Damian doesn’t fight me. He stares after the van and Madelyn’s name breaks from him in a defeated, desperate moan.
Damian sinks to his knees as the van disappears around a bend in the road, taking Madelyn with it. He buries his face in his hands. “They’re going to kill her,” he whimpers.
I drop to my knees beside him and wrap an arm around his shoulders. “They’re not going to kill her,” I whisper, hugging him against me.
Damian bolts to his feet, towering over me. His eyes burn red, his hands are fisted at his sides, his fangs shoot down.
I rise to my feet and take a step back. If he’s this angry, I’m not sure what he might do.
“They’re going to kill her and it’s all your fault!” he hisses, fury bubbling over in his voice. “If you hadn’t brought them here, they never would’ve gotten her!” Damian shoots his gaze past me.
Chase, Seth, and Shelby are racing up to us along the broken asphalt. Their guns are out, but I don’t see what good that’s going to do now. They see Damian’s aggressive, angry condition and stop about ten yards away from us. They aren’t pointing their guns at Damian just yet, but if I were them, I’d have mine ready.
Damian whips his enraged face back to me. “It’s all your fault!”
He dives forward. I’m not sure if he’s going for me or the Huntsmen. I doubt even he knows.
I clamp my hands on his shoulders and swing him around in a full circle before I shove him back. “They’re not going to kill her!” I repeat, shouting it, trying to get it through his head.
Damian stumbles, but regains his footing in an instant. “You don’t know that!” he shrieks, charging me again.
I block him as he lunges for my throat and land a kick to his ankle. I offset his balance and slam my weight into him, driving him to the ground. He thuds to the asphalt on the shoulder of the empty road and I straddle him, holding him down. One day he might be stronger than me, but today I’m the faster, more experienced vampire.
“They’re not going to kill her!” I yell in his face.
“Yes, they are!” Damian wails, fury driving his voice to a shrill pitch. He writhes under me, still trying to attack me.
“No, they’re not! They’re going to wait. They want to make you watch, Damian! They want to make you watch like they made me!” I scream at the top of my lungs, blaring the words in his face like a fog horn.
Damian stops trying to bite me, but his eyes stay an alarming shade of neon red and his fangs protrude like two swords.
“They want to make you watch,” I repeat. “They want you to be just where you can’t help her as they sink their fangs into her throat. That’s what they want. We can get her back, Damian. And we’re going to. I swear to you, I will die before I let them take her from you. I swear, Damian.” I mean every single word. I watch my brother’s face, pleading, willing him to hear me, to believe me.
Damian’s eyes soften back to their normal shade of ice blue. His fangs retract. His breathing is heavy, his pulse is racing with the fire of rage. But he’s calming down.
“It’ll be okay,” I whisper.
Damian nods, still tense, still brimming with fear-fueled anger, but seeing reason.
I roll off him and help him to his feet. Damian closes his eyes and tries to focus on breathing. I coil an arm around him and turn him away from the Huntsmen. They’ve been watching this whole thing. James has joined them. They all look a little ashamed. They should be. I face them.
“So…are you people satisfied?” I tartly query. “Or do you still not believe us?”