Deathtrap (Crossbreed #3)(63)

I sharpened my light, throwing myself at one of them and blasting him in the chest. He convulsed, overpowered by the energy. When he involuntarily shifted into a mountain lion, I blasted him once more, taking no chances.

I couldn’t keep this up. The flashing had depleted my Mage energy as it was, and I didn’t have enough in reserve to fight all the men coming out of the woodwork. Not to mention it wouldn’t even work on Vampires. Still filled with residual Vampire power from Christian, I fought my next assailant hand to hand. I grabbed his beard and gave it a hard yank before kneeing him in the groin. His Mage energy rippled against my skin, so I drove my stunner into his chest to the hilt.

More gunshots blazed overhead, and I slipped on ice as I rushed to the other side of the van. When someone tried to grab me, I quickly slid beneath the vehicle on my stomach. Toward the front, a man fell, blood spraying the white snow. Claude’s familiar sneakers strode by. When a second set came up behind him, a struggle ensued.

I did a belly crawl until I reached the front of the van and stood up. To my horror, more men were advancing in our direction. The Vampire perched on the intersection pole overhead watched with a look of amusement.

This was how people in the Bricks entertained themselves.

While I’d taken down a number of men in controlled environments, nothing had prepared me for what was essentially a street battle.

“We’re outnumbered!” I shouted.

“Damn right you are,” a man growled from behind me as he snaked his arm around my midsection.

I lifted my knee and pulled out the small dagger hidden in the heel of my boot. He swung me around, and my head slammed against the front of the van. Without looking, I reached up and swiped my blade several times until he made a gurgling sound.

I stumbled forward, my breath heavy and the cold air burning my lungs and throat. Claude was nowhere in sight, and Christian was fighting five men at once. His eyes were so bottomless that you could almost see the pit of hell in them.

I gripped my tiny blade and wanted to laugh. Was this how my life would end? In the middle of a snowy street, surrounded by bored men who didn’t even know who they were fighting or why?

When a horn blared in the distance, everyone turned.

At the end of the street, a black sedan faced us. I breathed a sigh of relief as Viktor emerged from the passenger side. He ran toward us and gracefully shifted into his grey wolf, his clothes falling away as he lunged at a man and tore at his arms.

Next came Niko, and he was armed to the teeth with a katana in each hand. His long hair rippled behind him like a shadow in flight as he charged toward us, slicing his blade through a man on his left without breaking stride.

I winced when a bullet struck my hand. Hearing someone coming up behind me, I kicked my leg back and knocked him in the chest.

My thoughts crystallized. Though the man was taller and fifty pounds heavier, we fought like equals. I punched him in the throat, jaw, and probably the nipple—anywhere my fist would land. He took a swing, but I dodged his fist and flashed behind him. Sensing his Mage energy, I realized the only way to take him down was by physical force. I pounced on his back and locked my arm around his neck, squeezing the breath out of him and cutting off circulation to his head.

“Die, you squirmy little bastard!” I growled.

He flailed in a pathetic attempt to throw me off, but I held on like a cowboy at a rodeo, ignoring the pain radiating across my back when he slammed me against the side of the van.

“Lights out,” I growled in his ear.

Applause sounded from above as the Vampire watched on.

The man stumbled, his face purple and eyes half open, and finally hit the ground. I held on, just in case he was faking. Niko’s spinning swords sliced at another man who had a blade of his own.

The idiot didn’t stand a chance. Niko was on form.

Blood tainted the streets, attracting even more onlookers.

The second I stood up, I jumped back with a start when a ball of light flew past me and exploded in a crowd of men. The energy wave ripped through the air like a meteor, prickling against my skin like tiny spikes. A pile of men lay in the snow, their skin blackened and the stench of burning flesh wafting in the air.

I turned on my heel, my mouth agape at Gem, who stood at the far end of the street with her arms extended. To the left, Blue was swinging her tomahawk like a warrior. Despite her long legs, shapely breasts, lush lips, and hair like silk, Blue wasn’t a woman who used her beauty in battle. She was fierce, relentless, and spattered with blood.

I blasted a man with energy while running toward the van. When I reached the driver’s side, I jumped in and slammed the door. The keys were still in the ignition. As soon as the engine started up, I hit the gas and crashed into Amber’s car, knocking it forward a few feet. She had bailed from the scene the moment the fight started.

I was turning the wheel left to do a U-turn when someone jumped into the back.

“Claude’s hurt,” Christian said. “Get us the feck out of here!”

“Shut the door!” I steered over the sidewalk and clipped a guy before skidding back onto the street.

“Niko!” he shouted. “Get in!”

I glanced in the mirror and saw Christian helping Niko in the back.

“Hang on!” I hit the gas, and the van torpedoed through the crowd like a juggernaut. They fell away like bowling pins, but one Vampire suddenly punched through my window and gripped the wheel. I slammed on the brakes, hoping to throw him off, but he held on with fierce determination.