The other vamp landed two solid blows to his kidney. Dmetri was sure that if he could still piss that hit would make him piss blood.

The vamp with the busted smile growled, his jagged, bloodied mouth pulled into a snarl.

“You should see a dentist about that. Gingivitis and all that.” The vamp went wild, charging at him like a bull. Dmetri took a deep breath and timed it perfectly. Right as the vamp nearly slammed into him, he stepped to the side and wrapped his arm around the vamp’s neck. With a vicious yank, he pulled the vamp’s head in the opposite direction until he heard a nasty pop of bone. The vamp fell lifeless to the floor. A solid silver blade to the heart and the bastard would stay dead.

The second vamp was smarter; he didn’t charge but bounced on his feet side to side, eyes wide, teeth bared, readying his attack. Dmetri’s gaze flicked to the silver blade in the grass some twenty feet away. Fuck. And it was near the fuming vamp.

He made his plan in an instant, acting without much thought since the only thing fueling him was getting back to Christine.

“Why aren’t you attacking the Kategans? Why me?” Distract, then attack.

The vamp shook his head, blinking fast. Then in a quicken voice said, “Kill Dmetri, kill woman. Remove greatest threats. Kill Brayden.” He slammed his hand against his skull. “Kill Vane, kill all Kategans. Kill all Kategans. Kill all Kategans.” Dmetri relaxed his body, letting the vampire see his open hands, slack shoulders. He took it for weakness, a dying of his defenses, and charged with fangs bared. Dmetri flew into a sidekick and landed his kick solidly in the vamp’s stomach. Damn, but he didn’t go down. The vamp wheezed, then slashed forward with another blade. Dmetri raised his arms, blocking each possible blow, then slammed his foot forward catching the vamp’s knee. Bone cracked, and his howl sounded through the community.

Dmetri didn’t take time to see the neighboring house lights turning on. He dove for the blade, rolling to the ground and gripping it hard. He came to a stand in a deft move and let the blade fly by the tips of his fingers.

The vampire stopped in mid-step on a gnarled cry. He looked down at the silver blade protruding from his heart, and then his skin turned ashen white and he dropped lifelessly to the ground.

He heard a crowd forming. Heard shouts, but his only thought was Christine. His heart pounded like a thousand horses galloping, and he ran to the unconscious vamp with busted teeth and jammed the blade into his heart too. The vamp paled instantly, body stilling with death.

Dmetri sprinted, shouldered through the front door, and then his heart stopped beating.

Time stood still as Claude pulled back from Christine’s neck with a bloody smile. Her eyes slid shut, body falling lifelessly to the floor.

Dmetri’s roar could have been heard halfway across the globe. Fury unlike he’d ever felt slammed through his veins, tightening his muscles with an insane need for violence—and all of that violence centered on Claude Phelans.

Dmetri sped through the air. He caught Claude’s shoulders and sent them both flying to the ground, the metal dagger flying out of his hand, forgotten in his rage. His fist met Claude’s mouth, nose, and eyes with the hard crunch of breaking bones. Claude laughed beneath him, and Dmetri clenched his fist tighter, hitting him harder until his arm burned, and his shoulder ached.

Suddenly he was thrown back through the air. His back slammed against the couch, sending it skirting up the floor and into the TV. Metal cracked, glass shattered.

Dmetri stood, squaring off with a man whose face was now unrecognizable over the blood covering it. Still the flash of white fangs came through the bloody mess.

Claude attacked first. Hard blows landed across Dmetri’s face, deep into his chest until felt his ribs poking out his back. Still, he fought back with each hit of his own—only harder, angrier. From the corner of his eye, he saw movement.

At first he thought it was help coming. Fuck, he could use Brayden right about now. But a particularly hard blow knocked the wind out of him and sent him to his knees, and he realized it was Christine. Shit. He wanted to scream at her to stay down, to let him finish this, but he couldn’t risk it.

Claude landed a right hook that made his vision blacken. Dmetri shook his head to clear it and threw his own jab. But his body was tiring, slowing down from the knife wound, from all the fighting, and Claude easily dodged it and landed one of his own that had his brain slamming around in his skull.

“You won’t win this, Claude.”

The maniac laughed. “I will. I already have my men storming the Kategans at this very moment. I will kill them, that asshole Brayden who sentenced me, and of course you. Though getting a drink from your woman was only an added bonus.” He licked his lips as if remembering the taste of her blood. Dmetri saw red.

With one last burst of energy, he rammed his shoulder into Claude’s chest, knocking him hard to the ground. His energy depleted faster than a leaking gas tank. Leaping onto Claude took everything out of him. He couldn’t seem to draw in air fast enough, his muscles burned with fatigue. With only one attack left, he bared his fangs and chewed into Claude’s neck. The vamp screamed, his arms struggling to push him away, but Dmetri held tighter, sucking as hard and fast as he could.

Fuck, he tasted Christine’s blood mixed with Claude’s own wretched taste. He wanted to kill this man a hundred times, and even then that might not be enough to satisfy him. Claude continued to hammer blows against his head, trying to dislodge him but Dmetri bit harder, holding fast until his struggles slowed, grew sloppy.

A hand touched his shoulder. Dmetri roared and turned ready to kill, but his jaw fell open.

“Christine?” She was alive. She stood beside him looking incredibly brave...and had the silver dagger in her hand. “Give me the dagger,” he said softly.

She shook her head hard. “I’m going to do it.”

He could barely hear the words for they were strained and hoarse. But then she let out a battle cry—hoarse but beautiful—and dropped to her knees, slamming the dagger into Claude’s heart.

The vampire stilled, eyes darting side to side in one last frantic struggle for life. And then he expelled his last breath of air and his eyes moved no more.

“Dmetri,” she croaked, collapsing against him with a sob.

Relief poured through him, feeling better than an angel’s touch. His heart pounded with a surge of happiness and glee, something he’d never felt before. He wrapped his good arm around her, then grimaced until he got the other around her too. Then he simply held her battered body.

“You did great.”

She choked the sound almost a laugh. “I love you.”

He waited for the panic to come, but he’d be waiting ages for it, because it never came.

Only soul-wrenching happiness and satisfaction. In that moment, he realized something so great that he fumbled to put words to it.

“Christine I...”

Suddenly, everyone poured into the room. Brayden, the Kategans, sentries. Everyone spoke at once as orders were given and carried out. Dmetri pulled Christine into his arms and sat with her against the wall as the dead body of Claude was carried outside.

Vane Kategan approached them, dark shadows lined under his eyes. “You guys okay?” Dmetri held Christine’s trembling form and nodded. “We’re fine now. You?” Vane ground his jaw side to side, his eyes raw with pain. “Everyone was attacked, but we managed to take care of it. No one died. But them,” he said darkly.

Dmetri nodded. As people talked and moved around them, he let his eyes close and simply held his woman. It felt so right—better than anything ever had, and he knew he could never let it go.