Page 87 of Court of Evil

It’s our elite team, still in their shredded, bloodied black hunting gear. There are no guns or weapons in sight, however, as they sweep deeper into the room. I sit frozen like a child as I gape.

They died . . .

I saw it.

I felt it.

“Kill them all,” comes a gruff order.

“Protect our mistress!”

Tem roars and throws himself at them, Addeus joining him, while Jarek begins to conjure. Fang is at his side, holding a blade, and Ronan stands beside her. Zeev appears behind them, and they turn to attack, my old team lunging at my new family.Black isn’t here, but he must be close. Their eyes land on me where I’m staring in shock.

Goose.

Except . . . this isn’t the Goose I remember.

His skin is pale, the colour of death, with black veins crawling over his pallid face and up to bloodshot eyes.

“There you are,” he says.

My eyes widen as Goose heads towards me. He backhands a chair out of the way, and it flies across the room with inhuman strength, smashing into the wall and breaking into pieces.

Tightening my grip on the gun, I get to one knee and fire, my shock wearing off in the face of impending danger. His body jerks as it’s riddled with bullets, and I continue to fire, but he doesn’t stop, not until he’s grinning before me. He smacks the gun away and reaches for me. I roll forward and slam a dagger into the artery in his thigh as I slide through his legs, coming up behind him. I wrap myself around his back and slam another blade into his neck for safe measure.

Roaring, he spins and reaches for me, but blood doesn’t squirt from the wounds like normal. Instead, a thick, blackish substance slowly rolls from the wounds and across his skin, confusing me for a moment, and then I’m airborne. I hit the wall hard, and he’s on me. He wraps his hand around my throat and lifts me into the air with inhuman strength.

“Hello, Tate.” He grins. “Miss us?”

I cannot spare the others a look, but I hear them fighting. I just hope they are doing better than I am.

There’s nothing human left in Goose’s gaze. “You’re dead. You should have stayed dead,” I hiss as he jerks me forward.

“Where’s the fun in that? I’ve always wondered how you would taste. I bet you’re delicious. Let’s find out.” He pulls me towards his mouth.

I slam my dagger into his arm and rip it up, tearing through tendons and muscles, but he doesn’t even blink, just gives me a creepy grin with teeth covered in blood and black inkiness. His eyes are soulless.

There is no spark of warmth or life there.

Pulling the dagger free, I slam it into him again, hoping to loosen his grip, but if anything, he just seems amused by my attempts. He should be dead. They are all fatal wounds for a human.

He isn’t human, though, not anymore, and I do not have a fucking clue what he is.

This isn’t working; he won’t fucking die. Bullets didn’t stop him, and he won’t bleed out. I can hit him with everything I have, but unless I know what he is now and how to kill him, we are at a disadvantage and could sustain losses.

A good hunter knows when to retreat.

This battle cannot be won, not like this, and I have more to think about than just me. Death doesn’t scare me, I welcome it, but those around me deserve better. They have been failed far too often.

I will not let them down.

He tugs me closer to his gaping mouth, and I know I won’t survive what he has planned, but he forgot one thing—I’m not that easy to kill. I lunge, taking him by surprise as I wrap around him from the front.

I sink my teeth into his neck, feeling his veins burst before I rip my head back, wanting to gag as that tar-like blood fills my mouth. He roars as I’m dropped to the floor. I hit it hard, spitting out his skin and that disgusting slimy substance, then I scramble to my feet and dive towards my bag. I grab it and glance around the room.

We are losing. Magic is flying everywhere, blood as well.

Fang screams as she’s thrown onto the bed, Mav coming down on top of her with a wicked laugh. Tugging my shotgun free, I fire as I walk over. He jerks and rolls away. Grabbing Fang, I keep hold of her hand as I take out a grenade and glance at her.

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