Fighting for her Mate

19

Caleb and the four brothers ran from the burning kitchen at the Embraced nightclub into the lounge area. They arrived to see the ceiling falling through with burning timbers. Caleb quickly analyzed the situation. The group fight had dwindled to Aria’s three and a handful of others. Caleb and the brothers urged all non-essential fighters to get the hell out, if they hadn’t already.

Mangled bodies lying on the dance floor had caught fire from the collapsing roof. Broken furniture and booths quickly went up in flames. Within a minute, the front half of the building burned around them.

Emma dashed through the door to the middle of the lounge. She took a deep breath and coughed. “Aria! Aria!” She caught a scent toward the stage. She stepped forward then was lifted off her feet.

“Emma,” she barely heard Mason over the noise, “what the hell are you doing?” He held her to his body, arm around her waist, feet off the floor.

“I have to find Aria. She’s not outside, Mason. I can’t let her die in here.”

“Where is she?” He squinted from acid smoke in his eyes and looked around.

Emma pointed toward the stage. “I think back there.” Back there being behind a wall of blazing curtains and stage equipment.

A hot breeze brushed by them smelling like Trevan. He leapt through the stage flames, disappearing from their sight. If anyone were to save her, it would be Trevan. He’d not give up; he’d die trying.

Caleb shouted on the other side of the room. “Julian, did anyone check the back rooms to see if others are tied up?”

Penelope slashed her claws through a large male vamp, slicing him into four sections. She called out, “Julian, Zane and I have these. Check the back.” Julian took off with Caleb right behind.

Emma fought in Mason’s arms. “We need to help—” Her words were choked from smoke filling her throat. Mason was already on his way out. “No, baby. There’s nothing we can do. We can’t even get to that side of the room.”

Emma knew he was right, but she wasn’t the type of person to stand by and wait while other lives were in danger. Ellie came through the doorway, frantic. “Where is Caleb?”

Emma nodded toward the far door. “He went with Julian to see if anyone was in the back.” Before Mason or Emma realized Ellie’s intentions, Ellie was jumping charred bodies, headed for the side door. “Ellie!”

Mason put Emma down to go after his sister, but a hand grabbed his shirt. “Stay here with the women, Mason. That’s an order.” Tristan blew past them faster than Mason had ever seen his dad run. Even when his dad chased him after wrapping Nate’s bed in duct tape, with Nate sleeping in it.

Trevan slapped out the small patch of fire on his shirt sleeve. Fire meant nothing when it came to saving his mate. He froze in place. Was the gorgeous firecracker vamp his mate? His mind said no, she couldn’t be. Not with what vamps did to his loved ones. But his heart said she was not part of those demons. She didn’t even drink human blood.

Movement on his periphery snapped his head around. The dickhead with the expensive suit straddled Aria’s stomach, his hands tangled in her hair, bashing her head against the concrete. Aria had her fingers around his throat, thumb digging in to crush his trachea.

Trevan plowed into the man, ripping him away from Aria. No matter how torn he was about wanting her, he wasn’t going to let anyone hurt her. His wolf pushed to the surface. He slammed the vamp against the wall. The foundation shook and burning material fell too close to Aria for his comfort. “Aria, get out. This place is about to collapse.” She got to her knees, shaking her head as if to clear it.

Trevan punched the dickhead in the face. He knew a single wolf was no match for a vampire, especially one as old as this asshole. Trevan hauled back for another punch when he found himself flying stage right. He landed on his backside and slid to a metal door.

Working their way toward him, Aria and the prick were in the most amazing martial arts fight he’d ever seen. He didn’t know anything about karate or the other fighting styles, he didn’t know the names of the hits and kicks, but he did know sheer power and the body’s ability to do astonishing things.

The two before him punched and sparred and kicked in a beautiful dance from hell’s ballroom. Aria blocked hands and legs in a blur of motion. Dickhead sported a grin that waned as the fight went on. Obviously, Dickie wasn’t aware how well his gorgeous vamp fought. Reminder to self: don’t piss off his beautiful vamp.

Aria drove her foot into d**k’s stomach, sending him farther onto the stage. “And in case you’re wondering, the wedding is off, asshole.”

Trevan pulled to his feet, reaching for her arm. “Aria, let’s get out of here. This place is crashing.” To emphasize his statement, overhead ropes suspending backdrops burned through, sending lighting equipment and metal supports smashing into the wooden floor.

Metal shrapnel hotter than a cast-iron skillet over a fire pierced Dickie’s arms and torso. He screamed and took off running into the inferno beyond the stage. The smell of burning flesh quickly competed with smoke in his nose. He was ready to vomit, which wouldn’t be good.

He had a bag of popcorn before leaving for the club. The last time he threw up the little white puffs after drinking too much, it came out a pulpy mess made of a million pieces of the hull. Unfortunately, those tiny parts found their way into his nasal cavity. He was blowing them out for a f*****g week.