Page 32 of Outcast Island

“Didn’t hear me coming, huh?” I ask, noting that the silencing effect dropped because he must have been wearing the speaker that I had cut clean through, and a pained gurgle sounds in response to the twist of my blade.

When I pull out the knife and open the door, a skewered vampire falls through with the remains of a mechanical parts fall onto the ground. The speaker had taken the brunt of the blow, though, and he lunges for me, but my voice works now.

I know I should just deal with him and move on, but my bloodrage burns in my chest and demands that this vampiresuffers.

I’ll make your death slow and painful—but you can do it yourself, asshole. I have an Omega to get to.

“Cut off your own head,” I order him as I throw the blade on the ground.

He stares at it in horror, then starts to shake when he takes up the knife.

I walk away and let him take care of the rest. He won’t likely succeed in completely beheading himself, but he deserves all the agony he’s going to experience as he tries.

And if he comes after me, I’ll finish the job.

His screams follow me as I rush back toward the bedroom and find Ja’ar glowering at a Vampire Alpha who is setting charges on the door.

“Are you trying to blow up my Omega?” I ask, irritated as I lean against the doorway. The urgency has passed now that I’ve taken care of the silence problem.

“She landed on this island,” Ja’ar says, as if that explains everything. “She’s notyours.”

I expect a shockwave when the charges detonate—but instead theysizzle.

Acid,I realize as the activated vials leak through the door, eating it up in a way that suggests Ja’ar has been preparing for this attack for a very long time. There’s a rare plant that I know to stay away from on the island that exhibits such acidic properties—and would be a chore to harvest. But, it makes for good trading material with the dragons and other species who are brave enough to venture onto the island.

I also note that the technology I’ve seen so far isn’t usually this advanced, but I’ve been a thorn in his side for a while. Ja’ar has been planning this for a long time.

He took his time choosing this pack. That’s for sure.

What toy does the last vampire have?

Not knowing that is what has prevented me from telling Ja’ar to burn his own face off. I had learned by now not to underestimate the Vampire Alpha.

The door creaks open and smoke from the exploded acid charges drifts into the air, giving the sleeping Omega in her nest an ethereal appearance.

All the Vampire Alphas go still when they take in her beauty.

A growl rumbles in my chest, because now other Alphas are encroaching on sacred ground.

“She ismine,” I insist with a snarl that would make most vampires fall to their knees. “And anyone who touches her will be commanded to rip out their own entrails and eat them.”

Silence muddles my ears again, making me snarl. I figure out what tricks the last vampire has a little too late.

There’s a backup speaker strapped to his chest and he’s hooked himself to the original vampire’s power source. He’s holding the wrist that still grips a blade while he plucks a bag of Omega blood from his pouch and shoves it into the original vampire’s mouth.

I see now he has tons of bags strapped around his waist.

He’s the support backup—ready with blood to quicken healing and activate the second speaker.

Ja’ar certainly has outdone himself.

But now that I know the playing field, I can act.

Ja’ar pulls the trigger, sending a stream of fire at me, but I’m ready for him.

You’ve been waiting for this day for a long time, haven’t you?I think with a feral grin as I attempt to take out his knees.

He’s aware of my trademark move, so he dips out of the way enough so I can only nick his calves.

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