She nodded and coughed out smoke. “Mine too.”
He set the cooler on the ground and pressed a hand against her upper chest. “Are you all right?”
“Yes.” She nodded and patted his knuckles. “Just inhaled some smoke.”
His own chest burned from her obvious pain. Every hurt she experienced settled deep inside him. “I’m sorry.” It was his responsibility to protect her, and he was doing a piss-poor job of it.
She rolled her eyes. “Unless you started the fires, you don’t need to apologize for anything.”
“Yet I am.” He released her.
“You don’t control the world, Talen.” She straightened and brushed dirt off her jeans.
How many times had she told him that through the years? “We need to get going again.”
She glanced with longing at the cabin.
“That cabin isn’t secure enough, sweetheart. We’ll find a better spot,” he said, retrieving the cooler of virus samples.
“All right.” She cleared her throat and moved again, edging into a jog.
Talen followed right behind her, his instincts sizzling along with the fire that felt like it was coming closer. But if they stuck to the river, they’d be all right.
Well, until the demons found them. He had to get Cara to a safe place before he fought. She was his only priority.
* * *
Cara concentrated on putting one foot in front of the other without tripping and falling onto her face. Tension from Talen all but choked her, competing with the smoke swirling around. The gun lay heavy against her rib cage. She’d use it if she had to, but it had been a while since she’d practiced with a target.
If the demons caught up with them, her husband would take them all on and order her to run. She couldn’t leave him to a mind attack, not when she could at least shoot and disrupt the demon brain waves with a bullet to the head.
Her foot slipped on dry leaves, and she stumbled.
He instantly grasped her elbow until she’d regained her balance. “You’re doing great,” he said.
His heat warmed her from behind as he kept pace with her—so solid and protective.
She ducked away from an overhanging branch. “They must want the samples, right?”
“That’d be my guess,” he said.
“How did they find us? I mean, how did they know we were delivering the samples today?” She jumped over a downed tree.
“I’m not sure. Best bet is somebody at the lab in Seattle, because I can’t imagine anybody at our headquarters doing it,” he said mildly, his footsteps silent in the forest.
The air heated, and she lifted her head, stilling. A crackle filled the afternoon. Slowly, she turned to the right. “Fire,” she whispered.
Talen grabbed her hand, looking around.
Cara gulped in smoky air. The demons were behind them, the river to their left, the rock mountain to their right, and fire up ahead.
“Across the river.” Talen charged down the grassy bank, heading for the water.
Cara kept pace, her tennis shoes slipping on moss, her gaze on the rushing river. “Looks deep.” Even though it was fall and snow hadn’t dropped yet, the river rushed as if a full snowpack was feeding it.
“Wet summer and fall,” Talen said tersely. They reached the bank, and he glanced down at her shoes. “Is there any traction on those?”
She slowly shook her head. “Not really, but I’ll be okay.” She tried to peer past the rushing water to see how slippery the rocks looked, but white and frothy bubbles masked the bottom of the river.
“Too risky. Stick to the bank and run.” He released her hand. “I’ll be right behind you.”
She nodded and moved off rocks to the smooth grass, her gaze on the ground. They ran for nearly fifteen minutes, mostly uphill. Her mind was so full of fear that she missed the end of the trail.
Suddenly, she was falling.
“Ack!” she yelped, her hands windmilling, her legs kicking the air.
The rocky mountain blurred by, while the rushing sound of water echoed up. She glanced down.
Holy crap.
The river. The wild, tumultuous rapids below her held more rocks than water. In a ball, in a ball, in a ball. She curled tight.
A jagged rock caught her eye, and she tried to angle away. It would split her open.
Just as she was about to hit, a hard body crashed into her, sending them away from the rock and into the water. Freezing cold covered her head, and she shut her eyes. Scrambling, she fought for the surface. A roaring filled her ears. Panic blew out her air.
She broke the surface, immediately going under again.
