24

aying on Demetrius’ bed, Evonne’s eyes opened to see him gazing out the darkened window. Though sunset was an hour ago, he allowed her to sleep until she was ready to wake on her own.
“It will be a while before we head out,” he said, watching the quiet forest. “I want to make sure he’s waiting for me.”
Evonne couldn’t pick up anything beyond his words. It was a sign of the weakening bond.
“What’s your plan?” she asked.
“Kill him, of course,” he replied, nonchalantly.
“And you think the others will stand by and just watch?”
“If they help their Alpha, he will see himself as too weak to even take on one vampire. And his pride is too great for that.” He left the window to sit on the bed beside her. “You need to have no fear tonight, no second guessing. When I give you a command, you will need to follow it without hesitation.”
“I can’t go up against a werewolf. I already know how that will pan out.”
Demetrius looked down as he took her hand into his, his fingers working their way in between hers. “You have more strength than you are aware of,” he said. “These delicate hands can do much more if you allow them.”
Though his inner thoughts were absent to Evonne, she could still sense the confidence he carried for her, and even his wish to reinforce their bond. Without instruction, she turned her head. She felt the weight on the bed shift as he lowered himself to her, his mouth on her neck and teeth in her skin. Like the times before, Demetrius took plenty of her blood, leaving her head struggling for any solid thought. As he left her she found herself at his neck, his blood refilling her body.
Evonne saw this act as a way of blurring their bodies into one entity, a connection blending them in near equal strength and power. But throughout all of this, her mind was never a servant to his.
She felt Demetrius move from her, his lips on hers as it was he who kissed her this time. Evonne didn’t stop him. She could have gone beyond kissing him and have no remorse for her actions. Demetrius saw this as well.
He pulled away. Oh, how he would have loved to take this further, but other matters where more important this night.
“I need to speak with Philip before we head out,” he said as he left her side. “He’ll be in danger tonight.”
“What about David?”
“He’s not here. He is afraid that we’ll come after him.”
Evonne scoffed. “So he runs and leaves his grandfather behind.” Typical.
Easing herself from the bed, she followed Demetrius from the room. Her mind was once again open to him, a feeling she could never grow tired of. He led her into a section of the house set aside for Philip. He knocked lightly on the door.
Philip answered.
Demetrius spoke, his words cutting to the heart of matter. “It isn’t safe for you to stay here tonight.”
“And the reason?”
“Lukas wishes to speak with me. I don’t want them to use you as a means to harm Gabriel.”
Philip thought for a moment. “I think some friends of mine are waiting for me at the pub.”
“Good. I’ll expect you home at dawn.”
The human left the doorway to grab his coat and keys. Demetrius and Evonne followed him to the front door and waited as he got into his car and disappeared down the long driveway.
Demetrius closed the door and offered his hand to Evonne.
“Let’s go find Lukas, shall we?”
A smile fell on Evonne as she took his hand. She didn’t want to admit it, but the anticipation for tonight’s main event filled her with excitement.

No fire was lit in the clearing this night. Demetrius and Evonne stood by the circle of scorched rocks and waited. Evonne easily picked up on the wolves as they drew near. No apprehension or nervousness found her. She was ready for anything.
The wolves appeared around the edge of the clearing, some shifting into their beast forms, while the others remained on all fours, ready in case the vampires decided to run. As Evonne looked at each werewolf, Demetrius kept his eyes one certain wolf.
The wolf stepped forward, his form blending into that of a human, yet retaining a wild appearance: hands clawed, teeth sharp, and gold eyes glaring.
Demetrius was the first to speak. “You wish to—”
“I wish nothing from you but your head and heart,” Lukas sneered.
Demetrius glanced at Evonne. “I told you you’d be safe.”
“She is free to leave.”
“We killed the humans,” he pointed out in a carefree tone. “We are both faced with this same ‘crime,’ as you’re calling it.”
“I doubt she was the mastermind behind this.”
“But she is still guilty.”
Evonne could see Lukas’ thoughts as he spoke. He was afraid that Gabriel’s little girl, witnessing dismemberment of the monster at her side, would run off to tell only vampire he truly feared.
Lukas turned to Brice. “Take her away from here.”
Brice, in human form, headed for Evonne.
“You think her absence will shield Gabriel from the truth?” said Demetrius, the first hints of his anger showing. Brice stopped and listened as the vampire continued speaking. “My boy is smarter than that. You know he allows you to believe this fantasy of yours, and that he refuses to waste any time dealing with you. Lukas, my dear pup, you’re just not worth the silver it would take.”
The words were enough to send Lukas into action. He began to growl as his form shifted, his body towering in fur, muscle, and rage. Under Demetrius’ silent request, Evonne moved away. Brice, too, saw the impending attack and backed up.
Lukas charged for the vampire, swinging his claws. The attack was met with air as the vampire seemingly disappeared before him. He sensed the vampire now behind him and swung around, this time catching him across the chest. The vampire retreated slowly, his eyes locked on the werewolf.
Evonne heard the silent command from Demetrius telling her to run back to the house. Without questioning him, she bolted from the clearing. Lukas turned his attention to the other wolves and growled. Half of the pack began to run after Evonne. His plans had changed. He wanted them both dead.
“I come here unarmed,” Demetrius taunted, “and this is how you play?”
Lukas ran toward the vampire once more.

