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“Bastard!” Valen takes off running, his steps thunderous.

“Oh, shit.” The vampire chuckles. “I think he’s—Fuck!”

Valen propels himself from the roof, his body rising impossibly high and fast.

The vampire holding me jerks me against him and I feel his muscles flex as his wings push against the air, but he’s not fast enough. Valen wrenches me from the vampire, his arms going around me, and then we’re plummeting to the dark street.

I scream, my throat going raw at the sheer terror ripping from my lungs as we drop.

We land hard, my entire body jarred with the impact. The scream finally dies, and I open my eyes. Valen has me in his arms, his feet on the ground. Cracks radiate from the pavement.

“Are you all right?” He sets me down and runs his hands along my body, feeling and probing. “Does it hurt? Is anything broken?”

It takes a moment for my voice to come back. “I think—” I swallow to help the scratchiness in my throat. “I think I’m okay.”

“Are you certain, my Blood?”

“Um.” I shake out my arms. “Yeah.”

“I was just having a little fu?—”

Valen disappears again, too fast for my eye to track. I spin when I hear a wrecking ball. Dust plumes from the side of one of the buildings across the street.

I back away until I bump into the curb and almost fall on my ass.

Valen’s voice comes from the wreckage. He’s speaking in a foreign language, but I get the gist quite well without understanding the words. He’s going to kill the vampire with the wings.

The other vampire argues back, then both of them walk out of the dust toward me.

I stumble backwards, unsure of what’s going on.

“It’s all right,” Valen calls.

“Is it?” I stare at the other vampire, his wings folded behind him. Tall with black hair and deep brown skin, he’s huge, and he’s coming straight for me.

Valen’s at my side in a single moment, his arm going around my waist. The other vampire stops and bows low, his black wings webbed like a bat’s and each tipped with a single claw.

“Corvidion?” I ask, breath trembling.

“This is Coal,” Valen glowers at the other vampire. “He’s your transport to the ship.”

I look up at Valen. “When you said I was going to fly from DC, you meant—” I snap my gaze back to Coal. “You meant fly as inhe’sgoing to fly me?”

“I’m sorry about before.” Coal points to the sky, his eyes a deep amber. “I didn’t realize you were Valen’s?—”

“Don’t utter it.” Valen’s gone tense.

“Right.” Coal bows again. “My apologies, mistress.”

“It’s Georgia.” I scoot closer to Valen. “And it’s okay, I think. Just maybe give me some warning next time you want me to use my frequent flyer miles?”

“Of course.” He grins and looks at Valen. “I like this one.”

A low growl ripples from Valen. “She’smine.”

“Not challenging it.” Coal holds up his hands, palms toward us. “Go easy, V.”

“Can we get off the street?” I scan the dark sky, wondering what else might be waiting for us.