BEFORE THE FALL - A Dark Breed Novella Page 0,13

anything comes near you, shoot.”

He gripped her shoulders, shaking her slightly to snap her out of her stupor and make her remember she was cop. “Do you understand me?”

When she nodded, he pressed a quick kiss to her lips, pulled his sword from its sheath, and raced after the Dark Breed. The Leech descended on a woman and pinned her to the ground. It lowered its filthy head toward her face as the woman screamed and thrashed unsuccessfully to get away. Zach kicked out, sending the mud-encrusted creature rolling into the road.

He yanked the woman to her feet. “Run!” he ordered, never taking his eyes off the demon.

The sword pulsed in his hand, as if sensing the danger and welcoming it. He tightened his grip on the hilt and slowly backed up. Leeches rarely fought alone. He didn’t want to find this one’s friends. Lucky for him, though, Leeches were incapable of rational thought. Driven solely by hunger, it raced at Zach, ignoring the sword that he raised and lowered, directly into the bastard’s gut. He slipped the weapon out, then sliced it across the Leech’s neck, the head rolling beneath the bush behind it.

The sword cleansed itself as he raced back to Shanna. She was lying flat on her belly beside the tree, using the shotgun to slow Dark Breeds chasing a group of people a few yards away.

He grabbed her hand, pulling her to her feet, and as they made their way to the safer back roads, he finished off the injured Dark Breeds.

“You all right?” he asked, scanning the streets as they went.

“Yeah. I think I’m fine.”

And judging by the stubborn lift of her chin, she looked determined to stay that way. It was a good sign. It meant she was shaking off disbelief and returning to the fighter he’d once fallen in love with. The fighter he still cared for more than he was willing to admit.

Chapter Seven

9:02 p.m.

2 hours and 58 minutes before the fall . . .

Zach led Shanna a mile or so down the road to a CVS where the parking lot was half full of cars begging to be borrowed. The store, like most of the other buildings in the area, was completely vacant. After rummaging through the upturned shelves for a couple of bottles of water and bags of chips, they went in search of yet another mode of transportation to get them the rest of the way to St. Augustine.

He zeroed in on a dark SUV in the next row of cars, hoping his hot-wiring skills hadn’t gone rusty. “Hold this.”

He handed her the bag of weapons and the snacks, then shattered the driver’s window with his elbow. He popped the lock on the back door and opened it so Shanna could stash the goods inside, then shut it and grabbed her before he could second-guess his intentions. Tilting her chin, he forced her to look him in the eye. “We’re going to be okay, Princess. Believe me?”

She shook her head but gave a contradictory half-smile. “Not sure anything’s going to be okay again. But I’m a big girl.” She lifted the hem of her t-shirt to dab at his bloodied elbow. She pulled out a piece of glass and winced before continuing. “The rest of the world is going to have to figure out how to deal—and I will, too. It’s not the first time in my life my world’s been turned upside down.”

At first he thought she was referring to losing her parents when she was a kid, but something in her eyes made him wonder if she was referring to what had happened between them.

Before she could protest, he leaned down and placed a soft kiss on her mouth, and in an instant, he was in an all-too-familiar place that he didn’t want to leave. It took all of his strength to pull away and open the driver’s door—all his concentration to get the SUV running and pretend the kiss hadn’t affected him at all.

“Get in,” he said, somewhat pleased to see she looked as dazed as he felt.

He twisted in his seat to rummage through the bag of weapons, passing her the knuckle rings. She’d won the women’s division of the local boxing tournament last year, and he was pretty sure she’d be more comfortable with her fists than with a dagger.

“Thanks.” She took them, slid them onto her fingers, and made a fist. “I really hope I don’t get close enough to one of those