It was an odd feeling being on the other end of a chase. Evonne’s legs carried her swiftly over the forest’s tricky floor. The excitement and thrill almost became too great for her. Her arms and legs felt like jelly as she pushed her speed to its limits. The distance between her and the werewolves grew. She thought they were faster than this.
Evonne sensed Demetrius close in as he ran beside her. His body shown more claw marks from the brief fight with Lukas. She couldn’t see his plan in all of this, or even if he had a plan to begin with. But his calm demeanor held strong.
The rain began to fall. By the time they reached Gabriel’s workshop, the sky unleashed in a heavy downpour. Demetrius stopped to face the woods. Evonne stayed at his side.
“We really need some guns right now,” she said.
“Our hands will be enough,” he calmly replied.
The wolves emerged from the forest and circled them once more. Lukas ran past the others, his full wolf form returning to his beast appearance. His attacks came faster this time. Evonne backed up and watched the two fight. Demetrius remained on the defensive as Lukas slashed him over and over. The vampire managed to sneak in a few hits, but they were mainly used to anger the wolf even further.
There was a sense of boredom rising within Demetrius. He was ready to end this. Throwing his hands to Lukas’ face, he dug his thumbs into his eyes. The wolf recoiled at the pain and began to claw at the vampire’s face and chest. Demetrius didn’t yield. He dug his thumbs in deeper, releasing the eyes from their sockets. He then ripped the eyes away, crushing them as he did.
Lukas let out a shrill of a roar and struggled to continue the fight. Demetrius avoided the erratic attacks, stepping from side to side, almost ridiculing him with each movement.
Another wolf ran forward, this one charging for Evonne. The beast slammed its body into her, catching the vampire off guard. Thrown to the ground, Evonne looked up to see the wolf’s mouth agape and heading for her throat. She threw her hand up, feeding the wolf her arm instead. The wolf thrashed its head, its teeth tearing through skin and muscle as they struck bone. Evonne used her free hand to grab at the soft underside of the werewolf’s jaw. Her fingers clamped on and tore through its skin, the deep wound threatening to sever its windpipe.
The wolf released Evonne’s arm and pinned her hands. Still not giving up, Evonne pushed herself upward, her teeth attempting to finish what her hand started. She never used her teeth like this before, but the action felt natural. The wolf retreated as it fought to breath. But the damage wasn’t enough. The wolf’s body was already beginning to heal itself.
Evonne lunged for the wolf, her hands at the gaping wound, fingers tearing deep. The wolf struggled to free itself from the vampire, but its irritating hands kept returning. With pleading eyes, the wolf looked at its fellow pack members.
The wolves kept their distance.
Evonne forced the werewolf’s weakened body to the ground and sent her teeth back to its neck. As she opened the wound further, the wolf’s claws dug at the vampire, ripping at anything: her clothes, skin, and scalp, all slicing with ease. Yet the vampire didn’t budge. The wolf’s strength began to subside as the vampire started to feed.
Demetrius stood by a disheveled Lukas. The werewolf crouched on the wet ground, his head low and breathing heavy. His eye sockets were beginning to heal. In time his body would regenerate new eyes, but the process took several weeks.
The wolf under Evonne groaned as it still pleaded for help.
Demetrius whispered to Lukas, “Do you hear that?”
The Alpha lifted his head in the direction of the sound.
“Your wife is dying,” he informed, “taken down by a vampire not even a month old.”
Lukas lunged for the vampire. Demetrius backed up, easily avoiding the attack. The wolf returned to his crouching position.
Looking at the scene, Demetrius addressed the remaining wolves.
“He is no longer your Alpha. And she—,” he said, looking at the wolf underneath Evonne, “is no longer your Alpha. Your pack has been rotting from the inside out. Anyone here wish to dispute this?”
The wolves didn’t move.
Demetrius looked down at the blind wolf. He placed a hand under the beast’s muzzle and forced him to stand.
“Lukas…” the vampire said.
Before the wolf could attack, Demetrius swung his hand, catching him in the throat. The strike tore deep into his neck, stopping before severing his spine. The wolf landed on his side. His body fought for any gulp of air. His hands then grasped at the soggy ground as he attempted to escape.
Rolling him over, Demetrius went for his neck, his mouth at the gaping wound, drinking feverishly.
The wolves standing around the scene turned away as they walked back into the woods. Two wolves remained; one was Brice, the other was his wife. Brice remained within his beastly skin as he sat before his fallen leader, looking more like an obedient dog.
Evonne loved how long werewolves stayed alive. The one underneath her refused to die. It didn’t matter how quick she drank. Even with her hunger soothed, she wanted to take all she could.
Finally, the wolf’s heart stopped.
Evonne heard someone approach. She lifted her head and saw a werewolf standing before her. She backed away as the wolf gathered her fallen leader into her arms. The wolf then carried the body into the woods. Evonne’s attention turned to Demetrius, still taking his fill of the wolf in his arms. She swam within his own delight as he took in Lukas’ blood. Just like her, he loved the taste of wolves.
The night was executed perfectly. Even though Demetrius brought the final battle here, the silver inside the workshop acted only as a precaution. Demetrius wasn’t that bold enough to face an entire pack without a backup plan.
Leaving the dead wolf, Demetrius stood and watched Brice move in. The werewolf picked up Lukas’ body and returned to the woods.
Stepping to Demetrius’ side, Evonne sensed the wolves slowly dispersing throughout the forest. The pack’s next course of action wasn’t of any concern to them. They were merely the scalpel used to remove the cancer. If the essence of the pack remained untainted, then healing would be quick.
“Now,” Demetrius said, “when Gabriel asks you about our time together, what do we say?”
Without hesitating, Evonne replied, “The truth.”
He smiled. “That’s a good girl.”

