Page 19

JACOB

here is nothing that can describe the fear I feel. My mind is frantic, and my heart aches with every beat it makes. Sofia is gone, and so is Izzy.

The forest seems bigger than I ever remember. Searching for any sign of Izzy, I run my eyes scanning every detail. Sofia is clever to hide her tracks with magic. There is no way of knowing which way they went, but we keep looking. Sofia needs her alive for a trade, so I hold on for a small fragment of hope.

Jona is flying above, and Adrian has a few of his men scouting the forest. My fingers trembling and my chest feeling like it will implode on itself, I pause and look around. Logically, I understand that to think clearly, I need to calm down. It’s proving to be impossible with Izzy’s life on the line. The trees are towering over me, taunting – they know where she is but will not tell me.

I swallow a hard lump and look at the grassy ground. A few small daisies are scattered throughout, and I immediately think about Izzy; she would know the fancy scientific name for them.

My brows come together when I notice that a few of them are broken. Leaning in, I follow the ones that appear as if they have been stepped on. My heart hammers in my chest as I look around the space. Scanning the area, I look for more of the same. There aren’t many of them, but there is a clear path.

Izzy!

Moving as fast as I can, with my eyes on the ground, the pungent smell of blood has me stopping and then running with all my might. The scent of iron is fresh and strong, making my mind fuzzy.

Not Izzy . My stomach squeezes and my heart pounds.

“Take her body. We might still be able to save that little bitch,” a tall man growls at a few others.

Breathing heavily, I stop when I see a group of vampires tying Sofia. Then, my eyes drop to the ground. Izzy’s body is sprawled among the grass and daisies, blood pooling around her. My chest feels like a mountain is sitting on it. I manage a shallow breath in, and everything turns red.

My heart tears to shreds at the sight. My fists ball and scorching fire rushes through my veins. It burns me from the inside. I don’t care. I will turn this forest to ash if I have to. Anything to save her.

“Let your power free, young one,” Tengu growls inside my mind. “Let them feel the wrath of love.”

Something snaps inside of me, shattering any control I have over my rage. I march towards the group of vampires. Passing the trees, flames dance around me, and I aim for the first body I see. The heads of my enemies turn to stare at me, their eyes wide.

“Fuck. Hurry up,” Victor says in the background, and I turn my head towards him.

A bald, bulky man kneels next to Izzy, ready to pick her up. No one dares lay a hand on her! I lunge at him, throwing my body at his. We tumble and he screams, the smell of burning flesh filling my nose, charring his skin and clothing.

My mind solely on Izzy, I slam my hand through his chest. Muscle and bone scrape past my hand as I grip his heart. Squeezing the smooth muscles, I rip at it, pulling it out of his body. The vampire gasps. With his mouth open, his eyes freeze on the spot.

I toss the heart aside and let Tengu free. Jumping to my feet, I stomp towards Victor, who now stands by Izzy. One of his men runs at me from the side, but I extend my hand, never letting Victor out of my sight. As if with a magnetic pull, the vampire's chest explodes, muscle chunks flying at me.

I never got to experience the full range of my power until today. I was always too afraid to lose control. The sensation is incredible – I feel unstoppable. A few more attack me. I kill them all, the high of invincibility growing. Victor does not move, his eyes firmly set on me.

“You can’t save her without me,” Victor growls, bearing his teeth.

A lie. I don’t react to his words as I close the distance between us. Victor looks around, andthe next thing I know, he is running at vampire speed. Everything slows down. I can see his movements clearly, so I move in front of him with ease and do the same thing I did to his men. My fingers wrapped around his rotten heart, his eyes wide in shock.

“I only wish Izzy was awake to see this.” I pull my hand out of his chest cavity.

He falls to the ground with a thump, crimson seeping out of him. As much as I want to see him suffer, I am running out of time.

“Izzy.” I drop to the ground, cradling her shoulders. “Stay with me.”

Her body is limp in my arms, but there is still life in her. There is still hope. With blurry eyes, I concentrate on healing her. My head is splitting in two, and every muscle in me hurts, but my efforts are not making a difference.

“Jacob, my baby boy.” Sofia’s voice nears me. “I need her heart. There is so much power in it.” She runs over, her long hair a mess and eyes wide.

She can’t be serious!

With my teeth grinding and jaw clenched, I grab her throat and squeeze. Choking, she claws at my arm. I can’t seem to stop myself from strangling her – I want to see life leave her body.

She should’ve run.

“I’m your mother…” she barely croaks out.

“No.” I twist my hand to the side, fingers digging into her skin harder, and her spine cracks. I feel nothing as I watch her body dangle in my grasp. “Tengu, she’s yours.” I do not want to take any chances with her.

Tengu hovers over Sofia, his claws digging into her skin. Quelching sounds follow as I turn my attention to Izzy. My knees weaken at the sight of her. There is a blade in her hand and a hole in her abdomen. Blood surrounds her, but I take her shoulders and bring her close to me.

“Izzy, baby. I need you to fight. Right now, more than ever.” My hands shake as Ibrush bloody fingers along her face.

She is still in there – I can sense the small flicker of life. Or maybe it is my denial. My skin feels like it’s on fire, hurting me as I try to heal her again. No matter how much of my power I push into her, she remains the same. Shutting my eyes from the pain in my skull, I keep trying.

I can’t lose her.

“Shit. Shit.” I hear Jona’s voice in the background. I can’t make myself look away from her, afraid I will miss a movement. “Jacob, move.” Jona pushes me away hurriedly. He takes her head out of my trembling ones into his. “She’s still warm. There is a chance.”

A chance. I cling to those words.

“All right, Isabella. Just like we practiced.” Jona closes his eyes, his fingers on both sides of her temple. “Find where it hurts,” he says and pauses. The silence seems to stretch for hours as I wait. “No. You can do it.”

She is still in there. Hope blooms, and I hold my breath as I watch her pale face.

Helpless, I fight through the searing pain crawling under my skin, making me want to crawl out of my own body. Izzy needs me, I have to stay strong.