A rock scraped her arm. She kicked off another boulder, her head emerging into daylight. The current smashed her against a rock and swept her farther downstream. She gulped in oxygen, searching frantically for Talen.
He shouted a warning. Giant, turning waves propelled the massive vampire right at her. He swung the green cooler away from her head. She screamed as they impacted, and she went under again.
Hands under her armpits, he yanked her up. She spit out water, clutching his waterlogged shirt. The cooler bobbed next to them. He tucked her head into his neck, his body bouncing off dangerous rocks as the river battered them downstream.
A rushing sound echoed over even the wild river. A waterfall! It sound huge, long, and deadly.
She struggled against her mate. They needed to get to the riverbank.
He tucked her closer. “Hold still.”
Seconds later, he kicked against a looming rock, propelling them out of the middle. Grabbing an overhanging branch, he paused. The water piled up against them, gaining power.
The branch snapped in two.
She cried out. The water swirled them around and around, while bouncing Talen off rocks. He growled low each time he impacted, his body stiffening.
He grabbed another branch, and the bowed wood splintered away from the tree.
“Damn it,” he muttered.
The waterfall loomed closer, the river foaming. Oh God. They were going over.
Talen wrapped one arm around her waist, shoved off from a rock, and leaped for a sweeping branch. He connected, swinging in the air. With a harsh grunt, he swung her back and tossed her toward the bank.
She landed in shallow water, splashing mud. Her hands scraped off rough rocks. Turning, she gasped in relief as he maneuvered hand-over-hand along the branch, the cooler hanging off his arm, until he dropped next to her. She blinked water from her eyes.
Grabbing her by the scruff of the neck, he hauled them both out of the river and under a tree.
He lay on his back, eyes closed, chest heaving.
She followed suit.
They were alive. Only his strength had kept them so, and she rolled over to put her head on his thundering chest.
Pain instantly flashed into her brain.
The demons had found them.
Chapter 4
Cara gasped in air and tried to shove imaginary shields all around her mind. Talen stood and brought her up, setting her behind him. A quick glance around found fire to one side, a rushing river to the other, and demons before him.
“I guess we fight, then,” he murmured.
The demons walked out of the smoke—three of them looking a little worse for wear. All were blond with black eyes, showing their lineage as purebred demons, and they had dressed in head-to-toe black from shoes to shirts. Blood matted their chests and necks from bullet holes that were still visibly closing. Who were they? Definitely not allies with the demon nation.
Feelings bombarded her from every direction. Anger from Talen, fear and intent from the demons. She drew protective shields into herself to mute her empathic abilities.
Talen’s body visibly tensed. “Love the matching outfits, boys.”
The guy in front held a green laser gun at his side. A cut marred his left cheekbone, and he rubbed it, his eyes glittering. “You shot me.”
“Looks like the bul
let barely scraped you,” Talen returned. “You’re fine, so go away before you end up with the entire Realm on your ass. This is your one chance to avoid a lifetime of pain.”
“No.” The lead demon lowered his chin, and his pupils overtook his irises. “We have backup on the way, but I don’t think we’re gonna need it.”
Talen held up a hand.
The demon’s eyes opened wider, and he tried to move forward, his body shaking.
Whoa. Cara hadn’t seen Talen do that in eons. She’d almost forgotten his ability to attack and control the nervous system of an enemy. Apparently the gift halted a demon mind attack—at least temporarily.
The other two demons darted forward, only to also hit that invisible Talen wall. The first guy stopped completely, while the other one managed to twitch his hands.
“Cara? Start running and keep going until you reach the shifters. They should be here soon,” Talen said through gritted teeth, his voice a hoarse rumble.
She couldn’t leave him there with three furious demons. Even with his talents, at some point, they’d break free. Gingerly reaching into the back of her pants, she drew out a sopping wet laser gun. It probably still worked. “How about I just shoot them?” she whispered.
“Won’t work.”
Shoot. Immortal laser guns couldn’t take a little water? Definite flaw in the design. “I’m not leaving you.” The demon twitching his hands slid one foot forward.
