There was a rush of movement somewhere in the dense fog, and the vampire screamed, the sound high and filled with fear and rage. Alexandria’s heart nearly stopped. If the vampire was that afraid, whatever was out there was something for her to be terrified of too. She caught Joshua to her, covering his eyes with her hands. They clung together, shaking.
Out of the fog a huge golden bird seemed to materialize. It came in at the beach so fast, it was a blur, talons extended, golden eyes gleaming intensely. The heavy fog swirled, then parted to reveal a shape half human, half bird. Alexandria stifled a scream of her own.
Then the creature became a man, huge, tall, and heavily muscled, with bulging arms and a massive chest. His hair was long and blond, flowing in the wind. His body moved with supple fluidity, like a jungle cat stalking its prey. His face was shadowed, but she could see eyes like molten gold pinning the vampire in their intensity.
“So, Paul, we meet at last.” The voice was beautiful, a ripple of notes so pure, the tone seemed to seep into her very soul. He stood tall and relaxed, a perfect reincarnation of a Viking warrior. “I have had much work cleaning up the messes you have made around my city. Your challenge was quite clear. I could do no other than oblige you.”
The vampire moved backward, putting more space between them. “I never challenged you. I kept my distance.” His voice was so fawning, Alexandria went cold. This hunter was so great a force to be reckoned with that he struck terror into the heart of the vampire.
The hunter tilted his head to one side. “You killed when it was forbidden. You know the law, unclean one.”
The vampire launched itself then, a blur of wicked claws and fangs as it leapt to strike the intruder down. The hunter simply stepped aside and casually whipped a claw across the vampire’s throat, laying him open. Blood erupted in a red volcano.
Alexandria was horrified to see the golden head contorting, the face lengthening to a muzzle, fangs exploding into a wolf’s mouth. The hunter snapped the vampire’s femur like a twig, the sound carrying across the beach and resonating through her body. She flinched and hugged Joshua tighter, holding his head down to prevent him from witnessing such a terrifying and gruesome scene.
The vampire wiped at the blood running down his chest and stared with hateful eyes at the golden hunter. “You think you are not like me, Aidan, but you are. You are a killer, and you rejoice in the battle. It is the only time you feel alive. No one can be one such as you and not feel the joy and power in the taking of life. Tell me, Aidan, is it not true that you can see no color in this world? That there is no emotion in you unless you are in battle? You are the ultimate killer. You, Gregori, and your brother Julian. You are the darkest shadows in our world. You are the real killers.”
“You have broken our laws, Paul. You chose to trade your soul for the illusion of power instead of greeting the dawn. And you turned a human woman, created a deranged vampiress to feed on the blood of innocent children. You knew the penalty.”
The voice was purity itself, a cool, clean stream of beauty. The tone seemed to flow into Alexandria’s mind, made her want to do whatever he asked. “You know there is no way to defeat me,” the voice continued, and Alexandria believed it. It was so soft and gentle, so true. There was no way anyone could successfully oppose the hunter. He was truly invincible.
“It will not be long before one must come to hunt you,” Paul Yohenstria taunted, struggling to stand. His form seemed to shimmer, dissolve, but even as he mutated, the hunter struck again.
The sound was sickening. The fog cloaked the actual assault, and the hunter was such a blur of motion, Alexandria could not possibly follow his movements. But out of the fog rolled an obscene sight—the vampire’s head, the hair a tangle of blood and gore, the eyes open and staring. The head rolled toward her, spilling a crimson trail behind it.