Page 101 of Blood from the Marrow
Elena grinned when Sayah looked up at her from where she’d fallen. Disdain was plain on her face, but so was doubt. Doubt that she had any hope of fighting the unexpected. Regret that she’d miscalculated Elena’s response to her invasion.
And then Sayah grinned like she was pleased Elena had presented a challenge. She called for her vampires to push. The Black Wings strained to hold the line, but fending off hundreds of angry vampires was too much.
Elena screamed for them to fall back. “Stage three,” she bellowed, and vampires poured from the house while fire and lightning rained down without ceasing. Candela and the Storm Wings would have to stop once the melee started so they wouldn’t risk friendly fire, but they struck where they could while they could.
“Fall back,” Elena repeated, but Judith dug her feet into the earth and willed another pulse of her force field. This time, Sayah’s gang was expecting it and merely lost their footing when they descended on them.
It was like watching a zombie movie. Too many bodies landed on the Black Wings, crushing them. Elena’s stomach heaved at the thought of losing them. That wasn’t the plan.
Sofia leapt from the top of the dome.
“Avani!” Elena screamed, fearing that Sofia had jumped from far too high. That even though the fall wouldn’t kill her, it could easily impair her mobility and leave her an easy target.
Understanding Elena’s command in a flash, Avani dropped the fireball she was delivering, causing it to land on a rosebush. She pivoted to catch Sofia, but couldn’t adjust quickly enough. She broke her fall, but pushed her off course in the process. Nearly flying over the wall, Sofia caught herself by her fingertips.
Elena’s heart had only a moment of relief that Sofia hadn’t broken her legs before she stood on the wall’s ledge and dove into the melee like a swimmer into a pool. Holding her breath, Elena waited for Sofia’s little blonde head to pop up somewhere. What she wasn’t expecting was for Sofia to erupt out of a pack of vampires she sent sprawling backward. Covered in blood almost immediately, Sofia sprang from Judith’s shoulders.
Judith was a wrecking ball despite the obvious injuries to her wings, and Sofia was a wildfire of retribution. Elena couldn’t wait a moment longer. They were losing the advantage more quickly than anticipated.
“Full press,” Elena shouted, and all the cartel leaders joined the fight. Librada was gone before Elena finished calling for every living person to join the fight in whatever way they could.
“Can you stay here?” Elena asked Marisol, but she already knew the answer. Knew that Marisol was going to join the other healers already dragging injured members of Elena’s vampires away.
“I can’t,” she whispered, eyes wide. “And I know that none of us can,” she added when Zuri joined them.
“If it goes bad”—Elena took each of their hands—“please try to save yourselves if you can. Promise me.”
“Would you promise that?” Zuri asked.
Elena gritted her teeth, accepting that they were all annoyingly stubborn in their own ways. She kissed them each once and prayed to Lilith that it wasn’t for the last time. Crying and praying to Lilith, who the fuck was she turning into?
The field stank of acrid vampire blood and burnt flesh and death. It filled Elena’s nostrils and turned her stomach as she cut her way to Sayah. She’d known that Zuri and Marisol would be right behind her, that it wasn’t safe to leave anyone out of the pack, but she hated that they were there. She wished she could have sent them so far from the violence that would undoubtedly change them all—if they lived long enough for psychological scars.
Fangs clenched, Elena reminded herself that she hadn’t started this fight, but she sure as fuck was going to end it. Sayah’s daughters had targeted the Black Wings, but Hel and Librada were running toward them and Bernice was joining the effort to get them unpinned. In the fighting, Elena couldn’t see Cordelia, but she was small and fast. She could be anywhere in the throng.
Relieved that Zuri and Marisol had at least followed protocol and joined the other witches who’d retreated behind the line of Storm Wings and vampires fending off attackers, Elena was free to find Sayah. She’d lost track of her after jumping off the balcony, but it only took moments to spot her. She’d joined her daughters, concentrating on the Black Wings. To prevent the remaining witches and Aglion from being too exposed, they needed to free the last three Black Wings. They should have retreated according to plan.
Elena sneered and ran at Sayah at full speed. She would have caught her unaware if a woman’s voice hadn’t called out awarning. Sayah turned just in time to drop her shoulder and use Elena’s momentum against her. Elena landed on her knees, but having earned the attention of Sayah and two of her daughters had given the force working to pull the Black Wings back an advantage. It was enough for Judith to let out an animalistic cry while she summoned the last of strength and pushed Sayah’s vampires back several feet.
Blindingly fast, Sofia and at least a dozen others spirited three Black Wings away. Marisol and Clara were the first to run out and help drag them away. Elena’s heart broke for the two broken bodies on the ground. The Black Wings that were beyond healing. The ones who’d given their lives in exchange for a chance at freedom that would never come.
“Where do you keep finding these amazing pets, Elena?” Sayah asked with a laugh. A fuckinglaugh. “You’ll have to tell me your secrets.”
Knowing she was being goaded and resisting it were two vastly different things. Elena curled her hands into fists and then one of Sayah’s daughters was on her. One of the ones who’d decapitated Narine’s sons in front of her.
She was overconfident. Too eager to prove herself to her mother. Elena dodged her attack, even as one of her fangs caught Elena’s arm. It wasn’t nearly enough to cause any damage. She was already healing by the time she leapt for her. By the time she caught her by the throat and made Sayah watch while she ripped it out.
The maniacal delight Sayah had been wearing dissolved. Stunned, she watched as her daughter landed in the dirt with a heavy thud. Elena knew that pain too well, but she wasn’t sure Sayah had felt it before.
“Your turn,” Elena said without wiping the blood from her face. She wanted Sayah to see it. Wanted her to hurt the way Elena and Narine had.
With tears in her eyes, Sayah lunged for her while Cordelia picked off her other daughter before they made it an unfair fight. Sayah slammed into her like a freight train, but grief was terrible for focus. Another fact Elena was sure Sayah was only just learning.
Unleashing her own primal scream, Elena charged for her too. They collided like steel meeting stone. In a whirlwind of fangs and fists and kicks, they tried desperately to kill each other. More evenly matched than Elena expected, she poured every ounce of her strength and vengeance and love for her family into getting to Sayah’s throat. Sayah avoided every attempt.
“What’s wrong, baby?” Sayah taunted after delivering a glancing blow that knocked Elena off balance for only a heartbeat. She didn’t go in for the kill, Elena realized. She was prolonging this. Enjoying it.
Elena went for her legs, trying to get her on the ground, but Sayah flipped over Elena’s back and away from her grasp.