“Now.” His order held bite this time.
This was one of those moments. She had a gun, and he needed backup, but having her there would complicate things. She calculated the odds in her mind and finally settled her stance. “You need me just in case.” She wasn’t an idiot plunging headfirst into danger. She was a healthy immortal who wanted to protect her mate.
“Move your ass now,” he growled, sweat rolling down the side of his face.
A mate who didn’t want her protection. The lead demon broke free.
Cara yelped and pulled the trigger. Her gun sputtered, and no laser came out. Shit.
The demon lunged for Talen, hitting him midcenter, and throwing them both into the sheer rock mountain.
The other two demons slowly broke free of their bonds, moving forward, determination on their smooth faces.
Cara shook out the gun, several times, and water went flying. Please work, damn it. She lifted and aimed. Green shot from the gun, the light impacting the nearest demon and turning to metal when it met flesh.
The demon yelled and grabbed his chest. She fired two more times, aiming for his face. The bullets took out his cheekbone, and he fell to the ground, unconscious.
Pain and brutal images of hell pierced her brain. Her mind exploded, and she dropped the gun, grabbing her ears.
The demon mind attacking her stalked nearer, his gaze hard, his vision focused.
“Stop,” she whimpered.
He increased the pressure, and imaginary blades ripped through her cerebellum. Her eyes closed, and blood spurted from her nose. She barely heard the roar of fury from her mate.
Suddenly, the pain stopped. She held perfectly still as her nervous system stopped firing her nerves to life. Her lungs relaxed. Slowly, she lifted her head.
Two demons were prone on the ground, out cold. Talen punched the demon who’d attacked her mind right in the face, and the demon crashed into a tree. He came up swinging, roaring with fury.
Talen caught him and they grappled.
The demon lowered his chin, and Talen’s head jerked back.
Oh, hell. Mind attack. Cara’s vision was fuzzy, but she patted around her to find the gun. Where was the freaking gun?
Talen growled in pain, his movements slowing. The demon continued the mind assault, his gaze intense, and kicked Talen in the chin.
Cara cried out and tried to scramble to her feet.
The demon turned on her, and pain sliced through her eyes.
She fell, and dizziness swirled around her. “Talen,” she whispered.
“Cara,” he yelled. His head went back, and his shoulders straightened. Bellowing, he rushed the demon and plunged fingers into the demon’s throat, angling just right. A brutal twist of his wrist, and he yanked the demon into his fangs to pierce and cut. The demon’s head flopped down its body to roll into the river.
One in a million vampire soldiers could’ve succeeded in that move.
He turned then, his fangs down, his eyes a glowing gold. Sometimes she forgot the deadly predator that lived inside her mate.
She swallowed and tried to stand.
Instantly, he was at her side, wiping blood off her face. “Are you all right?” he asked.
She nodded, even as tears spilled from her eyes. “Are you?”
“Fine.” He took her hand and glanced around. Blood dripped down his chin. Then he stiffened and pressed her against the rock before covering her.
Several wolves, graceful and brown, ran out of the forest.
Talen’s shoulders relaxed. “You’re late,” he muttered.
* * *
After washing the blood off in the river, Talen kept an eye on his mate as they maneuvered through the forest, covered on all sides by a wolf shifter contingent. The shifters remained in wolf form and easily avoided the fires being snuffed out by human fighters.
Finally, they reached an old logging road, where several off-road vehicles waited. The wolves shifted into human form and quickly donned clothing.
Terrent Vilks, the Alpha of the Raze pack, loped toward him. “It’s good to see you,” he said as they shook hands.
Talen grinned at his old friend. “You, too. Sorry about the unexpected visit.”
Terrent shrugged. “You’re welcome any time, and I know Maggie would love to see Cara.” His eyes darkened with concern as he took in Cara’s bedraggled form. “You okay, darlin’?”
She nodded, her body shivering.
