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As he’d expected, the Hunters hadn’t left.

The soft sound of a twang pierced through the noise from below.

Julian sprinted right as he registered the shooter’s location. Though he’d dodged with vampire speed, the arrow grazed him. Stinging pain shot up his arm before the skin healed over.

Silver.

He moved lightning-fast to the building where the projectile had come from. The Hunter had done a fantastic job masking himself among the other people in the building, but he revealed his location the moment he fired.

More shots were fired, the arrows glinting silver in the moonlight, but with a single shooter, they were a joke to dodge. A lone Hunter was easy prey for vampires. They knew that, which was why they always ran in packs.

Fangs bared, Julian knocked the stupid crossbow out of the Hunter’s hands. The man threw a punch at him, which Julian avoided with ease. The Hunters may have been genetically engineered to be stronger and faster, but they were still human. This one may have had a chance with a new vamp, but it was his bad luck that he ran afoul of Julian.

Julian extended his claws and slashed open the man’s jugular. The Hunter’s eyes widened, clearly not expecting things to be over so quickly. Blood spurted out of his wound as he fell to the ground, clutching at his neck. At the scent of blood, hunger roared its ugly head, made overwhelming by Julian’s insatiable lust for Leah’s blood.

Drink, feed,his vampire whispered insidiously.

Julian snarled at the frenzied urge. He hadn’t drunk from his enemies for centuries. He found taking blood from unwilling donors abhorrent. As much as he hated the Hunters, he would not drink from a dying man.

Five more Hunters arrived and saved him from his internal battle, including the two he’d spotted on the street below. They surrounded him, with one at each corner of the roof.

“Tsk. We’re too late,” the woman Hunter said.

“Serves him right. He should’ve waited for us.”

For whatever reason, the one on the roof had decided to shoot instead of waiting for his companions. Perhaps the dead man thought he’d had the advantage of surprise and could’ve taken down Julian by himself.

“Forget it. He’s dead,” another one said. “Now let’s kill the vamp.”

Julian pinned his gaze on the Hunter that looked like the leader. “Before we start, were you the ones stupid enough to blow up the Tower?”

“And if we did?” No hint of fear or excitement like the others. Just cold detachment.Interesting.

“I suppose you won’t tell me if there is another bomb in my city, will you?”

The group around him laughed. “You’re right. We won’t.”

Julian moved without warning, his target, the Hunter closest to him. Prepared, the large man ducked Julian’s sharp claws and raised his gun. Julian kicked it out of his hand. That split second gave the other Hunters enough time to react. Several shots rang out. Julian dodged but hissed when one bullet lodged in his right shoulder.

He fucking hated silver. No more playing. Shutting out the searing pain, Julian settled into that deep place inside him, where it was all about survival, nothing else.

The Hunter he’d attacked had moved back, joining the others. Julian hadn’t considered it before the fight but decided on the spot to keep one of them alive to interrogate. He sprinted right, evaded the female Hunter, and leaped to another roof. As planned, the Hunters gave chase and lost their cohesiveness.

Julian maintained a speed that made it hard for the Hunters to simultaneously shoot and chase, but not too fast that they would lose him. The two females were quicker than the others and stayed on his heels. Julian’s goal was a building two blocks away, where the roof had plenty of cover.

A whoosh sounded behind him. He glanced back to see a whip flying through the air. That was new. Julian caught it in mid-air with his hand and snarled when his skin burned with agony.

Silver again. He should’ve known.

The Hunter who’d thrown the whip looked shocked that he’d caught it. When she recovered and tugged, Julian didn’t budge. Did she think her meager strength could move him?

Julian tugged back, lifting the woman off her feet and swinging her into the other female Hunter, who fired a shot. He grunted when the bullet slammed into his chest, way too close to his heart for comfort. Julian released the whip as the two female Hunters screamed and tumbled off the building’s edge.

When he landed on the roof he had aimed for, he hid behind one of the entrances shrouded in total darkness. The three remaining Hunters caught up a few seconds later, looking for him.

“He’s here somewhere,” the leader warned. “Be careful.”

The Hunters turned their backs against each other and searched as a group. Smart. Julian prowled after them soundlessly, trying to decide which one he wanted to keep alive.