Page 72 of The Forsaken Heir

Freddy bounded toward us and leaped through the air, catching the wrist of another guard before he could fire his gun. The guard shifted without hesitation, and a new fight began. Two more wolves emerged, snapping at Freddy’s hind legs.

Too many , I thought, as I rushed to catch Carlisle. Way too many .

Carlisle was at the van door, his fingers scrambling at the handle, blood still dripping from his chin.

I leaped and slammed my foot into the back of one of the wolves attacking Freddy, using him as a springboard to launch myself through the air, tackling Carlisle right when he swung the van door open.

My shoulder slammed into his chest, and we both fell backward onto the ground.

Carlisle kicked me away, knocking the wind from me for a second. He got to his feet and glared down at me.

“Jumped-up fucking lizard bitch,” he said, swiping the blood on his chin away with the back of his wrist. “We’ll see how good you are now.”

He half-shifted and leered at me with yellow eyes, saliva dripping from jagged teeth. He raised his clawed fingers and beckoned me forward.

“Come on,” he snarled.

My dragon roared in defiance, power surged forth from within, but I still couldn’t shift, not even halfway. I had my claws and teeth, but not much else. I might as well have been a human with a pocket knife trying to fight this monster.

Behind me, the sounds of fighting were dying down. Had the others been taken? Killed? Who knew. This was my last stand. I’d either fight my way through this gigantic werewolf and make a run for it, or I’d die right here.

“Let’s go, you son of a bitch,” I hissed, flexing my claws.

Carlisle’s wolfish face twisted into an approximation of a grin. He opened his mouth to reveal the wicked fangs that would probably soon tear my flesh from my bones.

He stopped suddenly, eyes narrowing in confusion.

Turning, he looked up into the night sky behind him.

He hadn’t even gotten his head fully turned when a red-hot jet of flame burst out of the sky, sending torrents of orange fingers of fire cascading around his body, engulfing him.

His howls of agony echoed through the night sky.

I stared at him as he thrashed around, bellowing out his death throes, until he finally collapsed in a smoking, burned ruin. An instant later, my heart soared as the familiar screeching call of Vince’s dragon shattered the air.

He landed a few feet from me, the earth shuddering at the impact of his body.

More gunfire opened up behind me, and when I turned, I saw Rasp flying by, pelting the security team with flames.

Delphine was holding onto Rasp’s back for dear life.

I whirled back around to Vincent, barely daring to hope.

Elle slid off my friend’s back and ran toward me. I shifted my hands and teeth back, sprinting to meet her. Was this a dream? Had I died, and this was heaven? If so, I could think of worse places to end up.

A venom-laced voice at the back of my mind whispered that this really might be a dream. Another fantasy my mind created while Bastien tortured me.

“Aurelius,” she cried as she slammed into me and wrapped her arms around my neck. “Are you okay?”

“I’m good now,” I murmured into her hair. “Now that you’re here.” She was here. She was real. I was free.

I pressed my lips to hers, tasting her, making sure she was really real . She sank into me, clutching my back as her mouth moved against mine. All of this was worth it. I’d have done it all again as long as I ended up having her in my arms.

“Aurelius, let’s move,” Julian said, rushing to my side, blood oozing from a cut above his eyebrow.

“Back up,” Elle cried, yanking her lips from mine and pulling her fist back to slug the man.

I caught her wrist before she could strike him. “He’s a friend, Elle. A friend.”

Julian’s eyes were wide, staring at Elle’s cocked fist. He gave her a faint smile. “Yeah. Friends. Can we get your prince out of here? Get him the rest of the help he needs?”

Elle’s face softened, and her arm dropped to her side. “Okay. Yeah.”

Rasp and Delphine hobbled over, Rasp in his human form, Freddy between them. The younger Laurent looked much worse for wear. His face was a mask of blood, and the other two had to help him walk.

He looked up at me, his face crumpled in heartbroken sorrow.

“Nicolas didn’t make it,” he said as he spat blood on the ground. “Shot.”

“Oh my god,” Julian said.

Freddy winced and adjusted his grip on Rasp’s shoulder, holding himself upright. “We’ve got to go. Now. Your friends here took out most of the security, but I think one or two got away. They’ll be running for the nearest guard shack.”

“Let’s move,” I said, “Take the van.”

The six of us piled into one of the vans. Rasp hopped into the driver seat, revved the engine and took off, the tires screeching.

Exhaustion weighed me down. I couldn’t recall ever being this tired. It must have shown, because Elle nudged my shoulder and urged me to lie down.

“Rest. It’s okay. We’re getting out of here,” she whispered. “We’ve got you.”

I rested my head on her thighs as my heavy eyelids slid shut. It almost felt like I’d taken a sleeping potion. Before I slipped into unconsciousness, she whispered to me, her voice light and breathy as she ran her hands through my hair. “It’s all right. You’re safe. We’ve got you.”