Page 40 of Bloodbane

CHAPTER FORTY

A Show of Strength

{ T H A Y N E }

Eirik slams into me in his rush to the door. I wrap my hand around his wrist and tug back harshly. Without a word, Layla and Landon grab Eirik’s other arm, helping me slow his progress.

“No! Stop! You can’t help her now.”

He jerks forward once more, and it takes every ounce of our combined strength to keep him this side of the door—three sets of feet skidding forward over the floor under the effort. I don’t know what’s happening to Ruby, but I know what will happen to Eirik if he goes outside now, with the sun directly above and no storm to diffuse the light. My stomach clenches violently at the thought.

“You’re no good to anyone as a pile of ash,” I bark at him before lowering my voice. “Stay here. You’ve saved her twice, it’s my turn. Trust me, Eirik. I won’t let anything happen to her.”

Eirik’s body is still vibrating with barely contained momentum, but he stops struggling. The twins’ hands fall away quickly. I give a hard squeeze before releasing him and speeding from the room, praying Eirik will wait and that I be able to keep my promise.

My eyes sweep over the scene before me as I sprint from the house. The sight of Ruby—on her knees in the snow, trembling violently, head bowed—is enough to make my feet falter. I spit out a curse as I find my footing again, picking up the pace, heading toward Ash—half-crouched in a defensive position in front of Ruby, facing off against the line of lycans just inside the fence line. The sight of the wolves assembled in daylight knocks the breath from me.

Believing such a thing is possible is one thing, but seeing it on full display is quite another. Suddenly, my earlier bravado about our odds seems stupid.

The only one on two legs is a mountain of a man, bald but with a graying beard, the tattoos etched into his face beginning to bleed out under the skin from age. No doubt once a rigid figure, he’s now stooped a little at the shoulders, but the malice in his eyes is undimmed. He’s flanked by two wolves I don’t recognize and four wolves I do: Samson, Edward, Zephyr, and Hale. Four of my former pack. Deserters now loyal to Arlo.

I’m not particularly close with them nor overly fond of them. Outliers with Arlo, they had preferred to stick to the fringes. Still, we had hunted as a pack, lived together, and run together under the moon. They had been my family. Now, they’re a threat to it.

“I am Evander Draven.” The proclamation is dripping with self-importance. He pauses, calculating eyes raking over my face for a flicker of recognition, frowning when I don’t so much as twitch. “I’ve come for my omega.”

The acrid scent of fear burns sharper as Ruby’s pulse increases, her heart all but beating out of her chest.

“She’s not your property, but you are trespassing on mine. You weren’t invited and you’re sure as hell not welcome. You and your pack need to leave.”

“This doesn’t have to get unpleasant,” Draven’s greasy words slide out from between curved lips. “Just hand over the bitch, and none of your pack will be harmed. You have my word.”

Draven’s refusal to call Ruby by name, treating her like an object, a prize, sets my teeth on edge. I would die before handing Ruby over to this monster.

“Ruby’s not going anywhere.”

“ Ruby? ” Draven scoffs incredulously, shifting his attention to Ruby, cowering at his feet. “Still telling lies, Arianella? You know, I’ve spent many years and considerable wealth to track you down, but if you come home without a fuss, you’ll be the only one punished—no need to sacrifice what’s left of your friend’s pack.”

At Ruby’s whimper, my hands curl into fists but I hold my ground. Rushing in without a plan will lead to chaos and casualties. Still, it takes all my control to not punch the patronizing smirk right off the bastard’s face and keep going until he’s nothing but a bloody smear in the snow. I want to make this cruel, pathetic excuse for a man pay for every pain he’s ever inflicted on Ruby.

My eyes dart over the seven lycans spread out before me, sizing them up. If it’s intended as a show of strength meant to intimidate and bully us into handing Ruby over, they would have brought more: Arlo and Rollins** and however many Draven has with him. No, they haven’t come for show, they’ve come to fight… and brought just as many as Draven is willing to sacrifice.

My heart speeds up in my chest, now keeping pace with the echo of Ruby’s thundering in my ears. We’re outmatched in number and strength, and the sun is too high and bright for Eirik to be of any use out here. We’ve lost the advantage but we can’t lose the cause—Ruby must get inside, to safety. I need to buy enough time to allow Ash to get Ruby into the house where Eirik can protect them.

“Ruby is my pack now, and we will fight to protect her if it comes to it. If there are losses, they will be on both sides. Are you willing to lay your life on the line to try and take her by force?”

Draven’s composure slips for a moment, but then an ugly sneer curls his lips and deadens his eyes. “Ahh, you’ve already had a taste of her, is that it? Got your knot wet and now—”

I growl a warning as I take a step forward, but Ruby reaches back, clamping a hand around my wrist, squeezing.

“Thayne, don’t. Please. ”

It’s the desperation in Ruby’s voice that gives me pause. Clinging to the vestiges of my self-restraint, I step back as Draven’s guffawing fills the air.

