Page 39

“Buying you some time.” She pointed the 9mm at a hellhound who was gnawing on the bars and squeezed the trigger, firing every round into the creature’s skull. When the beast collapsed, she dropped the magazine, pulled the spare from her cleavage, and nailed the second one as well.

Liam released the gate and grinned at her. “Is it wrong that I have a raging hard-on for you right now?”

Had the situation been less dire, she might have laughed. “Let’s go.” She chucked the empty gun and grabbed his hand.

Claws scrabbled behind them. One of the three remaining hounds stood on top of his stunned brothers, using the added height to scale the gate.

They’d never outrun the beast. She’d bought them mere seconds to escape.

“This way,” Liam shouted, racing her to the bulldozer. Once beside it, he winged open the door, cupped her bottom and boosted her inside. She hit the seat in a sprawl of arms and legs. By the time she’d righted herself, he’d closed her in while remaining outside.

“Liam,” she cried. “What are you—”

Up he went, scaling the framing. Just as he made it to the roof, the hellhound who’d cleared the fence plowed headfirst into the side of the bulldozer. The impact rocked the machine, throwing Vivian into the window. The creature stumbled back and shook its head, dazed.

Metal screeched. She glanced toward the mansion just in time to see the gates topple, sending up a cloud of dust. In the destruction, the remaining hellhounds poured through the opening.

Watching the beasts, she experienced a moment of panicked hilarity. Did she look as gleeful as she’d raced away from her burning prison?

She pressed her cheek to the window, peering up. “Liam?”

“Little busy,” he called out.

All around them, the hellhounds circled, snapping at each other, fighting over their cornered prey. One of the creatures lunged, scaling the side of the dozer.No! It’s on top.Liam’s footsteps thundered over her head. The beast yelped, then tumbled to the ground. Blackened blood poured from a gaping wound in its flank.

She clenched her hand to her chest. “Liam?”

“I’m okay,” he answered.

The beasts circled like sharks. There was no way he could defeat them all. Not when the injured seemed to rise from the dead.

“Vivian, my love?” Liam called to her, his tone far too cheerful, given the situation.

My love? Did he take a blow to the head?

“Yes, dearest?” she answered, playing along.

“You ever imagine you’d spend your final moments in the belly of a bulldozer?”

Goddess, save her, but she snickered at his humor. “I must confess, it never crossed my mind.”

“Hey, you see that?”

“What?”

“Over there, on the left, near the woods.”

She swiveled her head and sucked in a breath. Static skittered down her spine. At the edge of the property stood a lone figure, hands raised and glowing. The hood he wore obscured his features. Still, she’d know him anywhere.

“Alistair,” she said on a long exhale. Her throat tightened, short breaths cinching in her chest. Hate, mixed with fear, buzzed inside her like a nest of hornets.

The mage’s glowing hands flickered. A sure sign his energy reserves had reached their end. While powerful, his gifts were often unreliable. He fell to his knees, and her heart leapt with joy.That’s right. Fall, you bastard.

Without Alistair’s influence, the hounds stopped circling, milling about, sniffing the ground as though they’d lost the scent of their prey. Two of them turned on one another, tearing at each other’s throats.

Vivian glanced back at the hooded figure just as he staggered to his feet. His glowing eyes sliced through the darkness, peering into her soul.

The word “soon” drifted to her in the breeze. She shivered, and in the span of a heartbeat, he disappeared. The hounds whimpered, wandering off into the woods, trailing their master.