Chapter 25
Chapter Twenty-Five
WARWICK
Bullets splintered the wood off the trees, raining chunks down on us as we darted away, flaring fury through my limbs.
Running went against my DNA. I fought. I killed.
I got hard when the blood of my victims dripped down my arms. I used to seek it, desire it, crave it like a fiend.
That wouldn’t go away, but I never had so much to protect before.
My life before consisted of revenge and death.
Now I walked next to death and never felt more alive.
Nothing would take her from me.
“Go!” I barked at Kovacs, waving at her to go, tucking the nectar in her pocket, needing them to get to safety.
“No!” she shot back.
“They’re after you, princess, after the nectar.” I crouched behind a tree, shooting back. “Don’t let them get it.”
Her gaze held mine for a bit before I saw her head dip, understanding what she held went beyond us. What would happen if Kalaraja took it back to Sonya or Istvan got his hands on it?
I saw what happened when it was in Brexley’s hands. The power it gave and took. It felt toxic. Treacherous. I could feel it trying to push me out. To possess her. It took all my strength to break through . . . to fight for her to come back to me.
Brexley turned to run as Ember, Eli, and I stayed to fight, dozens of men coming at us, spraying us with gunfire.
Eli swore under his breath, ripping off his sweats as his body shifted back into his Dark Dweller form, blending in with the darkness, the razors on his back ready to slice a man in half.
Death screams and gunshots filled my ears from the direction Eli went.
More coming up on me, I leaped out, my elbow slamming into a guard’s face before my gun fired into his head, spraying his brains out on the dirt.
Fae had gotten used to fighting like humans, guns becoming the easy, lazy way of fighting.
Once, we battled with swords and fists, with honor and true skill.
Watching your enemy’s life draining out of him as your sword dug into his guts . . . I missed those days.
Slicing and shooting at every figure moving toward me, a cry filled my ear, crawling down my spine and chilling my bones. It wasn’t loud, but it hit me like a train, calling to every fiber in my body.
Brexley.
Swiveling around, I bolted toward her, hating that our link was gone, not knowing what was happening to her. Terror clogged my throat, my breath locked, my boots slamming the earth.
Through the trees, I spotted her standing still, Kalaraja pointing a gun at her forehead, his hand out, waiting for her to hand over the nectar.
Fuck no.
Before I could reach either of them, Brexley ducked and twisted, her fist smashing into his gut, stumbling him back, then knocking into his nose, spewing saliva and blood from his mouth. Her knee rammed up into his face, knocking him on his ass.
Fuck, that was hot.
A blast boomed through the trees from the circus area below, fire blasting high from the tent, flames eating up everything inside, including anything flammable and toxic, causing explosions.
Figures moved hurriedly up the hill near us. My shoulders lowered with relief seeing Ash leading the pack, the elderly woman, Esmeralda, in his arms.
Ash’s gaze met mine, our expressions mutual.
We needed to get the fuck out of here.
“Esmeralda!” Brexley shouted, running to Ash as we moved for the motorcycles parked close by. Ember and Eli jogged up after us.
“There are too many.” Eli yanked on his sweats.
Between Tracker’s soldiers and Kalaraja’s, we were far outnumbered.
“Go! Go!” Ash waved everyone to hurry as he and Scorpion propped the old lady on the back of Ash’s bike. Blood still oozed from her wounds, but she acted like it was just a cut, batting the men away to stop coddling her. I had to give it to her, the old bat was tough as nails.
A bullet scraped my arm, the metal sizzling at my skin, jerking my head in the direction it came from. Kalaraja hobbled forward, his weapon pointed at us, soldiers flooding from the woods behind him.
“Kovacs!” My hand wrapped around hers, yanking her to the motorcycle as more shells volleyed at us.
Her thighs locking down on mine, she returned fire as I pressed down on the gas, bolting us forward, following the rest of our group.
The dweller and Dae were right behind us on a bike they stole from Tracker’s men.
The bikes sped off over the worn asphalt, plunging us into the darkness away from the scorched circus and the various parties trying to kill us. Keeping our headlights off, the engines roared through the streets like an animal you couldn’t see but could hear coming for you.
With no time to talk, I pointed us toward Kyiv, making it outside the city limits in only three hours, using back roads.
There was no doubt the closer we got to the city, the more troops we’d run into.
My theory only mounted as every train going by us headed west, filled with army troops, equipment, and tanks.
