Once Bitten, Twice Burned (Phoenix Fire 2)

But those men suddenly froze in place.

Ryder.

“All vampires have blood that links to me,” he said simply. And his control, his power, it was terrifying.

Terror was exactly the emotion reflected on Julia’s face. “That’s why we have to kill you,” she whispered, licking her lips. “If we’re ever going to be free, you have to die. He was right.”

He?

But Sabine didn’t get to question her. More glass exploded because more vampires were attacking, only these vampires were different.

Too many teeth.

Too many claws.

Primals. And not just the other two that had escaped from Genesis. At least seven primals had just leapt through the broken glass of the windows and rushed into the bar.

“We brought some backup,” Julia said. She smiled, flashing her fangs. “I bet you didn’t see that coming.”

No, they hadn’t.

The primals ran forward, attacking, but they weren’t going for Ryder.

All of those black claws, those sharp teeth—

They’re coming for me.

They closed in as Sabine screamed.

Keith paced around the small apartment. Midnight would be coming all too soon. They had to be ready. He glanced to the left, at the woman who stood so still and silent near the window. “You’re sure you can do this?”

She turned toward him. Small, with golden skin and wide, almond-shaped eyes, she didn’t look particularly strong.

But sometimes, strength wasn’t physical.

For her, it was all mental.

“If you bring me the phoenix, I should be able to save your son.”

Yes, he noticed her very careful should be. Because Cassandra Armstrong wasn’t going to make a promise she couldn’t keep. She was already nervous, already so scared he’d caught her hand shaking when she’d injected Vaughn with a sedative.

But Cassandra wasn’t going to break and run. She’d dealt with plenty of supernaturals before.

And she was his only hope. “She’s coming.” Little Sabine Acadia. Who would have known that she’d be the key to saving so many people?

“Is she coming . . . willingly?” Cassandra asked carefully.

Not exactly. But he nodded anyway. When it came to his son, willingness didn’t matter. Nothing mattered but saving Vaughn. Stopping him from being a monster.

But he didn’t tell Cassandra that part. She wouldn’t understand. She hated what Wyatt had done. She was on some quest to help the supernaturals, to make up for all the wrongs that Genesis had done to them.

Good f**king luck to her.

He just wanted his son back.

And he’d do anything, use anyone, if it meant that Vaughn could be more than just a killing machine.

When those bastards closed in on Sabine, something broke inside of Ryder. He didn’t care about control or caution. He had only one thought.

Kill them.

So the vampire with a stake at his own heart and the vampire with the gun at his head—they both turned instantly . . . and attacked the primals.

Julia screamed, even as she, too, lifted the weapon she’d tucked in her jeans and fired on the primals.

All those vampires who’d thought to take him out, Ryder turned them on the primals.

Take them out. Get their attention. Stop them. Kill them.

“Fucking bloodbath,” Grayson muttered. He tried to run forward and attack the primals, too.

Ryder grabbed his arm. Grayson was his oldest friend. That meant something. Even in the roar of his fury. “Stay back or you’ll die, too.”

“Staying the hell back,” Grayson agreed as he jumped behind the bar’s counter.

A primal sank his teeth into Julia’s throat. She screamed and fired her gun right into his heart.

One primal was already on the ground, a stake in his heart. Another primal had just ripped a gun away from his attackers.

But there were still others. Still too many vampires . . .

Get them away from Sabine.

Because he couldn’t hear her screams anymore. She had to be okay. Too many bodies were in his way. He couldn’t even see her.

Ryder tried to reach her mind. Sabine.

A wall of flames flickered in his mind’s eye.

Still flames. With her, he was starting to realize that would always be the case.

Then a vampire—a primal—flew back through the air. A stake was embedded in his heart.

“I’m not”—Sabine shoved her hair back over her shoulder and wiped away the blood that dripped down her chin—“helpless anymore. Not human . . . So back away!”

But they weren’t backing away.

The primals were slicing right through the other vampires, the other fools who’d been stupid enough to think they could control these predators.

But Ryder could attack. He could kill. Now that he knew Sabine was alive, he could actually think again.

He shoved his claws into the chest of one primal. Had his heart before the man could scream.

There were so many screams around him.

Ryder sliced the throat of another.

Sabine had a chair in her arms. When a primal vamp came at her, she shoved it at him. The chair leg sank into his chest.

The vamp fell to the floor.

The primals were dying. Those still living should have tried to run, but they just kept trying to get to Sabine.

Ryder grabbed the next bastard who was attempting to bite his woman.

“Need . . . her . . .”—the primal’s eyes looked blind—“her . . . blood . . .”

“You’re not getting it.” Ryder sliced his throat. Took his head. Dropped his body. Moved on to the next target. “None of you are getting to her.”

But the primals were so close to the one thing they wanted most—Sabine’s blood. And they were fighting with a wild ferocity as they realized that death was stalking them.

Because he sure as hell was.

Then one primal made the mistake of driving his fist into Sabine’s jaw. He yanked the makeshift weapon from her hands and shoved his fangs into her throat.

The world became a sea of red rage for Ryder.

He tore through everyone in his path. His claws sliced. His teeth bit. Flesh tore. Screams surrounded him.

Get to her.

Sabine’s arms came up. “Get away!”

The faintest tendril of smoke appeared between her and the primal.

Ryder reached out and grabbed the bastard—even as the primal started to howl in pain.

The primal’s chest was burning.

From the inside?

Ryder swung him around. The guy sliced out with his claws, digging deep.

And Ryder just laughed. Then he picked up the still-smoking bastard and tossed him across the room. The man slammed into the bar.