think about what they might be doing to her.
I clench the hilt of the Crimson Sword at my waist, my hands shaking against the cool metal as I stalk from the room. With a leaping start I rush in the direction of the Red Hills without a backward glance.
It takes less than an hour for my anxious but relentless steps to carry me to the base of the Red Hills. The cursed, blood stained air filters through my lungs. I begin the hike up the mountains, my hurried steps faltering against the damp crevices. Gabriel joins me moments later, breathing hard from the run here. A minimal amount of stress is relieved just from his presence.
Until Declan climbs up a minute later.
I scatter down to his level, bringing rocks and debris with me as I land in front of him, my sword raised. My boots echo off the rocky terrane as I stomp toward the hybrid.
He holds his hands up quickly. “I want to help. I want to help her, I swear,” Declan sputters.
Gabriel holds me back lightly, waiting to hear the traitorous hybrid’s reply.
“I didn’t know what they wanted with her. They said they wouldn’t hurt her, that they needed a human to release them from the curse. The race that damned them would have to be the one to release them.”
My lungs burn as I take deep breaths to force down the aggression that’s rising in me.
“They won't hurt her. Just let me talk to them. They trust me,” he adds as I just stare wildly at him.
This lowlife hybrid just ruined her life. I thought I would be the one to do that but she did. With the help of her friend.
I turn from him, sheathing the sword, knowing I shouldn’t waste any more time. Gabriel lowers his arm from me and starts climbing. I raise one hand, prepared to begin the climb, as well, until I think better of it. Declan takes three steps forward before I clench my fist and slam him hard in the face. A pleasant and fulfilling cracking sound meets my ears. I release a long, pent-up sigh as a burst of dark blood flows from his nose and down his chin.
He clutches his broken nose that’s unfortunately already healing.
Damn hybrid healing!
He stares at me, not with anger but understanding like he knows he deserved that and more. I release another long breath that shakes my chest, just wanting to be able to breathe again. I won’t breathe with ease until she’s in my arms again.
I turn from him, not feeling threatened in the slightest with my back to the hybrid. The three of us trail up the mountain side in silence.
When we’re close to Pike’s Peak my feet begin to falter. What if they took her? What if we’re too late? What if she’s dead?
I swallow hard and pull the Crimson Sword from my belt, holding it tightly in my hand as I walk cautiously toward the vampire’s lair.
I’m prepared to fight them. I’m prepared to die. I’m not prepared for the sight that greets me.
Blood coats the already dusty red mountains. My heart thrashes, trying to release the fear and anxiety building within me. I don’t want to see what’s around the bend, where the vampires reside, starving and wasting away for the last several decades—just dying for fresh blood.
The sword clatters to the ground, greeting the cursed earth that it was wielded from. It’s forgotten the moment I drop it, the moment my eyes land on her. I step over it, taking hesitant but eager steps toward the woman I love.
Within the shadows of the mountain she sits, shaded from the sun, her arms hanging at her sides with slouching and defeated posture. She’s alone here. The heavy spellbound boulders that sealed the vampires within Pike’s Peak have been pushed away. Because Fallon freed them…
Shifting crimson eyes meet mine, a feeling of fire passes through my stinging heart. It stutters in my chest as I take in her altered appearance.
“I… I… I’m sorry,” she says to us, her ruby like eyes sparkling with confusion and something similar to shame in the scorching sunlight.
With cautious steps I walk to her, my boots make no sound against the crumbling remains of the boulders that once shielded the world from the last remaining monsters. Blood smears her palms, like she fought to keep her mortality within her.
Kneeling before her, simple understanding lays heavily within me as I hold her gaze, my fingers cautiously trailing up the black lines that ink her cold wrist.
In this moment I am reminded of what I’ve always known: I know from too much experience that life can change in an instant, from one pounding heartbeat to the next… your life can crumble all around you. I know that there isn’t a whole lot that an Infinity witch’s dangerous magic can’t fix. I know that my heart beats for Fallon Fiercely… I’ll always love her.
Even if she is a vampire.
The End
The final book, To Kill a Vampire will be here on October 13! Reserve your copy today!
To Kill a Vampire
Also by A.K. Koonce
Paranormal Romance
The Cursed Kingdoms Series
The Cruel Fae King
The Cursed Fae King
The Crowned Fae Queen
Reverse Harem Books
The To Tame a Shifter Series
Taming
Claiming
Maiming
Sustaining
Reigning
The Villainous Wonderland Series
Into the Madness
Within the Wonder
Under the Lies
Origins of the Six
Academy of Six
Control of Five
Destruction of Two
Wrath of One
The Hopeless Series
Hopeless Magic
Hopeless Kingdom
Hopeless Realm
Hopeless Sacrifice
The Monsters and Miseries Series
Hellish Fae
Sinless Demons
The Secrets of Shifters Series
The Darkest Wolves
The Sweetest Lies
The Royal Harem Series
The Hundred Year Curse
The Curse of the Sea
The Legend of the Cursed Princess
The Severed Souls Series
Darkness Rising
Darkness Consuming
Darkness Colliding
The Huntress Series
An Assassin’s Death
An Assassin’s Deception
An Assassin’s Destiny
Stand Alone Contemporary Romance
Hate Me Like You Do
About the Author
A.K. Koonce is a mom by day and a fantasy and paranormal romance author by night. She keeps the fantastical stories in her mind on an endless loop, while she tries her best to focus on her actual life and not that of the spectacular but demanding fictional characters who always fill her thoughts.