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“Of course, my friend. I love sucking in a vile soul.” He pats his stomach. “I’m a bit famished, anyway.”

“I’ll owe you,” I tell him.

“Don’t worry about it. Just let me visit whenever I want. And I want to ride Mustache Man.”

I bump shoulders as I pass him. “Fine. I don’t care what you want. It’s yours.” I stop at the entrance of the cave, staring out at the vast, beautiful land of Alaska as the clouds part.

My world feels like it’s ending, but everyone else’s keeps spinning. Life goes on, no matter how bad the situation gets. I can’t breathe. It’s as if my heart has been ripped from my chest or silver has been poured into my veins because every breath without Leo near me is fatal.

I inhale again, needing Leo’s scent to tell me which way he went. It’s harder to track him up here. His blood is surrounding me, and I can’t figure out which way the scent is leading me.

“Focus,” Lorcan’s voice becomes deeper. “Don’t think of his blood. Think of his soul and how it is calling out for you.”

I close my eyes, my fangs throbbing, aching for his blood. I paint my lips with the nectar I found in the cave, his flavor bursting across my tongue. I focus on him, his love, his mind, and my eyes snap open, my vision tunneling in dark garnet.

A pull dares me to take a right out of the cave. Dragging my claws across the rocks, I engrave my presence onto the mountain forever. My boots sink into the ever-growing snow sheet gathering on the edge.

I follow the trail around, coming to the side where there is a large empty area.

I recognize it.

This is where he crashed his plane.

The hunter has Leo by the throat, and instead of claws threatening to rip his jugular out, it’s an arrow.

“About time you got here!” His voice echoes through the valley. “I was wondering if you loved him at all.” He drags the sharp metal point across Leo’s cheek, opening his beautiful flesh until blood drips free.

I snarl, blurring forward until I’m only a few feet away. God, Leo is in bad shape. His skin has lost its golden luster. His eyes are hooded with exhaustion. The heartbeat I love to listen to is slower than usual from too much blood loss.

“He really is a pretty thing.” The hunter drags the arrow down Leo’s chest, and the tip is so sharp that it slices his shirt in half. “Well, no wonder you’re so obsessed with him. I can see why.”

“Get your fucking hands off him,” I growl.

“Or what? I think you forget who holds all the cards here,” he chuckles, sucking his tongue over his blunt teeth. “I hate that he has to die, but Ceroes needs you dead, Alaska.”

I step forward, and the hunter steps back, closer to the edge. “Why? I haven’t done anything to him to warrant my death.”

“He thinks you’re weak. The entire line he created when consumption spread like wildfire? You aren’t as strong as he wanted you to be. He wants to start new, and luckily for him, the only one left from that time is you. I’ve been hunting those vampires for nearly a century. It took me a while to find you, especially.” He points the arrow at me, keeping Leo upright with his other arm.

My nostrils flare when I smell more blood. My vision zooms in on Leo’s side. He’s drenched in red. The snow beneath him is turning a murderous shade.

“This seems to be between you and me. Leave Leo out of it.”

“You’d like that, wouldn’t you?” He pushes Leo to the side, keeping a tight grip on my mate’s neck. “Any last words, Leo?” The hunter purrs, even going as far as kissing Leo’s cheek.

I snarl in warning.

No one touches my mate like that.

Fucking no one.

I leap forward, speeding my way to Leo. The hunter smirks, and he tosses Leo off the side of the mountain.

The same mountain he nearly died on a week ago.

“Leo!” I roar, sliding onto my knees toward the edge.

I watch in horror as he looks up at me, those big green eyes filling with tears. His curls dance. One hand lies across his stomach while the other reaches for me.