Ezra
FIVE
The forest was pitch black, and we were surrounded by wraiths on all sides. Even without being able to see them, I knew they were there.
An entire nest, lying in wait for us.
How had they known we were coming? How had they known our plans?
“This isn’t right,” I said to Barrett as he launched himself at a wraith, tearing out its throat with his teeth. “There’s only one being now who can stop them.” His amber eyes met mine, and I knew. “Fuck, B. We have to call them.”
He howled, the sound reverberating through the trees, scattering the wraiths.
The demons were across the clearing from us, taking on a dozen all on their own. Damien’s brother—Zain, the demon king—had arrived shortly after we’d gotten the girls to safety.
Rina’s face, crouched on the ground and clutching her head, kept flashing through my mind. She wasn’t okay.
Something was wrong. And I’d left her.
“Goddamn, you fucking idiot,” I said to myself as I swiped at a wraith with my claws, embedding them into its chest cavity—where a heart should be.
But there was none. They were hardly more than skeletal beings, shrouded in darkness.
How did you kill something that wasn’t even alive?
Unless you’d completely severed their heads from their bodies, they’d regenerate.
“Ezra!” Barrett’s voice rang out. “Behind you!”
I barely had time to react when I was slammed against a tree, a wraith’s face mere inches from mine, poison-dipped nails digging into my skin. They slashed through my side, and I gasped, falling to the ground.
The wound burned, and I could barely lift myself upright through the pain.
Vampires were quick healers, and normally an injury like this wouldn’t do damage—except for the lethal poison. It was the same way they had affected the wards.
“Go,” Barrett ordered. “Don’t risk yourself.”
“Call them,” I growled.
He dipped his head, shifting back into wolf form without another word, keeping the wraiths off me long enough for me to drag my body out of the clearing.
Blood dripped from my skin, not just from my side but in little rivulets on my arms, where the nails had pricked me. My eyesight was hazy, and I bounded in the general direction of Eryne’s house, following the only scent I could.
Like roses and berries, and everything good.
It was all I could focus on.
Somehow, I knew that if I got to that scent, I’d be okay.
“Fuck,” I groaned, pressing the hand deeper to my side, feeling the blood gushing where the wraith’s sharp claws had gotten me. Why did it feel like I was running with my tail between my legs and admitting defeat?
I was supposed to be the strongest vampire, and even I couldn’t stand up to a horde of wraiths alone.
Still, I’d been swarmed, a dozen or more surrounding me, and I knew what would happen if I didn’t heal.
That scent—delicious, mouthwatering scent that I’d followed here—was closer now. Just a little further…
“Oh, gods.”
I looked up, finding a tiny ginger female rushing over to me, her eyes trailing over my body like she was trying to figure out exactly where I was hurt. “What happened to you?”
I groaned. “Ambush.”
She guided me onto a chair on the porch. “Is Barrett okay?” Eryne pulled my hand away, the blood flowing once more without the pressure. I didn’t want her to see the wound, to know just how pathetic I was.
I jerked away when she tried to pull my shirt back. “Don’t,” I warned, baring my teeth.
She frowned. “I can heal you.” Her hands seemed to glow, magic running into them. “It’s my ability, and I—”
I shook my head, cutting her off. “You shouldn’t touch me. Barrett… He’ll be feral.” She was his mate. I could hardly stand being this close to her, considering how much she smelled like him. He’d kill me if I left my scent, my bite, on his unclaimed female.
I knew she didn’t understand from her expression. “Why? You’re hurt. I want to help. Barrett would want me to help his friend, too.”
“No. I need to feed. But… fuck.” I ran my fingers through my hair, not caring if the blood from my hands coated the blond strands. “I can’t feed from you.” I rubbed my forehead. “Besides, your scents are all over each other.”
Her cheeks turned pink. “You can… smell that?”
“Your mate didn’t tell you?”
Eryne’s face transformed, paling as her eyes went wide. “My mate? I don’t…” I watched as the realization dawned on her, as she fit all the pieces together in her head.
Fuck. Barrett still hadn’t told her, even after all the times I’d warned him that he needed to. “You really didn’t know.”
She shook her head. “No.” The word was barely a whisper. She let the blanket that had been wrapped around her shoulder fall off, looking out into the forest.
