Cole's Redemption (Alpha Pack #5)(66)

“No! Selene, get out!” he shouted.

Or thought he did. He would never be sure. Not appearing to hear him, his daughter rushed straight to Darrow and a vicious fight was on. In a blink, she took the rogue to the floor, shifting her hands into sharp claws and baring her teeth. Just when it seemed she had the upper hand and would finish him, a flash of silver caught his eye.

And Darrow buried the blade in his daughter’s side. The whole thing had taken only seconds.

She stilled, eyes wide, gasping for air. “Daddy? Zan?”

With a nasty grin, the rogue pushed her off him and the knife pulled free with a sickening squelch. He laughed as she fell limp and boneless to the floor.

The monster had killed his baby at last. Death had collected his due.

Daddy. Now, after all those lonely years, she’d called him Daddy again. When it mattered most.

Grief-stricken, Nick gratefully surrendered to the darkness.

He could finally let go.

When they burst into the hideous chamber, Selene took in two things: her father chained to the wall, covered in blood, and her mate kneeling on the floor.

Red clouded her mind, and she rushed for the object of her bloodlust. Darrow barely had time to react, taking a step toward her as she leaped at him and took him to the floor. Shifting her hands into claws and letting her fangs drop, she had every intention of ending him right there. She heard shouts, perhaps her dad’s voice. And Zan.

Then Darrow punched her in the side, hard. The blow stole her breath and she glanced down . . . to see a knife buried in her side to the hilt.

“Daddy? Zan?” she whispered.

Grinning like a jackal, he yanked out the blade and shoved her to the floor. She was so heavy, couldn’t move. Just as her eyes drifted shut, she heard her mate howl. The sounds of renewed battle.

And then nothing.

When the door slammed against the wall and their backup started streaming into the chamber, Zan barely had time to react. His mate flew at Darrow, took him to the floor. She was about to rip him apart.

In an instant, he’d buried a knife in her side.

Zan’s howl of fury rang throughout the chamber, above the din of the fight, as more rogues teleported in to engage his friends. Zan had only one goal, however—to kill Darrow.

Becoming a machine, he shifted a hand into sharp claws and slashed his way through rogues, gutting them. Ripping out their hearts. In the cacophony, they didn’t matter. His entire focus was only on the cool blond monster who’d so ruthlessly stabbed his mate.

At last he spotted an opening and threw himself at Darrow. They met in a clash of bodies, the bastard not going down easily this time. He’d been ready for Zan’s attack, but he didn’t have grief-fueled rage on his side.

Zan’s assault was relentless. Grabbing the arm with the knife, he smashed the wrist into the floor, crushing the bone instantly. Screaming, Darrow dropped the knife, and Zan went for his throat. But the vampire rolled, got his legs under himself, and shoved Zan off. It gave his enemy enough leverage to leap at him and try to pin him, but he was at a disadvantage with the broken wrist and didn’t get purchase quickly enough. Zan twisted to the side, easily breaking his hold and launching a counterattack.

Landing on top of Darrow, he grabbed a fistful of the vampire’s hair, pulled him up. He had to end this, and now. Executing a partial shift, he lunged forward and ripped out his enemy’s throat. It was over that fast. Darrow’s expression was one of disbelief and shock as the light faded from his gaze.

Zan dropped him and crawled to his mate’s side, heart pounding in fear. “Baby?” Gathering her into his arms, he was hardly aware of the sounds of the battle around him coming to an end. His team and the prince’s vampires had won the fight. But if he didn’t do something fast, his mate would lose hers.

She was still, pale. Hand trembling, he pushed an errant lock of platinum hair from her gorgeous face and gathered his strength. This was it. Selene and Nick needed him, and he would not fail them. No matter the cost—and it would be the highest.

His eyes never leaving her face, he took a deep breath. Summoned his power from deep within and sent the warm fingers of healing into her body, seeking the damage. His light traveled through veins and muscle to the source of the substantial blood loss from the wound in her side. Without his intervention his mate would die, and he wouldn’t allow that to happen.

Already, his head was throbbing. But he pushed the pain aside and concentrated on the damage the blade had caused internally. The tip of the knife had pierced a lung, so he sent his energy to that tear first, knitting together the tissues and re-creating air to inflate the organ.

Next came the stab wound, and he painstakingly repaired the flesh, making it as brand-new. Once the gash was closed, he focused on generating the blood she’d lost, not stopping until she was well on the road to recovery.

Done, he slumped over his mate. Held her close for a moment. “I love you. So much. I’ll love you forever,” he whispered.

Veins in his brain were flexing. Throbbing. Sending out agonizing pains as dire warnings to stop, which he couldn’t possibly heed. Because Nick was next.

He studied her face, committed it to memory. Then, throat closing on a burning lump, he handed her into Jax’s arms. “Take care of her. Promise me.”

His best friend didn’t bother to pretend all was fine. His eyes were moist, his expression miserable. “I promise. But you’re going to be okay, Alexander.”