Chapter 12

Adryan

Ilet my grin spread slowly as I stared at the human bastard in front of me, the poor fucker who was facing off with me like he actually had a chance in defeating me.

He took a fighting stance and reached behind him to grab a weapon I’d never seen before. It wasn’t a gun, not in the obvious sense, and I knew right away they weren’t trying to kill me. They wanted to incapacitate.

I didn’t need to know this male to know who and what he was. An Assembly prick who I’d take great pleasure in killing nice and slow. But even if he wasn’t part of some twisted-as-fuck—and that was saying something if I was calling them that—group, I’d still kill him, because he thought to hurt my mate.

I looked at Kayla, who was pressed against the wall, her chest rising and falling. I smelled her blood but didn’t see a visible wound. She was on the ground, so I had to assume this fucker had knocked her down and she hit her head.

Oh, he’d die slowly.

And as I stared at the large male in front of me, how he was dressed all in black from head to toe, his face covered, I bared my teeth and let him see my fangs grow nice and long. I’d use them to tear his throat out. He took a small step back.

“Coward,” I said and chuckled. “Can’t show your face, huh?” I shrugged, wanting nothing more than to go to Kayla and make sure she was okay, to insert myself between her and this bastard and show her that I’d never let anyone hurt her.

“Alex!” the human male shouted to his accomplice but kept his gaze locked on me.

I laughed low again. “Your friend is currently on the stairs with his neck at an awkward angle and his jugular torn out.”

The human’s eyes narrowed.

I cocked my head to the side. “What’s with the fucking ski masks? You gonna rob a bank?” I could smell his anger coating the air at a quick pace, and it made my blood sing. “’Cause I’ll be honest. You look fucking ridiculous.” I didn’t move, just watched him as his anger continued to rise, filling the room with the acidic scent reminiscent of gasoline.

His chest pumped up and down the more he tried to get control of himself and the situation. I could fucking feel his inexperience and wondered if this was the first time he’d ever encountered an Otherworld creature.

Not that his lack of experience would save his life today.

I let my gaze go to his throat, saw how quick his pulse was pounding, and felt my grin widen even more. “Am I popping your Otherworld cherry right now?” His entire body tensed. I laughed harder this time, and although outwardly I was at ease, completely unthreatened, for the first time in my life I felt absolute fear. Because of my mate. For my mate.

She was so very vulnerable and human. I was fast. I was strong. I was a fucking killer and could stop the male between me and mine in a heartbeat… but if she got hurt in the crosshairs? If something happened to her… Gods, the thought had a cold sweat breaking out on my body.

She could die so easily, and there would be nothing I could do. No quick healing, no regeneration like my kind experienced. There would be no way I could bring her back if she was taken from me.

And that just pissed me the fuck off.

I watched as he shifted on his feet, the scent of his sweat rising as his nervousness and fear became stronger. Greatest fucking scent to a predator. Well… maybe not the greatest, now that I had her.

I couldn’t stop myself from looking at her, just briefly, just because I was a selfish bastard. She was afraid, but she was trying to appear strong. Fuck, what a turn-on.

“Do you know who I am?” I couldn’t stop the growl that laced the words. I noticed his hand tighten around the gun he held. “Yeah,” I drawled out that lone word. “You know who I am.”

“Fuck you,” he spat. “Bringing you down will get me in good. You’re a top-level commodity. Backup is coming.” He tried to sound strong, but his voice was all but shaking. A trained Assembly member would have tried to take me down already. This little prick could barely keep his gun trained on me.

I let all the amusement leave me and lowered my head slightly but kept my gaze on him. “I think you drew the short end of the straw, asshole. I almost feel bad for you that I’m the one you have to face off with. Almost.”

He leveled the barrel at my chest, and I looked down for a second at where the bullet would tear through if he had the balls to pull the trigger. Not that I couldn’t survive the wound, not that it would actually slow me down. But let him think otherwise.

“You guys always act so tough. Bet you’re a real douchebag, aren’t you?” I took a slow, measured step toward him. “Yeah, a real douchebag. I can smell it on you. Look at you, sweating and shit.” I lowered my voice. “Bet I can make you piss your pants in the next minute.” I heard his finger slide over the trigger, and then I was on him.

I was inhumanly fast as I gripped his throat and slammed him against the wall. I smiled, feeling that bloodlust fill me as I lifted his body off the ground before he could inhale. I couldn’t help but laugh at how wide his eyes became, fucking loved the rush of adrenaline that coursed through me when, with the flick of my fingers, I broke his wrist, and the sound of his gun hitting the floor resounded in the room.

“Want to know how I knew you were with that bastard group?” I gripped the collar of his shirt and tore it like tissue. I already knew he had the crescent and sunburst tattoo before I saw the proof on his chest. “It’s not because of this ugly fucking thing. No.” I leaned in close. “It’s because you all have a stench to you.” I leaned in another inch. “It’s desperation and arrogance.”

I heard Kayla shuffle away even more and knew she’d run, her fight-or-flight instinct screaming at her to do the latter.

“I don’t know how you knew she was mine, but I assume that’s why you’re here.” My hand was tight enough on his throat he made gurgling sounds as he clawed at my knuckles to try to pry it free. “You actually thought to take her from me? To hurt her? All because you actually fucking thought you had a chance in taking me?” I tsked. “Man, you’re all a bunch of fucking amateurs.”

I let all the evil and dangerous parts of me rise so violently I tasted it on my tongue. Power and hunger, the demons of what made me who and what I was, surged forward. And all to protect my mate.

This wasn’t even about taking down an Assembly fucker. This was about taking out the bastard who thought to hurt my female.

This was vengeance. This was a vampire protecting what was his.

I ripped his ski mask off so he could really see the monster who was taking his life. His whimper was music to my fucking ears, and when I smelled urine, I moved an inch back and looked down, seeing his black fatigues grow wet.

“Damn, less than sixty seconds. You were easy to break.” I laughed when he started crying, when he started praying to a god who wouldn’t help him.

I heard Kayla hurrying out the room, her gasps of shock, her cries of fear, and the scent of her salty tears drowning out everything else. I ached to ease those worries from her. It was this primal feeling in me… the only important thing.

And just to prove to myself I wasn’t a fucking pussy now that I had a mate, I ripped the bastard’s trachea out and tossed it across the room before I let his lifeless body fall to the floor.

I turned just as Kayla stumbled forward in her haste to escape the carnage. She looked over her shoulder, screamed, “Don’t!” and ran out of the room.

I followed her, stalked my Kayla, and knew she was too confused and fear-stricken, too panicked to think or move rationally. I knew she wasn’t going to see the corpse I left on the shadowy stairs, knew she’d trip over it and go headlong down the steps.

And when that scenario happened, I used my otherworldly speed to pull her against my chest, lift her into my arms, and let her screams fill my head a second before she passed out.