Karina-
I hear him before I see him.
His wolf is huge, and as it runs around, tearing into Father's soldiers, I let out a shudder. One would think that having one wolf against more than a hundred vampires would obviously bring the wolf to a disadvantage. But as the infamous hunter growls and buries his teeth into the heart of one vampire, at the same time kicking the one who's running toward him with his hind feet, there is one thing I do not doubt.
He truly lives up to the name of Vampire Hunter.
Someone kneels beside me, causing me to look up in alarm, before calming down when I see that it's Gavin, my childhood friend.
I freeze up again when I see the stern look in his eyes, reminding me of the fact that I shouldn't be here in the first place.
"What in tarnation are you doing here, K?"
Uh-oh.
To hide my fear, I lift my chin, posing a defiant look. "I'm watching the fight. What does it look like?"
Gavin lets a low growl. "Are you mad, Karina? Do you not see who we're fighting against? If the Vampire Hunter gets a hold of you, you're gone. And your father will never be at rest. Leave here. Now."
Normally, I'm supposed to be a very sensible and obedient girl, and I'm to immediately stand and go far away from this vicinity.
My raised chin goes even higher. "No."
Gavin's eyes turn red, and he growls before lifting me and throwing me over his shoulder. "I will deal with you after this -"
I do not have the chance to hear what he has to say next, because a powerful force hits us where we are, throwing Gavin off his feet and throwing us very far away from where he was initially standing.
For a moment I'm in daze, but when I look up, stars dancing around my eyes, my gaze locks with those of a pair of golden orbs.
Involuntarily I gasp. My heart pounds with excitement in my chest as I stare at the wolf form of the famed Vampire Hunter, Jonas Garrett, standing before me in all his glory.
But when his eyes turn dark, I realize that I, a vampire, am standing in front of a Vampire Hunter.
And when he growls, I realize how big a mistake that is for any vampire, talkless of a female one with little to no experience in fighting.
Oh Karina, you stupid, stupid girl.
I break into an inhuman sprint, my heart still pounding, but with fear instead of excitement this time. At the rate with which I'm going, one would think a wolf wouldn't be able to catch up with me.
Such thoughts don't apply to this wolf, apparently. I can still feel his presence as I race through the woods. His scent is everywhere, and it would have been nice to bask in it, had he been trying to just talk to me instead of wanting to rip my throat out. I'm somewhat tempted to just stop and turn to him in the spirit of delegation, but something tells me he's more of a "kill now, speak later" kind of guy.
And though I'm technically dead, I'm not sure I'd like to die again. Even if it's at the hands- paws of the most handsome wolf I've ever met.
Did I just call a wolf handsome?
Shut it, Karina!
I'm still running, but now I'm oblivious to my surroundings, more concentrated on the internal battle in my head than the fact that I'm being tailed by a professional hitman. Hitwolf. Whichever floats his boat. However, this doesn't help me at all, because I stumble upon a tree root. Not used to the speed at which I've been racing, I fall immediately, and in the blink of an eye, his presence looms over me, menacing, yet for some odd reason...hot. And I don't mean temperature wise.
For a moment there's silence, and my eyes are shut tight as I brace myself for what is to come.
"A princess, at a battleground. Never thought I'd see the day," a voice devoid of all emotion says.
Wait...I'm not dead?
I slowly peel my eyelids open, and I blink when I realize that he's not on top of me anymore. Instead, my hands and feet are tied.
How did he do that so fast?
Now, I know what you're thinking. I'm supposed to scream. Shout. Use my royal pheromones to drown him in pain. Or just hypnotize him (this is not possible on other nightly creatures, by the way).
But no. I'm staring at his shifted form, my mouth agape. He's dressed up quite nicely, and the only thing menacing about his get up is the long sword at his waist.
"Why haven't you killed me?"
He gives me a side look, then faces the tree he was staring at before. "Because I have a much better idea in mind. Far better than outright murder."
"What's better than death?" I ask, sincerely confused. I mean, I know I'm 'undead,' but is there truly anything worse? "You want to torture me?"
"I guess you could say that."
With that, his eyes turn grey, and I can swear that he's doing that mind link stuff all wolves have.
For a short while, I'm there, bound on the floor, and he's statuesque, silence all around us. But soon after his eyes snapped back to blue orbs, and he looks down at me.
"We'd best be going."
With that, he picks me up in his arms, and, ignoring my gasp at that actions, begins to walk through the woods, acting as though he hadn't just killed hundreds of soldiers.
I'm screwed.