I heard Dastien’s howl, and knew what was coming next.
I struggled to stop him, kicking at the mass of fur and muscle that pinned me to the ground, but I couldn’t move. I couldn’t breathe.
Mr. Hoel started to shift. It was disgusting. His face half wolf, half human. Grotesque.
This was why people were afraid of werewolves. Because of monsters like Mr. Hoel.
His claws dug into my neck. “You’re dead, mutt.”
“No!” Daniel shoved Mr. Hoel with all his weight, pushing the wolf away.
I gasped as the weight lifted.
Mr. Hoel snarled, swinging his claw-like paw. I watched as if in slow motion as Mr. Hoel’s razor-sharp nails went through Daniel’s neck like butter.
Hot blood rained down on my face.
Oh God. Oh God.
Daniel gave a sickening gurgle as he slowly crumpled.
My heartbeat thundered in my ears. It was all I could hear as Daniel hit the ground.
This wasn’t supposed to happen. I was the one who was supposed to die. Not Daniel.
Mr. Hoel, still frozen in his half-shifted state, snarled at me. “You won’t fight. That’s an order.”
For a second I froze. I couldn’t move. His alpha powers had worked, and I couldn’t disobey. He stared at me, his claws dripping with Daniel’s blood.
Then something amazing happened.
My whole body burned. My vision went white, blinding me, and my back bowed up from the ground like a million needles pricked my skin. But it wasn’t a bad thing.
This was good. So very good.
Cherie! Move! Now!
My powers. They were back.
If Claudia was the one who’d just broken the jars, I owed her big time. But I didn’t have time for thanks.
Luciana’s chanting grew louder and I spun toward her. The light around her was gone. Her back was to me, but I knew from the way her chanting had grown frantic, she was pissed.
And she still hadn’t seen Daniel.
Chanting back was the best thing I could think of. In the name of Jesus Christ, I cast you back to hell. I had no idea if it’d work, but I kept saying it. Hoping something would change.
The third time I thought the words, the ground stopped rumbling.
Thank God.
I lay there for a second, and then I sat up.
Mr. Hoel was backing away from me. He couldn’t get away with what he’d done.
I didn’t hesitate. Rage swamped my body and I shifted fully.
“The jars!” Luciana yelled, but it was too late. “Where are you, you little bitch?”
Mr. Hoel spun around, toward Luciana’s angry tirade, and I took advantage, leaping at him. He glanced at me at the last second, but it was too late. My teeth sank into his neck.
The taste of copper filled my mouth in a hot wave.
Luciana was running toward us, screaming something unintelligible. I had seconds before Luciana closed the space. When she did, she’d see Daniel, and I didn’t want to know what she’d do for revenge.
I knew the second she’d seen him. She stumbled before changing direction. She’d glared with pure rage, but now her features twisted between rage and sadness. I wasn’t sure which was worse.
“No!” Luciana screamed as she knelt beside Daniel. Lightning crashed down around the quad as she sobbed. The ground had stopped rumbling, but the scent of sulfur still hung in the air. She might not be able to use my powers to finish calling up whatever demon she’d been summoning, but as she looked at me, hate filling her eyes, I knew it wasn’t over.
“You. This is your fault,” she yelled.
Dastien howled as he bounded across the quad. He slid to a stop between Luciana and me. Her hands glowed as she stared me down.
I spared a glance around. Fires burned throughout campus.
The vampires were all burning or already turned to ash. Their stench had begun to clear.
Wolves fought wolves. Brujos fought wolves. And the handful of brujos on our side fought their own coven.
It was bloody. Howls and screams of pain tore across the night.
“Wolves. Hear me,” Donovan’s thick Irish accent echoed, cutting through the chaos. “You will stop fighting. Now.”
At once, the wolves on both sides of the battle stopped their attacks.
When the Weres froze, the witches stopped in place. They looked to their leader for some direction, but she was still sobbing. Kneeling beside Daniel.
He’d saved my life.
Maybe all of our lives. Nothing but his death would’ve stopped Luciana.
Why had he done that? What was he thinking? I couldn’t breathe. I’d been imagining he was a traitor, but instead Daniel had traded his life for mine.
