Ripper(115)

I was nowhere near satisfied with that. Rage filled me. He’d thought he could kill me? I brought the bat down again and again. His big body twitched a time or two, but after a while he didn’t move anymore. Blood splattered, but I didn’t mind. It was only right that I cover myself in it. He was my enemy and I’d won our game.

My heart raced and I felt disappointed the game was over so quickly. I hit the body over and over, trying to get out all my rage. He’d tried to kill me, to take my life, but I’d shown him what it meant to cross me.

“Shit,” I heard a voice say behind me.

“Don’t get close to her,” another voice warned.

It was too late. Someone was reaching out to me.

“Kelsey,” Dev Quinn said as his hand touched my shoulder.

I reared back, all instinct and rage. He’d come into my killing field and dared to interrupt me. Swinging the bat back, I hit him full force across the chest. His emerald green eyes registered complete shock as his body flew away from me. He hit the concrete with a thud and a low moan came from his mouth. This one wasn’t dead yet. He needed another couple of hits before I could claim him. I held the bat over my head and was about to bring it down on the faery’s head when an arm shot out and I looked into seriously blue eyes.

Dan held my arm in his hand, the threat obvious. He would break it if I didn’t stand down.

“You don’t touch him,” he snarled around his really freaking big fangs. “He is mine.”

But in my mind he wasn’t. In my rage-addled brain, that faery was mine because he’d walked into my territory and tried to keep me from my rightful prey. Now the vampire was doing the same damn thing. He stared at me like he could scare me into backing down. Idiot.

I pulled my arm out of his grasp even as I kicked him straight on in the crotch. Vampires, I discovered, liked their privates uninjured as much as the human male. Dan went down with an outraged shout and I took advantage. I swung the bat straight down at his sandy blond head. My bat hit the concrete and split in two as the vampire nimbly rolled away in the nick of time.

It was okay. A broken bat becomes a handy stake.

“Daniel!” Quinn had managed to get to his knees. He pointed my way.

I rushed the vampire, the lovely pointed end in my right hand, his heart in my sights. Dan’s handsome face registered shocked and he took a defensive stance. His fist reared back and it was just a question of who handled the impact best.

Or it would have been, if the world hadn’t stopped on a single command.

“Sleep,” a peaceful, familiar voice said deep in my brain.

My hand lowered and I saw Marcus running toward me as I began to fall. I was in his arms as everything went black.





Chapter Fifteen





“Well, it’s been an awfully long time since I saw anyone put Daniel on his ass,” I heard a voice say as I started to come out of the darkness. “It was worth the broken ribs for that sight alone. I’m glad I took the bat in the chest instead of what happened to you. If that had happened to me, we would never have any more kids.”

“It’s not a fucking joke, Dev,” a low voice growled. “She nearly killed you.”

I opened my eyes a smidge and saw them standing there.

“Oh, it wasn’t that bad.” Quinn had changed his shirt. He was back to masculine perfection in an olive-colored dress shirt and black slacks. “I’ve had much worse, though it has been a while since I broke a bone. I’ll moan and complain about the pain for days and see how much sympathy sex I can get out of our wife.”

A familiar voice chimed in, disapproval dripping. “It could have been avoided if Daniel had taken me with him as I advised. I can handle her. I am the only one who can handle her when she gets like that. You’re lucky Zack drives as quickly as he does or you could have had a much bigger problem on your hands.”

I lay perfectly still. I wanted to listen in as Marcus argued with Dan and Quinn.

“You think I couldn’t have handled her, Marcus?” Dan asked defensively. “Damn it. I held back because I don’t like hitting girls. I took Dev because I thought he could help. He has a relationship with her.”

“He spent ten minutes with her,” Marcus complained. “I have a relationship with her. Devinshea tossed money her way and expected her to comply because of it. He knows nothing about her. Neither of you has ever met a Hunter before and you’re proving it even as we speak.”

“What the hell is that supposed to mean?” Quinn asked.

I felt a hand on my shoulder. “It means that she is awake and listening to everything we say. It’s no use, cara mia. Open your eyes.”