Page 78 of The Vampire's Mate

She was too small. She slipped right under my arm, and the knife bounced off of the wall. With a primal snarl I pushed away, adrenaline pumping through my veins and making me forget aboutmy injuries. I managed to wrap my arms around Dani’s waist. “I don’twantto hurt you,” I told her. “But you’re not making this easy.”

“Then give it up, Clark.” She writhed and bucked in my arms, her elbow nearly connecting with my nose. “Run away like you always do, and this will all be over.”

I chuckled. It was a dark, sinister sound that I didn’t know I was capable of. “You’re even dumber than I remember.”

I brought my knee into the back of her legs and sent her crumbling to the floor. But for being so small, she definitely held her own. Dani’s head thrashed back, skull colliding with my nose. A sickening crunch, and blood was pouring down my face. I wasn’t lying before: I didn’twantto use the knife, but I was quickly running out of options. Fuck, no one ever told me how much a broken nose hurt. Still, my body pushed through the pain.

Dani’s arm lashed out at me, but I grabbed it and twisted it behind her back. She cried out in pain, her voice higher than it had been before. I pushed even harder. I dropped her arm to grab the hood—taking a fistful of hair with it—and brought the knife to her neck, slowly and carefully. I applied only enough pressure to serve as a warning.

Dani’s laugh chilled me to the bone. “Some parent you are,” she spat. “You’re worried about me while Hannah’s boyfriend is bleeding out on the floor.”

She’s right, I realized in dismay. My stomach roiling, I changed positions, jerking the knife away from her neck and plunging it into her abdomen. I swallowed a wave of nausea as hot blood spurted over my hand, spattering the hardwood floor beneath us. I could only hope the wound wasn’t fatal. I held the hood tight, bringing my mouth to her ear to make sure she heard me perfectly. “You keep my daughter’s name out of your fucking mouth.”

Certain she wouldn’t be a threat anytime soon, I shoved her face into the floor, a grunt of pain following me down the hallway. I tossed the knife, letting it clatter to the ground. My heart was aching to run to James, but Kian was my first priority. He didn’t have supernatural powers behind him. When I knelt next to his still form outside the bedroom, I was certain he was dead. But when I touched his hand, his fingers squeezed around mine. It was weak, but it was something.

“I’m going to get you out of here,” I said. “I promise.”

I felt across his back, searching for the cause of his injury. When I found it, I recoiled.

A wooden stake was driven through his back.

I swallowed down more bile and reached for it again.

“Don’t!” someone cried. I flinched, head jerking toward the sound. Gabriel. “Leave it,” he instructed. “Taking it out could cause more harm than good. He needs a hospital.”

“How exactly am I supposed to explain this to the paramedics? And what about James? I need to get him out of here.”

“Let me worry about that.”

I glanced up into his red irises. “What are you doing here?”

But his attention wasn’t on me; it was focused on the stake in Kian’s back, then the silver chains binding James to the bed. “I thought you could use some help.”

That wasn’t a complete answer—I wanted to know how the hell he had found us—but I didn’t have time to grill him. My gaze went from him to James, then to Kian.

“Look at me, love,” James said quietly.

Tears stung my eyes. I squeezed them shut and shook my head. I wouldn’t leave him. I could save them both.

Gabriel reached for me. “Ryder…”

“No!” I shouted, wrenching out of his grip. “I’m not walking out of here without James.”

I fought the urge to flinch when Gabriel kneltnext to me. My hand still held Kian’s, but I was itching to run to James, to rip those chains out of the wall with my bare hands. I could save them both. Ihadto save them both. The thought of leaving the house without either of them wasn’t one that I could bear.

Gabriel placed a soft hand on my back, his voice soothing. “Ryder, you are a vampire’s mate, so you can trust me when I say that I’ve got him. James will survive, but a vampire can’t heal injuries caused by a stake. I’ll help you get Kian across the street and come back to free James. Call for help, and wait until it arrives.”

“What about the neighbors?”

“They won’t know a thing—don’t look at me like that! They’re asleep.”

“Then what?” I asked, sick with myself for even entertaining the idea of leaving without James.

“We’ll meet you at the hospital. I promise everything will be okay.”

I dropped Kian’s hand and shot to my feet, storming across the room. Taking James’s face in both hands, I leaned down and crushed his mouth to mine. I poured every emotion I felt into that kiss, one that said, “Don’t you dare die on me orI’llhauntyouin the afterlife.”

But when I pulled back, I could only whisper, “I love you.”

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