of the house. “Gunfire.”
Yes, she’d heard it, too. And Rose had already whirled and started running back down that path, but then Rayce grabbed her, jerking her to a stand-still.
“No! Dammit, this could be a trap!”
Everything could be a trap these days. “Julian…”
“Is a big fucking shifter who can take care of himself. He’s got killer claws and if I let you run into danger, he’ll use those claws on me.” Rayce’s face was grim. “Get inside the house. I’ll set the security and you’ll be safe in there.”
Why did people persist in treating her like a helpless human? She wasn’t. Far from it. “We are wasting time.” Then, using her vamp strength, she shoved him away from her. “If Julian needs me, I’m there.”
She didn’t wait for another argument. She turned and rushed down the path. She’d gone only a few frantic feet when she heard the cry.
“Help me!” A woman’s voice, drifting on the wind. “Help…”
She and Rayce didn’t say another word. They ran toward that call and then they saw her. A woman with long hair, soaking wet, stumbling up the path. Her hands were at her sides, her body weaving.
“Please…” The woman fell to her knees. “Help me.”
“Human,” Rayce said.
A human right in front of them and Julian nowhere to be seen.
Rose locked her legs and stared at the woman with fury growing in her. “What did you do?”
The woman’s head had fallen forward. Her body had curled in on itself, but at Rose’s words, her head tipped back. She smiled. “Found you.” Glee was in her voice. Satisfaction. And then she yanked her hand up. She’d grabbed a weapon from beneath her shirt, one she’d hidden. She pointed it at Rose and pulled the trigger.
But Rose leapt to the side. The bullet missed her even as Rayce gave a guttural cry and sprang forward. He bounded toward the woman and she fired at him. Shooting once, twice.
One bullet hit him in the shoulder. He didn’t stop. He grabbed her, his hands going right for the woman’s throat. The gun dropped from her hand and clattered to the ground.
His hands tightened around her neck.
He was going to kill her.
Rose grabbed him. “She could be under compulsion! Just like Francis! Don’t kill her, not yet, don’t—”
He hesitated. Then he blinked and his gaze seemed to turn hazy.
“It’s in you now,” the woman whispered.
Rayce staggered.
“Special. He said no one could resist it. Too strong…”
Rose grabbed for Rayce when his body slumped forward.
“Found you, found you,” the woman sang.
She had grabbed her gun again. She aimed it at Rose. “He said you wouldn’t want to hurt a human. He said that would make things so much easier. Rules are in place, and you’re not supposed to cross the line. You’re not supposed to hurt any human.” Her smile stretched. “You’re not supposed to—”
Wind blew against them. Fierce, hot, battering. Only that wind wasn’t coming from the ocean. It was coming from above them. In a flash, a man landed right behind the human woman. He was tall, dark, with eyes that seemed to blaze with power. And he had fucking wings coming out of his back.
Giant, dark wings. Not soft, instead, they appeared razor sharp—scaled? Dragon wings. The wings just seemed to shoot right through the back of the t-shirt that he wore.
The human whirled toward him but he yanked the gun right from her and crushed it in his grip. “Don’t quote my own rules back to me,” he snarled. “That shit just makes me angry.”
Then he touched the woman. Just put his hand to her forehead. She gasped and then her body collapsed as she literally fell into an unconscious heap at his feet.
Rose still had her grip on Rayce. She lowered him slowly to the ground but never took her eyes off the man before her. A man that she recognized. After all, it was pretty hard to forget the Lord of the Dark. “Luke,” she whispered. She should have known that Luke Thorne would be showing up sooner or later. After all, this was his island.
And she was one of his creatures.
But the dark-haired man shook his head. “Wrong twin.” His wings vanished, gone in a blink as if they’d never been there. Then he gave her a hard smile. “I’m the other one. Leo.”
She scrambled back. Luke—she could deal with Luke. She might fear him, but he’d saved her life, or, given her a new one or something before. She knew he wouldn’t hurt her. He’d actually popped into her life to help her in his weird way a few times. But this guy…
He was an exact copy of Luke in looks. Every detail was the same. The same square jaw, the same thick, dark hair. The same gleaming, too-knowing eyes. But their physical appearance was where the similarities ended. This guy wasn’t tied to the dark paranormals. The stories said he had no love for shifters, vampires, or demons. The stories said he wanted them all gone.
He cared about the humans. He watched over them. He guarded the “good” paranormals—the angels, the Fates, the mermaids.
He wasn’t there to protect her.
He wasn’t there to help her.