Unfortunately, he also forgot about Zack, who took the opportunity to leap onto his back and throw off his aim. Halfer’s bullet went astray. Daniel got to his feet, struggling and fighting for every step.
I had enough time now to turn and catch the jerk who had shot me. He was taking aim again, but obviously he hadn’t had as much practice as I had. His eyes were a little wild and it looked like this was his first rodeo. It wasn’t mine. He was panicking, and calm in these situations always wins the day. I didn’t hesitate. I aimed at his head and pulled the trigger. Before I could see the neat hole in his forehead start to bleed, I was back to my main target.
Halfer hit Zack again and gained his feet. He looked down, shot Zack, and swung around to fire at me. I squeezed again, completely unwilling to give up my position just because the bastard was about to kill me, not when I was so close to getting him on the ground where Zack could finish him off. Even as we exchanged fire, that wolf was getting off the grass, preparing to take another hunk out of Halfer.
I fired again and Halfer moved, throwing off my aim. He went down on one knee and aimed for my chest. Just as he was about to fire, I tripped and the blasted bullet missed, grazing my shoulder when it should have hit my heart.
I glanced down and saw the vine that had tripped me up. It waved at me, and I turned to see Dev, bloody and battered but using his good hand to call all things green to our aid. He was limping but he’d made it to us.
“Stay down,” he shouted as he lifted his hand and the earth began to rumble.
I rolled out of his line of fire as the grass grew around Halfer’s feet and caught him in an embrace. He struggled against the tight binding, but it was useless.
Daniel staggered up behind him. He shared a look with Dev across the field. Dev nodded and then Daniel’s hand became a wicked claw. He held Halfer’s head up by the hair and the former demon’s howl drew the eyes of everyone. Even Sarah’s concentration slipped and the Fae started to run across the field again.
Halfer screamed his rage. Even as Daniel drew his hand back to deliver the final blow, Lucas Halfer, Brixalnax, the ancient lord of Hell, sought my eyes. I met them and I knew in that moment that if he could reach past death, if he could open that doorway, he would come for me.
He would never stop.
Daniel drew his claws across Lucas Halfer’s throat and it split. At first it was a simple, neat line, but then it gushed with life. His long life, his blood, his soul, spilled across the field.
The green bindings that held him vanished back into the ground and my greatest enemy fell, never to rise again.
I forced myself to my feet. The guards were almost on me, and Declan followed close behind. I moved toward Daniel, who was stumbling, making his way to me.
I met him in the middle and took his shaking body into my arms. I knew what he needed and pulled his head toward my neck. His eyes were filled will love and gratitude as his fangs sought my vein. This was one of those times when I usually dealt with his beast, but that beast was quiet now because Daniel knew I would help. Daniel knew we could handle this.
We sank to the ground and I held his head in place as he fed.
Suddenly Dev was at my back. As I fed Daniel, he rested his head against my shoulder on the opposite side from Danny. The three of us were together and connected again. I let my hand pull Daniel close as the other drifted behind me to cup Dev’s face. Daniel’s hand reached around me to rest on Dev’s good arm, letting him know how happy he was we were all alive. I breathed in the sweetness of the moment.
“Let her go, vampire,” the one called Geary commanded, breaking up my happy moment. The asshole.
“Stand down.” Dev shifted away from us, looking to the guard, his voice firm even as his body showed his weariness.
“Those are not my orders, Your Grace.” Geary was backed up by the rest of the guard. They surrounded us and all brandished weapons covered in silver. The last thing Danny needed was a silver arrow. “I am to take your wife into custody. I am to deliver her to the prince. I will say it again. Let her go, vampire.” He notched his arrow and aimed it at Daniel’s back. “Let her go or we will kill you.”
“Daniel,” Dev said cautiously. “I believe they are serious. Please let Zoey go. If you need more blood, I will be more than happy to provide it.”
Daniel took one last drag from my neck and released the vein. He didn’t release me. He struggled to his feet, though his strength was coming back now. He helped me up and pushed me behind him, keeping me between him and Dev. We were surrounded by the guards, each brandishing a weapon that could take my vampire’s life in his weakened condition.
“Dev, why is your brother’s guard trying to take our wife from us?” His question was hard and made no attempt to hide the fact that he would fight. Broken, bruised, and bloody, he wouldn’t let them take me.
“I do not know,” Dev admitted. He was somewhere between shocked and enraged. “But I will find out.”
Declan finally made it across the field with Padric hard behind him. “Stand down!”
I let out a sigh of relief as they lowered their weapons.
I waited to see just which way the prince was going to play this. He finally relaxed. “It is obvious the threat has passed. You may go.”
Like the well-trained boys they were, the guard disappeared one by one to wait for the prince to call upon them again.
Declan looked at his brother. His green eyes were deceptively innocent as he regarded us. “I was merely protecting your goddess, brother. That is what you requested. Was I wrong?”
He was manipulating events, but I wasn’t about to point that out now. We needed to tend to our wounded and find that paw.
Dev gave his brother a tired smile. “Of course I wanted her safe. You were only doing what you thought best. You do not know her as I do. She’s capable. And she needs no rescue from Daniel.”
“The guard did not understand your ménage,” Declan lied smoothly. “They only knew a vampire was biting your goddess. I will, of course, bring them up to date.”
“Zoey,” Neil said as he and Felix helped Lee across the field.
Zack changed and immediately went to his brother’s aid. Despite the fact that Zack had been hit several times, his human body was back to perfect.
Neil pointed behind me. “Look.”
I turned and saw a cluster of brightly colored wings fluttering over the ground. They flew around and I could see they were trying their best to lift something out of the earth. Smart little pixies. They had achieved the goal I set.
“Neil,” I yelled as I took off toward them. “Come with me.”
Neil was at my back by the time I made it to the pixies. There in the ground a hundred yards from where Lucas Halfer had stood and wielded it against us, lay the Strong Arm of Remus, bisected by Declan’s silver arrow. It had buried itself in the ground but came out easily when I pulled it.
“Thank you,” I said to the pixies. “You did a wonderful job. I couldn’t have asked for more.” I held the paw in my hand, the arrow springing from either side, and I could feel the magic pulsing through it. Even now, it sought a master. It wanted someone to wield it.
I turned around and found an army of wolves staring at me. They had come from the field and now sat silently, waiting for my orders. It was a massive army of teeth and claws. This pack could ravage the world and all it needed was a single command. The artifact in my hand whispered seductively.
They are yours. All those wolves are yours to command.
“Zoey,” Dev said quietly as he walked forward. His emerald eyes were on the paw, and I realized it was talking to him, too. It spoke directly to the ambition in my husband. It told him all his plans could come to fruition if I gave up that one little paw. “That’s important. It could turn the tide of this war. Give it to Daniel, please. It belongs to Daniel.”