“What the fuck?” Brexley whispered behind me as she watched carriage after carriage zoom by.
“Istvan,” I muttered. “He’s lining up troops at the border. Getting ready to invade Hungary.”
“Szar . . .” she muttered under her breath. “So much of me wants to let them fight it out among themselves while we all escape to Unified Nations.” She sighed into my back, her warmth seeping through my clothes.
“You won’t.”
“Fuck no,” she replied huskily, making my dick ache for her. “Istvan needs to be stopped. He’ll keep creating armies until no one can stop him. I will go down fighting, and I will take him with me.”
“How about we kill him, and you let me go down on you?” I glanced at her over my shoulder, wishing our link was there so I could slide my tongue through her pussy.
“War-wick.” A warning hinted in her tone, seeing in my eyes exactly what I wanted to do to her. The idea of taking her right on this bike had my adrenaline banging through my veins, needing a release.
“I will seriously fucking kill you both if you start this shit right now.” Scorpion rolled up next to us with a bark. His mood was darker than mine since Hanna left, which was saying a lot. “I’d cut off my arm if it would untie me from you two.”
“Worth a shot.” I shrugged. Brexley hit my back, shaking her head.
“Where to?” Ash came up behind Scorpion. Eli’s motorcycle revving up on my other side. “We have to stay out of the city until we know what’s ahead. They’ll be looking for us.”
We were probably on every most wanted poster hung all over town, especially Kovacs.
“Brycin and I know of a safe house not too far. An old inn that caters to . . . let’s say . . . the ones who work outside the law.”
“I thought you worked for the king and queen?” Brexley lifted a brow.
Eli and Ember exchanged glances.
“Yeah, and sometimes that means outside of the law here,” Eli replied. “The Eastern bloc is a hotbed of problems, which need to be managed to protect our country. We bend the truce we made with the East to get the job done.”
“So, this inn is a front? Western sympathizers? Or just spies?” Annoyance threaded through Kovacs’s tone.
“My father has eyes everywhere.” Ember looped her arms tighter around Eli as they took off in front, leaving the rest of us to follow.
A growl grew in my throat.
“Play nice,” Brexley murmured into the back of my neck.
“When have I ever done that?” My teeth clenched as I followed behind, which I never did pleasantly.
They were already too many fucking alphas in this group. This Dark Dweller added another we didn’t need. His ego was on par with mine, and there might be a moment when he learned who the real killer was. The true legend.
Outside the city walls, down a deserted dirt road, we stopped at a small two-story inn tucked in the woods. Smoke coiled out of the chimney, hidden from anyone who didn’t know it was nearby. It wasn’t there to take in vagabonds roaming through; it was here precisely to hide spies.
“Mr. Dragen, Miss. Brycin!” A small gray-haired human man greeted us on the porch when we drove up, clapping his hands together. “It is a pleasure seeing you again.”
“Olek.” Ember climbed off the back of the bike. The two pixies in her bag flew out of it, heading toward the man.
“Sir Olek.” The blonde pixie with the mechanic wings bowed at the gentlemen.
“Oh, Mr. Simmons and Mr. Cal. So happy to see you.” He took Ember’s hand in his, addressing the pixies before smiling warmly at her. “What a great honor you have brought me on this Christmas Eve.”
“It’s Christmas Eve?” Kovacs got off the bike, pulling off her gloves, surprise widening her eyes.
The holiday meant nothing to me, but seeing her face light up with childlike excitement told me she still cared for the human holiday, which made me shift on my feet.
I wasn’t used to wanting to make someone else happy. Wanting more for them than me.
“I hope you have room for all of us.” Ember peered back at Ash, helping Esmeralda off the bike.
Everyone else saw the old woman, but if it was me or because of Brexley, I could see someone else bleeding out of her.
The druid let her rest while he kept her body alive, using his energy to heal her. “And we need medical care.”
“Oh!” Olek’s eyes widened seeing Esmeralda, her clothes shredded from bullets. One of the bunny ears on her slippers was burnt off, and a plastic eye was melted on the other. “Of course, of course. Please hurry! You can take her upstairs to the first room.” He waved Ash in.
Ash easily picked Esmeralda’s petite frame up, carrying her up the steps and disappearing into the house.
“Come, come!” He motioned us in. “Plenty of room. I can cook you up something warm. You all must be famished and freezing.” His English was clear and fluid, but you could hear his Hungarian accent surrounding each syllable.