Prologue
*warning of violence and self-harm*
-Aliauna’s POV-
“How’s it looking from up there?” I ask through the coms.
“All good here,” Kayleigh responded.
“Just keep your eyes open, team, he could show up at any moment.”
My team and I are currently waiting at a spot where a certain vampire should show up. We have been hunting him for two years now, and we’re hoping we can finally finish the job.
‘Something's not right,’ my wolf growls in my head.
“Alright team, Asuna says something's up, stay sharp,” I alert them.
Suddenly I’m thrown to the ground. Jumping up, I pull out my blades and spin on my heel to see my attackers. Six men stand in front of me. Considering they’re so bulky and have matching bear tattoos on their arms, the men are bear shifters.
“Got you covered, Ali!” Kayleigh yells through the coms.
One bear shifts and comes at me. Jumping up, I land on him and plunge my blades straight through his heart, killing him instantly. Three shots go off, and I turn just in time to see three of the men drop dead. This is too easy! The two men left stalk towards me when one is thrown against a wall, knocking him out, and a blade is flung straight into the other's throat. I look up and see Tyler.
“Dude, you broke them,” I pouted.
Completely ignoring me, Tyler says, “there’s more. Let’s go!”
I follow him into the open, scanning the bloody pavement as I search for my team. While I’m distracted, I feel a bullet whiz past my ear. Looking over my shoulder, I see a dead shifter. I look to the roof to see Kayleigh give me a thumbs up.
I finally spot my whole team; Tyler and Eric work together to take out shifters, and Mateo is currently killing anyone who even looks in Kayleigh’s direction. Did I mention they’re mates?
I continue to take out shifter after shifter with my blades, wondering why there are no vampires. When it seems we’ve killed all the shifters, a scream rings out, and it hits me the smell of death. There is a vampire here, but where?
I look over to see Tyler holding back Mateo as he tries running toward a building. Following his gaze, I see Kayleigh with a gun to her head. That f*****g vampire showed up.
“Kayleigh, I need you to stay calm, ok? Can you do that? I will get you out of this!” I say to her over the comms.
“Aliauna, I am calm. I'm always calm. You are an amazing leader and friend. I never could have asked for anyone better! And Mateo, I love you so much! And I’m sorry we only had two years together. You have my permission to find love again. I'm not letting him use me.” She says, and before I can realize what she plans to do, Kayleigh grabs a knife from her pocket and slits her throat.
I drop to my knees and the last thing I hear before blacking out is the wails from Mateo, the result of a loss of a mate.