Talen slid an arm around her and tucked her close, not liking the pallor of her skin. “She could use dry clothing and some warm food.”
“Absolutely.” Terrent motioned them into a battered Jeep. “We’re a couple of hours out, but I’ll blast the heat.” He jerked his head toward three of his soldiers. “Go back and clean up the garbage.”
Talen lifted Cara into the backseat and slid in next to her, settling her against his body. Fury threatened to consume him, but he kept his hold gentle and murmured a thanks when Terrent tossed back a blanket. He wrapped her close and tried to keep his temper in check.
When he’d seen her, blood pouring down her face, raw agony in her pretty blue eyes from the demon attack, he’d nearly lost his mind. He’d torn the head off a demon, which sure as hell wasn’t a normal ability.
Besides anger, confusion swamped him. His order for her to run had been crystal-clear, and she’d disobeyed it completely. While he knew she had her own mind, when it came to battles or fighting, he was the strategic leader of the entire Realm, much less within his little family. Just because the current war had ended didn’t mean the danger to them was also gone.
He’d been mated to the woman for over two decades, and he still couldn’t figure out how her mind worked.
Before they had family, if anything had happened to her, he would’ve avenged her slightest pain and then followed her into the unknown. Now they had kids and even a grandchild, and he couldn’t leave them alone.
So Cara needed to keep herself safe, damn it.
She murmured and cuddled closer to his side, her eyes closing. He tucked her into his body, holding her close, providing safety and warmth.
Terrent ignited the engine and drove over several bumps. “Sorry.”
“It’s all right. She’s out,” Talen said softly.
Somber brown eyes met his in the rearview mirror. “Demon mind attack?”
“Yes.”
“Why didn’t she run?” Terrent asked, his eyebrows drawing down.
Talen shook his head. “She stayed and fought with the gun.”
“Did you tel
l her to run? We would’ve caught up with her quickly and then helped you.”
“Of course I told her to run,” Talen snapped.
Terrent grinned. “How’d she do?”
Talen’s lips twitched. “She was magnificent. Kicked ass, actually.” He didn’t bother to keep the pride from his voice. “Though my heart almost stopped.”
Terrent chuckled. “My mate never listens, either.”
No. Maggie Malone Vilks was one stubborn little wolf, and Talen knew, because he’d helped to train her years ago. “Is Maggie still as clumsy as ever?”
Terrent’s eyes sparkled as he nodded. “I swear she tripped over air the other day. She claims there was something in her way, but, Talen? It was just air.”
Talen grinned. “I’ve seen her in action.”
“Oh, and we’re having the wedding next spring,” Terrent said with a sigh.
Only Maggie would want a real human wedding. She and Terrent had been planning it for years, but the war had kept intruding. “Can’t wait,” Talen said, biting back another smile.
“Shut up.” Terrent shook his head. “She’s not even human. I mean, she was never human. The woman is a wolf, for Pete’s sake.”
And yet, the tough Alpha was going through with a wedding to make her happy. Talen breathed out, his body finally calming after the fight. “Sometimes they want weddings. Cara and I had one.”
“Yeah, but not with the white dress, flowers, and all the music,” Terrent rumbled, speeding up until trees flew by outside.
“Sometimes they don’t make any damn sense,” Talen whispered.
Terrent scratched his chin. “You and your mate aren’t gonna fight at my place, are you? Because then the women will be on her side, the men on yours, and then I have a bunch of pissed-off wolves to deal with. Including my mate, who has a mean streak.”
“Sucks being Alpha.”
Terrent sighed. “Well, at least you didn’t bring your youngest with you.”
Talen winced. “Um.”
“Um, what?”
“When the demons started following us, I’m sure Dage gave Garrett a call. He’s in Seattle working with the witch Enforcers, and his mama would like to see him.” Talen leaned back and rested his head. “He’ll behave.”
“I’m more worried about a couple of young wolf shifters, crazy cheerleaders, I have to keep a constant eye on,” Terrent ground out.