Bound By Blood (Bound #1)(11)
Author: Cynthia Eden

More howls from the wolves and screams from the demons. A demon’s scream sounded like nails ripping down a chalkboard. “What if I’d died? Jace had to pul me from the fire. He could have left me there. I would have burned.”

Devon just stared back at her with his soul ess blue eyes. “Then we would have known the plan wasn’t working.”

The big plan. To mix the blood of a vampire and a werewolf. To create a being strong enough to shut the doorway to hel , a being who’d be able to survive the fires of hel long enough to make sure that doorway stayed closed. Forever.

A vampire couldn’t do it on her own. Fire kil ed vamps too easily. At least, it had before. But today, the fire hadn’t destroyed her. An inferno that should have kil ed her had only left her with blisters.

“You just need more blood from him,” Devon said with a nod. “More blood, and you’l be strong enough for the job.”

Paul had moved to peer through the series of spy holes located along the room’s perimeter. “Or he wil be.”

Now Devon final y showed emotion. Confusion. “What?”

Paul whistled. “That wolf is cutting right through the demons. Slashing every last one. Never seen anything like this…”

She shoved him aside and stared through the spy hole. Her gaze locked on the wolf, a wolf that was bigger than he had been last night. The giant black beast turned around and Jace’s bright stare flew past her as he snarled.

His teeth and claws were covered with blood.

“He’s not supposed to be that big,” Devon muttered. “I’ve seen him shift before, he’s not—” Devon broke off as he caught her arm and jerked her toward him. “You let him drink from you.”

Her shoulder seemed to burn, and she remembered his bite. “You know the rules of a werewolf mating. He had to drink.”

But Devon started shaking his head. “I didn’t realize…the bastard knew! ”His hands wrapped around her shoulders, and he hauled Morgan off her feet. “Don’t give him anymore blood.” Spittle flew from his mouth.

“What? Look, you know you don’t have to worry about me turning him. Werewolves can’t become vampires.”

The transformation from human to vampire was brutal. The victim had to be near death, a heartbeat away from the afterlife. The vampire had to drain her prey and then force him to drink her own blood.

Only…werewolves had never transformed. Vamps had tried to change a few of them, centuries before, but it hadn’t worked. Their beasts were too strong to die. They couldn’t transform.

Devon had told her that. He’d been the one to “experiment” on those unlucky wolves in the past.

Did Jace know? Did he realize that Devon had captured wolves over the centuries and sliced them apart to see how much pain they could take? To learn how fast they’d regenerate?

Know your enemy. One of Devon’s favorite phrases.

Asshole.

He’d ruled the vampires in this area for too long. But now he wasn’t the strongest vamp in the room.

I am.

Devon didn’t even seem to see her as he said, “They can’t become like us…” His gaze stared at the past. “Fucking animals…should have seen it…didn’t think…” He spun around and his fist slammed into the wal . “They can become more.”

The screams stopped, but the howls didn’t. They grew louder. Wilder. The wolves had won. Vanquished the demons.

“More wil come,” Paul said and she knew he was right. The flood of demons wouldn’t stop, not until that doorway was blocked.

Time to shut that door. If a demon was left alive, they could force him to show them the entrance to hel .

“You can’t, Morg. You’re not strong enough,” Paul said. Ah, Paul, he knew her so wel . She glanced over at him. “Guess we’l see about that.”

He flinched and there was no missing the worry on his face.

It had been three years since she’d turned him. He was the only human she’d ever turned. Sometimes, she wondered…did he wish that she’d just left him to die?

“You can’t let him drink from you again!” Devon was stil screeching as she marched away from him. “Morganna! Do you hear me? You can’t?”

She threw a hard glance back at him. “You forget yourself, Devon. You can no longer tel me what I can or cannot do.” She bared her teeth at him. “I’m not part of the vampire nest anymore.”

His lips parted.

“I’m wolf.” So shove that down your throat and choke on it.

“You don’t understand. I didn’t realize—he’l become more! ”

She yanked open the door and the scent of hel hit her. “He already is.” And he’s mine. Morgan strode into the sunlight. The big, black wolf stood in the middle of the carnage. When he saw her step out of the compound, his body tensed.

But the battle was over. His men were already shifting back to their human forms.

He began to shift as wel .

And that was when the other two demons dropped from the sky behind him.

Demons…so tricky. So deceptive. They’d waited until he was weak. His attention divided. Because of me.

“No!” She screamed even as they slashed at Jace. Their claws sank into his back.

She moved faster than she’d ever moved in her life. She grabbed the first demon and twisted his head. The snap barely slowed her down. She turned for the other hel spawn

—

But Jace’s men had already ripped him apart.

She spun back around. Jace stood before her, naked, body heaving, blood pouring from him. Fear tightened her throat. “Jace?”

His eyes were blind, not seeming to see her at al . She stared down at his chest.

The demon’s fist and claws had ripped right through him, back to front, and, oh, no, please…

The demon had cut through his heart.

Chapter Five

Morgan caught Jace before he fel . A scream ripped from her as she held him as tightly as she could.

And she knew what she had to do.

She’d found Paul like this. He’d been beaten, bleeding out, dying in a dirty al ey al alone. He hadn’t been able to speak because a knife had been stuck in his throat. His lips had trembled and he’d mouthed, Help me.

She had. A stranger, and she’d given him forever.

She’d damn wel save the man she’d taken as husband.

She lowered Jace gently to the ground. The pack closed in around her, nearly blocking the light. Louis stood right beside her. She grabbed his hand before he could stop her. His claws were stil out, and she sliced them down the length of her throat.