Towards Barrett. A sob escaped her throat. “My mate,” she murmured, and I knew she hadn’t even realized she’d said them out loud.
“I need to find him,” she said, turning back to me. “Where is Barrett, Ezra?”
“You can’t go out there,” I said, clutching my side once again, wincing. “You’ll be in danger. A wraith is no joke, Eryne. He can’t—”
“I can take care of myself,” she said, narrowing her eyes, leaving me behind as she headed into the forest.
“Fuck,” I gritted out. “Barrett’s going to kill me.” I looked down at my wound, eyes shutting involuntarily. “If I don’t die from this first.”
Gods, how displeased my mother would be when she found out about this. She hated me hunting monsters, hated this path I’d chosen for myself to atone for what I was. It was the only way I could look at myself in the mirror, to not have the self-loathing fill my entire being.
I closed my eyes, wondering how long I had left before the poison took over completely. My body was sweating profusely, trying to get rid of the toxins, but it wasn’t enough.
Not without blood to help me heal.
The scent grew stronger, and I heard the glass sliding door open and close. I felt, rather than saw, her standing in front of me.
“You look like shit.”
I chuckled, keeping my eyes shut. “Just what every male wants to hear.”
“What’s wrong with you?”
“Where should I start?”
“You’re hurt.” It was a statement, not a question.
I cracked open an eyelid, looking at her. She was still in her outfit from yesterday, that black dress slightly rumpled from sleep, and no less captivating. “Yes.”
“Fuck.” She looked up at the sky. “The Goddess really enjoys testing me, doesn’t she?” Rina knelt before me, hazel eyes capturing mine. “What can I do? What do you need? Eryne’s the healer, not me.”
“She went off after her mate,” I told her, eyes slipping shut.
“Ezra.” It was the first time she’d said my name. I liked the way it sounded more than I should.
“Was that so hard?” I smiled at her, though it felt drunk, and I was sure she could see my fangs. Before, she’d seemed taken aback by them. Now she just appeared… concerned.
For me? It couldn’t be.
“Their nails are tipped with poison,” I told her. “It’s interfering with my body’s natural ability to heal.”
“What do you need?” Rina repeated.
“Blood.”
Her eyes widened, like she’d forgotten what I was—just for a moment. “Oh.”
I nodded, peeling my hand back, inspecting my shredded skin. The wound had stopped bleeding, but it wasn’t healing.
“So you need to… what? Drink from me?” She gnawed on her lower lip, and I wished I could replace her teeth with mine.
I was too out of it to even shake the thought away.
“Normally, I would find it other ways, but—”
Her brows furrowed. “What happens if you don’t?”
My eyes found hers. “I’ll die.”
“Oh.” She reached over, pulling the fabric of my shirt away from the wound. “And that will help you heal?”
“Yes. As we have established.”
Rina narrowed her eyes. “Shut up, vampire. I’m trying to decide if I’m going to help you.”
“Decide a little faster,” I needled her. “I’m dying here, after all.”
She rolled her eyes. “Maybe I should let you die.” Probably. Then she straightened, her hand resting on my thigh, suddenly unsure of herself. “How do I do this?”
“Give me your wrist,” I told her. Rina presented it to me slowly, a hesitation in her eyes that I wanted to reassure. “I’ll try not to let it hurt, but I don’t know how much I’ll be able to control myself.”
She winced, shutting her eyelids. “Okay. Do your worst, vampire.”
“Rina.” My voice was soft as I brushed my thumb over her wrist, an intimate action that made her shudder. “Look at me.” Slowly, she relaxed, eyes meeting mine as I ran my thumb against her skin, over and over.
“Ezra,” she said again, letting out a breath.
Satisfied, I opened my lips, my teeth brushing over her skin, feeling her veins right under the surface—and then I sank them into her flesh.
The most sublime mouthful I’d ever tasted bloomed on my tongue, and I groaned, drinking deeper. Fuck, I could already feel her blood rushing through me, energizing me. Giving me power.
And I knew I would never—could never—have enough.
Suddenly, the reason she smelled so delectable all made sense.
She was mine. My blood mate.
The one being in this existence who was made for me.
It should be impossible, and yet—her blood tasted like home. Like roses, red wine, and chocolate, all rolled into one.
Deep, and rich, and I drank.
Drank straight from the veins of my mate.
My mate.
Oh, fuck.