Page 30 of V for Vindictive

As if we hadn’t just fought for our lives.

“You’re not wrong to question it, and we’ll train your other skills so you won’t have to rely on it.” The Brit’s glistening gem-like eyes slid back over to me. “But I fear I must argue with you.”

Mouth thinning, I looked at the path ahead. “Oh? Going to lecture me about how I should just be grateful for the outcome?”

His laughter rang out and caught my attention right away. “Not at all. You fought better than most seasoned Hunters today. Every movement was completely in sync with mine. Other than Kris and Phillip, no one has been that in tune with me, and Kris took nearly a decade to do what you did today.” The side of his lip tilted into an impish smirk. “So, again, I hate to disagree with a beauty like you, but what you did today was not luck or chance. It was talent and training. It was the mark of every top-level Hunter.”

I might miss Phillip to the point of physical pain, but I was seriously glad I had Sloan. He made each passing day bearable. His words calmed a storm in my head. He knew just what to say to ease my insecurities.

“Thanks, you gorgeous British bastard.”

The happiness that ignited his face was as if I’d given him the bestcompliment of his life, and it destroyed me. I couldn’t pretend I wasn’t insanely attracted to him when he smiled like that.

“Anytime, love.”

Silence fell over us, but it wasn’t uncomfortable. It was necessary. As a Hunter, no matter what we faced, it was business as usual and onto the next when we fought. It may be unique circumstances, but that didn’t change the fact that innocent people were at risk the longer this vampire coven was left unchecked. Our first priority would always be to the innocent lives threatened by the creatures hunting them.

Getting my head back in the game, I refocused on the task at hand. We could debrief later when we finished the job. Until then, I’d thank my luck I didn’t die at the hands of a Siren and move the fuck on.

We weren’t far from the location, and there was no telling what other beasties waited in the wings for me. So, I kept my eyes peeled for anything nearby. I relied on all my senses to detect anything amiss, and when I picked up the sound of footsteps, I stopped in my tracks. Something felt familiar about the sound, but I prepared myself for another attack. Sloan didn’t seem worried though, as he came to a stop beside me. His hands were free of weapons, and he simply stared ahead.

A second later, two figures loomed about two hundred feet from us in the path ahead. They’d come over a hill and stopped just as it crested. My heart ceased its beat before I realized who they were.

“Did you guys take the scenic route, or just get outright lost?” Kris asked, laughing. But one look at Sloan and my expressions when she finally closed in on us and her smile disappeared. “What happened?”

I opened my mouth, but Sloan cut in ahead of me. “Just a little trouble. It’s all settled now, though. Not to worry.”

As if picking up on something left unsaid, Kris nodded and offered the two of us another one of her sly smiles. “Danger magnets, these two.”

Sungho, whose eyes didn’t leave mine the entire back and forth between the other two, finally looked over at Sloan. “The other location turned up nothing.”

Kris rolled her eyes and giggled. “Right to business. Next time I’m pairing up with V. You boys are no fun.”

Collecting myself and brushing off how uncomfortable Sungho’s stare made me, I smiled at the sassy vixen. “I’m game. I think Sloan attracts more danger than I do.”

“He really does!” Kris yelped with enthusiasm, making the man beside me snicker. And surprisingly, Sungho’s lips tilted up, just shy of a smile.

“So you can smile? I mean, really smile. None of that courteous greet-and-grin bullshit?” I teased the silent man.

His smile departed the second I pointed it out. “You’re seeing things.”

“No…it was definitely there. You smiled. A real, god-honest grin of delight.”

Kris dropped an arm around my shoulders and laughed loudly. “He’s a tough nut to crack, but he’ll eventually give into our charms, V.”

Sungho silently stalked ahead, ignoring us. But it’d thankfully broken the tension, and I was super grateful for Kris swooping in to save the day.

Chapter 11

I Hate You

After confirming the location and about fifteen active vampires plus the elder leader, it barely took the other three an hour to figure out a plan of attack.

Sungho turned out to be an incredible asset. He even spared time to teach me the distinct difference between scents—something I hadn’t been taught by anyone yet.

Despite our weirdly ominous introduction, Sungho turned out to be a joy to talk to. He reminded me ironically of the Japanese term “tsundere.” He came across cold and apathetic, but his actions and gentle regard spoke differently. Like Mia, I was captivated by the dissonance of his character and wanted to get to the bottom of who Sungho truly was.

Nigel texted that he and the pack would be arriving within the hour, so it was decided we’d attack before nightfall. If we killed off the elder first, we’d have less trouble wiping out the rest of the coven.

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