“Oh, would you look at that, boys. I haven’t seen such a whipped alpha since Ruby’s father let himself be led around by the knot like some lovesick pup.” Draven smiles coldly. “Shame, I would have liked to have done this without a fuss, but I can’t say it’s all bad—the bitch always did look better with a few marks branding her skin.”

The hairs on the back of my neck arch up. The shift in the air is palpable. The faux-geniality of moments ago is gone—Draven’s true nature now laid bare.

“ Ash, take Ruby into the house and lock the door. Stay inside. ”

I give the Command a split second before the wolves draw back on their haunches like the cocking of a gun. The frustrated growl behind me, along with Ruby’s shouted objections, fills the tense beat of anticipation before the wolves spring forward.

My hand closes around grey fur, grabbing the tail of the wolf—Samson—attempting to rush past me on the left, halting his momentum at the same time I kick a leg out to knock the wolf to my right off course. The third lycan, Zephyr, charges straight at my chest. She leaps and lands hard, knocking the air from my lungs as I hit the ground.

She lunges at my face, teeth bared. Instinctively, I raise my forearm, shoving it deep between the open jaws, all the way back to the hinges. The move seems to confuse Zephyr. She whines, pulling back, and sharp teeth scrape over my broken skin in reverse. Samson’s razor claws slash at my other arm, sending warm blood spilling free and soaking into the cold snow below. Black lips pull up as he snarls. Red gums and white fangs snap closed an inch from my face as Samson tries to break free. But my hand around his tail tightens and jerks when teeth sink into my calf. My shout of pain echoes Samson’s as he lunges at me again. I roll just in time, and the pointed peaks sink into my shoulder instead of my neck.

I raise my free leg and bring my boot down hard on Zephyr’s head, again and again, even as I grab Samson’s muzzle in my hands and try to wrench it from my shoulder. Blood-slicked fingers curl down, digging into the bastard’s gums. They slip on the first try but find purchase on the second, and long teeth slide from my body chased by a crimson rush. A roar punches from my throat as I twist the head in my hands. The crack of bones floods me with sick satisfaction. I drop the carcass into the snow.

Like wind through grass, a ripple sweeps through the fur as it recedes, and the wolf shrinks and contorts until there’s nothing but Samson’s naked body—chest down, head staring up at the sky.

I shove the corpse away just as Zephyr shakes her head, jaws still clamped around my calf, cleaving muscle from bone. My agonized howl swallows the sound of tearing flesh.

The impact against my back catches me off guard, driving my face into the snow. The frozen ground muffles my pain as teeth pierce into my side. Agony rips through me as more sink into my thigh, and tear into my left bicep.

I try to push up with my free arm, but the heavy weight on my back traps me on the ground. The rocks hidden beneath their icy cover scrape at my cheek as I drag my face to the side, toward the house. Relief floods my veins. The door is closed: Ruby and Ash made it inside. They’re safe.

Teeth continue to tear into me, and something warm splashes against my face. I watch it drip onto the snow. Blood. My blood. The snow around me is soaked red, bright rivers leading into deep, dark pools. But beyond that, at the edge of my darkening vision, there’s fur.

My arm is leaden as I fling it out toward the blurry shape, stretching my fingers, seeking anything solid. My hand curls around something long and thin. Foreleg, my brain supplies fuzzily. With a harsh twist and pull, the bone snaps. One set of teeth withdraws, followed by a high-pitched whine.

The other jaws tearing at me don’t even pause.

Claws and teeth rip into my body, slicing through skin and shredding the muscle beneath, but there’s no pain now, just pressure and movement as they tear at me, my body jostling on the ground under the onslaught.

A laugh, colder than the snow, rings around me.

Beneath my ribs, my heart is racing, but it feels wrong… empty, hollow. The metallic scent of my life spilling out onto the ground dances in the air. It won’t be long before there’s none left to spill. I need to get up, need to kill the wolves, need to save Ruby. But my body is heavy, and my sluggish brain can’t seem to force my limbs to move. I’m so tired. And cold. I can’t remember the last time I’d been cold. I close my eyes.

Ruby will be okay; she has Eirik. He will protect her and Ash and the twins. Eirik is strong. Stronger than me. Ruby will be okay. They all will…

It’s the laughter dying that drags my eyelids up. It takes several moments for me to realize the weight holding me down is gone. It doesn’t matter; I can’t move my arms, can’t feel my legs. I drag my face to the side with the last of my strength. The world around me is hazy. I blink, but the dark silhouette blocking the sun doesn’t fade.

“Fucking touch him again and you’ll be drained and dead before I’m dust.”

The voice, fierce and familiar, drifts down from above, settling onto my skin like a prayer.

Eirik.

The soft hum of words I can’t make out floats around me, and then Eirik’s icy words slice through the air once more.

“Yes, I would die for him. Can you say the same for them?”

A smoky scent fills the air above me as small, warm hands press against my skin. Ash’s words dance around me, but the meaning is lost in the ringing.

My vision fills with rolling static.

Ice creeps through my veins.

And then…

Darkness.