“Dev,” I said, breathless as I ran back to help him.
“Go,” he said. “Get that paw. Daniel will keep Halfer busy. Take my gun.” He pressed the SIG Sauer into my hand. “It’s better than anything McKenzie had. Zoey, kill those followers of his. They would kill you. The guard is coming. They will aid me. Go.”
I didn’t think that was going to go the way Dev expected. He seemed to think they were coming to help us, and I knew for a fact that they weren’t. I kissed him with all my might and ran toward the gunfire.
I heard the shouting coming from across the field. Declan was screaming as I ran into the line of fire. The guard quickly changed course and they were moving to intercept me. Forcing my legs to pump as fast as I could, I broke for the valley. Even at a distance, I could hear Zack growl and then a mighty roar nearly shook the ground beneath me.
Daniel’s beast could be really loud. Daniel was calling to me. There was a burst of gunfire, but I wasn’t going to make it. The guard was so fast. I glanced to my right and they were rushing across the field to cut me off from the fight.
It was me versus ten big strong warriors of the sidhe. They had trained all of their lives to guard, protect, and hunt. I was a thief who almost never made it to the gym. What made me think I could win against that army? It was arrogant to even try, but I kept running.
Daniel needed me. It was Danny against Halfer and three men with high-powered rifles. Normally that wasn’t even the beginnings of a fair fight, but it was full daylight and no matter how much he fed on Dev’s powerful magic, daylight cut his strength way back. If Halfer or one of his men got that paw back in their grubby little hands, the balance would shift firmly into their corner. Right now, the wolves seemed to not know what to do. I wanted to keep it that way, but it looked like the royal guard was going to fuck up my plans.
The one Declan had called Geary broke from the rest, and it seemed like he was going to win the fastest asshole guard competition. His hands stretched out toward me, ready to pull me down to the ground. I had no doubt I was about to be taken into custody, hauled back to Declan and held against my will. If I was lucky, he might let me watch as Daniel was taken apart by the wolves. Perhaps he would try to save his brother, but I couldn’t be sure of that. The baby that might be in my belly was the only thing he cared about. Angry tears flooded my eyes as I tried to evade Geary’s arms. Just an inch more and he would have me. Just another step and I wouldn’t be able to help Danny. I wouldn’t be able to save Dev.
Alone. I was so alone as he reached for me to pull me down and take me out.
Just as his hand was about to touch my arm, Geary hit an invisible wall and flew back. I did a double take, looked to the caves, and I knew I wasn’t alone anymore.
Sarah stood behind Declan, who screamed at his guard. He and Padric watched in confusion, and Felix stood beside them doing his best to keep their eyes on the field. Declan yelled, but he didn’t turn around because he had no idea Sarah was a witch. It would never occur to him that the cute, funny girl with the electric blue bob and ready smile could render his guards completely useless. Neil stood behind her and I saw him put a hand on her shoulder, lending her his strength.
I smiled up at my friends as I gave Geary my happy middle finger and went about my business because my crew had my back.
I ran hard, getting a second wind from the adrenaline of winning that particular battle. I broke through the tree line that separated me from the campsite, and the first thing I saw was Daniel. He was standing among the tents and campsites, his body already covered in blood and unfortunately I was pretty sure a lot of it was his. He was dressed in nothing but a pair of jeans, his boots, and a jacket he seemed to have slung on in lieu of a shirt. The jacket gaped open and blood covered his chest.
He’d taken several bullets, but two of Halfer’s men were down. They wouldn’t be getting back up again. Zack was at his master’s side. He didn’t have trouble with the daylight. He was at full power and on vampire blood.
I stopped at the edge of the valley before it ran into the field where Dev and I had been married. I flipped the safety off my gun and peered from behind a tree. Halfer shot Daniel again and he fell backward. I had to stifle a scream and force myself not to run for him. I had no doubt those were silver rounds. Halfer would use nothing less, but running in a panic wouldn’t help Danny.
Zack attacked, going for Halfer’s legs. Halfer screamed and used the butt of his rifle to hit the wolf squarely in the head. Now was the time to act. I took careful aim and squeezed the trigger, hitting Halfer in the back before he could shoot Daniel again.
It wasn’t enough. Halfer’s body tensed, but he didn’t go down. Halfer turned, looking for me. He yelled something at the last of his men and the henchman started searching the ground. I had no doubt we were looking for the same thing.
Halfer fired in my direction and I quickly shielded my back with a tree. I was about to try to move when the air was filled with pixies. They landed on me and I could tell from their fluttering wings that they were concerned. I remembered what Dev had told me about these tiny members of Faery. They were small but tough. They didn’t back off from a fight.
But what the hell could my army of butterflies do against an ex-demon and a bunch of AR-15s?
Though I didn’t actually need them to fight.
I held out my hand, hoping whoever was their leader would understand. A sapphire and amethyst pixie quickly landed in my palm. He, I thought of him as a he but I could be wrong, bowed and seemed to wait for me to speak.
“Do you know what a paw is?” I asked, cutting directly to the chase because I had no idea how much time I had. Declan could discover Sarah was working against him any minute. Halfer could come looking for me or his henchman could find the artifact.
The little pixie nodded his head vigorously.
“I need you to find a gray paw for me. It was being held by that man with the dark hair. The prince shot it out of his hand from the cave. It probably has an arrow in it.” I gave them all the information I had. “Please find it. It’s so important. I would be in your debt.”
The pixie bowed again and then the whole group took off. I watched as they spread out but no one paid any attention to them. I looked from behind my safe little perch and what I saw made my heart stop.
Daniel was on the ground, blood pouring from his chest, and Halfer aimed at him ready to pump more silver into his body. Zack had been hit, too, but he stood over his master’s body, faithful to the end. If we got out of this, I was going to be nicer to Zack. I was going to carry around some treats in my pocket for when he did well.
I took a deep breath and did the only thing I could do. I did something crazy.
I walked from behind my nice, safe tree and strode toward the big-ass, high-powered demon with the rifle. I held the SIG with both hands and fired straight into that asshole’s body. I didn’t let up. I didn’t waver. I kept on course, ignoring everything else. When I felt my left arm burn as a bullet passed through it, I simply switched to a one-handed hold. It was harder, but nothing was harder than giving up Daniel for dead.
I hit Halfer over and over because I might not be a fixture at the gym, but I did go to the shooting range.
Lucas Halfer’s body bucked with the force of the bullets hitting him. His head turned my way and I saw the hate there. He forgot about the vampire on the ground and focused every ounce of his fading will on me. He raised the rifle and even as his chest became a mottled mess, he pointed that gun straight at me.