In Roland’s home, Gabriel sat with his host and a several others from the Summet Pack. The idle conversation was interrupted by a young man who scurried into the room and over to Roland. He tried to keep his voice low, but the news was too much for him to air on the side of discretion.
“Lukas Grayson is dead.”
Everyone in the room listened intently.
“What happened?” asked Roland.
Shaking his head, the kid answered, “I wasn’t given many details, but his wife was also killed. They said it was the work of two vampires.”
Roland looked at Gabriel. “Anyone you know?”
Dropping his head into his hand, Gabriel rubbed away the tension that bubbled forth. He knew of only one person who could be so audacious.
Gabriel finally spoke. “I no longer need to stay here until Friday, do I?”
Roland shrugged. “I guess not. I’ll have someone drive you back at sunset.”

No one greeted Gabriel as he returned to the house. He carried his bags to his room where he began to unpack. He was glad to be home.
“News must travel fast,” Gabriel heard Demetrius say as he stood in the doorway.
“You’ve been busy,” he acknowledged, placing the last of his clothes in the dresser drawer.
“It needed to be done. And your stance on the matter was painfully clear.”
“And Evonne?”
“Lukas was my kill. She handled the other one on her own. Quite impressive actually.”
Gabriel looked at him. This wasn’t the Evonne he knew. “What did you do to her?”
“Opened her eyes.”
That was the reason he couldn’t sense her when he returned. The fading link between them ended as Demetrius shared his blood with her.
Gabriel sat the bags under the bed. “Where is she?”
“In the attic. I had to strengthen her before the fight. You may want to sever her bond with me or she may see something you’re trying to hide.”
“Thank you for watching over her for me.”
Demetrius nodded. “I’ll be in my room if you need me.” He left the doorway and returned to his bedroom.
Gabriel decided to get back to work instead of informing Evonne of his arrival. Half of his decision was out of his initial plan to grant her some space. And the other half… Having one intuitive like Demetrius around was enough, but two? He couldn’t even begin to imagine having a conversation with the both of them.
For now, the workshop was the safest place for him.

“You’re back.”
Gabriel turned to see Evonne standing by the open door to the workshop. So much for his plan in avoiding her.
“A result of Demetrius stunt last night,” he said, continuing to reheat the forge.
“Why aren’t you mad?”
“Should I be?” he asked, keeping to the truth.
“If you find it funny, then you should laugh.”
He held his attention on the fire. “Oh, it’s entertaining, I’ll give it that.”
Evonne saw what he really wanted. But he was in here, distracting himself as an attempt to keep his distance.
“Why stop yourself?” she dared.
“I don’t think it’s right to outwardly express humor at all that has happened.”
“I’m not talking about that.”
Gabriel’s eyes finally rested on her. He couldn’t talk his way out of this one. Demetrius could have easily shielded this ability from her, but he seemed determined to help Evonne see the truth hidden within her sire. And he was tired of hiding.
Gabriel abandoned the fire and walked over to Evonne, his hands to her face as he pulled her close, his lips on hers. He felt her arms pull him close, pressing her body to his, wanting what he wanted. He stopped to look at her, brushing her hair from her face. He then took her hand and led her to the back room, a place set aside for the days he would sleep in the shop. Inside the windowless room, they continued kiss, pulling away every now and then as they fought to undress.