There was a new player to the game.

I looked back to the other wolves. The woman had already gotten back up and was trying to tag-team Jonah. The new arrival saw Jonah’s dilemma and decided on his target. There was no way that Jonah could handle three at once, no matter how talented he might have been.

And Noah wasn’t paying any attention to his brother.

The vampire stalked past me, not even noticing me crouched just beyond the open bedroom door. My muscles seemed to bunch on their own, readying for jump. My hackles rose.

He took two more steps before I lunged, feeling for a moment like I was flying through the air.

My jaws latched on the back of his neck. As he fell forwards, propelled by my attack, I gave a sharp jerk to the left.

Beginner’s luck must have been on my side.

Bones snapped under the pressure of my teeth and fangs.

I tried to remember to breathe through my nose as I landed on top of the vampire. I nearly stumbled but managed to keep my footing somehow. More of that luck, probably.

He was limp on the floor. I waited to the count of five to make sure he was down.

I let go.

Stumbled a few steps away.

And threw up.

Neither Jonah not Noah had noticed me take down the vampire, but they certainly noticed the sounds of my retching.

So did the other vampires.

With an unspoken agreement, they turned away from the brothers and lunged toward me. I had made the first kill, after all. Did they see me as the bigger threat? I might have laughed if not for the impeding danger converging on me.

Without thinking, I blindly bolted back into the suite.

Only blondie made it in behind me, the other two reengaged with Jonah and Noah from the sounds that drifted towards me.

I was cornered.

Both the doors to the bedrooms were shut and I didn’t have the time to open them. I dove over the back of the leather couch instead, claws digging into the floor to keep from sliding into the wall. I pivoted and darted back out towards the hallway, hoping that I’d be able to handle one vampire on my own in the open, where Noah or Jonah might be able to help.

I didn’t get that far.

A cold hand wrapped around my tail and pulled, my feet slipping out from under me as I was yanked backwards. I writhed around, trying to face my attacker head-on, but he was too quick for my untrained reflexes.

He released my tail only to leap on top of me and wrap his arms around my neck in a chokehold.

He squeezed.

Panic immediately set in and took over. I flailed, trying to control the panic and whip my head back to dislodge him. He only held on tighter, unaffected by my attempt. Black spots danced on the edges of my vision.

I managed to get my feet back under me and shakily stood. With who knew how many moments of consciousness left, I lurched toward a wall, smacking the vampire against it with all the strength I had left. His head thumped against it with a satisfying smack.

“Ow!” he howled, his hold on me relaxing as he instinctively reached for his injury. I took a deep gulp of air before taking a half step away from the wall before slamming him against the wall again.

He hold around my neck was gone, and I got the hell out of there as I hacked.

There was only one vampire left in the hall, the redhead face down in a pool of blood.

I darted behind Noah just as he and Jonah ripped apart the other vampire in half. The scream was bloodcurdling and only served to set me further on edge. Surely that method of death was a bit excessive?

Blondie stumbled out of the suite to find his comrades dead or dying. He must have decided enough was enough because he turned to run.

Jonah was faster.

He caught the vampire’s entire head in his jaw and bit down with what had to be the force of a bulldozer or something equally disturbing.

It was a quick death.

I wanted to throw up again. Or fall into a sleep so deep it would be considered a coma.

Instead, I coughed, sounding like a chain smoker. It got Jonah’s attention, his gaze shifting from the dead vampire at his feet and narrowing on me. I indulged in a full-body shake, releasing some of the stress and adrenaline. My hackles mostly settled.

I coughed again.

Something nudged me from behind, and I spun as I jumped, turning to face the new threat. It was only Noah, who tilted his head in the universal wolf and dog motion for ‘confusion.’ He tossed his head to Jonah, who looked to be waiting.

I took a tentative step towards Jonah. He dipped his head once in confirmation. He turned and walked away.

I followed. Noah stayed behind me.

As we walked through the halls to an unknown destination, I noticed a slight buzzing in my head. It was the pack bonds. Others must have shifted at some point, but I had thoroughly blocked them out or hadn’t opened myself to them. I focused inward and the voices slowly filtered in. I searched for my father, but his bond wasn’t there. Maddock’s bond was there, barking orders and demanding reports, so I assumed my father was serving as the link between our pack and Tobias’s.

He’s okay, I reassured myself. I tried to pick through the bits and pieces that I could hold onto, try to get the full picture of what was happening, but I just couldn’t focus on more than putting one paw in front of the other and staying close to Jonah.

As we continued, we passed other evidence of small battles with vampires: blood smeared on a wall, a pale hand missing the rest of its body, doors torn off their hinges, tufts of fur clumped with blood.

My stomach was far from empty, which I found out as I retched again. It burned my throat, causing me to immediately start coughing like an asthmatic having an attack. Jonah and Noah just waited for me to straighten again before continuing.

It took me too long to realize we were approaching the double doors of the conference room. I tried shaking my head again to clear the cobwebs that were making themselves at home, but it didn’t help. I was overwhelmed and overstimulated.

One of the doors opened, and my father’s concerned and worried face appeared in front of me. I couldn’t help the whimpering cry that escaped as he wrapped me in his strong arms and stroked my fur, whispering reassuring words that I couldn’t hear.

I was okay.

I’d survived.